Games I Can't Put Down: Mass Effect 2 (PS3)

I've been curious about Mass Effect 2 since I heard about the rave reviews. It was an X-Box 360 and I really don't follow them. They have great titles but I have a PS3. I just didn't see what the hype was about. It won various game of the year awards too. I didn't really pay it any mind until I heard it was going to be released on Sony's Black Behemoth. Even then I almost slept on it. After downloading the excellent demo and reading updated reviews I took the plunge.

I'm a big gamer but not as hardcore as I used to be. I try to work on my art more than I play. The trade off is that I play less but the games I do play are AAA. Mass Effect 2 is an amazing title. It's really one of the best games I've ever played. Unfortunately Microsoft owns the rights to Mass Effect 1 so that will never be ported to PS3. To handle this (The choices you make in Mass Effect 1 effect how 2 is.) Dark Horse put in an interactive comic to fill in the gaps. It works pretty well. It doesn't replace the experience of playing through the entire game but oh well.

The story itself is an intergalactic space adventure. You play as humanity's savior, Shepherd. He dies in the first minutes of the game when aliens attack. Thankfully he's revived by a covert corporation called Cerberus. Apparently they used to be Shepherd's enemies. The jest of the solid narrative is that you're traveling the universe to create a team strong enough to stop The Collectors and The Reapers from destroying humanity and the universe. I absolutely love the freedom. The game at times plays like a choose your own adventure. You create your avatar and choose how they behave on and off the field.

Gameplay feels like a cover based shooter with rpg elements thrown in. It reminds me of Halo and Resident Evil 4 actually. Characters are believable and very well written. Like Uncharted the game is good about making you care about it's cast. That's it though. This is a must play title and I'm very happy it's on PS3 now. I'm already looking forward to Mass Effect 3!


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Games I can't put down: Final Fantasy XIII

I just got Final Fantasy XIII last month and I absolutely love it. It puts you right into the action from the jump and doesn't let up. The game takes place on a planet called Cocoon. The story follows six characters as they try to fight their fate and basically defy their gods. Citizens of Cocoon are afraid of the planet underneath them called Pulse. People become cursed because of it and are forced to leave Cocoon. The banished people are sent to Pulse.

Lightning (the would be protagonist) is similar to a female Cloud Strife. She was a soldier that left her rank to save her sister, Serah who became cursed by Pulse. Lightning is easily my favorite character. She just doesn't take anyones shit. Snow is Serah's fiancé and leader of a resistance group called Nora. He helps to fight against Cocoon. I found Snow obnoxious for like half the game. His hero complex is ridiculous. Fortunately he does mature a little later on. Sazh is a former pilot and he joined the latest cursed victims for his own reasons. (small spoiler: his son is cursed.) Sazh is cool. He's like the Eddie Murphy of the group.

He's sensible but comedic too. He's definitely one of the more defined characters in the game. His role as a parent and an older character is done very well. Plus it doesn't hurt that he's not a stereotype like Barrett from FF VII. Hope is the youngest party member. His character was definitely a slow burn for me. Initially I couldn't stand his weak demeanor. It makes sense though. He suffers a tragedy early on and he's just a kid. Thankfully he does become strong and learns to stand up for himself. His character arc was very good.

Vanielle is the plucky magician of the group. Her bubbly personality drove me crazy at first. The game does delve into her character later though. Vanielle has a lot of depth and carries around a deep sorrow that she hides by being so upbeat. Another slow burn for me but she comes around too. Fang is another warrior woman and my second fave. Like Lightning she's very blunt and no nonsense. I love her story and she actually reminds me of Auron from X.

My favorite part of the campaign isn't so much the story, it's the characters. They're some of the most well rounded, flawed and relatable characters in a Final Fantasy game. I do like the story but it's not as strong as X or XII for. There are parts of the game that are very convoluted. I found myself referring to the game notes to make sense of some things. It's not game ruining or anything. It is a solid story. It just has some shortcomings. The gameplay is absolutely amazing. It has hands down the most entertaining and flat out fun battle system.

I love how fast paced it is. You control one character while the rest are controlled by A.I. (which is very good btw.) You queue up your attacks, spells, potions and etc with the time gauge. It's really amazing how every thing works. You can even change classes and also strategies in battles. I swear this game took the this I loved about X, X-2 and XII and mashed them up. What I don't like so much is the lack of variety in side quests. The battle system is amazing but when all you can do is grind after the last boss it gets tedious.

I'm 80 plus hours in know and grinding like crazy. The fact I've made time for my art too still mystifies me.




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Apps I Use Daily: IGN

I'm definitely a fan of video games so a while ago I looked for an app that would keep me informed on them. I used to go to several sites to do this but I needed one source. The IGN app does that for me. I get the latest information from their site and daily videos. That's especially important since their videos don't use HTML 5. It crashes from time to time but that isn't a huge problem. It's an effective app.


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Location:Sunset Dr,New Haven,United States

Games I can't put down: Batman Arkham Asylum

Batman Arkham Asylum is without a doubt the best superhero game I have ever played. Rocksteady(the developer) literally makes you feel like Batman. The story follows the Caped Crusader as he apprehends The Joker and brings him into Arkham Asylum.(Gotham's own super villain revolving door.) Unfortunately this is part of The Joker's plan and he quickly takes over the prison. He even causes a fire at Black Gate prison to have his gang transferred to Arkham. The storyline is very well done and takes villains like The Scarecrow, and Killer Croc and weaves them into a gripping narrative.

Batman himself is portrayed very well. He's ruthless and cunning but also sticks to his strict moral code. Basically Batman doesn't kill anyone and he saves the innocent. Arkham Asylum puts you into many situations where you have to save guards and criminals alike. Bruce Wayne's origins are also addressed in game too. I won't ruin the way it plays out put there are scenes in this game that just leave your jaw on the floor. The gameplay is no slouch either. The game utilizes Free Flow Combat. Basically you can attack, batarang, and leap in all directions. Batman can also counter various attacks and perform special takedowns.

Combat is ridiculously fun. There are seemingly countless combinations. The game will award you with more experience points the better you fight too. You can't have a Batman game without stealth and this is another area where the game excels. Batman can hide in the shadows and grapple from the ceiling to avoid detection. Enemies can be taken down with glide kicks, batarangs and my favorite: the inverted takedown. If you've seen Batman Begins you know what I mean. The main game is spectacular aside from the lame final battle. There are also various challenge modes. You can even play as The Joker on PS3.

These modes consist of combat and stealth missions. Each of them have conditions that challenge your skills too. For example you may have to pounce on an enemy from above a glass ceiling or takedown a foe from around a corner. These modes give the game a lot of replay value. All in all this is a superb game. Even if you're not an avid comic reader this game shouldn't be missed.


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Location:Campbell Ave,West Haven,United States

Games I can't put down: Bayonetta

I've been a fan of the Devil May Cry series and Viewtiful Joe. Those were some of the best games I ever played on Playstation. When The creator, Hideki Kamiya was working on a new action series I was very curious. At first glance I thought it looked terrible. I mean a witch that uses her hair to fight angels? I mean Devil May Cry was a crazy game but it was an over the top action game. Viewtiful Joe was like playing an animated movie. You could manipulate the whole environment.

Bayonetta didn't make since to me until I played it. I actually downloaded it from the Japanese Playstation Network. It was just too fun. The mechanics were like Viewtiful Joe and DMC combined. You could pull off combos, acrobatics and gunplay but the the game also rewarded split second timing. If you dodged an attacker at the right time Bayonetta would trigger magic called Witch Time. Anyone familiar with the mechanics used in The Matrix know what I mean. The combat is just a sight to behold. It's amazing.

Basically Bayonetta is a witch that was a part of a clan called the Umbra Witches. The witches fought together with the Lumen Sages until an untold event tore them apart. The Witch Hunts started and the Umbra got wiped out. Fast forward to the present and you learn Bayonetta is unearthed from a watery grave. (She dies several times and revives apparently) She makes a career out of taking jobs to hunt angels. If she doesn't kill angels every day she'll get dragged back down to Hell.(That's the deal witches make to become one.) Her contact and driver is an overweight mafioso stereotype named Enzo. Bayonetta's demonic gunsmith is Rodin.

Bayonetta's mission is to restore her lost memories by any means necessary. She travels to Europe and meets Luka. He's a reporter and he blames Bayonetta for killing her father when he was still a child. (That gets explained too.) I didn't really like him until towards the end. He's actually a great foil for Bayonetta. Not that this game has a story on par with Uncharted 2 or Metal Gear Solid 4 or anything.

The other thing I really enjoy about the game is the humor. This game is straight up hilarious. Bayonetta herself is almost a parody of a hyper sexualized action heroine. The game will pan around to her boobs or ass constantly in the cutscenes. Her taunts include her gyrating her hips. It's all a joke though. Thankfully it's not creepy like Dead Or Alive Xtreme. The game never takes itself seriously until the end. Even when she's in danger she's making jokes and strutting her stuff. The way the cutscenes play out are so ridiculous.

The supporting cast doesn't add too much to the game. They do have their own personalities and motives but they're never really explored. I feel like Rodin was very underused. He's definitely my favorite side character. The story about Cereza (Spoilers if I get into it.) was cool but protecting her wasn't very fun. With the multiple difficulty settings, new game plus and many unlock able weapons and features this is one game I will be holding on too.






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Location:Blake St,New Haven,United States

Games I can't put down: Uncharted 2: Among Thieves

Uncharted 2: Among Thieves is the sequel to the first generation Playstation 3 game Uncharted: Drake's Fortune. It's about the continuing adventures of the reluctant thief with a heart of gold, Nathan Drake.TV reporter Elena Fisher (she was a love interest from the first game. She's also one of the most well done female characters ever done in a video game.) is back and Sully makes a fitting cameo.(Victor Sullivan is like Drake's mentor and fellow adventurer.)

Drake is taking a break from treasure hunting when he's approached by his old partner, Harry Flynn and Chloe Frazer. (An old flame of Drake's but Flynn doesn't know that.) They talk him into going on an expedition to find the treasures that Marco Polo had on his lost fleet. I can't forget the game's ruthless antagonist, Zoran Lazarevic. I'm surprised just how many people he gets to off in the game. Basically the story is a masterstroke. I absolutely love the way it unfolds. The game genuinely makes you care about the characters. They feel like real people. I especially like the way they interact with each other.

The game itself takes the best aspects of Tomb Raider, and Gears of War and expands on them. You can go from running and gunning on the top of a moving train car to using stealth to taking down foes. It's all so seamless and the game only loads when you start it up. The set pieces are the best I've played in a video game. They all the serve the story and create a cinematic experience. What's hilarious is that the game is so captivating my girlfriend and her brother watched me play through it from start to finish. It's that good. The game also gives you some nice weapons to dispatch foes with.

Their are pistols, rocket launchers, machine guns, crossbows and more. Thankfully you can grab ammo from fallen foes too. Sometimes their are just too many enemies in some sections. (toward the end especially.) it isn't a huge deal though. Using stealth usually makes matters easier. His takedowns are mad cool. I have to mention traversing Nepal, Borneo, and Tibet is literally breathtaking the first time. The variety and the attention to detail make this my favorite game of all time. It's like playing a summer action blockbuster. I feel like starting a new game as I write this.


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Location:Onyx St,New Haven,United States