Well, that was an interesting start to the day; being told there’s a pigeon in the garage. We had to cover the closed windows with rugs and other nonsense so it knew which of them was actually open, and didn’t brain itself when trying to fly out. All’s well that ends well.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
So, how about that E3, eh?<\/p>\n
I haven’t been paying attention to it, to be frank. I only got news about it when friends felt the need to share stuff with me. I find it more interesting that way, as if I actually gave a damn, I’d probably be in agony waiting news on games I’m interested in, but since I don’t, I can just ignore the entire event and then look up very convenient summaries<\/a>. Life comes up peaches.<\/p>\n So, the Wii U<\/a><\/strong>. Internet hilarity! The name sounds like a Lolcat interpretation of a generic sitcom catchphrase, and the controller is like a Wii Remote, a Classic Controller and an oversized Dreamcast VMU got into a very creative car crash. From a technological viewpoint, the controller really intrigues me – I thought the VMU was a great idea, but the fact it gobbled batteries something fierce and only existed in a slightly awkwardly shaped controller was a bit of a turnoff. Not that this is much better, mind you; the controller looks like a twelve-inch block of plastic. It does not look very ergonomic. Dragon’s Crown<\/a>:<\/strong><\/em> A new game by Vanillaware, the peeps behind Odin Sphere and Muramasa: The Demon Blade! I only started playing Muramasa recently; I’ll reserve judgment until I sink more hours into it (combat is good, the rest is a bit of a slog), but I love those high-detail 2D graphics, so having them on a HD console sounds brilliant. It looks like a spiritual successor to Capcom’s Dungeons & Dragons<\/em> arcade games, which ain’t a bad thing at all. Rayman Origins<\/a>:<\/strong><\/em> Well, the gameplay doesn’t seem to carry over many elements from the other Rayman<\/em> games, but\u00a0 hey, I’m not complaining – we’re getting another co-op 2D platformer on the market! The visuals are fantastic looking and the very basic controls look intriguing. I do get the impression I’d get tired of looking at Globox’s stupid face after mere minutes, though. Am I the only one who thinks he actually looked better in 3D?<\/p>\n
\nI’ll be interested to see what kind of audience Nintendo aims for this time. The stronger technology, higher price and new controller seem like they’re trying to remember their old vidya games market, and I kinda get the impression the new controller and higher price will turn off the casual market. Then again, what do I know? I doubt I’ll be in any rush to get one, though. My Wii only gets regular usage when I buy a new game, and I haven’t touched my DS in donkey’s years. If they can get better third-party support, that might step up their game.<\/p>\n
\nThe character designs are a bit hit-and-miss, though; the exaggerated cartooniness could work if it didn’t also try to juggle high-detail realism and generic anime style at the same time. The Fighter and the Elf hit that good sweet spot, but the Dwarf is a bit too outlandish (though still a great design), and the Amazon looks like someone’s muscle girl fetish art ripped clean from deviantART without much attempt to make her suitable for animation. The Sorceress is… well, wobbly<\/strong>. I think it’s a neat character design, though I am a touch biased. Meanwhile, the Wizard is just a total bore.
\nIt’s fantastic artwork, and I like it when Vanillaware steps their character designs outside of stock anime tropes, but it’s all down to personal taste. Pity it’s only for the PS3. If that new Sony handheld turns out to be worthwhile (ie. homebrew!) then I might seek it out, but, yeah, I guess this is “look, don’t touch” for now. Shame.
\nwobble wobble wobble<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n