Gaming

It’s been a while since I’ve done one of these, but I come across new gaming blogs all the time. I thought I’d highlight a few of them here.

I’ll start off with a blog that I thought I already had in my blogroll, but somehow had omitted. Siliconera has been blogging the good fight for a long time. I’ve been a reader for a while, but had no idea I left them off the Link List.

Sickr is a blog with a Nintendo angle like none other. Lots of good Wii stuff going up there all the time.

Wii Nation – Take a wild guess what they’re all about. Lots of videos. Maybe too many?

A Day in the Life of Video Games has some interesting stories from a couple guys who apparently work at a Video Game store. If you’ve ever read the Acts of Gord, you’re well aware of the comedic goldmine that is the retail video game store.

The Zen Space Chronicles is very well written blog that’s more than just video games – it’s got comics, movies, everything. Very much worth the read.

Intendo – Wow, you’d think we could get enough Nintendo blogs, but you’d be wrong! You’ve probably already been by Intendo before, as his little scuffle with Infendo garnered some linkage a while back. Still worth checking, as his stuff is still good.

Masem’s Gaming Blog is a no-nonsense gaming blog where he actually blogs about the games he’s playing, not linking to things like Mario wedding cakes or Bubble Bobble graffiti (not that there’s anything wrong with that!). Another well written blog that’s been added to my Bloglines subscriptions.

As PosionMushroom.org states – he’s “combing the internet” so we don’t have to. It’s true, he’s producing a metric ton of links. Tough to keep up with!

Video Jocks is a new site I found recently that, judging by the name, will be sports oriented, but what I’ve read so far has been pretty general gaming news. They also have a podcast that might be worth checking out.

GamingParents.org is a site run by a doctor (a pediatrician, actually) who’s also a gamer. They’ve got some good resources for parents, but what caught my eye was a section where you can vote on games and what age is appropriate for each game. This would actually be a good resource if the list was more complete and more people voted on the games. While the main site is updated very frequently, it seems like a good site to keep an eye on.

The Last Boss is a very sharp looking blog that has an interesting premise – they’re called the “Last Boss” because, as they say, “… we’re sick of playing heroes, it’s time villains had their say. This time the bad guys have the cheat codes.” Awesome.

I’m always on the look-out for new blogs, so let me know if you’ve found one I’ve missed. I’ve given up on keeping track of all of them, but I do check out most blogs I link on a regular basis. Not every blog is unique, but I have found a lot of good writing out there and it’s good to see gamers of all stripes.

Keep on blogging trucks! (A Podtacular reference, donchyaknow)

Previous New Kids:
Part 1
Part 2
Part 3

In what will hopefully be a recurring post subject, here are some links to information/media (videos, screen shoots, reviews etc) to games I’m looking forward to.

Lost Planet – Lost Planet is already out and hasn’t been getting very good reviews. I keep hoping for a glimmer of hope, but none have been found. I just finished Zonk’s review and Lost Planet is looking like a rental for me.

Sim City DS – This gameplay video from EA of Japan looks very interesting. The stylus is perfect for this type of game.

Crackdown – Crackdown is quickly becoming a “definite purchase” for me. After playing the demo, I was very excited about this game. There are a bunch of videos on YouTube showing some crazy stuff you can do. This Gamespy preview is causing me to salivate. Is that normal?

Lunar Knights – Lunar Knights wasn’t even on my radar two days ago. Then I watched this video and I’m immediately interested.

The NYTimes Crosswords – Corvus mentioned a NY Times Crossword Puzzle game for the DS. Sign me up. Like everyone says, if they can do it like Brain Age’s Sudoku, it will be brilliant. (more here)

Lots of good games out there. What are you looking forward to?

I just finished playing the Crackdown Demo, and it is a blast! Crackdown is a cross between Mercenaries and Grand Theft Auto, except that instead of being, you know, human you’re some kind of a bionic cop. You can do things like leap 20 feet in the air, jumping from rooftop to rooftop, a-la The Matrix. You also have superhuman strength, lifting and throwing cars and dumpsters hundreds of feet. You’ve also got a mean roundhouse kick. We’re talking Chuck Norris-level roundhouses. I roundhoused some random car so hard I knocked the guy in the passenger seat clear out of the car, all the way across the street. It was funny as it sounds. I spent most of my time roundhousing everyone and everything in sight.

Visually, I’m in love with how Crackdown looks. It has a cel-shaded, comic book look and feel. Very pleasing, visually. I wasn’t a huge fan of the controls, but I am a huge fan of how big and wide open the game looks to be. I didn’t even complete any of the missions in the demo. I spent the whole time driving around the city, running over bad guys (and civilians), jumping from building to building and roundhousing cars. I was warned on more than one occasion that I was crossing the line of harming too many civilians. I felt like a robot renegade cop. It was quite hilarious.

Crackdown definitley will be going on my short list of games to get next.