New Games Thread

[100_Percent_Juice]

how long did that take you?

[Nick Koan]

Oh man, I remember playing that game a few months back. Super addictive.

25 is a little rough, but not too bad. 28 was the worst for me.

[MPREZIV]

Originally Posted by 100_Percent_Juice

how long did that take you?

about 10 minutes

I didn't start off at level one, I just started where you put up the code, figured out what the little x's and o's did, and worked it out.

[M3n2c3]

I love Half-Life. I have since the very moment of the initial resonance cascade, as I sat in a dark room in December of 1998, watching as everything went to hell on my computer monitor.

But I love Orange Box in particular, right now.

Not since the days of DOOM, Heretic, Jedi Knight and Quake have I been so content to play a single FPS so much. Whereas most shooters feel boring after the first or second (or sometimes during the first) playthrough, HL2 stays exciting though multiple plays. Even when you know what's going to happen in a particular set-piece, it's always a blast to play around with cover, take advantage of the physics system, and try to get through action movie-style while taking as little damage as possible. It doesn't hurt that the presentation rocks and the characters are believable.

I'm slowly working on the xb360 version right now, while dividing my attention amongst a few other titles (finished Assassin's Creed and Beautiful Katamari, working on Mass Effect, Metroid Prime 3, and Mario Galaxy). I'm in the middle of Follow Freeman, with nearly 16 hours on the clock - I've been savoring the gameplay, taking my time with areas and exploring the environments, gawking at the graphics and playing with the physics (if you'll pardon the weak alliteration), tracking down achievements. . . and loving every minute of it.

I've played through Portal multiple times already, listened to all the developer commentary, finished the advanced maps, and gotten at least a bronze score on all of the challenges (with silver on several and gold on one or two), and I still go back to it often. I'm thinking about buying the PC standalone on Steam so I can try to snag gold on all challenges (nearly impossible, at least for me, with an xb360 controller).

I'm also looking forward immensely to finishing ep1 and playing ep2.

All the other big FPS series out there have had their black sheep: Quake 4 was underwhelming, Unreal II and Unreal Championship were both pretty bad, DOOM 3 was fun but too far removed from the first, Hexen II was almost embarrassing, Halo 2's single-player was atrocious, Dark Forces' presentation went way downhill with Jedi Academy, Call of Duty and Medal of Honor have had their sub-par middle-child installments, and Duke Nukem, well. . . has Duke Nukem Forever.

Half-Life, on the other hand, has been consistently good. The first game set a new standard for FPS scripting and plotlines that other developers have struggled to match. Even the Gearbox-developed expansions were top-quality and added immensely to the HL mythos while cleverly tying in to the original timeline of events - even offering glimpses of familiar locales and situations as they occurred. I still go back to Half-Life often, and am amazed how well the gameplay holds up nearly ten years later.

The robust, Quake-based HL engine was also conducive to both SP and MP mods, spawning timeless official and user-created add-ons such as Counter-Strike, Day of Defeat, Team Fortress Classic, They Hunger, and the Xeno Project.

HL2 is no different. The gameplay once again raises the bar for shooters, especially in immersive storytelling and scripted action setpieces, and the expansions continue to offer the same high level of gameplay quality, even while updating the Source engine with improved graphics and features. There have also been a number of user mods released, such as MINERVA and Garry's Mod.

Even Portal can be considered a triple-A title - at least in terms of quality, even in spite of the minimal quantity - and while not a Half-Life title per se, it still ties in with the HL2 storyline and suggests what may be possible with the new technology in future installments.

It is also a testament to Valve's hard work and skill that Orange Box on the XB360, despite its main game being three years old, can stand tall next to recent titles such as Bioshock and Halo 3. And don't get me started on the value of the Orange Box - classic industry geek that I am, it gets me giddy just thinking about how much gameplay they lovingly crammed in to a single $50 or $60 package for us. There are publishers out there who should be ashamed to compare their supposed $60 worth of gameplay to the Orange Box.

So, yeah. . . I love Half-Life. Here's hoping that the series continues strong. Maybe Valve will cook up some nice surprise for the 10 year anniversary.

[M3n2c3]

There's a new trailer out for Duke Nukem Forever.

I was watching it, and realized that the abbreviation for the title is DNF.

And I found that to be humorously appropriate.

[Libila]

I'm hoping to start HL2 Episode 2 over the holidays, if my computer can take it

When I was playing through Portal the first time I remember driving back to my dorm room on my lunch break just to play it. Those were the only times I broke my own rule and ate in my car...

[M3n2c3]

Originally Posted by Libila

I'm hoping to start HL2 Episode 2 over the holidays, if my computer can take it

When I was playing through Portal the first time I remember driving back to my dorm room on my lunch break just to play it. Those were the only times I broke my own rule and ate in my car...

I stayed up until 4:30AM to finish it in one sitting the first day. . . even despite knowing that my son normally wakes up demanding breakfast at 8:30.

And I did actually pick it up on Steam, as well. . . so I've paid for it twice

[tysonK]

portal sounds cool.

[Nick Koan]

Haha, nice.

[Libila]

Dude, Tyson, lawlz.

[van]

anyone want to be my psn buddy? Im kinda getting into warhawk

[tysonK]

I'm on warhawk a bit, but I just got it. tkueper

[Nick Koan]

I don't have warhawk, but my PSN is nKoan

[100_Percent_Juice]

I feel guilty after I play Bioshock. Like I just dumped a box of kittens in the river.

[van]

I added you guys, Im not liking warhawk so much, I shoulda got cod4 or orange box instead

[Double Phister]

PSN : DubblePhister

no warhawk

Stuck on RockBand for the last few weeks.

[tysonK]

Originally Posted by kidnappervan

I added you guys, Im not liking warhawk so much, I shoulda got cod4 or orange box instead

Did you do the dogfight only maps, they are pretty fun with 20 people flying and they look really nice also.

My fucking connection is killing me though. It drops out every couple minutes. Any else have wireless but no online problems?

[Libila]

If anyone wants more information on receiving head shots in TF2 please address your questions to Pete. He should have plenty of information for you.

[van]

Originally Posted by tysonK

Did you do the dogfight only maps, they are pretty fun with 20 people flying and they look really nice also.

Not yet, I will try this afternoon. I had some fun playing zones for a bit but everyother server I've gotten on has been boring.

[MikeK]

Originally Posted by Libila

If anyone wants more information on receiving head shots in TF2 please address your questions to Pete. He should have plenty of information for you.

[MikeK]

Speaking of TF2, these had me laughing:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pPoKaoJu0m4
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JUPzN7tp7bQ

[van]

So I bought some beer and an orangebox . I know its old news but portal is the shit, I'm kinda stuck on 18/19, gonna give it a rest and try again later

[100_Percent_Juice]

Originally Posted by MikeK

Speaking of TF2, these had me laughing:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pPoKaoJu0m4
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JUPzN7tp7bQ

OMG My favorite part was when he jumped up and jammed the door and then made everyone answer trivia questions before he would jump down and let them out.

[Nick Koan]

Uncharted is pretty sweet so far. Except for the pixel perfect accuracy needed with thumbsticks

But seriously, other than that the game is pretty good.

[tysonK]

Originally Posted by Nick Koan

Uncharted is pretty sweet so far. Except for the pixel perfect accuracy needed with thumbsticks

But seriously, other than that the game is pretty good.

Well they figure most people have logged 1000+ hours on HALO and COD so they are pretty good at it by now.