EGM stands up for……something? June 5, 2008
Posted by endersgames in Uncategorized.Tags: Gaming News, PS3
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Over the past week or so, a news story has been making the rounds in the gaming sphere concerning a certain gaming magazine (Electronic Gaming Monthly, or EGM) and their withheld review of one of the biggest games of the year, Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots. For the uninformed, the Metal Gear Solid series is a highly revered action-stealth gaming tabernacle that has served as one of the exclusive reasons to own the Playstation 2 and, soon, the PS3. Metal Gear began back on the original Nintendo, but really hit it’s stride on the PS2, with Metal Gear Solid. MGS2 and MGS3 followed, and both were incredibly popular. Personally, I only enjoyed the first one, but I do have some anticipation for the 4th installment, due out for the PS3 on June 12th.
Back to the story at hand. Apparently, the makers of MGS4 (Konami) imposed restrictions on game reviewing magazines and websites; these restrictions are rumored to cover such topics as the required initial install to the PS3 hard drive of almost 5 GB, as well as the total length of cutscenes in the game (which supposedly constitute almost half of the game’s content). EGM was offended by these restrictions, and decided it was time to take action. Well, actually their action was to not take action. EGM decided that, in lieu of a limited MGS4, they will conduct a “roundtable discussion” in print of the game. (That’ll show ‘em, EGM! /sarcasm off) Here is a quote from EGM concerning this debacle:
“Metal Gear Solid 4 will hit store shelves shortly after this issue of EGM lands in your hot little hands. And four EGM editors — Matt Leone, Jeremy Parish, Andrew Pfister, and Shane Bettenhausen — have already invested plenty of time in the game. So why don’t we have a full review in this issue? Simply put: We weren’t happy with the limitations Konami wanted to impose on our comments, and rather than publish compromised reviews in the interest of being the first to rate the game, we’d rather wait until next issue, where we can be completely open and thorough with our thoughts. In the meantime, our MGS4 vets sat down for an informal chat about the game (and remember — [once the limitations are lifted] you can find the full review on 1UP.com!).”
It seems that the purposeful withholding of MGS4’s review only extends to the issue due out during the game’s release. The following month, you’ll still get a normal MGS4 review. I gotta ask: what’s the big deal?
I know writers feel very passionately about their freedom of speech, and don’t take lightly to being told that they cannot discuss or write about certain aspects of a game. Here’s my problem, though: EGM accepted review copies of the game from Konami free of charge, and of course played the crap out of them. It’s obvious that these review copies came bundled with the understanding that they intended for reviewing uses, and the review was to be limited in what it could and could not divulge. EGM happily received these games, and then decided they didn’t like the terms that were placed on the whole deal, so they withhold a review.
While EGM is spinning this ordeal to make themselves look holy and righteously indignant, I think their integrity is at question here. If they really felt so strongly about their side of this story, then would it not be the right move to send the review copies back unplayed? EGM, you still played these free games, and then didn’t hold up your end of the bargain. I think you are actually being dishonest in your spin on this. You can stand on the soapbox all day long, pontificating about the rights of writers and publications, but in the end, the bottom line is that you shirked your responsibility to Konami because you didn’t like what they required of you.
It’s easy to want to rally behind EGM, because it seems like they are “sticking it to The Man”, giving the big game publishers what they deserve for their money-grubbing ways. In reality, though, EGM is as guilty of money-grubbing, and of glory-whoring, because they publicized this situation to gain credibility and fandom when it probably should have stayed a private issue between EGM and Konami. I see through your smoke and your mirrors, Dan Hsu, and I am disappointed.
Readers, I’d love to hear your input on this story in the comments section!
On The Cheap – Gears of War & Mass Effect (360) June 4, 2008
Posted by endersgames in Uncategorized.Tags: Amazon, On The Cheap, xbox 360
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Courtesy of Cheapassgamer.com, I present you with today’s “On The Cheap”. As you may or may not know, Amazon.com offers one video game deal every day, known as Deal of the Day (DotD). Today’s DotD is for the Xbox 360, and is the subject of our On The Cheap.
Amazon is offering both Mass Effect and Gears of War for $35 shipped apiece. This is a great deal for two of the best titles available on the Xbox 360. Gears of War will see a re-release later this month for $40, which will include downloadable content that was sold on the Xbox Live Marketplace. So, all in all, it’s probably better to wait on that title if you can. But Mass Effect, on the other hand, is an exceptional deal. This is, in my opinion and the opinions of many others, the best RPG title available on the 360. I highly recommend it to any sci-fi/RPG fans.
Get your cheap on!
(Just to be clear, this is a Deal of the Day, so these prices are only good for today, 6/4/2008. At midnight, they will return to their regular price.)
Celebrity Spotting: Jon & Kate Plus 8 June 3, 2008
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I’m not sure if I’ve mentioned this yet, but I work for the federal government at our local airport. From time to time, I get to see a celebrity or two come through the airport, and although I don’t normally bother them beyond what I must for my job, it is still cool to see celebs live and in person. In the past, I’ve met Bo Bice, Jeff Hardy, The Miz, The Undertaker, Sgt. Slaughter, Kane, Danny Glover, Evander Holyfield, Bill Engvall, and Everclear, to name a few. I’ve also had a decent conversation with the lead singer of Three Doors Down, who is from my city. It’s a nice break to the monotony of what I do for a living, and it makes for some interesting stories. Mark today as another brush with greatness, a celebrity sighting. (Not really, prepare to be underwhelmed.) Today I saw the stars of TLC’s Jon and Kate Plus 8.
Well, I saw 40% of the stars. Jon & Kate, as well as their two oldest children, passed through our airport today. I was not in a position to say hello to them, nor did I get the impression that they wanted to be recognized. Given their recent trouble with air travel, I don’t blame them one bit. However, when one of my co-workers walked down to the gates to say hello to them, they brushed him off with barely a word. I know their lives are stressful, so it isn’t a big deal. Still, though…..you want celebs to at least be amiable when you muster the courage to go speak to them. I’m glad it wasn’t me that got shut down!
Ah well, maybe next time. I’ll be sure to post whenever I have another Celebrity Spotting.
On The Cheap May 31, 2008
Posted by endersgames in Uncategorized.Tags: On The Cheap, xbox 360
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It’s no big secret that my favorite site on all of the interwebs is Cheap Ass Gamer. There, I find all the best cheap gaming deals, as well as good off topic discussions, gaming news, and game trading between CAGs (cheap ass gamers). I’ve even made a bunch of friends there that I play Xbox 360 with from time to time. With “On The Cheap”, I hope to keep you updated on the newest sales and deals on various games and systems that I have found on CAG.
Gamefly.com is the gaming equivalent of Netflix, renting games out through the mail for a flat monthly fee. They also sell games, specifically the rental copies that are no longer being rented as often, or they may just have a surplus of that particular title. These game sales always come with free shipping, the games always come complete with case and manual (both in excellent condition), and most of the time the game disc itself is in great condition. This is where I obtained my most recent buys, Timeshift and Stranglehold for the Xbox 360. Both were $15 with free shipping; after tax, the total was in the $16 range. I’ve yet to play either one, but I will soon, and I’ll give you the lowdown on them when I do. I know they are older titles, but they’re new to me!
Keep an eye on Gamefly for good sales! CAG will list the sales, so be sure to hop on there and make a free account as well.
Grand Theft Auto IV: Really? May 30, 2008
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I am sure that we’ve all heard of this game by now, even if you aren’t a gamer. It’sbeen all over the news, mostly because it is highly anticipated and a huge seller. The previous iterations have made headlines because of gratuitous violence, language, and interaction with hookers. Additionally, the series has been blamed for a number of real life criminal activities, as the media often cites this game as inspiration for the crimes committed. Ludicrous, by the way. You heard me right, Jack Thompson.
Being a somewhat big fan of the series in the past, and after hearing all the hype that built around this game, I bought it and the strategy guide at release. I’ll admit, I had high expectations, as did the rest of this world. Every review that came out for the game touted it as amazing, and it earned a number of perfect review scores. So, I sat down and gave it a spin. Here are Ender’s impressions of GTAIV.
In a word, “Really?”. I honestly don’t get what the big deal is. I’m disappointed, frankly, and confused. It feels like every other Grand Theft Auto game I’ve ever played, except with more polish. The gameplay is the same, the missions are the same, and dadgummit, I am a little pissed. Here are my gripes:
- It’s the same game as before! Throwing in a new main character doesn’t make it a brand new game in my eyes, and it all feels like more of the same. I understand “if it ain’t broke”, but geez, with the jump to next-gen consoles and untouchable review scores, I expected more.
- The driving mechanic is some of the worst I’ve ever played. It takes almost nothing to spin out, and in certain cars, the handling is almost impossible. My advice to you that would try this game: grab a motorcycle. It’s way easier.
- The game is so dark and poorly-lit, there are times I can’t see what is going on at all. Especially indoors and beneath train tracks. No, it isn’t my television.
- Bump a cop car on the road, I dare you. They’ll immediately blue-light you. And given the crappy driving system, it will happen a lot.
- The swearing is out of control. Now, you may say “You should expect that coming in to a GTA game”, and you are right. I did expect swearing, just not every other word. Even random pedestrians on the street drop the f-bomb if you bump into them. It’s gratuitous and unnecessary.
- Hand-to-hand combat sucks. Hard.
There are some good points to the game, like the addition of a GPS system, the cellphone, and multiplayer. But I don’t get the fuss over the multiplayer, either. It’s nothing special in my book.
Don’t get me wrong; the game is not a bad game. It’s certainly well-made, and the polish is evident. But I guess, on a personal level, I am disappointed and frustrated, as I feel that I’ve played this game before. Three times actually, on my Playstation 2. I suppose the problem is likely my own perception, but as I am frequently reminded at my job, “perception is reality”.
Loathsome Celebrity of the Week – Carlos Mencia May 25, 2008
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**Loathsome Celebrity of the Week**
- Carlos Mencia -
Welcome to the newest feature to Ender’s Games, Loathsome Celebrity of the Week! This is actually a carryover from an earlier blog of mine, and a big favorite of mine. I just loathe some celebrities, and since I am forced to see them in television and movies on a rare-to-regular basis (depending on where they fall on the A-B celebrity list), I feel that it’s only fair that I be able to vent against them on this here blog.
This week’s victim: Carlos Mencia. This fella hosts his own show on Comedy Central, “Mind of Mencia”. It’s a mashup of some of his standup comedy, and comedic (I use that term loosely) skits. I hate that show. Mencia, as you may have guessed, uses his ethnicity as a platform and source material of his comedy. This concept isn’t always bad; I’ve seen some hilarious racial/ethnic comedy that was well presented, but not overdone. Mencia however relies completely on this humor, and suffers because of it.
Fellow comedian and “Fear Factor” host Joe Rogan has a history with Carlos Mencia. He has openly accused Mencia of lying about his Hispanic heritage, ripping off other comedian’s jokes, and practicing general douchebaggery. You can see some of these accusations here:
I, for some odd reason, have a good deal of respect for Rogan, so his claims carry some weight to me. Also, I already hate Carlos Mencia, so it doesn’t take much for me to get all riled up about him anyway. I’ve considered not learning Spanish now just so I can further distance myself from Mencia’s ways.
Avoid this man at all costs, lest you damage your funny nerves forever.
My peep’s on the fritz….. September 29, 2007
Posted by endersgames in Uncategorized.Tags: Wii, xbox 360
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Not my peep, really. But my 360 and my Wii are!!!! 
Lightning hit my house, or at least a power line near it, on Thursday. It fried the wireless receiver in my 360, so my controllers will no longer sync up with the system. I can use the remote, since it uses the IR port, and I can use wired controllers. But I need my wireless controllers to work, so I had to contact MS again and order another coffin. Sucks.
And then there is the Wii. It no longer has any power at all. I can’t tell if it is the power brick or the system that is fried, but something is amiss and I can’t get the system to turn on.
So that leaves me with the PS3…..oh wait, did I not tell you? Yep, ShopFreePay came through for me, shipping me a brand new 60GB PS3 a few days ago! I’ll post some impressions of the PS3 soon, as well as my SFP experiences. Woot!
New Ender’s Game section – “Free Stuff Tracker” September 19, 2007
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If you haven’t yet noticed, the site now has a new area, entitled “Free Stuff Tracker”. It’s found in the tabs at the top of the page. I will be using it to track all of my free stuff, and you can use it to see my progress, and to know which sites have been proven legitimate by me.
In the way of a free stuff update, I have received final approval for my Zune offers. Yesterday, all 3 offers changed from “In Progress” to “Approved”, and the option to print certificates for all the offers became available. I’ve printed the certificated, and will mailing them off today. The site I completed the offers through, CheckOutPath.net, is under the umbrella of GadgetCity. Most of their sites work the same way, so I will be creating a guide for that program soon. The site tells me that the Zune will be shipped 6-8 weeks from the date that they receive my certificates. Hopefully that is an overestimation on their part!
I also got final approval on my 7th and final offer for ShopFreePay.com. After approval, I hopped on and placed the order for my 60GB PS3. The site said that they would validate my account, and get the item ordered. I’ll post proof pics if/when it arrives. SFP is easily my favorite site in terms of ease of use; they need more available offers to really be the best though.
I am on a tear here! I’ll probably do more soon.
Initial Impressions: Bioshock September 19, 2007
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I’ve been playing Bioshock for a few days now, and I’m 5-10 hours into the story. From what I’ve read, that is roughly halfway through.
Thus far, I can safely say that this is one of the best games I’ve ever played in my life, on any system, any genre. The whole experience just envelopes you, drawing you into the world of Rapture and keeping you engaged and interested. Here are a few of the finer points:
- Music: The music is from the 40-50’s era, and fits the design choices perfectly. Also, it contrasts so strangely with the bloody action that is somehow fits to make an enthralling audio experience.
- Graphics: This game looks awesome. It’s not Gears, mind you, but still really good. The water effects in particular will blow you away.
- Characters: The cast of this game is varied and interesting, and you quickly become invested in their lives and stories.
- Action: I love the combat! It’s not particularly deep, but it works well, and the addition of the Plasmids spices things up a good deal.
- Upgrades: From plasmids to tonics to upgrading your guns, there are tons of ways to better your character’s abilities and arsenal. The upgrades come often, which helps you never get tired or bored with your selection.
- The story: Unlike anything I’ve played before, simply put. I’ve been completely sucked in.
- Big Daddies: Intimidating and powerful, these guys will make you work hard for a victory. Your first Big Daddy will have your palms/balls sweating like it’s Junior Prom again.
I’ll post a complete review when I am done with the game. So far, though, I can tell you that this game is one you simply must own. If you’re on the fence, hop off and get it now. It’s spell-binding!
