A black screen and one white line – gaming doesn't get much simpler than that. Minimalist and surreal by design, vib-ribbon is a masterpiece of simplicity. Here is a game that takes the best elements of gaming and distils them to make Essence of Gaming. No, not a new fragrance by Chanel, but an embodiment of everything that's good about games. If you didn't think gaming could be more pared down than Rez, think again. Vib-ribbon is one of those games I always fancied, but never got round to buying. Of course by the time I did get round to … Continue reading Simple Pleasures→
With Super Bowl XXXVIII coming this weekend, the New England Patriots are favored by seven points to win. I myself predicted that they would go to the big game, especially considering my opinion of the Indianapolis Colts, namely their quarterback Peyton Manning. That I will get to in a bit. On the other hand, I never thought that the Carolina Panthers would make it this far. Considering this is a team that was 1-15 a few years ago, and just 7-9 last year, to see them beat the hated St. Louis Rams by way of a Steve Smith touchdown, and … Continue reading Hargosh Bowl→
The build-up to Christmas was a bittersweet pill, dear play chums. The final episode of the final season of Buffy the Vampire Slayer played on terrestrial TV. All of a sudden, a lifetime of Thursday evenings stretched before me, with nothing to fill them. To ease the loss of one of pop culture's finest; I have started collecting the DVD box sets. Although it is a welcome distraction, I know there are only so many episodes I've missed and once I've watched all the commentaries"I'll be sans Buffy again. Fortunately, I have a burgeoning stack of games to take my … Continue reading Christmas Buildup→
Usually the holiday season is a downer for me. Unlike most people, I don't truly celebrate Christmas. No, I don't celebrate it for religious reasons (I am a reformed Roman Catholic turned Baptist after all), or anything else of that matter. Since I left home to live on my own, the holidays just don't mean much to me anymore. I don't even put up a tree in my apartment. To me the holiday season is nothing more than a two or three week vacation. On a positive note, however, Christmas Eve does have its high point: it is the anniversary … Continue reading Happy Holidays to YOU→
Well, dear Play chums, another year has passed and another Christmas looms. My seasonal shopping and present wrapping has been done, but the spirit of Christmas has yet to take hold. The endurance test that is the office Christmas party takes place this Friday, which got me thinking about people I'd actually like to have Christmas dinner with. So, to save you from the lamentable Christmas round-up, I have selected a list of game characters and industry personalities to grace the ultimate seasonal get together. First of all we must have rules. No characters from licensed games, so no Tony … Continue reading Best of the Year→
Earlier this week I wrote a review on the PS2 and Xbox releases of Battlestar Galactica. The original rating was meant to be a 3 1/2 out of 5, but because of our "must average" scale, it ended up getting a 4. While discussing the game with several other individuals, I ended up getting in heated debates over the new Sci-Fi Channel revision. I myself am a Galactica fan, but from what I have read since early May involving the Sci-Fi version, all hell was breaking loose about the series being a "re-imagining" of the series, and not a remake … Continue reading The New Battlestar Galactica Rocks→
Whilst you lot were chomping on your Thanksgiving turkey in America, a war was raging in the UK. The gloves are off and the battle for second place has begun. The console war has just taken a turn for the bloodier. Christmas is looming and the kids and young at heart are getting their best stationary out to write that all important letter to Santa. Sony is currently the console equivalent of the Christmas fairy, sitting pretty at the top of the tree. Meanwhile, a cut-throat tussle for Sony's scraps has ensued at the bottom of the tree and it … Continue reading Console War, UK Style→
Several months ago, in one of my commentaries, I came out of the DDR closet and have been open about it ever since. I knew I had nothing to be ashamed of. I'm a DDR addict and I am proud of it. In a more recent commentary, I even had the dilemma of deciding on whether to pick up the latest US DDR title (DDRMAX2, hereafter referred to as MAX2) or to import DDR Extreme (DDRX). After researching the track lists of both games, I decided to give both of them a try, and needless to say I am pleased … Continue reading Report To The Dance Floor→
‘Mainstream' is a dirty word in the world of gaming. Call someone a ‘casual' gamer and that's tantamount to fighting talk. Casual gamers buy FIFA instead of Pro Evolution Soccer and think movie licenses are a guarantee of quality. They are the sole reason that the rest of us have to endure sequel after sequel of mediocre platformers and Bond games that aren't Goldeneye. Why buy Rez when you can play another driving game? That's what the casual gamer thinks. Then they download all the cheats and use the walk-though like a step by step instruction manual. I mean, how … Continue reading Has Hardcore Gone Soft?→
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