Better Late [Killa Blog GOTY]

What's Killa Blog's Game of the Year? (Pretty obv, when you look back.)

(Please keep in mind these are games I've played and were released in calendar '09. Bioshock and Resistance 2, for example, are not eligible.)

GAME OF THE YEAR: Street Fighter IV

Huge game especially for fighting fans, really rejuvenating the tournament scene in a big way. I personally spent hundreds of hours playing, and am eagerly awaiting the Super update this spring. Why so popular? People love a good Street Fighter, and Capcom went the right direction, bringing in everything great from Super Turbo, learning from the mistakes of III, all while combining graphics and an art style that updated the franchise.

Compared to MGS4, the game that ultimately trumped Fallout 3 for 2008 KB GOTY, '09 proved to be more of a competitive year. Fighters dominated my playing time, and therefore, Killa Blog.


BEST NEW CHARCTER DESIGN: Luna Himeki (VanPri)

Vanguard Princess's provocative, futuristic gunslinger takes the cake. Stiff competition from the likes of SFIV's Rufus, BlazBlue's Ragna the Bloodedge, Tekken 6's Alisa and L4D2's Coach, but a true gem shines through. Terminal Emission Libery Art FTW.


BEST NEW ENEMY: Freakin' Chainsaw Guy (RE5)

Ah, the Freakin' Chainsaw Guy from Resident Evil 5 got a lot of chatter on KB earlier this year. I don't think any enemy presented such a monument to mechanized equipment and close-quarters terror.


BEST NEW LEVEL: Dead Center - Atrium (L4D2)

Oooh yeah. The opening campaign of Left 4 Dead 2, while primarily indoor, is a great contrast from the original L4D that showcases the more colorful and open environments, the clever use of vertical space, and the realistic, often humorous attention to detail.

The final stage is the Scavenge segment, tasking players with collecting gas cans to fuel a stock car on display in order to make an exciting escape. The Atrium is so well designed that it plays great after dozens of rounds and is eagerly anticipated by survivors and special infected players alike. Total classic.


BEST NEW GAMEPLAY MECHANIC: Saving Attack (SFIV)

AKA the Focus Attack in North America, pressing medium punch and kick simultaneously will execute this technique that significantly consolidated the landscape of Street Fighter. Why 'consolidated'? The Alpha series' Alpha Counters, SFIII's parries, Guilty Gear's Roman Cancels, and Namco's unblockables all rolled into one. Yes, the Focus Attack is a revelation.

Street Fighter IV is so playable because of its take on its own fighter heritage. Eliminating air blocking could have returned the SF world to a jump-punishing dark age, but the Focus system accomodates more modern styles of ground fighting, particularly zoning and poking, allowing walking speed and backdash attributes to flourish as character strengths.



Sorry for the late arrival. Figured now or never. Thoughts?

Dang ol' Jimmy Gibbs, man [L4D2 Impressions]

Cool. Found my way out of the mall.

Bangalangin' [L4D2 Demo Impressions]

The demo comprises two sections from The Parish level. Just like last time, you and three other survivors (whether they be CPU AI or online compatriots) blast your way through the infected horde towards some destination. Sometimes it's the simple pleasures, no?

I played the demo last time 'round, but never purchased the original Left 4 Dead. I remember it being one of the few attractions at PAX 2008 that I didn't find an opportunity to enjoy. Throughout the weekend the lines for L4D were significantly longer than anything I ran into at SeaTac.

With all the talk about sequelizing L4D in lieu of supporting and expanding it, I was a little hard pressed to observe these major improvements they spoke of. Then again, I'm not a hardcore fan nor the developer, so I'm not really suited to say what merits a full-fledged follow up. I will say it looks better, has more enticing modes of play, more unique infected varieties, and more weapons and items. But again, I didn't shell out for L4D(1), so what do I care if they jumped the sequel gun?

This demo is an absolute fucking blast.

This demo is an absolute fucking blast.

Just thought I'd make that doubly clear. Even if you have no intention of getting into a PC FPS and would never buy it, if you think your box can run it, get it. It's just a hell of a good time. It's a simple, fast-paced pick-up-and-play oft-hyphenated experience that feels like it's over far too soon, which is a good demo attribute.

The second area entails a segment wherein an alarm at the top of a tower is attracting the horde, and it seems to be a wise course of action to rush through the chainlink fence maze to get to the target ASAP. I ran ahead of my teammates to accomplish this, but as the maze snakes around, we got the opportunity to blast zombies attacking one another through the fences. Another neat way to use teamwork. I replayed the demo almost exclusively for this alarm tower event, because it is straight exhilarating.

First time through was single player, and my second go round was with internet peeps. One of the knuckle-draggers on my team just didn't understand getting into the safehouse at the end of the level. I tried to shoot around him to get his attention, and (somewhat) accidentally killed him with my rifle. I then grabbed my defib and brought him back, which seemed to stimulate the level ending centers of his brain, as he then complied with my suggestion.

Not sure if I'm going to jump on this immediately on Tuesday, as I've also got Assassin's Creed 2 to resist, and an extremely heavy schedule at work for the rest of the month. But, if this demo is any indication, L4D2 is the can't miss shooter of the holiday season. (Oh, unless you're a MW2 person...)

M is for Mayhem [L4D2 Demo Hype]

Hey! The Left 4 Dead 2 Demo is out. Can't wait to get home and play through it. Hell, even Jcasa's new edition is excited; She clearly cannot control her HUNGER FOR (rabbit) BRAINS.


Anybody played it yet?

Left 4 Demo

Played the Left 4 Dead Demo last night, the single player portion anyways. Very fun. My keyboard and mouse skills are still clearly not up to snuff, but I managed. The demo encompasses two areas that the survivors must traverse, and this area appeared to contain approximately a kabillion fucking zombies.

And, man, when that spitting zombie spits on you and the sputum, or whatever, attracts the horde, as they call it, wow. Fucking zombies everywhere, yo. The large zombie boss known as the Tank made for a really exciting moment as well. I go to head up an escalator in the subway station with my team, and immediately start backpedaling as he rushed down on us. Intensity.

And the opening video is really fucking cool, too.

(How's that for articulate?)

Financial, Crysis

Got a WaMu credit card application in the mail the other day. This other day being the day after WaMu folded/got pwned. The collapse is understandable, though, you know. A big company like that is bound to run into some financial difficulties. I mean, what did they know about managing money, anyways? ... Funny is all, that I would get a credit card application from a company that had gone out of business while the correspondence was in transit. That's the credit crunch for ya, (I guess).

So anyways, as tempting as it was to try and get a Visa branded with a failed bank, I chose to skip the middle man and apply for a Chase card. The primary goals being the acquisition of a new gaming PC to replace the old rig, and the enjoyment of an introductory 0% APR with which to spread out the financial hurt. And when I say "old rig" I mean the POS, totally hijacked, functionally worthless desktop that I haven't turned on in a month.

I haven't even really been a real PC gamer for quite some time, and you can find much more eloquent articles on the idiosyncracies of the modern PC gaming market elsewhere if you're not in the know. Oddly, the game that has been the greatest impetus for obtaining a state-of-the-art system is notorious for being one of the worst culprits in the performance one up-manship racket. That game being Crysis.

That, Left 4 Dead (which doesn't appear to be coming to my console anywhere in the foreseeable future, if ever), and maybe even Starcraft II have whet my appetite for a new box. Here's hoping a Geforce 9800GX2 has what it takes. I can't sell myself on shelling out to crossfire two GX2's, though the option is always out there.

Anyways, I expect to get my Chase card any day now. Let's see how much credit will be afforded to a refusenik such as myself...