RB: The Week Ahead 2.14.2005
Xenosaga Episode II: Der Title Is Too Long To Fit In Ze Heading
Platform: PlayStation 2
Anticipation Level: 8
The boys at Namco hit it big when they released Xenosaga Episode I a couple of years ago. Though hardcore fans argued that they spent more time watching the game than playing, a mainstream audience was captivated by the game’s colorful visuals and easy-to-grasp combat system. The series is back with a vengeance and it promises to be deeper, more colorful and more engaging than before. If you like to eat and play at the same time this is definitely one to watch. You can probably have a whole meal in your system before you step into your first battle. Who wants dessert?
Star Fox: Assault
Platform: GameCube
Anticipation Level: 7
Let’s face it, Rare dropped the ball with its lackluster effort, Star Fox: Adventures. The game abandoned all of the themes of the franchise (like minor things such as, you know, space ships and such) and turned it into a generic Nintendo Easter Egg fest. This one, developed by Namco, goes back to the franchise’s roots by making space combat its top priority, and collecting shiny objects its second priority. The build we saw at E3 was a bit shaky, but Namco is partially known for its aerial combat franchise, Ace Combat. If anyone can restore order to this franchise, it’s Namco.
WarioWare: Touched!
Platform: Nintendo DS
Anticipation Level: 8
If Nintendo is good at one thing, it’s making offkilter games fun. Who would have thought that a game about rolling toilet paper or catching boogers could be so entertaining? Now that magic comes to your DS and takes full advantage of the touch screen to convey the action. It’s tons of touchy touchy mayhem that your friends and siblings will want to engage in. besides, it’s not like the DS is brimming with titles right now. You really don’t have a choice, unless you like $150 paper weights.
Best Ranked Game Last Week
Most gamers like to wait a week before taking the plunge with a new release in order to read up on some of the reviews. The best site for this is, without a doubt, GameRankings.com. These percentages come courtesy of our friends at GR and have absolutely no affiliation with Gaming Nexus and its ratings system.
NBA Street Volume 3 ran away with last week’s title, netting a 91.6% average for the PS2 and bottoming out at 90.8% for the Xbox. This street ball title puts a large emphasis on flashy moves and less emphasis on the team-based tactics that they teach the kiddies in College. Apparently this is the route to go as it easily beat out the second ranked Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic II for the PC which came in at 84.8%.
* The product in this article was sent to us by the developer/company.
About Author
Gaming has been a part of my life for as long as I could remember. I can still recall many a lost nights spent playing Gyromite with that stupid robot contraption for the old NES. While I'm not as old as the rest of the crew around these parts, I still have a solid understanding of the heritage and the history of the video gaming industry.
It's funny, when I see other people reference games like Doom as "old-school" I almost begin to cringe. I bet that half of these supposed "old-school" gamers don't even remember classic games like Rise of the Triad and Commander Keen. How about Halloween Harry? Does anyone even remember the term "shareware" anymore? If you want to know "old-school" just talk to John. He'll tell you all about his favorite Atari game, Custer's Revenge.
It's okay though, ignorance is bliss and what the kids don't know won't hurt them. I'll just simply smile and nod the next time someone tells me that the best entry in the Final Fantasy franchise was Final Fantasy VII.
When I'm not playing games I'm usually busy sleeping through classes at a boring college in Southern Oregon. My current hobbies are: writing songs for punk rock bands that never quite make it, and teasing Bart about... well just teasing Bart in general. I swear the material writes itself when you're around this guy. He gives new meaning to the term "moving punching bag."
As for games, I enjoy all types except those long-winded turn-based strategy games. I send those games to my good pal Tyler, I hear he has a thing for those games that none of us actually have the time to play.
When I'm not busy plowing through a massive pile of video games I spend all of my time trying to keep my cute little girl fed. She eats a ton but damn she's so hot. Does anyone understand the Asian girl weight principal? Like they'll clean out your fridge yet still weigh less than 110 pounds.
Currently I'm playing: THUG, True Crime, Prince of Persia, Project Gotham 2 and Beyond Good & Evil. View Profile
