VGHomework: Space is the place
Every weekend, the VGH crew answers a few follow-up questions from that week’s episode, then turns the floor over to you! This is VGHomework.
This week’s episode was all about the Mars lander and space games–the definition of which was up for debate. That, and we had some trouble agreeing on what a space marine actually is. You might say our definitions were a bit nebulous.
VGHomework: OOUUUUYYYYAAAAAAAAAAA!!
Every weekend, the VGH crew answers a few follow-up questions from that week’s episode, then turns the floor over to you! This is VGHomework.
Q: What do you think of the Ouya? Is an open, Android-based box worth your hundred dollars?
Matt (@mkernan): I think the idea is interesting, if not all that compelling. The hardware specs are going to be a bit limited, so I kind of don’t see how the Ouya would be any better than hooking an iOS or Android tablet or phone to a television. Personally, I’d just like to see Apple add apps to the AppleTV and maybe even release some sort of controller. Ultimately, I think the Ouya is a novelty that people find intriguing, but will end up not really making much of a splash in the grand scheme of things.
Q: How long do you stick with a game after you’ve beaten it? Do you start it over, get rid of it, or do something else entirely?
D.J. (@metaly): Even if it’s a game I’m really into, I usually won’t start it over but I’ll go back and try to wrap up some of the sidequests or see content I missed on my way to the end. With longer term games like the Battlefield series and, of course, Monster Hunter Freedom Unite (which I still haven’t even technically finished), I’ll try playing as a different class or using a different weapon to mix things up. I love it when games are able to add replay value via gameplay breadth instead of just grinding out another prestige rank.
Q: What game will you never get bored of, no matter how much you play it?
Paul (@spaulsandhu): Great question. Chrono Trigger. There isn’t a single game in history that I’ve completed more often than Chrono Trigger!
Q: Which video game character should Nicolas Cage play?
Matt: I’d like to see him play himself as the lead character in a self-referential action/adventure game.
Paul: Nathan Drake in Uncharted 4. Take that Randy!
D.J.: I’d really like to see him play every game character eventually, but I’d probably start with toon Link from Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker.
Should Sony, Microsoft and Nintendo be worried about the Ouya? Do Diablo players really need more reason to spend hundreds more hours clicking on loot? And what is up with Nicolas Cage? Somebody please explain it to us in the comments!
VGHomework: In the Cloud
Every weekend, the VGH crew answers a few follow-up questions from that week’s episode, then turns the floor over to you! This is VGHomework.
We dove a bit into some gaming news this week on the show, first speculating about what Sony will do with their Gaikai purchase, and then getting all misty over some promising games that never saw release.
Q: Have you tried a cloud gaming service like Gaikai or OnLive? Could you ever foresee trading your disc-based/digital download console for one?
Paul (@spaulsandhu): I’ve never tried a cloud gaming service before but when we were spitballing on the show the idea of a Netflix style service but for games came up. I would definitely be interested in a service like that especially if it gave us access to a library of classic games! Man I really hope that comes to pass…
Matt (@mkernan): I’ve dabbled with OnLive a little bit in the past. I came away pretty impressed overall with the responsiveness of the system and the fact that I could play popular PC games on my Mac. I think I could eventually see myself moving to an all-streaming situation, but for the time being I’ll stick with my traditional consoles.
Q: What’s the best way Sony could incorporate the cloud into the PlayStation 4 or Vita?
Matt: I think the current conditions with broadband penetration and speeds in the US mean that there’s not a chance in hell of the PlayStation 4 being all-streaming, but I’d really like to see Sony use Gaikai’s technology to implement 100% backward compatibility. Heck, maybe even just use it to give the users the ability to start playing new games instantly–start off by streaming the game to us, while the full game itself is slowly downloading in the background. I’d be happy to temporarily put up with an ever-so-slight latency and slightly-degraded visuals in a PS4 game just to be able to jump directly into it the moment I’ve purchased it. The technology could make demos far easier to swallow too.
Aside from that, I’d like to see them use the streaming technology to create a much more fluid experience where I can play all of my PlayStation games on any device I own.
Q: What canceled game were you most looking forward to playing and why?
D.J. (@metaly): I mentioned it on the show, but Front Mission 5 and Monster Hunter Portable 3rd are the two biggest casualties in terms of Japanese games that never got their chance in the West. I guess they weren’t technically canceled since they did see an overseas release, but I’d love to be able to play games without having to futz with a fan translation patch.
Q: If StarCraft: Ghost actually came out, what game(s) should it be most similar to?
D.J.: I’d love to see a campaign with a little more deliberately paced stealth, like Splinter Cell pre-
Is there cloud gaming in your future? What are some canned titles you wish you could play right now? Let us know in the comments!
VGHomework: NSFW
This week’s show was even randier than usual since we were talking gaming and sex! Now it’s time for your hosts to answer a few questions the morning after:
Q: Is sex in games exciting, or does it make you roll your eyes?
Matt (@mkernan): I think that if it’s done well in terms of writing, acting, and animation, it has the potential to be great. Most of the “sex appeal” I’ve seen in games tends toward the pointless and exploitative end of the spectrum though.
Q: Have you ever played a game because you were attracted to one of the characters?
Randy (@randy_wrecked): Bayonetta. I had zero interest in the mechanics of that game but I found the character smokin’ hot. I played it on the easiest difficulty just to get it out of my system.
Q: What’s your sexiest gaming moment and why?
Paul (@spaulsandhu): Sexiest moment in gaming for me would probably be the sex scene in Witcher 2 between Geralt and Triss in the elven pool. It has just the right amount of lady butt, man butt, but in all seriousness it was a really nice combination of explicit sex and tenderness that came together in a scene that didn’t cause me to roll my eyes. It was really well done.
Q: Who has the best butt in gaming?
Paul: Best butt in gaming is pretty obvious, feast your eyes on this.
Randy: D.J. Ross does, of course.
D.J.: Well, Matt and Randy already stole my choices, so I’ll have to go with the dancer from Final Fantasy IV that they actually censored in the original SNES release. Yow!
Don’t be shy! Let us know if you think games have grown up enough to handle this subject matter, or if they still have some maturing to do.
Image credits: Super Adventures in Gaming, Bioware forums
VGHomework: Backloggery
This week on the show, we’re talking about gaming backlogs and what we can do to eliminate (or at least reduce) our piles of shame. How did it get to this point??
VGHomework: The Next Generation
We’re looking forward to the next generation on this week’s show–actually, we’re compiling our list of demands. What do we think about the inevitable next wave of consoles in general, and what will the big three have to do to pry us away from our beloved PS3s, Xboxes, and–yes–even Wiis?
VGHomework: Senseless violence edition
We’re not extra surly this weekend; we’re just continuing the violence discussion from this week’s show! (At least, that’s our story.)
VGHomework: E3 hangover
Another E3 has come and gone. Were you left feeling underwhelmed, as seems to be the concensus this year, or were there enough announcements to keep you excited for the next year’s worth of games? We’ve collected some of our thoughts below.
VGHomework: DRM from the depths of Hell!
This week on the show, we discussed Blizzard’s always-online requirement for Diablo III and measures other publishers are taking to ostensibly protect their games from pirates. These practices can have the side-effect of making gamers’ lives miserable, though, so we want to know: Have you found yourself caught up in DRM Hell?
Q: Did you have any trouble playing Diablo III during launch week?
Paul (@spaulsandhu): I present Exhibit A: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iKTwDJstN_E
Matt (@mkernan): Nope, no trouble at all. Granted, I didn’t buy it and didn’t try to play it, so I guess that doesn’t really count.
Q: Have you ever had to buy an online pass for a game?
Matt: I’ve never had to myself, but I feel really sorry for the average game-buying consumer who has to deal with this crap. I have the benefit of following the industry closely enough that I am far better equipped to navigate the waters of DRM, online passes, and packed-in DLC. It’s enough to make the average Joe’s head spin, if you ask me. I did recently buy a used copy of Homefront that was missing the online pass, but I paid so little for the game that it didn’t bother me in the slightest. Plus, Homefront handles the online pass issue pretty elegantly – you can play online up to a certain rank, as a test drive of sorts, before the online pass is required. You could even keep playing it indefinitely, if you don’t mind the pretty low level cap.
Q: Would you buy a next-gen console if you couldn’t play used games on it?
Paul: Absolutely not! I would refuse to support any console manufacturer that would do this. I understand that developers want to protect their IPs, but preventing consumers from playing legally purchased copies of used games would be going way too far. If the rumours surround the next Xbox are true, I’d probably just boycott any Microsoft products from this day forward.
Matt: I think this will become an irrelevant question in one or two console generations, with the move to all-digital distribution. So, in that sense, yes. However, if the Xbox 720 and PS4 come out and one makes playing used games more difficult than the other, then I’d lean toward purchasing the more lenient one.
Randy (@randy_wrecked): I don’t have a problem with that. I seldom buy used now because I believe so strongly that used games are a detriment to the industry. Eliminating the market for them would change gaming substantially—no more online passes, no more on-disc DLC, and no more wildly divergent retailer pre-order exclusives. I think Steam is a perfect example of how an all-digital game delivery system can operate and, as long as console developers can learn from Valve’s model to create comparable experiences, I would happily give up on used games and get on board.
Q: Is there a game you can’t play anymore because the servers are down, or for some other reason? (Maybe no one plays it online anymore?)
Matt: Usually when I read about servers being shut down, it’s a list of games I’ve either never played or haven’t played in quite some time. However, the recent announcement that the online features of EA Sports Active 2 were being turned off did ruffle my feathers a bit. But let’s face it, I haven’t worked out with that thing in months anyway.
D.J. (@metaly): OK, I’m cheating a little because this isn’t completely unplayable online yet, but I’m going to say Battlefield 3! With DICE allowing PC players to run their own servers, it’s become extremely difficult to find a one to play on with settings resembling the “vanilla” ruleset—that is, one without astronomically high tickets, a single map in the rotation, tweaked respawn times, or the server owner’s extensive list of banned weapons. This has happened to a degree with Battlefield 2 and 2142 in the past—as the games age, the variety of servers dwindles—but it’s frustrating to see it already happen to a game that’s less than a year old!
Now that you’ve heard from us, it’s your turn! Tell us your DRM woes or your online gaming horror stories in the comments below.
VGHomework: Ready for Call of Duty: Black Ops II?
Welcome to your first VGHomework assignment! VGHomework is your chance to get in on the discussion from the latest episode of VGHangover. We’ll be adding our own thoughts as well, and will feature your best comments on a future show.
This week, we talked about the recently announced Call of Duty: Black Ops II and how Treyarch is trying to take the series in a new direction. As always, Call of Duty didn’t fail to bring the controversy. Here are some questions that arose:
Q: Are you looking forward to Black Ops II?
D.J. Ross (@metaly): I didn’t love the original Black Ops, but the sequel’s near-future setting has me interested for sure. It seems unlikely that we’ll see soldiers sporting laser guns and active camo, but I can’t wait to see what kind of futuristic gadgets, perks and killstreaks Treyarch will add to the game. Unleash the robo-dogs!
Q: Is “modern warfare” played out? What time period should Call of Duty invade next?
Randy Dickinson (@randy_wrecked): While trying to occupy a genuine historical period is certainly “on brand” for Call of Duty, I think it lends a stuffiness to the series that keeps me from appreciating it. I think they should go completely off the reservation and invent their own time period: muskets and jetpacks, rocket launchers on horseback, and giant steam-powered robots that shoot water balloons. Take the insanity and unpredictability of games like TimeSplitters, Ratchet and Clank and Armed and Dangerous and dump them in to a competitive online FPS and I’ll happily pony up my $60.
Q: Do you want a game’s story to change depending on how well you play?
Paul Sandhu (@spaulsandhu): I’d definitely be more interested in a game if it had a branching story that changed depending on what or how I did during certain segments of a game. But the devs would have to strike a very delicate balance and make sure each outcome would be equally “fair” and interesting for the player. Otherwise people will just try to get the “ideal” outcome during the branching segments. My advice, do what CD Projekt did with The Witcher 2. Make the branching paths and decision points quick, and subtle and have them play out hours later so the player is surprised by what actually happens!
Now that you’ve heard from us, it’s your turn! Comment below with an answer to one of these questions, or just tell us what you think about Black Ops II!
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