Gaming by GlossGreen

It was the worst of times..."

I both love and hate this time of year. The love part is easy to figure out. The holidays are nearly upon us, good cheer and merriment abounds. My favorite time of the year is winter, I tend to sleep better in the cold. My daughter's birthday is next month. One more year closer to college (and out of the house) for her. And of course, a couple more months until my annual pay increase, yeah for more money. But, this time of year is not all good. There is a foul and evil side of this time of the year. What is it? The end of year gaming push by every single damn publisher in existence.

It's the same every year, the fall time frame is crammed full of great games, just in time for the Christmas buying season. Sounds good doesn't it? Well it's not, for the simple fact that games cost money. Lots of money. Money that I don't have is what I'm getting at. Sure, I could get a couple of games each month, but which ones. I have a vague idea of what I want, but damn, they all look so good.

The pressure starts on October 14th for me. I know I'm getting Dead Space. This game has had me interested since I first heard about it. Come on, something inspired by Alien, The Thing, and Event Horizon has to be good. I know some of you are looking to get Rock Revolution that day as well. I don't think it's for me though, I'm not really into the whole rhythm game genre, so that's a pass for me. This week also marks the return of a classic series to console gaming, Golden Axe. This is another one I'm not so sure about, and being such, is a pass at the moment. There's just too many good games coming out that I am sure about. Which brings me to October 21.

This is a day that I am dreading. This day marks the release of one of the biggest hits of last year for the Xbox 360 to the PS3, BioShock. I know some of you are thinking twice about this one due to all the press about the graphics, but don't. In my opinion, nothing that I've read is a deal breaker to me. A few textures that are not quite perfect will not deter me from buying a game with great gameplay and a fantastic story. It's still a buy in my book. But, my book also has many, many other games in it that I want to pick up. Here's my short list of must buy games: Eternal Sonata (another 360 port), Fable II, Far Cry 2, Legendary, LittleBigPlanet and Star Ocean: First Departure. Yeah, I'm not getting all those games, I just don't have an extra $320 lying around. I'd love to get them, but it's not going to happen.

Now, the 28th I can handle. Fallout 3 is the only game I have any interest in on that week. That one is pretty much a no brainer. I wish I could say the same for November, but that is not the case. Starting on the 4th I would love to get Resistance 2 and EndWar. Follow that on the 7th with Gears of War 2 and it would be a great month right there. But the cruelty continues. The 10th sees the release of Mortal Kombat Vs. DC Universe, followed by Banjo-Kazooie: Nuts and Bolts, Call Of Duty: World At War, Command and Conquer: Red Alert 3, Eternal Poison and Mirrors Edge. ARGH.

Well, that covers the first month, and we're not even to December yet. With so many good games coming out the choices of what to get seem almost endless, and this happens every year. Oh, well. I'll just have to wait until spring to catch up, that being the start of the gaming drought of the year. What about you? What are your must have games for this holiday season?

Now this it truly amazing. Beta keys have been around a quite a while now and are used to help drum up support for an upcoming title, I don't think I've ever seen a beta as in demand as this one is. Why is this particular beta so sought after? I have seen no fewer then 6 different sites giving betas out in the last week, and all have been swamped. It isn't that LittleBigPlanet is a completely original idea. Forge in Halo 3, Dungeon Creator and RPG Maker all had a similar idea, but those attempts pale in comparison to this one. LittleBigPlanet is a title where, in fact, you get to create the game itself. How? By providing you with robust tools and numberous customization options, you are able to design and build your own game levels. Of course, if you so choose, you could just play the levels designed by the developers. But, where is the fun in that?

Now I'm not a really creative person, and designing is not my forte, but damned if I don't want this game too. Why? I don't know really, it's just a little hard to explain. Gimme a second to collect my thoughts on this one. OK, here goes. This game is all about using the imagination that you have. You are not required to have advanced degrees in game design or computer graphics to succeed here. All you need is a vision and the perseverance to make it happen, and frankly, it all boils down to having fun. From what I understand, having fun is pretty easy to do. Just take a look this. Even Adam seemed surprised at what he saw.

Now, it's not all about using the textures and objects that are included in the game itself. You can add whatever you want to the game, and it's only limited by your imagination. Now here's a video that any Xbox owner can relate to. I just love the warthog.

Having the tools and an imagination is not enough in itself to guarantee a game is going to be successful. It has to control well, have a learning curve that isn't too difficult, be fun, and having a bit of personality helps too. That's why I like this next video. This is a short section at the beginning of the game, the tutorial level as it is.

Media Molecule could have made a boring start like many games have done previously, instead, what they do is make you instantly part of the experience. Even though you play through the opening credits, you are getting an opportunity to become familiar with the controls. Not that there is much in the way of controls to grasp. You have run and jump, at least in the beginning. This is very much a pick up and play game.

As we've seen, this game is a little different from the norm. There are no violent deaths with spurts of blood. There are no bullets. And no one is going to cut off an appendage. There may be very little violence in LittleBigPlanet, but, with a game like this, you won't miss it.