Halo Reach: death by loadouts

I've been playing a bit of the Halo Reach beta and I love everything except the armor abilities. What a damn disaster. They unbalance the hell out of the game and you will never know frustration like jumping into a game of team slayer where the other team all has active camo and uses it constantly. I'm very worried about the final version of Reach and I can only hope that there will be a couple choosable gametypes without any armor abilities.

On the plus side, my overall K/D for the beta is 68/21.

EDC Update: Halo 3 ODST

Goal #2 of my extreme difficulty challenge is done!
I just completed Halo 3: ODST on Legendary difficulty, which not only adds another notch to my challenge but it also means I've beaten every Halo game so far on legendary difficulty. Despite being a placeholder between Halo 3 and Reach, I found ODST to be an interesting and enjoyable side story with a darker tone, better characters and lots of backstory for the Halo series. If you like shooters, give ODST a shot, it's probably cheaper now, plus it will get you into the Halo Reach beta that just started up today.

Here's my updated progress:

Halo 3: Legendary difficulty in solo mode
-done
Rainbow Six Vegas: Realistic Difficulty in solo mode
-done
Rainbow Six Vegas 2: Realistic difficulty in solo mode
-done
Gears of War: Insane difficulty in solo mode
-done
Gears of War 2: Insane difficulty in solo mode
-done
Mirror's Edge: Hard difficulty
-done
Halo 3 ODST: Legendary difficulty in solo mode
-done
Mass Effect 2: Insanity difficulty
-approx. halfway with vanguard (tip: vanguard is unbalanced and weak on high difficulty, attempt this with a different class)
Assassin's Creed: 100% complete
-Templars, Jerusalem flags and Damascus Flags still needed
Project Gotham Racing 4: Receive a platinum medal in every arcade event
-approx. 20% complete
Splinter Cell Conviction: Realistic difficulty in single player
-10% complete

Single Player Review - Splinter Cell: Conviction

I just completed the single player campaign of Splinter Cell: Conviction and I was blown away. The narrative and pacing are absolutely top-notch, raising the bar just barely out of the reach of popular favorites like Bioshock and Uncharted 2. I was sucked through the campaign from start to finish and I found the conclusion to be far better than I had expected.

The game is lean and efficient in nearly every way. There aren't any extraneous characters or threads in the plot, it is simple, compelling, gripping and unlike some previous Splinter Cells, clear. In fact, it felt like it might have been written by Luc Besson and compares to fast paced films like Taken and From Paris With Love. This has led to a shorter single player campaign and many gamers and journalists have, in fact, complained about not getting enough for a full priced game. The jury's still out at my house, but I spent about six hours on the campaign without once being bored or wading through a filler section, and I haven't even touched the co-op, denied ops or competitive multiplayer modes yet.

Conviction plays like the awesome cutscenes I always see in action games but never get to control. While other, (cough, Modern Warfare), games try to make you feel like a professional badass motherfucker by tossing in grand set pieces and scripted events, SC:C actually gives you the reigns. So when you see six guys in a room below you and you mark the first three of them, mark a fuel tank between the fourth and fifth, then pounce on the sixth and use your mark and execute skill to clear the whole room in two seconds, you feel completely responsible, empowered and badass. I can't count how many times I looked at the surgically precise devastation around me after a protracted strategic firefight and exclaimed "shit yeah, I did that," often accompanied by bemused looks from my wife.

Splinter Cell: Conviction is a dramatic change for the series, but it is one I welcome. Opinions on the other game modes will be up once I've had time to properly explore them.

Tip: Make sure to wait through the credits after completing the game for a hilarious conversation between Coste and Fisher.

Splinter Cell Conviction: Two Graves Just Ain't Gonna Be Enough

Last week the official launch trailer was released for Splinter Cell: Conviction. My excitement for SC:C was already at a fever pitch but this trailer elevated it to a point where I might spontaneously catch fire. Johnny Cash's version of "God's Gonna Cut You Down" plays in the background, (putting it in this category), which along with Sam Fisher's dialogue sets the tone of the game perfectly.

Crackdown 2: Yet Another Reason Why I'll Be Spending Too Much Money This Year

Just look at the insanity in that screenshot. I'd be lying if I claimed to have even the slightest idea what's happening but... I like it. Also if you look real hard you can spy an agility orb. Toss in expanded co-op and competitive multiplayer modes and Crackdown 2 looks to be a sure-win unless Ruffian somehow manages to completely bust the mechanics.

Why the Playstation Move won't catch on

Despite the fact that many developers will sign on to "develop," (re-release), games for the Playstation Move, I don't think it will catch on.
Allow me to offer a one line argument for why the Move will not be the next big thing that Sony is hoping for.

Wii - Nintendo first party games = Move.

The only thing that has ever enticed me to buy a Wii is that it's the only place where I can find Mario and to a lesser extent Zelda, Metroid and other Nintendo properties. Shit, New Super Mario Bros Wii has already sold around 11 million copies, does Sony have anything exclusive that can even come close to that?

Of course, I don't represent all the consumers of the world. Perhaps certain people just want games that let them bowl or play tennis virtually or flail around like imbeciles, what about them? Well, those people already have a Wii and are happy with it and are not about to jump up to buy a Playstation for $300 and the peripherals required to play Move for around $100. Many people have mentioned that perhaps people with nice HDTVs and a Wii will want what is essentially a Wii HD. Honestly that sort of thinking is out of touch. I hate it every single time I hear a Nintendo rep say it but they're right; the vast majority of Wii owners don't give a shit about HD.

Barring some unforeseen and outrageous circumstances, wading into the waggle-ridden territory that Nintendo has carved out for itself is one of the most ill-advised things that Sony could do.

EDC Update: Mirror's Edge

The first goal on my extreme difficulty challenge is complete!

I just beat Mirror's Edge on the hard difficulty. I actually found it easier than my original playthrough on normal, largely because I almost always knew where to go next. What a fantastic game Mirror's Edge is, the more I play it the more I'm willing to look past the issues and shortfalls and wrap myself up in the bliss that is Mirror's Edge gameplay. Despite the fairly linear levels, the sense of speed and freedom is a nice break from stop and go shooters like Gears of War, Modern Warfare and Halo where brief gunfights are broken up with constant hiding, healing and regrouping. If you haven't tried Mirror's Edge, you owe yourself to find a copy and give it a go, I'm sure it must be inexpensive by now.

Here's my updated progress:

Halo 3: Legendary difficulty in solo mode
-done
Rainbow Six Vegas: Realistic Difficulty in solo mode
-done
Rainbow Six Vegas 2: Realistic difficulty in solo mode
-done
Gears of War: Insane difficulty in solo mode
-done
Gears of War 2: Insane difficulty in solo mode
-done
Mirror's Edge: Hard difficulty
-done
Halo 3 ODST: Legendary difficulty in solo mode
-15% complete
Mass Effect 2: Insanity difficulty
-approx. halfway with vanguard (tip: vanguard is unbalanced and weak on high difficulty)
Assassin's Creed: 100% complete
-Templars, Jerusalem flags and Damascus Flags still needed
Project Gotham Racing 4: Receive a platinum medal in every arcade event
-approx. 20% complete

The Extreme Difficulty Challenge

I'm the sort of obsessive jackass who spent hundreds of hours of my childhood and teenage years beating games like Goldeneye in every way possible. I beat every level in that game on every difficulty in the time limits necessary to unlock every cheat. I collected all 120 Stars in Super Mario 64 and met Yoshi on the roof of the castle. I beat 100% of Super Mario World, finding all 96 exits and maxing out my coins. Quake 1 and 2 I beat on the highest difficulty, I unlocked every fighter in Marvel Vs. Capcom 1 and 2, I soloed Halo 1 and 2 on legendary.

This is not the sort of behavior that a normal and healthy human being should exhibit, let alone foster, but foster it is exactly what I'm going to do. I'm going to challenge myself to beat many of my games on the highest difficulty, and/or 100% them. Call me sick and disturbed, but don't ever say I'm not determined.

Here's a list of the games, my goals, and my progress so far:

Halo 3: Legendary difficulty in solo mode
-done
Rainbow Six Vegas: Realistic Difficulty in solo mode
-done
Rainbow Six Vegas 2: Realistic difficulty in solo mode
-done
Gears of War: Insane difficulty in solo mode
-done
Gears of War 2: Insane difficulty in solo mode
-done
Halo 3 ODST: Legendary difficulty in solo mode
-15% complete
Mirror's Edge: Hard difficulty
-4/9 chapters completed
Mass Effect 2: Insanity difficulty
-approx. halfway with vanguard (tip: vanguard is unbalanced and weak on high difficulty)
Assassin's Creed: 100% complete
-Templars, Jerusalem flags and Damascus Flags still needed
Project Gotham Racing 4: Receive a platinum medal in every arcade event
-approx. 20% complete

Possible Future Challenges
Bionic Commando: Commando difficulty
Shadow Complex: 100% complete
Mass Effect 1: Insanity difficulty
Batman Arkham Asylum: Hard difficulty

New Portal Update Includes Mysterious Clues: My Money is on Half-Life 3

The online videogame community has been abuzz about a new patch for Portal that adds a new radio station that includes hidden messages pointing towards... what? No one knows yet. It looks like Valve has hopped on the viral marketing bandwagon. Lets just hope they get it right and the messages don't just point to a website with no information or a countdown timer that ends with another countdown

My money is on the messages being an early clue towards Half-Life 3, (or Half-Life 2: Episode 3), perhaps only the beginning of a larger and more mysterious viral campaign. I noticed that at the same time that Steam updated my copy of Portal, it installed a hefty update to Half-Life 2: Episode 2 as well, perhaps there are some clues there as well.

Interstate 76 coming to GoG

The best PC game of all time, (with the best soundtrack of all time), is being released on Good Old Games for $6 including the expansion pack and it will be reworked for compatability with Windows XP and Vista. If you never played Interstate 76, you owe it to yourself to buy it now. If you have already played Interstate 76, I don't need to convince you because you're already waiting with a credit card ready.

Protip: Never get out of the car.