Wet: These days I seem to think a lot about the things I forgot to do

Paying heed to predecessors such as the "you can't take yourself this serious" The Matrix in 1999 and 2001's Max Payne not to be confused with the Marky Mark version, Wet on Xbox 360 and PS3 by A2m is quite a replay on previous successful ideas. Focusing on slow motion 3rd person action with over the top violence, Wet is a great game for that quick one time fix.

You are an Uma Thurman (Kill Bill) style contract killer for hire that brandishes a sword alongside dual wielding firearms. The story is presented in a 60's B-movie approach using a melting reel, for example, when you die. Cutscenes have gritty scratchy overlays and levels are sometimes separated with old theater videos reminding you to visit the lobby for refreshments. It makes for a very stylistic presentation reminiscent to the cold, dark Max Payne's comic book scenes or snowy silent winter.

The story is so-so for an action game, expected plot points and outcomes are prevalent. The gameplay action is where the fun is found. The slow motion fighting is a blast to watch and play through as level design is based around it, but can get old very fast. Three buttons make up the slow motion action (run along walls, slide on the ground, or leap through the air) and after a few environment changes and pushing the 3 in different orders the game becomes a race to reach the end.

Your main weapons include what look like .44 magnum six shooters which can be emptied in a matter of 2 seconds and since reloading would break up the action Wet decides to kindly forget the theory behind reloading. Accompanying your revolvers is a Hatori Hanzo sword but sadly Sonny Chiba is not the presenter. The sword which is an amazing addition to this type of game is pretty limited in its usefulness unless you manage to find a locked door or can evade gunfire enough to get within 5 feet of your opposition.

Kills offer points used to unlock new moves or weapon improvements but are not necessary and only make the game slightly easier. Some of the action sequences have guess the button much like the Resident Evil series and most bosses are finished in this manner. Thankfully they are much easier than the RE ones that always seemed like they put you in the middle of a Press Your Luck show. At other times you are given a very bloody face which in turn enrages you enough to go into a red and white mode to start chain killing people giving additional bonuses for keeping the chain rolling.

The controls are easy to negotiate and the action flows well as the sounds of guns and explosions enhance the experience. The music selections are a perfect fit since all are fast tempo southwest style songs. Much of the music gives the feeling of wanting to brandish a ten gallon hat and empty whiskey bottles into your tummy which is only bad if you are playing this while driving. And yet it would still be safer than texting and driving.

A full clear of the game takes near 15 hours depending on the difficulty chosen and since it has a very repetitive nature, does not give the desire to be played over again. The love of the fighting in the Kill Bill movies, Max Payne or the Wachowski Brothers films is probably a good indicator that you will enjoy this game, just intend on setting aside a few days for a rental instead of bothering to dent the wallet buying the game.

Rating : 3.5 {on a scale of -10 to 10}

E3:09 Highlights

Here are some of the not so French tickles that I caught while spending a little too much time staring at Olivia Munn and the rest of the G4 gang.  

EA - Besides the typical sports games of yore here's a look at what I hope is not just Star Wars Galaxies 2.  Yes, a new MMO set in the Scifi universe that all Scifi fans know:  Star Wars the Old Republic.  Since it is made by the creators of KOTOR, the big push for this game is the storyline and questlines touting consequences for every choice made.  Also a reminder that Mass Effect 2 is on the way and what looks like all the unenjoyable portions have been removed.

Ubisoft - By first starting off on the right foot having Joel McHale initially introduce the Ubi conference, CEO Yves Guillemot spent just a handful of time on information for all of the Tom Clancy hits, Assassin's Creed 2, Red Steel 2, etc.  Instead almost all of the talk was over their new direction which is taking a vested interest in all aspects of entertainment beyond gaming.  Their first large branch-off is a 3-D game/movie combo called Avatar.  The 4 year running production is directed by James Cameron and was a project he originally had created over a decade ago but the technology was not up to his vision. Thankfully this was not a forced project made during the Deep Blue Sea era of CGI.  And for the first time in a while I will probably buy another Splinter Cell game.

Sony - Big PSP push for them with all sorts of ports and similar versions of big hits.  New Metal Gear Solid game for PS3 (exclusive one for Xbox360 too), some more Final Fantasy videos but overall the only half thrill I got was watching some God of War 3 gameplay.  It looked smooth, brutal, and visually amazing.  

Nintendo - One big surprise was a new 4 person co-op 2D Mario Bros. game for the Wii.  It plays out much like the gamecube/DS game Zelda 4 Swords.   Interesting but this again is another example of a Wii game needing more than just yourself to please you and others.  The one surprise was a short video of the next upcoming Metroid game due out in 2010.  This shows a bit more of the old 3rd person viewpoint that fans enjoy.

Microsoft - Modern Warfare 2 as well as Mass Effect 2 were a few of the 360 delights.  Both were large improvements over their originals and hopefully will both be released before I make out a Christmas wish list.  The one big showoff Microsoft accomplished which was above and beyond any other of the console press conferences was Project Natal.  Natal is an additional little device that resembles a web cam and microphone combined.  It doesn't seem like it would be that interesting until it is understood that it is a gaming device requiring no controller but your body.  Some amazing features of Natal are voice AND facial recognition, video conferencing, dashboard browsing controlled by your body motions, etc.  Here is an example of what looks like a game of sorts called Milo which is a little interactive AI program.  

Resident Evil 5: Zombie no go go, unless you tell am to go, Zombie no go stop, unless you tell am to stop

"Now lets all just stay calm and hopefully we can take care of this 'Zombie' problem in a civilized manner"

Who knew a pregnant woman who barely plays video games with a hardcore gamer would both squirm with anticipation of getting through a normal work day to be rewarded with a zombie-blasting-fun-shotgun-reloading-handholding-good-old-time? For all your marriage needs Resident Evil 5 for PS3 and Xbox360 from Capcom is there fulfilling all that marital bliss people talked about you having after exchanging vows about sickness and genetic altering viruses and boy, was everyone right on about it all being worth it.

Without saying all the same stuff again about the love of zombie in all of its forms (Previous Review of RE5 Demo) I'm going to just stick to my reaction of RE5 after finishing the game with my diamond in the rough on a par 4.

A quick synopsis for this game will remind you of any RE typical virus problem creating zombies that must be dealt with.  After zombie after zombie are destroyed you take arms up against the person in charge of distributing the virus.  This RE takes place in a fictional African country as this makes for a great 'test' site for the newly created virus without the fear of a military superpower intervening.  Instead, you and your partner are a part of a small group that investigates biological terrorism around the world and is assigned to this lovely country after rumors start of people making meals of other people.

RE5 is everything I'd hoped for with a little extra gravy on the side.  It makes for a very hard decision when comparing to its predecessor, RE4, on which is better. The shock value on what a huge step forward RE4 was made for a high bar to live up to but with the addition of the Co-op mode, the beauty of this generation of consoles, and sticking with all that worked previously, RE5 has at least matched RE4 in greatness.  

The solo play is quality as the AI of your uncontrolled partner has the aim of a true champ and avoids death fairly well.  Your AI companion however, does not understand what it means to conserve ammo and will blow through just about every bullet you hand them.  For anyone who's played any of the RE games, you know that ammo is scarce and is one of the things that will make or break your survival as zombies attempt to chomp on your pooper and neck alike.  In some instances your AI buddy will be such a good shot that it almost feels like cheating.  This makes the game a bit easier than I prefer but others may appreciate all the help they can get.  

The Co-op mode is one of the best 2 person Co-ops I have ever seen. The overall game is so fun that even someone that is typically not enthralled with gaming can start to play RE5 and notice smiles appearing on their face.  After completing the game with my wife I realized that this game's development was actually centered around the idea of you playing with someone and making the experience of two people better than just one.  Many of the fights in the game are meant for you to coordinate times to reload, when to take shots, exchanging of equipment, and covering one another from all directions which is best done with a real partner and not a skynetty one.  The controls are easy enough for anyone to pick up and quickly learn as they are identical to RE4's 3rd person over the shoulder shooting controls.   

Hopping right into playing with a partner isn't the fastest thing to do as RE will save all of your progress no matter who's game you are joining and no matter where they are in the story.  What is nice about this is all the extra unlockables that are bought with a how-smooth-was-success based point system is saved to your account and not just the person's story you are playing.  

The cutscenes and storyline are solid and mesh very well to make the experience a complete one.  There is still some of the extra unnecessary unusualness that RE/Capcom likes to have such as extreme physical attributes (punching through a person) and over the top characters.  Even with this strangeness, the voice acting is done very well and the music and sounds of the game also make for a seamless movie played out as a game or game played out as a movie depending on your half full/hall empty outlook.  Different pistols sound like their real counterpart and the ooga-booga zombie sounds still have the same old scariness that comes from when you know damn well it's in the shadows somewhere.

Completing the game just like RE4 unlocks some extra modes of play but not as many as RE4.  RE4 had a very difficult extra storyline that could be played after the game was completed and RE5 is missing something like that.  I'm going to guess that since the new trend of games now is to have to purchase extra expansions, they will probably release something like this at a later date.  

Lots of head disintegrating action, smooth transitioning cutscenes, fun gameplay, and an opportunity to make a real life partnership even stronger make Resident Evil 5 a game everyone should take the time to find a partner to play it with.  Yeah, it being RE5, I think...   

Rating: 9.0 {on a scale of -10 to 10, 5 being a must play}

Fela Kuti and the Afrika 70 - Zombie (video is only 10 min of the full 12+ min song)

NPPL 2009: lit only by the glow from hope you buried deep, to see what it would grow

Ok so it's a picture of PSP and not the NPPL...

D   Y   N   A   S   T    Why?  Because you love the game of paintball so much that's why.  Brought to us by Activision, NPPL Championship Paintball 2009 is the first paintball game in over three years since the release of Greg Hasting's game for the earlier console generation of xbox and playstation.  Well, OK, there really weren't any before that either.  And that's the focus for this review.

So most people that play FPS games really focus on the controls, AI, and hopefully minimal repetitiveness.  Trying to imagine those that would play this game is a simple task to do.  They are the ones that spend much of their good weather days dodging little balls, praying that none land in sensitive areas that already house a couple.  Everyone else has enough common sense to stay off the fields of war and within the safety of distance, will also distance themselves from this game.  I myself have spent dollar after dollar on cases of paint and FPSs alike, and even I have trouble turning a blind eye to the factors that will keep most from experiencing this game at all.

Comparing to the only other major paintball game, NPPL 2009 is an improvement graphically.  There is a better array of ingame equipment to choose from because of additional sponsorships obtained versus Greg Hastings Paintball.  The feel of tournament play is somewhat similar to what actual paintball feels like.  But sadly this is where all the positives begin to dissipate.  It is a paintball game and if paintball is something you enjoy then there's somewhat of a chance this recreation will be enjoyable.  This is not by any means a typical FPS for those expecting it to help a newbie begin to embrace the sport.  A person who has never set foot on a paintball field will really zone in on the aspects that make this a video game and not the pieces that help mimic the sport and in doing so can really jab you in the eyes.

The problems start to occur with a lot of repetitiveness.  There are a lot of loading screens and some do not seem like they would be even necessary.  Handfuls of them occur after only about thirty seconds of gameplay and you tend to find yourself sitting on an imaginary bench with nothing to think about.  The music is the expected soundtrack of paintball especially if you have ever watched any Derder type films about the sport.  The issue with the music is menu screens tend to play the same song every time you reach them between rounds, new tournaments, equipment screens, etc.  

Controls are somewhat good (2 right buttons acting like a double-finger trigger) but the default stick for aiming is the right one which is a lot of precision aiming matched on the same hand as the speedy busy fingers.  The bunker leaning is not as good as what it was in Greg Hastings as you can not hold a full lean and strafe without breaking a lean causing a lot of jerky movements.  Diving or sliding into bunkers can be somewhat tricky and prone position snake play is unbearable.    

The AI and tournament play may be a little more on par with what real tournaments feel like but the speed of some rounds is so fast that off the break, more than half of the opposing side or yours will can be eliminated and barely any paint down open lanes is found.  Greg Hastings did an excellent job of utilizing lane shooters while mixing other teammates for hopping from bunker to bunker on the field.  NPPL 2009 has all players aggressively moving the entire time barely letting you get to a bunker to use one full hopper of paint.  This is where loading screens become a constant greeter as you are slapped in the face with them even between multiple rounds against the same team on the same field (for example best 2/3 rounds).  

Overall, NPPL 2009 is a great and wonderful reminder of one of the greatest games that people can go out and experience.  Trying to describe the adrenaline rush of diving behind a bunker with the sound of paint coming inches from your noggin probably can never be recreated with just a video game so go balls out, get a facefull of paint, and save your money before you decide to even think about picking up this game.  

Rating: 2.5 {-10 to 10 scale, 5+ being a must play}