Hello friends and foes,

The GDC came and went and it brought along some interesting announcements.

GDC After-thoughts

I would start with what I was referring to in the title of this blog. IGNORANCE.

I am talking about Ninja Gaiden Sigma 2 on PS3. Obviously,everyone saw this coming after Itagaki's departure. And there's a little doubt in my mind that the future NG and DOA games will be multiplatform as well. But that's not my point. What I am saying is that I did expect NGS 2 to include some extra playable characters. And the inclusion of Ayane (scantily-clad,typical Team Ninja) and Momiji (whoa...cute looking  ) came as no surprise. There's also a co-op mode which is a HUGE addition as well,IMO.

But then, I am asking what about those who already own the 360 original? I am not part of that group yet (although I want to play NGII so BAD), but I have seen quite a few sad gamers who are moaning about why they are not getting those "extra" features? In today's world of gaming where we have a little something called Downloadable Content (DLC), I don't see why developers aren't buying into this? When there is a lot of chance to generate revenue through all those DLCs which will be downloaded by those who want the "added features" of Sigma 2 in their NGII game on the 360 as well.

I think the same case applies for some other games which were "ported" a year later to another platform.BioShock on PS3 had "challenge rooms",Eternal Sonata on PS3 had additional content in the form of characters and a few more that come in mind. It could possibly happen to ANY game that gets ported to another console a year or so later. So it still doesn't make sense that when your original game is popular and you're making a revamped port of it on another console,why not make a DLC for the original console as well? 

Anyways,I still hope that Sigma 2 turns out to be a fantastic game so that some of the skeptics of Team Ninja-without-Itagaki can be silenced.  You know me,I admire Team Ninja's games! 

On the other hand, I am VERY excited about the prospect of seeing Max Payne return in his third game. I was expecting it to be announced sooner or later after Rockstar said they were reviving the series last time. Both the Max Payne were some of my favorite games especially Max Payne 2 which IMO even beat The Matrix in "bullet-time" action-sequences. Plus it's comic-book $tyle of narrating it's dark-themed story was amazing! It's being made by Rockstar Vancouver as well,and they're quite a talented bunch of devs.

I think there were few of us who were expecting a Zelda game on Wii to be announced but it's turned out to be a DS game! Anyways, another Zelda game is always welcome! Although Spirit Tracks(where you have the ability to run a train??) sounds like a little strange,but hell nobody is complaining.

Talking about a DS, my interest in this handheld has recently skyrocketed after all the rave reviews,GTA Chinatown Wars is getting. I was quite shocked to see a GTA handheld being innovative. Rockstar surprises us everytime I guess. So,now I am thinking of getting a DS over a PSP (I need one to replace my broken one). PSP seems to be largely having a poor show,IMO other than a few games like Dissidia that I am looking forward to. DS seems to have a better library with countless amazing titles that I would want to play, TWEWY,NG Dragon Sword,Phantom Hourglass,Pokemon Platinum,Hotel Dusk to name a few. Oh well...we'll see.

Modern Warfare 2 got a cool,slick trailer. There has been some silly debate in the forums over why there is no mention of the words "Call of Duty" anywhere in the trailer and whether Infinity Ward and Activision have had some kind of falling out. I say,Call of Duty or not. As long as Infinity Ward is on this,it's going to be great. 

Hideo Kojima gave an interesting interview as well and hinted at a new MGS game (surprise!surprise!). He's a talented chap,IMO. But since I haven't played MGS4 and haven't seen those "stealth mechanic facelifts", my opinion on the "gaming" part of MGS is quite poor. I think Kojima is a genius of a storyteller and could have done wonders in movie industry,but well he has given gaming industry some memorable stories as well...Ahh nevermind!

Other Stuff

I recently bought U2's new album "No Line on the Horizon". Well, I haven't been the biggest U2 fan but I think they've made some impressive albums over the year. This new one doesn't stand amongst their best though. Although it does have some amazing songs like, "Get on your Boots", "Magnificent", "Cedars of Lebanon", but the album otherwise is filled with filler tracks. Skip this one and return back to the good ol' days of the "Joshua Tree",U2.

I also managed to watch Juno on DVD and it was my first time watching this movie. Pretty good movie. I liked the witty dialogue and how the director tries to send the "positive" side of the message of the quite delicate topic of teenage pregnancy. Ellen Page acts amazing though! 

I am planning to watch Watchmen (do I smell a repetition? ) over the next weekend after my finals are over. I think I might go through the graphic novel once more before I do that. Just for the purpose of clarity,y'know. 

Alrighty,that's enough for now I guess.

C ya

Lightwarrior179