NerdNightmare

Like many gamers, I picked up StarCraft 2 yesterday. I spent about an hour on the single player campaign. I can’t comment on how good or bad the story is at this juncture, but what I can comment on is how good the game looks, and how polished everything feels.

The interactive sections between missions bring a tear to my eye. They fondly stir up grand memories of  the Wing Commander series I played as a youth.  I found myself wanting to get through “just one more mission” so that I could get to the next section of intermission. And furthermore the cowboy/western vibe of the Terran’s feels heavily influenced by Joss Whedon’s Firefly series, which is a good thing. All the thought and planning that went into the StarCraft 2 world is so juicy and fulfilling that I honestly feel that my least favorite part of the game is the actual game itself.

More after the jump…

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Castlevania – Symphony of the Night, on the original Playstation, might just be my favorite video game of all time. The first time I played it was on Halloween night way back in 1997. I don’t remember my costume or what I did that night besides play Castlevania.

Here’s a story about Castlevania – SOTN. A friend of mine asked to borrow my Playstation and Castlevania for a few weeks back in high school because he was going to be grounded all summer for bad grades. I was leery at first. Playstation’s didn’t grow on trees, and my Baskin Robbins income was minuscule. Eventually I caved and let him borrow the system, after he signed a contract offering his first born child, his soul for eternity, and a kick in the nuts if he broke it, and a guarantee that he’d replace it. To this day he still claims that being stuck inside all summer with just Castlevania for entertainment was one of the best summers of his life.

And now here I am, it’s thirteen years later, and I have a new puzzle game on my iPhone. A puzzle game based on Castlevania – Symphony of the night.   My thoughts on the game after the jump…

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Ok. First off… EPIC.

Secondly, can we just skip ahead to the day when Blizzard announces that they are no longer just making games, and will be putting two hour long versions of the above video in theaters? Please?

The first game released for this years XBox Live Summer of Arcade is ‘LIMBO‘ from Playdead. I just downloaded and played through the demo today and I loved this game!

You play as a young boy who has entered LIMBO to find his sister. The game is simple, you can jump and interact with specific objects. The visuals are monochromatic and there is no music, just a few sparse sound effects. The atmosphere that Playdead created for LIMBO is minimalist, but I find that to be very refreshing. LIMBO would suffer if it were in 3D and packed with visual effects. It is somehow both creepy and charming at the same time.

View LIMBO’s trailer is after the jump…

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I recently picked up Jet Set Games new iPhone/Touch strategy game Highborn.

It reminds me a lot of one of my all time favorite game series from when I was a kid, Shining Force. In Highborn you control a hero and a small army of soldiers and battle opponents on different maps and locations in round based combat. You can also learn spells to help turn the tide of battle if needed. The story is humorous, and the character designs & animation are excellent.

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I seriously can’t for the upcoming Scott Pilgrim vs. The World game. The chiptune soundtrack by Anamanaguchi is enough to get me on board. 8-bit graphics and old school beat -em up action seals the deal.

Click the above image to hear a track from the game!

I don’t currently own an iPad, but my roommate does! I’m pretty sure were going to be testing out this how-to guide from LifeHacker tonight!

How-To Play SNES games on your iPad via Lifehacker

According to this Tech Crunch article, Google has quietly/secretly invested $100-200million into Farmville creator Zynga. Apparently the investment is being used to launch Google’s new gaming division ‘Google Games’. This news could be bad for the current social games czar Facebook.

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Billed as both a to-do list and a streamlined RPG, EpicWin is a soon to be released iPhone app that rewards you with experience points & items for doing chores on a to-do list.

It’s being designed by the same guy who worked on Little Big Planet. I like the art style on the apps website…

EPICWINAPP

I’m not going to lie. I had an idea just like this a few years ago, but didn’t have the means to create it. Glad someone with more assets got a similar idea! The app is due out sometime next month.

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I have just found a new friend in iPhone game developer Strandlooper Animation. I have just begun to play their adventure game ‘Hector : Badge of Carnage episode 1′ and I couldn’t be more impressed. The art & animation in the game is superb. The writing is genuinely funny, especially if your a fan of British humor. (I am) And on top of all that, it is a goddamn ADVENTURE GAME. If you have an iPhone/Touch, and you like Lucas Arts & Sierra adventure games, and your not above potty humor, then pick this game up. If for no other reason than to support the return of a long abandoned genre.

If adventure games catch on again in the mobile market, who knows what might happen? Maybe we’ll get a new legitimate Leisure Suit Larry or perhaps a Quest for Glory.