Gino D:

Biggest Disappointment: Nintendo

Runner’s Up: Too Human, Spore.

Comments: Well, I could easily give away a game as the biggest flop this year (Too Human, I’m looking at you!), but generally speaking, Nintendo not releasing more first-party titles this year is the biggest disappointment of all. Don’t get me wrong, Mario Kart Wii and Brawl are pretty much up there, but I was expecting Nintendo to roll out a bigger and more substantial library for the Wii and DS to compete with other first-party titles of the other major players.

Biggest Disappointment: PlayStation Home

Runner’s Up: Haze, Wii Music

Comments: Home isn’t a game, but it’s so disappointing that I’m putting it in here anyway. Boohoo for you, but it’s true. I’m sure it has a bright future ahead of it, but its launch is purely dismal.

Biggest Disappointment: Fallout 3

Runner Up: Sadness

Comments: Fallout 3 - It’s a good enough game if you judge it on its own merits, but I wanted a true Fallout 3 sequel dammit, not a glorified Oblivion mod. Sadness - STILL no gameplay footage. What the hell, Nibris?

Biggest Disappointment: Chrono Trigger DS

Comments: Chrono Trigger DS is hardly any different from the PS1 remake… seeing the 3D look in the trailers got me thinking that it might have a few scenes in 3D, but no..why go hyping it up when all we’re gonna get is the same game on a different platform? If it’s to have Chrono Trigger on mobile, emulators would’ve done the job a long time ago - and for free..

Biggest Disappointment: Resistance 2

Runner Up: Age of Conan

Comments: Understand that Resistance 2 is by no means a bad game, not even an average game, it’s just not what I was hoping for. The multiplayer and co-op aspects are brilliantly put together but the single player game just feels… bland, like an afterthought.  Explosions erupt all around you, chaos ensues, aliens, humans engaged in epic combat on a massive scale, it’s mad and it looks gorgeous… but it never really comes alive.

As far as Age of Conan goes, it’s actually a pretty damn good MMO now, but for months after launch it was a challenge just to play for any period of time without a crash to desktop. So much potential. Please Lord, let Star Trek Online be perfect.

What say you guyses?

If you look at some of the upcoming games, most of them seem to be sequels, prequels, or spinoffs of already established franchises: Uncharted 2, God of War 3, Patapon 2, BioShock 2, Resident Evil 5… the list goes on. And I’ve heard too many complaints out there saying that devs seem to be getting less creative and are opting for the tried-and-tested approach.

Guess what though? It’s not so much as going the safe route, but to a developer, it’s about making the most of your assets and changing the playing field among their competitors. The best explanation I could find of this “why are there so many sequels all of a sudden?” phenomenon comes from Insomniac Games‘ Ted Price:

“Developers can hit the ground running with sequels. The game’s story and art style have a solid base, the tech and tools are stable and the basic gameplay mechanics have gone through plenty of tuning in the first game. It’s certainly a liberating experience when you’re no longer arguing over the main character’s name, or waiting for basic systems to be implemented. The end result is usually a game that’s bigger, more polished and has more innovative features than the original game.” [Full Article]

And sequels aren’t a bad thing either. If you look at how sequels have been for the past year (MGS4, GTA4, CoD4, Gears of War 2, etc.), they’ve more than proven that not all sequels suck donkey balls - given that the devs deliver in their promise to bring a game that’s “bigger, more polished, and has more innovative features than the original game,” to quote Price again. So… if this trend of actually upping the ante with a sequel continues into 2009 and beyond, then by gods!, can you imagine how so much cooler something like God of War 3 would be?

Now if sequels aren’t your thing, there are still a handful of new IPs to look out for too: Heavy Rain and Hydrophobia are just two games that I personally want to keep close tabs on. But in short, to answer my own question: no, I don’t think new IPs are a dying breed. It just seems like it because most of the popular games this year have been sequels, with some of the new IPs (I’m not saying all) having to follow in the shadow of the bigger sequels: MGS4, GTA4, Fallout 3, and a handful of others on the GotY lists.

Here’s a thought I want to leave you with though: isn’t it strange that most of the good new IPs out there are coming from small studios and independent devs? Look at de Blob and Braid. And then there’s LittleBigPlanet - their team in Media Molecule started out so small, it’s quite surprising how they managed to pull off the entire LBP phenomenon.

Seemingly, this is where the playing field now lies: if you want good sequels, look to the established devs and major players in the publishing biz: Konami, EA, Capcom, Square Enix, Sony, Microsoft, OK fine, maybe even Nintendo despite their skimpy first-party library in 2008. But for new IPs that will make an impact? Look to the indie devs and small studios for those diamonds in the rough.

Gino D:

Most Underrated: Prince of Persia

Comments: Just to make a distinction “Underrated” != “Overlooked”. The way I see it, underrated games are those which should have gotten better reviews and ratings than they did. Like Prince of Persia. Yes, it did get some quite glowing reviews for its graphics and art direction, but I thought the gameplay wasn’t all that bad at all.

Most Underrated: Grand Theft Auto IV

Comments: Because it deserves a 15/10.

Most Underrated: World of Goo

Comments: World of Goo’s gameplay and graphics are really impressive. Too bad it didn’t get the media mileage it needed to catch people’s attention. I do however applaud the indie devs, 2D Boy, for coming up with IP as innovative as this. Goes to show that you don’t need complex gameplay and convoluted dramatic story lines in order to have fun.

Most Underrated: Valkyria Chronicles

Comments: Valkyria Chronicles - This strategy-slash-action-RPG title mostly went unappreciated when it hit North America, but in my opinion it’s hands-down the best (and best-looking) RPG title the PS3 has so far.

Most Underrated: Crash Commando

Comments: It came out just a few weeks ago and it’s simply the best multiplayer action game you’ll find on PSN, as a matter of fact, it’s in my top 10 for game of the year. I can’t remember the last time I had as much fun with a game, fast frantic and wonderfully balanced, this is pure arcade fun. Unfortunately, no one’s talking about it and few know anything about the game, I hear a demo’s on the way, one can only hope because Crash Commando deserves a much wider audience.

Do yourself a favour, spend the 10 bucks and download Crash Commando, it’s worth it.

Gino D:

Publisher of the Year: Electronic Arts

Comments: Damn. As much as you might hate to admit it, EA owns your soul. They’ve got a massive share of the market, with relatively high sales all year. Their spammage of multi platform releases might not be to the taste of many a gamer, but you can’t deny that they’ve been raking in the dough.

Publisher of the Year: Electronic Arts

Comments: I know a lot of you will disagree with me on this, but EA made a lot of significant changes this year that changed my opinion of them. First they took Mirror’s Edge and Dead Space, two rather risky titles, a far cry from their “rinse and repeat” formula of yesteryear. Despite poor sales of these games, they decided to take on Brutal Legend anyway, another risky game that’s sure to get critics all agog, but might leave sales wanting. I admire EA for taking those first steps away from their heartless, capitalist image.

Publisher of the Year: Ubisoft

Comments: I name Ubisoft publisher of the year simply because they are the only publisher left this year who can still afford to acquire other companies left and right while everybody else is closing down or laying off people. For what it’s worth, that should count for something when talking about management skills, right?

Publisher of the Year: Electronic Arts

Comments: It all boils down to new IPs - Mirror’s Edge, Dead Space, and next year’s Saboteur, just to name a few. It looks like the money-grubbing and crap-churning EA of the past is history. I just hope the company doesn’t start to backslide suddenly.

Publisher of the Year: Nintendo

Comments: For selling Wii and DS hardware like candy in preschool, Nintendo deserves top marks for hitting a new market right on the money…

Publisher of the Year: Electronic Arts

Comments: Atari comes a close second, but seeing EA do a complete 180 and lead the charge this year with a bunch of new, well made, innovative IP’s was a class act. They say a leopard can’t change its spots, but the New EA proves that saying’s wrong, whatever bug bit EA, let’s hope it’s infectious.

So guys, what are your thoughts?

Here’s another release from Wiibrew developer Tantric; this time it’s an update for FCE Ultra GX, the NES emulator for the Wii. This version has a couple of improvements to the code, same as Tantric’s other two releases.

The more notable changes are the fixed SD card access instability, and the auto update feature. Here’s the full changelog:

• Fixed unstable SD card access
• Proper SD/USB hotswap (Wii only)
• Auto-update feature (Wii only)
• Rewritten SMB access - speed boost, NTLM now supported (Wii only)
• Improved file access code
• Resetting preferences now resets controls
• Overscan (cropping) setting now saved in preferences
• Rewritten RAM/state saving - old state saves are now invalid
• Minor bug fixes

Download: FCE Ultra GX 2.0.8

• FCE Ultra GX 2.0.6: homebrew NES emulator for Wii
• Snes9x GX 008: SD card access fix, auto-update feature
• Visual Boy Advance GX 1.0.6: save state bug fix, SD card access fix

Here’s another emulator to give your Wii more bang for the buck. This is an update to Visual Boy Advance GX, an emulator for the Game Boy and Game Boy Advance.

There are several improvements to the emu’s features, some of them following the same changes made to Tantric’s other emulator, Snes9x GX. Here’s the full changelog:

• Fixed save state saving bug
• Fixed unstable SD card access
• Proper SD/USB hotswap (Wii only)
• Auto-update feature (Wii only)
• Rewritten SMB access - speed boost, NTLM now supported (Wii only)
• Improved file access code
• Resetting preferences now resets controls
• Minor bug fixes

Download: Visual Boy Advance GX 1.0.6

• Wii Homebrew - Visual Boy Advance GX 1.0.5: with SDHC and Wii button supports

A study says that playing sexy video game characters can make gamers (both guys and gals) feel insecure about their body-image.

I assume this is the same brain fart that Shigeru Miyamoto got to inspire him to make the Wii.

The study showed that after playing video game characters with “extreme” body-types (muscular men, very thin women) for only 15 minutes, gamers have a negative impact on their looks and body.

The study had guys playing WWF Wrestemania 2000, while girls played a beach volleyball game. If guys can get insecure over beefy 64-bit dudes, I’d hate to imagine what the girls were feeling (especially if they were playing Dead or Alive Xtreme Beach Volleyball).

Questionable methodology aside, I find this study… how should I say this… useless. Whether or not their findings are accurate, the same argument can be said about other forms of media. Porn pretty much has the same effect.

• Wii Fit caused insecurity in ten year-old girl?
• National Obesity Forum slams Wii Fit, Nintendo not budging

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Looks like not everyone is happy with the Tecmo-Koei merger. Tecmo’s second largest shareholder, Effissimo Capital Management Pte, voiced out its displeasure with the said merger, saying that there was a lack of information as to how the new partnership will benefit the investors.

Effissimo, holding a whopping 17.6 percent of the Tecmo share, has raised its concern to Japam’s Ministry of Finance. Says company director Takashi Kosaka, “We have not had sufficient information from the company to make a judgment on the merger, such as the feasibility of their plan to raise shareholder value.”

On the other hand, Koei officials remain silent about the matter, while Tecmo confirmed its receipt of the document through Norihiro Mukai, spokesperson.

Either Effissimo’s been sleeping in their meetings or they really just prefer Square Enix’s offer over Koei’s. If you’ll remember, Tecmo was the much-sought-after developer company courted by Square Enix and then won over instead by Koei.

• Tecmo answers Square Enix questions regarding rejected merger proposal
• Koei Tecmo merger finalized, detailed; Itagaki to return? Absolutely not

Define irony. In the context of Capcom’s Dead Rising: Chop Till You Drop, it’s having a zombie game with not enough zombies. Odd, yes?

Nonetheless, Nintendo Power is saying that although there aren’t a gazillion zombies to chase around with, it’s still got “a lot”. In fact, Capcom’s been said to be working on upping the undead population count, and it’s upped considerably nicely since then.

Still, it appears that the zombies have yet to bloom to their hundred potential, but we guess there’s no rush. The dead ain’t going anywhere, anyway.

• Capcom wins: Dead Rising lawsuit dropped; gets unexpected game review from Judge
• Dead Rising: Chop Till You Drop control scheme details