Summer Gaming
June 29th, 2010 by Samodean

Yes, I’ve been quiet for a while. I took a week off after the insanity of my 100 Comics project. Then another week… just sort of disappeared on me. If anyone finds it, please let me know, I’d really like it back. Additionally, there’s other fun stuff in the works. But I can’t talk about that.

While I haven’t been writing, what I HAVE been doing is playing games.

Finally, FINALLY, game companies have gotten a clue and realized that a game can be successful if released outside the holiday season. We’ve seen a constant stream of top-tier titles released just about every month this year.

My first Summer Game is Alan Wake. Alan Wake is one of those polarizing games, you either love it or hate it, there’s very little in-between. Personally, I loved it. Alan Wake isn’t a survival-horror game, which is good because I hate that description. It’s a psychological thriller, with a side of combat. The combat in the game is very simplistic, coming dangerously close to repetitive, but the game does a great job of slowly increasing the tension, giving the game a constant feeling of suspense. You never quite feel safe, and that’s what Alan Wake does best. You’re never quite comfortable, with the story sending one twist after another at you. Halfway through the first chapter, I was pissed. I thought I had the whole story figured out. Happily, I couldn’t have been more wrong. Though, calling it a “chapter” is incorrect, it’s an “episode.” THAT’S the truly unique thing about Alan Wake, the game is structured like a TV series, with each part of the story told as an episode. It’s a fun, unique way to present the game, and ultimately it’s a ton of fun.

Next up, we have my potential Game of the Year, Transformers: War for Cybertron. IT’S FREAKING TRANSFORMERS. More importantly, it’s Transformers done RIGHT. The story is a prequel to the original Generation 1 cartoon, and everything FITS. The characters are right, the voices are right, the story is right. Bottom line, War for Cybertron hits on every detail, giving that perfect feeling of nostalgia. This video of the credits is everything you need to know:

For a bit of casual fun, you can’t go wrong with Puzzle Quest 2. I’m playing it on DS, but it’s available on multiple other platforms, including iPhone. You’re on a quest… solving puzzles. It’s Final Fantasy meets Super Puzzle Fighter. It’s Bejeweled with stats and equipment.

Though, Puzzle Quest 2 is just keeping my DS warm until the real handheld game of the summer comes out in a couple weeks, Dragon Quest IX. While the Final Fantasy series has developed into games with deep story (sometimes TOO deep), mind-blowing visuals and decreasing amounts of actual GAMEPLAY, Dragon Quest is all about delivering a solid game experience with heaping amounts of FUN.

There’s plenty of other great games out there this summer like Red Dead Redemption and Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker. The Fall Gaming Season starts early this year with Halo: Reach hitting stores in September, not to mention a robust lineup of MMOs on the horizon.

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