bauckster

Just played the demo. It was...good, though the jury is out on whether or not the game will be as great as its predecessors (especially Sly 2). I found the camera control just a tad off (not at all game-breaking though) and controlling all 3 characters (Sly, Bentley, and Murray) in the opening level almost felt a little like overkill to me. I don't find Murray all that fun to control. But I'm going to keep an open mind. It definitely seems like a real love-letter to the series. High production values are definitely still present, and there were some funny moments in the demo.

Awesome!!

Yes, this sale is finally some real competition for the infamous Steam sales. Way to go, Sony! I bought: Jak and Daxter, Ratchet and Clank, and Psychonauts, and the 3 games altogether cost barely over $8. Great, great deal.

Yeah, this seems like a HUGE cash-in, but who knows maybe it will be a decent product. Disney doesn't have the best v. game track record, though. Just look at how bland Disney Universe was...bleh.

Oy!

@get2sammyb Cool - I'm envious!

I actually really do enjoy video game music (when well done), but usually I'll opt to get it separately (or occasionally in a bundle on Steam or PSN). Anyone else take advantage of the ps plus sale for the Papo & Yo soundtrack? Even though the game wasn't perfect, the soundtrack to that game is AMAZING!

Generally I stay away from this extra stuff. I still have a number of gaming peripherals (rock band drums, anyone?) which take up plenty of room already. Though if I had a PS3 when Heavy Rain first came out, I probably would have gotten that special "rain" case - that sounds really cool!

Woah, this really IS hideous.

@Confused_Dude HAHA!!!!

I played the demo as well, and I really enjoyed the gameplay, but thought the scripting in the boss fight was just...awful... Profanity has its place, but it really should be used in a thoughtful way, imo. That monster thing you fight just keeps hurling out ridiculously bad expletives. Really made the whole experience seem cheap and corny to me. Just out of curiousity, is the whole game like that, or just that one setion?

As I said earlier, I'm not interested in the slightest. This looks BAD.
(and I don't mean bad as in good

Mmmm...not sure how I feel about this. If the cost is prohibitive, I don't see myself buying a PS4, let alone a 4K television. A lot of it will also depend on the quality of the software being developed. Honestly, I don't see myself buying a next-next gen. console anytime soon. Not when PCs and laptops can do all of that and more (word processing, internet, etc.)

The danger here with the technological race to the top, is that quality and game design are often overlooked or overshadowed by fancy graphics. I like fancy graphics, but they are definitely not the most important element in a game.

I've been happy with the plus service. I actually enjoy some of the free, smaller PSN titles (e.g. Rochard, Double Dragon Neon, Quantum Conundrum), because I have time to actually play through them all the way

Looking forward to trying out the new Mega Man games.

@rjejr I agree, I was pretty disappointed with the demo. It felt like it just plopped you in and then kicked you out. Lame. Hopefully the reviews will be good, because I didn't get a great first impression, despite the beautiful graphics.

This looks FUN!

@Gingko I complete agree with you. Thanks for posting such thoughtful comments.

"As far as I am aware, although much research has been done, no causal link has ever been established between violent video games and real world violence. Many violent people play violent games, but that does not imply that the games caused or even encouraged their behavior."

This.

"I personally believe that on the whole the content of games (as well as TV, movies, books etc) are a reflection of society rather than the other way around. People seek to read, watch, play what interests them."

And this. Well stated!

While I don't have much to add personally, I want to say that I really enjoyed reading this thread. It was pretty thought provoking, especially some of the comments about the current state of the industry, violence/cursing etc. I'm actually heading out to MAGfest (Music and Gaming Festival) tomorrow, and I wonder if any of these issues will come up at any of the panels (I wouldn't be surprised if they do). Happy New Year everyone!

@Stuffgamer1
I agree with everything you said. I'm looking forward to this game! And to anyone who hasn't checked out "Indie Game: The Movie" you really should - it's excellent.

Decent enough update, but I understand why people are a little upset when you look at what Europe plus has gotten recently. Honestly, $14 for Arkham City is a pretty good deal, though and then I can keep the game for myself if I don't renew plus. Not too shabby...

Um no. If you're going to make yet another zombie game, it better be damn good, and this is pretty clearly NOT.

I like it! Definitely much better than the first option.

Meh. If I'm going to play a new JRPG, I'm going to dig up a copy of Xenoblade...or just wait for Ni No Kuni...although, honestly, the demo of that one disappointed me a bit.

by the way - I found out that the Papo & Yo soundtrack is on sale for only $3.50 for Plus members:
http://www.weareminority.com/featured/papo-yo-the-soundtrack-and-the-sale/

I'd like to try Bully, someday, but I'm not sure if I'd want this or the Wii version. I think the Wii version might have gotten marginally higher ratings, due to fairly decent added content/controls... thoughts anyone? Is one version better?

Also, I'm interested in Knytt Underground. Looks pretty cool.

Oh, and I'm actually really interested in the Papo & Yo soundtrack. That game had an awesome soundtrack. Here's some really interesting info on it, in case anyone is interested: http://blog.us.playstation.com/2012/12/17/the-music-styling-of-papo-yo-soundtrack-and-sale-on-psn-tomorrow/

I was very disappointed by the demo. This review seems spot on to me, well done! It breaks my little mouse-y heart, because I loved parts of the first game. It was flawed, but worth playing. Alas, it seems like they made the sequel much worse and less compelling than the original.

@ZeD - I would skip it. I don't think it's worth your time.

@get2sammyb Yes, I understand what you mean from a business standpoint. It's hard for me not to see it from a gamer's eyes, though...I guess that's why I'm not a financier or accountant, haha!

Maybe Sony needs to dig in a little more to grassroots promotion as well? Twitter, FB, etc. have no idea but maybe that could also help promote their titles more? But yes, they obviously need some bigger advertising as well.

The PS Move is, to me, a good example of a nice piece of tech that just hasn't gotten enough promotion on the whole (or games for that matter). I wonder how Wonderbook is selling...any figures yet?

I was also a bit letdown by the demo...

This looks pretty good. Appears to be decent writing/acting, which is always a plus since the new Castlevania games are more story-driven.

Actually, I'm really excited about Rochard!! I enjoyed the demo and almost bought it, and now I don't have to. WINNING

Oh, I really hope not. I agree that Sony needs to do more to promote their titles. But variety is the spice of life. It's the reason I bought a Ps3 and not an XBox, for those crazy awesome exclusives. A lot of the "exclusive" more indie-type titles on XBOX live are also available on PC. Honestly, I'd be really sad if PS3 slimmed down their output to just big blockbusters. Don't get me wrong, some of the big blockbusters are great games, and worth playing and SHOULD be promoted more, but I would not have bought a PS3 were it not for some of the more indie/arty exlusives like:Journey, Flower, Heavy Rain, Shadow of Colossus HD collection, etc. Why should we have to sacrifice variety for commercial viability? There should be a way to promote and keep the game collection diverse. Just my 2 cents.

As others have said, I am in no way ready for PS4. I got my PS3 a mere 7 months ago, and am literally drowning in games to play. My one hope is that Last Guardian still comes to PS3, if the rumors about the PS4 delay are true. Man, I really want to play that game!!

Oooh - this has me EXCITED!!!!

Is it a bad idea to play Bioshock 2 before the original? I was wondering how connected the 2 stories are... (I know that this first is supposed to be better, and I do plan to play it but may wait until the free one that comes with Bioshock Infinite)

Yes, this isn't really surprising, but it is nice to see an exec being direct about this sort of thing.

Sorry to hear that, Europe.

I still haven't played any of the Bioshock games. (gasp!)

I own the original but haven't gotten around to playing it yet. Is it worth me selling it back, if I I'm pretty sure that I'll get Bioshock Infinite with the original for free?

Questions I have:

Will the free copy be physical or digital?
Will any of the extra stuff in the PS3 version be included, or just the base game?

Thanks in advance to anyone who can answer these questions.

Nice! I can certainly say that in my household, the PS3 does a good bit of Netflix streaming.

@get2sammyb Mmm, I'm not sure. I think it is better, from what I've read, but that it still has some of the same issues from the last game. I heard that driving vehicles is still annoying, enemy AI is sometimes unfair, and travel can be a bit of a slog (though better than before). There are many improvements, of course.

This is smart of them. That way they can diversify by making other excellent projects, like Red Dead Redemption. COD never interested me, personally, but I think I'd be extremely tired of it by now if I did play it.

I just don't see how this could work effectively.

Looks cool... so many games!! At least this one isn't coming out for a while

This looks fantastic! I like that there is actually an interesting story too. It's not the most important factor for a shmup, but it's a nice plus.

This game looks great! I just have far too many games to commit to it right now, but I think I must try it at some point. It's really been getting some amazing reviews.

Personally, it's all about the single-player experience for me, so I'm glad to hear that it is solid. How many difficulty settings are there? In general, how challenging is gameplay for relative newbies?

This sounds great! Glad to hear that it is NOT a smash bros. clone. I never could get the Beta to work for me (outside of the tutorial), so I'm hoping that they make a demo available.

I'm excited to play QC! It's one of those games I wanted to play, but didn't want to shell money out for, so this is perfect. Also going to snag up Machinarium at the discount price.

Well, I'm still interested in this (lots of Potter fans in my household), but I can't say that I am terribly surprised that the experience is short-lived and a bit shallow. Seems that the title would be more compelling with more of an actual story behind it. Will they be adding any DLC?

This does make me sad. I bought a copy of the game (discounted for PS plus members) and rather enjoyed it. I thought it was a good little game. I wish Gordon the best of luck in any future endeavors! Please know that your efforts are appreciated!

This is sad to me...

I'm sad about this too, especially Nintendo Power because of it's very long, significant history.

I'll still have my Game Informer magazine, I guess...

I'm actually pretty excited to try the demo for Epic Mickey 2.
PID looks pretty cool too, check it out here, anyone who is interested: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tgrEHSWCr1c

I know nothing about ToeJam and Earl, but the games seems quirky. Are they platformers? Good music?

It's not too bad... I didn't have issues with the old layout either, but I do like the filter options for the new site. I didn't notice too much lag, but I did randomly get kicked off of the store a couple of times. Hopefully this won't continue to be an issue for me or any others,