Back!

PAX was good fun. I stayed away from most of the more popular titles since the lines were so long, but I played some stuff. I mostly just watched though. The lines were ridiculous. Like.. Disneyland ridiculous. I took notes on everything I played and saw, so here goes:

Nail’d (console) – One of those really unrealistic but super cool ATV/Dirtbike games, much like Pure. It was noticeably faster in terms of pacing, and the controls were easy enough to earn me first place when I played. I only played one track, but it had you jumping over waterfalls and going up hills at like ninety degrees. I liked it! Again, much like Pure. So if you liked that, this is definitely more of the same with more extremity.

Need 4 Speed World (PC) – This is that new Free-2-Play N4S game on the PC. Controlled well (and I seriously dislike anything driving related on the PC, as consoles just work better) and looked nice graphically. In terms of content though, I’m not sure if there’s a lot. You can drive around with other people, and race each other but that’s about it. Still fun though, the cop chase mechanics from the other N4S titles are in full effect here.

Fallen Earth (PC) – This game isn’t new, I know. But it was there, and there was no line, so I played it. I was already logged into a character (and a pretty decked out on at that) so I just ran around the post-apocalyptic world and smacked giant insects around with the cleavers. I liked the combat, but that’s pretty much all I saw… so I have nothing much else to say about this one, other than I liked it. Luckily they were giving away free copies of the game via email, so hopefully I’ll be checking it out pretty soon.

Aion (PC) – Again, not a new game. At first I avoided the Aion booth, as I’ve heard some pretty nasty things about it from the MMO blogging community. But again, no lineup. I played a level 55 Templar (I think that’s what it was?) and just logged in to screw around.The game looks great, all shiny and colorful, and I had fun killing a giant ostrich looking thing. I tried flying at one point too, but soon learned I was in a no-flying zone. So, didn’t get to do that. As for the battle with the ostrich, it’s pretty standard-fare MMO hotkey-based combat. The animations were nice, though.

Still, I liked what I did see and play. Is it really that bad of a grind? I almost want to try it now.

Marvel VS Capcom 3 (console) – Wanted to play this, but the line turned me off. It’s like running into an amusement park as a kid. You run as fast as you can, headed for your favorite attraction. Suddenly, you see the giant line surrounding it and you stop. Your smile turns into a frown, and then you begin to cry. Your parents run over to comfort you, and then later you get ice cream.

Yeah…Something like that. Though I don’t remember getting any ice cream. Crying? That shit almost happened.

The game is so appealing to the eye though. Bright colors, glowing effects… it’s the only game I’ve ever wanted to stare at for long periods of time. It looks so damn good.

Pinball FX 2 (console) – Standard fare pinball title. Looked good, and played well. Almost like the real thing. The camera angle was a little weird, as they fit the entire pinball table on the screen, so everything gets squished a little. It didn’t bother me, but it was just a noticeable oddity. I got over it a few seconds in. If pinball is your thing, I’d check it out. Otherwise… you’re not missing much.

Guild Wars 2 (PC) – Line = No-go. Sorry! From what I saw though, the game seemed polished and the quests had more depth than usual, such as triggered events and such. Also, the combat looked really enjoyable. I guess when they say “If you love MMOs, you should check out GW2, and if you hate MMOs, you should definitely check out Guild Wars 2”, they’re not kidding. Even my Dad (who just does not understand the appeal in MMOs, since he’s all about art and flair in games) liked what he saw.

Nexuiz (console) – The closest thing to Quake I’ve seen on consoles. Nexuiz is a free downloadable PC Quake-style shooter, and is being developed by another company for consoles. Unfortunately, the controls were wonky and the game was just not that great. The weapons were identical to everything Quake had, and trying to aim at another player was strangely challenging. I’d just stick to Quake, or even the PC version of Nexuiz, as the console version needs work. At one point, I spawned in the ground, looking up at my character’s crotch. …Yeah.

MotorStorm: Apocalypse (console) – Somehow, my Dad ended up getting to try this one out. It’s basically a racer set during some sort of apocalypse, where people are running for their lives in the streets (only to be greeted by your bumper, and then your windshield, in that order), stuff is blowing up around you, and buildings are collapsing. It looked fun, but nothing special aside from the crazy-ass setting. Also – some of the textures were lacking. My dad also commented on how navigating the track was hard at times, due to the camera and the fact that things blow up, effectively creating the track as you drive thru it.

LOTRO & DDO F2P (PC) – Nothing new here, folks. Just a nice new coat of micro transaction goodness.

Halo Reach (console) – Line was too long; didn’t wait. From what I saw though, I wasn’t that impressed. Don’t get me wrong, I’m excited for Reach and will be buying it at some point, but by this point we’ve seen pretty much everything new multiplayer wise. Still, looks solid and I will be buying it! Can’t wait to grief the Spartans in Firefight mode as an Elite. Griefing was never so legitimate.

Gears of War 3: (console) – Another long-ass line, so I didn’t get to play it. I did see people playing Beast mode though (which lets you play as the Locust) and it looked BEAST! (inb4 lolz).

That wraps up my opinions on everything I saw at PAX this year! Thank you for reading, and hope you could make some sense of it.

-Rav4ge