AgtFox
10-15-2008, 06:11 AM
360/PS3 Releases to End of 2008 Discussion
http://www.colonyofgamers.com/cogforums/showthread.php?t=1195This piece will hopefully generate some discussion and not devolve into a console war. Presented here are the PS3 exclusive, 360 exclusive and major multi-platform games for the rest of the year. I decided not to include the Wii or PC since some of the games are coming out for the latter and honestly there is no major Wii game outside of Wii Music and Animal Crossing: City Life in my mind, if I’m wrong please let me know. The key questions I would like to ask are:
1. Objectively, with no console bias, which side do you think has the better exclusive releases?
2. Which games are you thinking of purchasing in the below list?
3. Do you think this year may top last year (which many thought was a banner year) in quality and quantity overall?
4. If you don't own one or both systems, would you buy one now with the games that are coming out? If so, what game tipped the scale for you?You could also add any additional questions if you’d like the discussion to expand further. I originally had the box shots for all the games below, but I went well over the limit of allowed images in a post. If you are interested in buying any of these games, please check out the Amazon Referral thread (http://www.colonyofgamers.com/cogforums/showthread.php?t=667) where your purchase via the links will help the CoG Network. Thank you. First up is the PS3 Exclusive games through the end of the year.
PS3 Exclusives
SOCOM: Confrontation (Oct. 14): This series used to be quite popular, but now it seems like this game has released with little to no hype behind it. What the heck is up with that? Maybe it has to do with Zipper not being the company behind it. The game is sold cheaply for $39.99 and with a Bluetooth headset it goes up to $59.99. This game, much like Warhawk, is online only and supports up to 32 players online at one time.
LittleBigPlanet (Oct. 21): Probably the most interesting exclusive release on the PS3 this year. With only online level creation multiplayer being put on hold until after the release sometime, this could be a huge community game. I was once worried about the amount of levels that would ship with this game from a single and multiplayer viewpoint, but it is sounding like there will be a lot of levels.
BioShock (Oct. 21): Yes, we can argue about exclusivity here, but the fact is the 360 and PC versions have been out for over a year and the PS3 finally gets its turn at the plate with the game. Recent word is that in the demo the graphics don’t look as good as on the 360, but we shall wait for the final game to find out for sure.
Motorstorm: Pacific Rift (Oct. 28): The sequel to the relatively well received off-road game. This time around you are dropped on an island in the Pacific Ocean. They are claiming no 2 races will be the same and there is 4-player split-screen play as well as supposedly re-tooled online play.
Resistance 2 (Nov. 4): Honestly neck and neck with LittleBigPlanet as the biggest release for the PS3 during this time. The big draw here is the 8-player online co-op story that is separate from the single player story. The other draw is the 60 player online multiplayer which will be interesting to see if it works via network latency and all that good stuff.
Xbox 360 Exclusives
Fable II (Oct. 21): Honestly this game is still a huge unknown. The first game was good, although many were turned off by the fact that many of the promises Molyneaux presented did not present themselves in the final game. This game shows a lot of promise, but there are plenty of people out there that have been burned by Molyneaux before and may not try another of the games he creates. Online co-op play should be patched on the first day of release, so that will be interesting to see as well.
Gears of War 2 (Nov. 7): Probably the biggest release saleswise on any system for the rest of the year. The last game sold about 5 million copies worldwide and one can only guess this game will meet or exceed that number. Bigger, badder and better has been the mantra for this game ever since it was announced. The campaign is supposedly longer and a 2-player co-op option is now present. Add in a 5-player co-op Horde mode where you face off against increasing waves of enemies and this game is sounding like a multiplayer tour-de-force. Head-to-head with Resistance 2…who will win?
Command and Conquer: Red Alert 3 (Nov. 11): This game is supposedly coming out on the 360 before the end of the year. The previous games ported to 360 have been done rather well from a control standpoint, although nothing still beats the mouse/keyboard combo honestly. This game will also supposedly support online co-op play through the campaign contained in it.
Banjo-Kazooie: Nuts & Bolts (Nov. 11): A cheaply priced game ($39.99), but we’re still not sure what kind of game it is. We’ve seen the building of different vehicles and collecting of different parts. We’ve also heard about platforming elements, but honestly what is the percentage of the game taken up by each side? The game does look nice and should be a nice pickup if you have children in the house as well.
Left 4 Dead (Nov. 20): A highly anticipated game here at CoG and one that many will probably pick up on PC versus the 360. It is sounding like pre-sales for this game are through the roof and should prove to companies out there that a well made zombie survival game can do well in this world.
Major Games Coming to Both
Dead Space (Oct. 14): Reviews so far have been very good even though there are still people out there that are not sure about this new IP from Electronic Arts. We should have our review soon, but you can check out impressions from both James (http://www.colonyofgamers.com/cogforums/showthread.php?t=999) and Nick (http://www.colonyofgamers.com/cogforums/showpost.php?p=26772&postcount=74) on their time with the game so far.
Saints Row 2 (Oct. 14): This delayed game finally comes out and so far reviews have been good, but general reaction seems to be mixed. Drop-in/drop-out co-op play is probably the biggest draw here along with the obvious continuation of the life and times of people in Saints Row.
Rock Band 2 (Oct. 19): Yes, the standalone 360 version is already out, but on this day the full package comes out for the 360 and the standalone and package for the PS3 comes out.
FarCry 2 (Oct. 21): You can read Andrew’s (Trackzero) thoughts on the multiplayer parts of this game right here (http://www.colonyofgamers.com/cogforums/showthread.php?t=298). This is certainly one of those possible sleeper games with Ubisoft Montreal on the job this time around after Crytek broke off and made the Crysis games. You are dropped into a large portion of Africa with one goal: to get the Jackal. The multiplayer options sound excellent as well.
Midnight Club Los Angeles (Oct. 21): If this were any other time in gaming this would probably be a bigger release than it will end up. This is the first time for the series on the newer generation of consoles and it does get to face off with the new Need for Speed game in less than a month.
Spider-Man: Web of Shadows (Oct. 21): This game also is hurt by when it is coming out more than likely. James recently gave his impressions (http://www.colonyofgamers.com/cogforums/showthread.php?t=1029) of his time with the game here on CoG. Could this be a really good Spider-Man game or is it going to fall by the wayside like the last one?
Guitar Hero: World Tour (Oct. 26): The game comes out for basically every console known to man. This is Activision’s answer to the Rock Band phenomenon and should be interesting to see if it can do what Harmonix does better. One thing it does have is the recording studio that may be just enough to make it stand out against the competition.
Fallout 3 (Oct. 28): What was once a PC game now also comes out for the 360 and PS3 with the option of a first or third person view while playing. This of course is blasphemy to many of the previous two game’s fans. Will there be enough people to have an open mind and try this game? This could be another sleeper game, a huge hit or a huge flop.
James Bond: Quantum of Solace (Nov. 4): Another game that James gave us his impressions (http://www.colonyofgamers.com/cogforums/showthread.php?t=1029) of from his recent trip. Built on the Call of Duty 4 engine, this should be interesting to see how a third person perspective will work out in this engine. The game will combine parts of Casino Royale with parts from the new movie since there was no game tied into the last one.
Call of Duty: World at War (Nov. 11): The final game James gave his impressions (http://www.colonyofgamers.com/cogforums/showthread.php?t=1029) of from his trip. Even though it is developed by Treyarch, James feels that they have righted any wrongs they once had. We shall see if he is indeed right, but most of the reaction out there is positive so far.
Mirror’s Edge (Nov. 11): The game that garnered a lot of Best of E3 awards finally comes out. Honestly the hype seems to have died down quite a bit on this game even though they recently announced this game would be part of “at least a trilogy” (http://www.colonyofgamers.com/cogforums/showthread.php?t=1127). The parkour gameplay still looks cool, but there are a lot of games coming out during this time and this may take a backseat to many of them.
Mortal Kombat vs. DC Universe (Nov. 16): Midway is pretty much putting all the rest of its marbles toward this game. Recently having borrowed $40 million from its parent company in order to release this fall’s slate of games, the onus is specifically on this game to perform well. If they can catch the magic the series once had long ago it could be a big sleeper game this winter, but there is a lot of competition out there for gamer’s dollars in this economy.
Need for Speed Undercover (Nov. 18): EA Black Box drops the ill-conceived ProStreet model and goes back to what made the games better recently: open world racing and a more Most Wanted type of feel. That can only be a whole lot of win honestly after the last release and with Maggie Q and a Cops and Robbers online game mode it seems like they have learned their mistakes and are going back to the bread and butter.
Sonic Unleashed (Nov. 18): Can Sonic Team, minus Yuji Naka, capture lightning once again or is this going in the trash bin with most of the console release of this series recently? The idea of there being a Werehog change for Sonic is enough to scare the crap out of anyone that they’re trying to pull a gimmick out of a hat instead of concentrating on what made the games great so long ago.
Tomb Raider Underworld (Nov. 18): Crystal Dynamics did well on the last game and things are looking up for this go-around. Best thing Eidos ever did was wrest control of the series from CORE and drop it on Crystal Dynamics.
Prince of Persia (Dec. 2): The last big release of the year comes from Ubisoft Montreal in the form of a new PoP game. Going back to square one and forgetting things like Warrior Within ever happened is probably a good idea. This time around they tap the gameplay of games like ICO with cooperative gaming with an NPC companion that you can play off of. The only bad thing is that there isn’t actual co-op gameplay, because that would be awesome! This game looks really good as well and should be a good bookend for the year.
http://www.colonyofgamers.com/cogforums/showthread.php?t=1195This piece will hopefully generate some discussion and not devolve into a console war. Presented here are the PS3 exclusive, 360 exclusive and major multi-platform games for the rest of the year. I decided not to include the Wii or PC since some of the games are coming out for the latter and honestly there is no major Wii game outside of Wii Music and Animal Crossing: City Life in my mind, if I’m wrong please let me know. The key questions I would like to ask are:
1. Objectively, with no console bias, which side do you think has the better exclusive releases?
2. Which games are you thinking of purchasing in the below list?
3. Do you think this year may top last year (which many thought was a banner year) in quality and quantity overall?
4. If you don't own one or both systems, would you buy one now with the games that are coming out? If so, what game tipped the scale for you?You could also add any additional questions if you’d like the discussion to expand further. I originally had the box shots for all the games below, but I went well over the limit of allowed images in a post. If you are interested in buying any of these games, please check out the Amazon Referral thread (http://www.colonyofgamers.com/cogforums/showthread.php?t=667) where your purchase via the links will help the CoG Network. Thank you. First up is the PS3 Exclusive games through the end of the year.
PS3 Exclusives
SOCOM: Confrontation (Oct. 14): This series used to be quite popular, but now it seems like this game has released with little to no hype behind it. What the heck is up with that? Maybe it has to do with Zipper not being the company behind it. The game is sold cheaply for $39.99 and with a Bluetooth headset it goes up to $59.99. This game, much like Warhawk, is online only and supports up to 32 players online at one time.
LittleBigPlanet (Oct. 21): Probably the most interesting exclusive release on the PS3 this year. With only online level creation multiplayer being put on hold until after the release sometime, this could be a huge community game. I was once worried about the amount of levels that would ship with this game from a single and multiplayer viewpoint, but it is sounding like there will be a lot of levels.
BioShock (Oct. 21): Yes, we can argue about exclusivity here, but the fact is the 360 and PC versions have been out for over a year and the PS3 finally gets its turn at the plate with the game. Recent word is that in the demo the graphics don’t look as good as on the 360, but we shall wait for the final game to find out for sure.
Motorstorm: Pacific Rift (Oct. 28): The sequel to the relatively well received off-road game. This time around you are dropped on an island in the Pacific Ocean. They are claiming no 2 races will be the same and there is 4-player split-screen play as well as supposedly re-tooled online play.
Resistance 2 (Nov. 4): Honestly neck and neck with LittleBigPlanet as the biggest release for the PS3 during this time. The big draw here is the 8-player online co-op story that is separate from the single player story. The other draw is the 60 player online multiplayer which will be interesting to see if it works via network latency and all that good stuff.
Xbox 360 Exclusives
Fable II (Oct. 21): Honestly this game is still a huge unknown. The first game was good, although many were turned off by the fact that many of the promises Molyneaux presented did not present themselves in the final game. This game shows a lot of promise, but there are plenty of people out there that have been burned by Molyneaux before and may not try another of the games he creates. Online co-op play should be patched on the first day of release, so that will be interesting to see as well.
Gears of War 2 (Nov. 7): Probably the biggest release saleswise on any system for the rest of the year. The last game sold about 5 million copies worldwide and one can only guess this game will meet or exceed that number. Bigger, badder and better has been the mantra for this game ever since it was announced. The campaign is supposedly longer and a 2-player co-op option is now present. Add in a 5-player co-op Horde mode where you face off against increasing waves of enemies and this game is sounding like a multiplayer tour-de-force. Head-to-head with Resistance 2…who will win?
Command and Conquer: Red Alert 3 (Nov. 11): This game is supposedly coming out on the 360 before the end of the year. The previous games ported to 360 have been done rather well from a control standpoint, although nothing still beats the mouse/keyboard combo honestly. This game will also supposedly support online co-op play through the campaign contained in it.
Banjo-Kazooie: Nuts & Bolts (Nov. 11): A cheaply priced game ($39.99), but we’re still not sure what kind of game it is. We’ve seen the building of different vehicles and collecting of different parts. We’ve also heard about platforming elements, but honestly what is the percentage of the game taken up by each side? The game does look nice and should be a nice pickup if you have children in the house as well.
Left 4 Dead (Nov. 20): A highly anticipated game here at CoG and one that many will probably pick up on PC versus the 360. It is sounding like pre-sales for this game are through the roof and should prove to companies out there that a well made zombie survival game can do well in this world.
Major Games Coming to Both
Dead Space (Oct. 14): Reviews so far have been very good even though there are still people out there that are not sure about this new IP from Electronic Arts. We should have our review soon, but you can check out impressions from both James (http://www.colonyofgamers.com/cogforums/showthread.php?t=999) and Nick (http://www.colonyofgamers.com/cogforums/showpost.php?p=26772&postcount=74) on their time with the game so far.
Saints Row 2 (Oct. 14): This delayed game finally comes out and so far reviews have been good, but general reaction seems to be mixed. Drop-in/drop-out co-op play is probably the biggest draw here along with the obvious continuation of the life and times of people in Saints Row.
Rock Band 2 (Oct. 19): Yes, the standalone 360 version is already out, but on this day the full package comes out for the 360 and the standalone and package for the PS3 comes out.
FarCry 2 (Oct. 21): You can read Andrew’s (Trackzero) thoughts on the multiplayer parts of this game right here (http://www.colonyofgamers.com/cogforums/showthread.php?t=298). This is certainly one of those possible sleeper games with Ubisoft Montreal on the job this time around after Crytek broke off and made the Crysis games. You are dropped into a large portion of Africa with one goal: to get the Jackal. The multiplayer options sound excellent as well.
Midnight Club Los Angeles (Oct. 21): If this were any other time in gaming this would probably be a bigger release than it will end up. This is the first time for the series on the newer generation of consoles and it does get to face off with the new Need for Speed game in less than a month.
Spider-Man: Web of Shadows (Oct. 21): This game also is hurt by when it is coming out more than likely. James recently gave his impressions (http://www.colonyofgamers.com/cogforums/showthread.php?t=1029) of his time with the game here on CoG. Could this be a really good Spider-Man game or is it going to fall by the wayside like the last one?
Guitar Hero: World Tour (Oct. 26): The game comes out for basically every console known to man. This is Activision’s answer to the Rock Band phenomenon and should be interesting to see if it can do what Harmonix does better. One thing it does have is the recording studio that may be just enough to make it stand out against the competition.
Fallout 3 (Oct. 28): What was once a PC game now also comes out for the 360 and PS3 with the option of a first or third person view while playing. This of course is blasphemy to many of the previous two game’s fans. Will there be enough people to have an open mind and try this game? This could be another sleeper game, a huge hit or a huge flop.
James Bond: Quantum of Solace (Nov. 4): Another game that James gave us his impressions (http://www.colonyofgamers.com/cogforums/showthread.php?t=1029) of from his recent trip. Built on the Call of Duty 4 engine, this should be interesting to see how a third person perspective will work out in this engine. The game will combine parts of Casino Royale with parts from the new movie since there was no game tied into the last one.
Call of Duty: World at War (Nov. 11): The final game James gave his impressions (http://www.colonyofgamers.com/cogforums/showthread.php?t=1029) of from his trip. Even though it is developed by Treyarch, James feels that they have righted any wrongs they once had. We shall see if he is indeed right, but most of the reaction out there is positive so far.
Mirror’s Edge (Nov. 11): The game that garnered a lot of Best of E3 awards finally comes out. Honestly the hype seems to have died down quite a bit on this game even though they recently announced this game would be part of “at least a trilogy” (http://www.colonyofgamers.com/cogforums/showthread.php?t=1127). The parkour gameplay still looks cool, but there are a lot of games coming out during this time and this may take a backseat to many of them.
Mortal Kombat vs. DC Universe (Nov. 16): Midway is pretty much putting all the rest of its marbles toward this game. Recently having borrowed $40 million from its parent company in order to release this fall’s slate of games, the onus is specifically on this game to perform well. If they can catch the magic the series once had long ago it could be a big sleeper game this winter, but there is a lot of competition out there for gamer’s dollars in this economy.
Need for Speed Undercover (Nov. 18): EA Black Box drops the ill-conceived ProStreet model and goes back to what made the games better recently: open world racing and a more Most Wanted type of feel. That can only be a whole lot of win honestly after the last release and with Maggie Q and a Cops and Robbers online game mode it seems like they have learned their mistakes and are going back to the bread and butter.
Sonic Unleashed (Nov. 18): Can Sonic Team, minus Yuji Naka, capture lightning once again or is this going in the trash bin with most of the console release of this series recently? The idea of there being a Werehog change for Sonic is enough to scare the crap out of anyone that they’re trying to pull a gimmick out of a hat instead of concentrating on what made the games great so long ago.
Tomb Raider Underworld (Nov. 18): Crystal Dynamics did well on the last game and things are looking up for this go-around. Best thing Eidos ever did was wrest control of the series from CORE and drop it on Crystal Dynamics.
Prince of Persia (Dec. 2): The last big release of the year comes from Ubisoft Montreal in the form of a new PoP game. Going back to square one and forgetting things like Warrior Within ever happened is probably a good idea. This time around they tap the gameplay of games like ICO with cooperative gaming with an NPC companion that you can play off of. The only bad thing is that there isn’t actual co-op gameplay, because that would be awesome! This game looks really good as well and should be a good bookend for the year.