The Brian J

That whole thing is amazing, but the horse. The HORSE. I can't even imagine the kind of practice and concentration it takes to get that kind of coordination.

Somer Assault, the absolute pinnacle of "Slinky vs The Zodiac Signs" gaming available for the Turbografx 16.

So I just attended Penny Arcade Expo 2012, the largest convention celebrating people stopping very suddenly in front of you and blocking your pathway. I'm not much one for going to panels, so I spent the time wandering the floor, just immersed in the culture of Video Games, cosplay, and swag.

Here's a list of games, in no particular order, that stood out to me.

Hitman Absolution

Never played the Hitman series before, so I thought I might as well demo this one. The first mission was to find and kill a man in a busy Chinese market. I found him in the middle of a gazebo, but surrounded by guards whenever I tried to come close. So I thought "Hmmm, I bet I can use my cleverness to solve this problem!" Then I thought "I wonder what Square does." And apparently, Square is the "grab the nearest old lady and pulp her face into a steaming red mess" button, whereupon I was immediately shot and killed. Although I didn't play it much, it seemed well put together, and the little bit I played of it certainly got me interested in checking out the full game.

New Super Mario Bros 2

It's classic Mario platforming, exactly what you'd expect from a handheld Mario game. When you put the 3D mode on, the backgrounds actually do look pretty good, although it doesn't effect the gameplay in any way, shape, or form. There are new power ups like the Tanooki suit returning, and a golden fire flower that turns enemies into coins. In fact, the coin collecting is kinda a big deal in this game, as there are coin attack modes, and there are more coin blocks than ever. Fairly standard Mario stuff.

Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance

Didn't play this one, but watched it. Now, I don't know much about the Metal Gear series, but I know that the franchise is known for stealthy gameplay mixed with gun combat, the kind of game where you are rewarded for sneaking around a guard, silently taking him out and hiding him, then making your way forward with almost no evidence you were ever there. So seriously, can someone explain to me why in this game, you play as a robotic cyber-ninja with a laser sword who slices terrorists and GIANT WATERMELONS in half? And the title of this game… Revengeance? Being 100% honest here, after watching this game be played, I have become convinced it has to be a parody of some sort. I'm really hoping this is meant to be a parody of action games and isn't supposed to be "canon" to the rest of the Metal Gear series, because if not… hooooo boy.

Antichamber

This is one of those games that sticks in your mind from the moment you play it. An insane First Person Puzzle game where the laws of physics and reality bend and snap as you continue playing, the kind of game where thinking outside the box isn't just recommended, it's 100% required if you want to progress. Also has a really, really awesome art style that is simple, yet quite stunning at the same time. Playing it gave me that wonderful feeling of accomplishment when you discover the solution to a particularly hard puzzle and can smugly look around at everyone watching and feel a brief sense of intellectual superiority over them. I cannot recommend this game highly enough if you like puzzle games, whenever it releases (the creator of it, a loud Australian man in a bright purple suit, said it will be released before the end of the year).

Marvel vs Capcom: Clash of Superheroes

Just a re-release for XBLA of the classic fighting game that started the franchise. All I have to say here is that as soon as I picked it up, I highlighted the character in the upper-right corner (Zangief) and pressed Left-Left-Down-Down-Right-Right-Down-Down-Left-Left-Up-Right-Up-Up-Right-Right… and sure enough, it unlocked Roll. Nice to see that some things never change. Thank you, random Gamepro issue from 1998!

Professor Layton and the Miracle Mask

I LOVE the Professor Layton series, a wonderful combination of point-and-clickemup gameplay and fun logic puzzles that have oftentimes have no connection to the story (a fact the game doesn't hide… in fact, it points it out quite often). The new one is the first to implement the 3D features of the 3DS, and I was actually pretty impressed with how they look. The hand-drawn cutscenes still look as great as ever, while the dialogue scenes previously with static images have been replaced with 3D models, which actually look pretty good. The puzzles continue to be a mix of classic logic puzzles and more complex stuff (the one featured was a big grid of ropes, you had to keep tapping squares to untangle them). Definitely a good pickup for the 3DS, although if you haven't played the ones before it, I recommend picking them up first because they really are fantastic games.

LocoCycle

No playable demo here, but the director of Twisted Pixel demoed it for the crowd. The only way I can describe this game is as a cross between a racing game, a shooting game, and a melee brawler game, and then that mix is thrown into a blender with Knight Rider and a variety of hallucinogenic drugs. You play as IRIS, a smart motorcycle that is fighting crime while racing down long streets, while dragging her "driver" behind her by the pant leg because he's caught in the spokes. Most of the game is driving and shooting with witty dialogue, but occasionally flying robots show up and it transforms into a wild melee fight where you mash buttons and rack up massive combos. This game looks completely insane, although there really isn't a lot of info on the game… we don't even know if it's getting a console release or if it's just gonna be a download game. Either way, I'd love to see what else comes from this game, it certainly seems like a fun concept.

Playstation All-Stars Battle Royale

AKA Super Sony Bros. Seen a lot of gameplay footage of it, but at PAX they had a ton of stations to actually demo it. I played a bunch of times, and… well, I don't know. On one hand, it is functional and easy to pick up and play, and the way you beat your opponents and gain points is different enough from Smash Bros (you have to build up a super move which auto-KO's people, more depending on what level super move you have). But on the other hand, in Smash Bros there always felt like a method to the madness, that even in the absolute throes of chaos that overtook the game you could figure things out and implement some strategy. But with PASBR, it just seems like any semblance of strategy is completely gone… you just mash buttons until your meter is high enough, then mash R2 to do your super move. It was fun, I'll admit, but the game absolutely needs more polish. And I hate to say this because everyone has, but it really is very clearly leaning over the shoulder of Nintendo and copying it's notes, as there are so many similarities between this and Smash Bros that it sticks out in the back of your mind.

That being said, interrupting a battle with Parapa the Rapper suddenly jumping into a cutscene to sing "I Gotta Believe" and insta-kill everyone on screen is pretty awesome.

Crash Course 2

For those of you who haven't played the first one, Dorito's Crash Course was a 2D Platforming game released for XBLA for the low low price of Free. Just 15 levels, you run and jump and climb and avoid obstacles, Wipeout-style. It was just a silly little game they released with a tie in with Doritos, but because it was so fun and well made, it ended up getting a lot of hype and love. So now we have the sequel, which (at this point at least) is standing up on its own without Dorito's there. The new game features over 70 levels at this point, with new wall-running and wall-jumping implemented, as well as removing a touch of linearity and allowing you to move forward through the level with a few different paths. In addition, rather than just "beat this level to move to the next one", you can collect stars to unlock even more levels. The gameplay is ultra-simple and the graphics are cartoony and exaggerated (which works with the avatar you play as), the ultimate definition of a pick-up-and-play game. The two levels available were a jungle level and a snow level, the latter of which demonstrates the ice physics they implemented (which works well, although running up walls of ice is very awkward, something which the rep admitted they were still working on fixing). Overall, I loved this one. The representative admitted they hadn't decided if they want to make it free again or if they were going to charge money for it, although if they do end up charging, I'll gladly pay for it. And if you have an X-Box and don't have the first one, go get it now. It's free, you have no excuse.

Loadout

Currently in beta, this is a 3rd person TF2-style game with missions such as "which team can kill the most" and "cap the points first". The big difference is that classes are interchangeable and have no difference… this game is all about weapon customization. You design your own weapon with tons of different attributes, and styles… how it fires, what it fires, what the spread is, automatic or semi-automatic or manual, knock back, etc etc etc. By an early count, you can design well over 40,000 completely different weapons, then name them. It's an awesome game mechanic that leads to a frantic, chaotic game and was really fun to play, especially the rush of pride you get when you kill an opponent with a weapon you designed. I ended up making a circle-spread electrical shotgun that shot giant balls of energy that also stun the enemy, although the drawback was it couldn't fire as fast as other weapons. Armed with the newly-dubbed "Iron Shriek", me and two other guys faced off against three members of the media who were covering the game, and the three of us ended up winning. It really was a fun game that honestly has potential to be a nice rival to Team Fortress 2, as long as it does enough to differentiate itself. No idea when this is getting released, but the sooner, the better.

The Wii-U

Ah yes, the new Nintendo console named after the beginning of Jeff Jarrett's TNA theme. The line to play this wasn't nearly as long as I expected, so I got a chance to finally try out the Wii-U first hand. And honestly? I'm not that sold on the idea. The controller itself is much more lightweight than I expected, which is nice, but the thing is just so bulky it feels awkward to handle. Not to mention…two control sticks, a D-Pad, four action buttons, four shoulder buttons, an infrared camera, a microphone, AND a massive touchscreen? It just feels like such overkill. Playing the game was plenty to do, but having to reach over with your thumb to draw shapes on the touch screen right in the middle of combat just felt awkward. I don't know, the Wii-U seems to be a step in the direction of making controllers and gameplay mechanics far more complicated, when it should be going the opposite way. So while I only played for about 10 minutes, I just wasn't that sold on the Wii-U. Really doubt this is going to set things on fire for Nintendo, it just seems so needlessly complex. It might have had a little to do with the game I played, though…

Project P-100 (working title)

I don't even. In this game you play as a large group of superheroes who all run in tandem and swarm enemies, Pikmin-style. You swarm enemies to build up battery power, then use battery power to form the heroes into things like swords, fists, guns, giant Jello molds (no really). To form into those, you reach over with your thumb and draw a shape on the Wii-U touch screen. But sometimes, you DON'T, instead you hold one of the left shoulder buttons and move the right directional stick to draw a different shape such as a triangle to form a hang glider. You run through a city and then also sometimes draw on the touch screen in order to capture civilians and turn THEM into superheroes as well, and rather than enemies it was just 5 or so boss battles. Then you run into a room and suddenly the actual touchscreen becomes what you watch instead of the main screen, where you're suddenly in a 3rd person perspective, until you exit the building and the game switches back to the television. Then you fight a giant robot, then suddenly the entire road explodes and you're ON TOP of a giant robot, and you have to destroy pods on the arms of the robot while avoiding giant drills, laser canons, and the robot punching you, and also while ignoring the helicopters and jets that fly by… the whole thing was just so insane and chaotic, and my brain never really made the click between the Wii-U controls and the gameplay. It was just very, very frantic, and I can't help but feel it would work better without the touch screen issues. In the end, while I did have some fun playing it, there was just so much going on that the actual gameplay now feels like a blur, a confusing jumble of touch screen pressing and button holding.

…..

Ok. So I played all that stuff, that's what stood out. But there's one game that, for me, was the Main Event of PAX. A game I have waited 20 years for. A game that I waited an hour and a half in line to play, and was the absolute happiest half hour of PAX for me….

X-Com: Enemy Unknown

I grew up with X-Com. When I was eight, I would go over to my grandpa's house and play the original X-Com: UFO Defense on his MS DOS. The game really means a lot to me, and I picked it up on Steam a few years ago and have been revisiting the game quite often since then. When the FPS remake was announced I was pretty disappointed, but when THIS was announced…this legit remake of the game, while not afraid to make changes and implement new systems… well, it was glorious.

The line to play this game was at minimum an hour and a half, and at times got up to three hours. Standing in line to play, the people in line were all sharing old X-Com war stories of their heroic exploits and catastrophic failures in the original game, all of us swapping strategies and what not. It really was a wonderful feeling to be able to talk about the game in 2012 without sounding like I'm prattling on about the past.

The first thing they did was show us an 8 minute video wherein a 4-person squad (lead by Sid Meier) showed off some of the gameplay and aliens. In addition to power suits and flying suits, there are now invisi-suits that let you stealth and run right past the enemy. The video's main highlight was the alien types, which have gotten some changes. Sectoids are now more primal and scurry about on all fours. Floaters have been replaced with Heavy Floaters, massively armored creatures with guns and no legs that hover and have surprising speed. Mutons are now gigantic behemoths that absorb tons of damage and aren't afraid to run in and melee you if you're out of cover. Cyberdiscs are extremely dangerous, as their "normal" form can absorb tons of damage, while their "unfolded" form is like a giant terrifying spider with deadly weapons and fantastic accuracy, not to mention the Cyberdiscs are always accompanied by one or two drones that shoot anything that comes close. The dreaded Chryssalids are now quadruped, terrifying creatures that can run super fast, make massive leaps across the level, and travel in packs, although one big plus is that if they turn someone into a zombie, you now CAN kill the zombie before it turns into another Chryssalid. The video ended with the host saying "So, now you'll be peppered for anything the game throws at you… like a giant Sectopod", at which point in the video the nearest wall exploded and a two story tall, big-as-a-tank Sectopod stormed through. Those of you who haven't played the original X-Com don't know what this means. Those of you who did are probably very scared. No joke, when it appeared, the entire room GASPED.

And then, we got 25 minutes of play time. I'm trying to think about how to describe it, and I realize that the absolute #1 compliment I can give it, the absolute best thing anyone could say about it is…

It's X-Com. It's everything X-Com is meant to be.

There are new gameplay mechanics… soldiers, as they level up, can start becoming more comfortable with one weapon type, and focus on that. Cover now plays a major role in the game, as you can hide behind a lot of stuff and plan strategy. You can do suppressing fire for a turn, preventing the aliens from moving by shooting at them. Time Units are replaced with a new, very intuitive system where you get two blocks; you can move twice (up to, like, 6 squares at a time, although that probably gets upgraded) and fire in between and afterwords, or once (around 15 blocks) and fire. I was skeptical of replacing my beloved Time Units, but the new system actually works, simplifying things while still keeping the core strategy intact.

The gameplay ran through two simple missions where you ran into cover, scouted the level ,and killed some Sectoids. In between you went to the base which has been totally redesigned into an ant farm setup, and looks really cool. For the second mission, you had to pick between two terror missions, one in Beijing and one in San Francisco, the problem being that you can only send troops to one of them. Beijing would reward you with money, but San Fran would offer scientists to join your laboratory, not to mention that the place you don't pick will cut funding and their panic level will raise. It's an interesting strategic choice to implement.

This was X-Com. It was everything a remake should be - embracing the gameplay of the old game, but not afraid to try out new things and improving on the system for modern times. I don't think I can properly explain how excited I am for this game. Only a few months to go until this releases, and I will be picking it up the very second it's available. I highly recommend that anyone who hasn't played the original go get it from Steam (It's only $5), so you can experience Strategy Game Nirvana for yourself.

I got to play a demo of this at PAX last year, it was fun as hell. Classic Suda51 insanity, reminds me a lot of No More Heroes in a good way.

And yet again, I have to ask...who the hell is going to beat Bones Jones? He's just tearing through all his opponents, he legit seems unstoppable at this point.

Well thank god for that! I always found it hard to get into the story of TMNT because, while I can accept Teenage Ninja Turtles, the mutant factor was simply too ridiculous for me. Now I can connect with the characters on a more personal level and truly enjoy the story that Mr. Bay will be telling!

Seriously though Michael Bay is the biggest hack I've ever seen in my life and I hope he steps on a rake.

Wesker did actually flash up briefly.

He did? When?

It seems sorta....missing something.

One of the charms of the early RE games is that even with everything going on, they kept a sort of ridiculous campy tone to them that made them very fun to play. RE4 absolutely embraced this and as a result was the best game, while RE5 scaled it back and I feel suffered for it.

This one, it seems like they're trying to make it all gritty and serious, and again, I think it shifts everything away from what made the RE games so much fun.

Plus, there appears to be no Wesker. And without Wesker, RE is nothing but a shell.

I came Elerium-115.

I grew up playing the original X-Com on my grandpa's old MS:DOS, so when I discovered it was on Steam a few months ago, I jumped on that shit and have been reliving what I genuinely consider one of the best games ever.

After the announcement that the "new" X-Com was going to be an FPS, I was pretty disappointed...but this makes up for it. I cannot WAIT for this to come out. Everything is wonderful again.

I'm honestly trying to think of who can stop Jon Jones, and I'm having trouble coming up with anybody.

The guy is on an absolute tear. It's cliche, but he really does have so many ways to finish a fight And the absolute scariest thing is that he's only 24, so he probably hasn't even hit his prime yet.

Amazing finish.

Also jesus christ that arm break was very difficult to watch.

Oh my god the Korean Zombie is a dangerous fighter.

So much for the big hometown return...

It's....odd. I wouldn't say I dislike it, but I don't outright like it either....it sounds more like someone just reading poetry over rock music. The styles don't really mesh, it's more like oil and water.

My brother, however, absolutely despises it with a passion. He genuinely thinks it's one of the worst songs he's ever heard.

We have never met.

DID SATURDAY NIGHT MEAN NOTHING TO YOU but yeah, no, it never even crossed my mind.

I went to the Dave Jaffe Keynote, a panel about Competitive Gaming (which I left 2 minutes in because none of the guests could show up, so they were there via audio-only skype...just a huge mess), Retro Game Roadshow (wanted to get my PSX copy of Legend of Legaia appraised...turns out, it's worth all of like $4), the MVC3 Tournament on Saturday (Eliminated first round wooooo), Fat Ugly Or Slutty (both funny and informative panel, their site is hilarious), the screening of I Got Next (good movie, interesting to see them all talk about Daigo Umehara like he's GOD), and Making Art From Art (got to ask MegaRan about the time TNA stole his music). Really wasn't too big on many of the panels there this year, I was more about just wandering the floor playing demos.

So I spent 3 days head-deep in the culture of Video Games at Penny Arcade Expo 2011, and I thought I'd take some time to review the games I played. Please note that all the most heavily hyped games there....Borderlands 2, Bioshock INfinite, etc...had lines that stretched, at a conservative estimate, until the end of time, and even with a 3 day pass I didn't feel like waiting that long to play a game. Here, enjoy this list, that has been carefully arranged in no particular order.

Asura's Wrath!

This was at the Capcom area, and next to it was a big soundproof box. They asked people to step inside and scream as loud as they could...if they hit a certain level, they were entered to win $300. Sadly, I wasn't able to hit that level, but I still went on to play the game...and found it to be a fairly generic God of War clone with the only real innovation being a unique art style. Not really something you should go out of your way to buy, but if you like the God of War games, maybe give the demo a try.

Rayman Origins!

The fact that I just had to look up what company makes Rayman (Ubisoft) should tell you that I'm not a fan. Rayman Origins is a New Super Mario Brothers Wii-style 4 person platformer, the big difference being that there is absolutely so much going on in this game in terms of art and enemies that I died every 3 nanoseconds. If I had more time to figure it out I think I could have done better, but I don't see this being a big deal.

Kirby Mass Attack!

I love me some Kirby, and this one seems awesome. Basically an evil wizard has turned Kirby into 10 mini-kirbies, so you start off as a single kirby and after you eat enough food, another kirby shows up, with a maximum of 10. It's a platformer controlled entirely with the stylus, and controlling the kirbies is shockingly intuitive and fun. Plus, watching a herd of Kirbies swarm on an unsuspecting enemy has a delightful charm about it. Definitely picking this one up when it comes out.

Fortune Street!

This Wii title appears to be a Monopoly-like virtual game that involves a lot of property owning and stock market playing. I find it odd that the 2 games characters are taken from are Mario and Dragon Quest, but there you go. This one seems a little...tedious is the word I'd use, but it still has something appealing about it. Seems like a nice little game to play on a lazy afternoon with friends, or a family friendly interactive board game. Doubt I'll pick it up, though, unless it suddenly gets amazing reviews.

Dead Rising 2: Off The Record!

It's DR2, but with a new story, improved gameplay, and Frank West as the main character, setup as a parallel to the normal DR2, being sold at a discount price. I started the sandbox mode by dropping out of a helicopter, and 10 minutes later, I was in full scuba gear punching at zombies with MMA gloves covered in nails. Exactly the stuff that makes the Dead Rising series so much fun. I still have to pick up Dead Rising 2, but after I do, and beat it, OTR is next on my zombie killing list.

Dead Island!

This feels a lot like Dead Rising, but with a 1st Person view. It works, and the frantic melee combat is made more frantic when the zombie in question is directly in your face shrieking. The story is non-existant in the demo, basically saying "You are in a small cabin with a few survivors, and outside in this tropical island paradise there are zombies. Go kill them." The demo was all about gameplay, and said gameplay is really fun...there aren't nearly enough melee-based First Person games out there.

The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword!

This may come as a shock to you, but even though I'm big into gaming, I've never been into the Zelda series. Don't know why, just never got into them. I didn't play this one but watched gameplay, and I just have to say....it doesn't seem much different from the last installment. Then again I'm not the person to talk to about Zelda, so if you like the Zelda games, you'll most likely want to pick up this one.

Spelunky!

Standard indy-style exploring 2D platformer. I only mention this one because of an experience I had in it...I had gotten used to whipping anything that got into my way, so when I came across something I whipped it, only to discover it was a woman I was supposed to rescue. With her unconscious, I picked her up, took 2 steps, and fell directly into a pit of spiders where we both got bitten and died. And any game where that happens is probably worth your time. It seems like it's very heavily focused on exploration and treasure hunting (as is sort of implied by the name).

Super Mario 3D!

This game was actually my first time using a 3DS, and I was pleasantly surprised with how the 3D looks...with the recent price drop, I might finally invest in one. This basically just looks like your standard 3D Mario game, but with the addition of the Tanooki Suit, and that's always a major, major plus. Controls were basically what you'd expect from a 3D Mario game, and one thing I liked was the inclusion of Fake Goombas...if you have 3D off, they look like normal Goombas, but turning the 3D on shows that they're just cardboard cutouts. They encouraged players to test out the 3D on the console, although I do question if they would work in the full release of the game.

Vanessa Saint-Pierre Delacroix And Her Nightmare!

Fuck Yeah Indy Puzzle Platformers! in this one you play as Vanessa Saint-Pierre Delacroix, a little girl who's entire town is sucked into a magical box. Each level is laid out on a cube, and you press a button to rotate the side of the cube that Vanessa is on to either get to the next side (matching up the exit on your side with the entrance there) or getting a red cube into a red hole to move on. With a beautiful victorian/gothic presentation, amazing soundtrack, and truly innovative gameplay, this is up there as one of my favorites at PAX. They said they're working on distributing it on XBLA (either through Indie Games or it's own release), and on smartphones soon, and you owe it to yourself to play something this unique.

Street Fighter x Tekken!

Not into Tekken, but I am into Street Fighter, and the gameplay of this is based on SFIV, with the ability to tag out to a partner, link moves, and other innovations. Seeing Hugo back in a game is badass, and seeing Poison playable is fun too (in all her Chick-Who-is-Quite-Possibly-A-Dude Glory), although the mechanic wherein you only have to KO one of your opponents to win rather than both sorta threw me. Probably gonna have to brush up on my Tekken characters to know who half the guys are but there's a fucking BEAR playable and that's the true selling point of any game.

Rise Of Nightmares!

Again, didn't play this one, but watched people play it. It's a 1st person melee-focused horror game where you fight zombies....exclusive to the XBox Kinnect of all things. Watching people play, it seems like it picks up movement quite well, but I do question how immersive a horror game can be if you're going to be flailing your arms around at all times. I just can't help but feel that the game would be better suited with a standard controller, but it still does look like fun. The horror skews more towards things jumping at you very suddenly shouting WAGALABAGALA rather than more subtle slow building horror but that sort of works in this case.

Pokedex 3D!

This is for all you 3DS owners who have been wondering "Just what does a Sigilyph look like...FROM THE SIDE?" Using cards and the Nintendo 3DS' AR feature, you can look at Pokemon from every side, and you also have a database containing info for every Pokemon of the most recent generation. Considering it's a free program for download on the 3DS I can only assume it's going to be updated with the full Pokedex at some point.

Kirby: Return To Dream Land!

4 Player Co-Op Kirby game, featuring Kirby, King DeDeDe, Meta Knight, and that Waddle Dee who wears a do-rag. Looks like other Kirby platformers, but with Wii graphics and the ability to play as 4 people, but I just have to say...seeing Meta-Knight do the end of level classic Kirby Victory Dance is just....so....wrong.

Batman: Gotham City Impostors!

Team Fortress 2-like game, but without classes (instead you customize your Batman Impostor or Joker Impostor how you want...bigger takes more damage but moves slower, smaller can jump higher and run faster but is weak, etc), and lots of different game modes (at least, that's what the host said) make this one look like a fun game. I love the art style of the game, the weapons have a lot of creativity behind them, and there is enough variety to keep it pretty much infinitely replayable, so I'm looking forward to this one being released.

Ultimate Marvel vs Capcom 3!

Oh fuck yes, this one I played about 500 times during PAX. I loved MVC3, and this update brings more awesome stuff to the series. Of course the main selling point are the 12 new characters, 6 of whom were playable at PAX, so I tried them all out...Hawkeye is entirely projectile based (his normal heavy attack is a projectile), so he's all about keep-away-play...Ghost Rider has massive range on his attacks thanks to his chain, along with a nice variety of supers....Doctor Strange seems to be more about setting up combos than anything as his special moves are done once to lay them down and again to activate them...Firebrand is Glass Cannon-esque in that he does good damage and has tons of combos, but doesn't have good health...Strider Hiryu plays similar to he did in MVC2, specializing in quick close range attacks...and Nemesis is a Big Fuckin' Tank that deals TONS of damage, but is by far the biggest and slowest target. Sad that Phoenix Wright isn't playable yet, but this game is awesome.

Lollipop Chainsaw!

In this game, you play as a cheerleader by day/demon hunter by night, who is in a High School overrun by zonmbies, who she takes out either with cheerleading moves or with a giant pink chainsaw, splitting the zombies in half and sending pink hearts and rainbows spilling out. In other words, exactly the kind of game you'd expect from its creator, Suda51. There is also a severed head hanging off her skirt. When I asked about it, the worker there said "That's Nick...and that is all I can say about it". The boss battle was with a punk rocker who would scream out things like "VANILLACUNT" and "PUNKBITCH", and the letters would appear and shoot at you, forcing you to dodge them. Yeah, classic Suda51. This game absolutely ruled, I love how bizarre the aesthetic was, while the gameplay itself was simple to learn, while being a real treat to look at. This is a definite pickup as soon as the game comes out.

And finally...

Twisted Metal!

Twisted Metal has a special place in my heart. TM2 was the first game I ever owned for the Playstation, and the game that made me realize that gaming really was an art form rather than just electronic games. Sadly I don't own a PS3 (not now, at least), but I had to get in to try this game out. I first got the chance to meet the creator of the game, Dave Jaffe, which was legitimately an honor for me. To be able to tell the man how much I appreciated what he's done for gaming, and how important the TM series was to me, was remarkable. Not only that, but I got a signed Sweet Tooth mask out of it, which I am going to frame the shit out of.

When I sat down for the game (14 players in a 7 on 7 deathmatch), a switch snapped back in my head and I was right back to the late 90s, effortlessly dodging and weaving through the chaos, following and stalking opponents....it was everything right about games. I played for 10 minutes, and those 10 minutes legit made me consider getting a PS3. Twisted Metal is just as fun as it's always been, and with a new take on the story (apparently 3 gangs....Sweet Tooth, Dollface, and a third I don't know), this could be something to bring the series right back to the forefront of gaming again. Hopefully by the time it comes out, I'll have a PS3.

So that's the roundup of stuff I saw at PAX. Looks like there's a LOT coming out to be excited about. And everyone has to pick up Lollipop Chainsaw. Seriously , that game fucking rules.

Normally I'm one to say that stuff can be handled not through a new game but through DLC, but to be honest, there are enough things to add that this warrants a full release (although I assume it'll only be $40, like Super Street Fighter 4 was). Stuff like many more online modes, maybe that story mode they promised when the game first was announced, stuff like that does warrant a new release...

But that doesn't matter. Because we all know the true #1 super duper turbo championship selling point of this game...

1) "Into The Great Wide Open" - Tom Petty and The Heartbreakers

2) "Apollo 18" - They Might Be Giants

3) "Orphans - Brawlers, Bawlers, and Bastards" - Tom Waits

4) "Pig Lib" - Stephen Malkmus and The Jicks

5) "Merriweather Post Pavilion" - Animal Collective

6) "Yoshimi Battles The Pink Robots" - The Flaming Lips

7) "Castaways and Cutouts" - The Decemberists

8) "In The Aeroplane Over The Sea" - Neutral Milk Hotel

9) "Normal Happiness" - Robert Pollard

10) "69 Love Songs" - The Magnetic Fields

11) "The Kinks Are The Village Green Preservation Society" - The Kinks

12) "Feed The Animals" - Girl Talk

As I think of the last 8, I'll be adding them in.

Legend of Legaia. One of the most underrated, under-appreciated JRPGs ever. In-depth story, unique gameplay, tons of stuff to do, it was just all around fantastic, and I'd love to see them do a remake. And not a remake of the sequel, because the sequel sucked. I realize asking for a remake of a game not that well known is unlikely...but hey, I can dream.

Also, GTA London 1969. It was awesome in the top down style, and I can only imagine how much more fun it would be in the more modern 3D-style GTA has taken on.

Resident Evil 2. At one point, while examining a room, Tyrant bursts through the wall. That made me jump. I beat him, then left the room, where you could see the hole he burst through....and he proceeds to burst through the wall AGAIN.

Going way way back, Silent Debuggers for the Turbografx 16. What can only be described as a grid-based first person shooter game, the enemies were these giant brain-creature aliens that usually appeared very suddenly. You'd just be walking down a hallway and turn right and the monster would be RIGHT THERE IN YOUR FACE, screaming. That game is why I tended to stick with Parasol Stars.

Man, that's a hell of a lineup. Animal Collective, Guided by Voices, Thurston Moore,Fleet Foxes, TV on the Radio, Deerhunter, Radio Dept...they got some awesome bands this year.

I know my brother already got tickets to it. I would go if I was still living in the Chicago area.

I've found you have to have Hulk or Sentinel on your team when you face him, just so you can stay alive long enough kill him.

I've just found that spamming projectiles and getting close to him when he does those pound attacks seems to work ok. I've beaten him a few times on Medium, but only after losing 2 of the 3 members of my team each time.

MODOK is great in that match because you can spam Analysis Cube over and over to power yourself up, then do the super move, it drains a ton of Galactus' health.

So anyone have opinions on this? EB is offering 50 percent increased trade-credit when it's towards this game so I am seriously considering it.

I bought it this morning, here are my thoughts...

There IS a slight lack of fighting options. Arcade mode, Mission mode (basically like combo training) and online mode. Online mode has lobbies, ranked match, quick match, all the basics. So there isn't a lot of innovation there.

That being said, it's probably the only drawback I can think of for this game, because it's everything we've come to know and love from the Capcom vs Whatever series. Frantic combat, huge combos, intense gameplay. It's extremely fun, and honestly, I think that the biggest draw for this game is playing online, which means the slight lack of fighting modes is ok.

So if you're a fighting game fan (and since you're considering this, I assume you are), I totally recommend it. It's awesome, a worthy addition to the MVC series, and is just everything right with fighting games. Plus, hearing some of the stuff Deadpool says should be worth the price of the game alone.

1) Pumaman

2) Prince of Space

3) Overdrawn at the Memory Bank

4) Parts - The Clonus Horror

5) Werewolf

6) Santa Claus

7) The Brain That Wouldn't Die

8) The Undead

9) Future War

10) The Deadly Mantis

This list was incredibly difficult to put together, because I was raised on this show. My dad had, and still has, tons of tapes of it that we would watch when I was a kid.