Magic Musings

I work for a predominant board game store in Vegas. Apparently it would behoove the store if I became a Level 1 judge for Magic the Gathering. I know the game, but as recreational hobby. I haven't ever had think of the game in terms of high game state or at a competitive level. Currently watching the Pro Tour Finals to brush up on my standard knowledge. It's a real treat to watch Patrick Chapin prove why he deserved a spot in the Magic Hall of Fame and why Elspeth is the best card in the standard format.

Check out the Finals here.

Standout Games From E3

Here are my top 3 Triple A Games from E3 that made me drool:

Evolve 

Created by the original Left 4 Dead team, Evolve promises me more solid online co-op gaming. What stuck out about Evolve was it's potential for high-level competitive play. The game is rich with strategy and takes subtle cues from MOBAs and various FPS juggernauts. It also speaks to my inner desire to be a giant oppressive monster. My original worry was that while the monster offers players a different play experience, the hunters would play like generic FPS avatars. After seeing the game-play demo, Turtle Rock Studios promises to give the hunters the seems depth of strategy offered to the monster. Players can choose one of four classes, and then choose one of four characters within those classes. This allows players to find their own play-style within the various roles. For example, the game has a medic class similar to that of Team Fortress 2--he shoots a beam of healing light that allows the medic to actively heal players during battles. There are also chooses for battle medics and paladin type classes that fall within the "Medic" umbrella. We've also seen only two of the monster classes--the Goliath(show above) and the Kraken-- which hints that Hunter teams might have to choose their characters to counter pick the chosen monster. Evolve seems ripe for a meta game and a spot in E-Sports. Check out the interview with Turtle Rock here.  

Sunset Overdrive

Sunset Overdrive looks like the perfect amount of obscure and high-flying game play. To be honest the launch trailer felt like the Deadpool game we should have gotten. The movement system is reminiscent of Jet Set Radio, and shooting masses of mutants feels like the gory fun of Dead Rising. As players grind across the map and string together combos of kills and hardcore parkour moves, they will gain Style Points which allows players to unlock more abilities. It feels like Tony Hawk Pro Skater, but Insomniac gave Tony a mow-hawk and a samurai sword. Players are actively encouraged to explore the world and find one of the many ridiculous weapons the game has to offer.  The whole game reminds of playing ridiculous games like Vectorman on the Sega Genesis. Games that weren't concerned with anything more than "Do cool stuff and get billions of points. Why? Because video games!"  It's also hard not to fall in love with the neon colors and rockabilly style. My only worry is that the quips of the protagonist--who I'm pretty sure is voiced by Nolan North--will get old, and that the over-the-top game-play will eventually get old. Here is some game-play footage here. 

Little Big Planet 3

I'm pretty sure I've dumped like a lifetime into the first two games, so it wasn't a far stretch for me to be grinning like a dumb idiot during this announcement. LBP3 offers players more of what they love and some well needed additions to the game. With the addition of an expanded field of depth, craft players can now utilize five sections of depth for their levels. Sackboy also has new tools to play with, like the hand-fan titled the Pumpinator. The developer team hinted that players can expect more tools like the Pumpinator, which gives players options other than the two tools players can currently access. In addition to new costumes, stickers and music, Sackboy actually has new friends to help him explore. Joining the patchwork world is Toggle, Oddsock, and Swoop. Toggle--a larger blog like character-- can switch between a large or a small form. This opens up spatial puzzles, but it feels like Toggle will mainly be used for his heavy lifting abilities. Oddsock looks like a sock puppy and boasts incredible speed and wall jumping abilities. Swoop is a tiny bird that can pick up other characters, allowing them to reach new heights. These other characters--in addition to Sackboy's new climb ability--open up a slew of new puzzles ideas that potential creator's can use. To the put the cherry on top, the 8 million levels that have been created between the first two games will be playable in the newest iteration of the game. Check out the trailer here. 

A Good Old Fashioned Paint Throwdown!

A valid argument on my favorite paint range,and a wholehearted challenge to prove me wrong. Bring it on internet. 

And Sony Wins E3

With a crazy sexy stage, Sony dropped knowledge on the crowd of nerds at E3. The announcement of the super cool PlayStation TV played second-fiddle to game-play demos of Far Cry 4 and Little Big Planet 3. Sony played fan service, announcing they are resurrecting cult classic Grim Fandango to avid cheers from the crowd. After a couple of shots at Microsoft's expense and some gorgeous game trailers, Sony ended their press conference with the announcement of Uncharted 4. Yup, dropped the mic and walked away.

While seeing Nathan Drake's newest installment made me squeal, the standout game was the ambitious No Man's Sky. The game could be the next indie break-out, with the bold mission to create a procedural based universe for players to interact and explore over the PlayStation Network. Some of the best moments I've had in games--like Skyrim--were just roaming the fast digital landscapes and becoming completely immersed in the experience. No Man's Sky aims to craft a world so large that players have no choice but become fully immersed in it's gigantic glory. I just hope that they don't craft a beautifully humongous landscape with absolutely nothing inside it.

Watch the full conference here.

Highlights:

0:00- Destiny Trailer
8:15-The Order:1886 Trailer
12:09-Entwined Demo
16:23- Infamous First Light Trailer
17:20- Little Big Planet 3 Demo
26:24-Bloodborne Trailer
29:06- Far Cry 4 Demo
46:15-Grim Fandango Announcement
51:22- Abzu Trailer
53:47- No Man's Sky Demo
1:15:13- PlayStation TV Announcement
1:17:15- Mortal Kombat X Trailer
1:30:03-Metal Gear Solid 5: The Phantom Pain Trailer
1:37:41- Batman: Arkham Knight Trailer
1:43:30- Uncharted 4: A Thief's End

Far Cry 4 Craziness!

"You get some cash, a gun...and after that? Well, you're fucked!"

That's the extremely blunt plot synopsis that Ubisoft used to frame their Far Cry 4 release trailer.While the trailer showed off the gorgeous new location, the take-home message from the trailer was the villain. 

He's utterly insane and fantastically enthralling. 

If  you thought Voss--Far Cry 3's calculatingly crazy villain--was insane, then prepare your butts for this guy. The trailer shows the well-dressed villain--sporting a devilishly hip hairstyle--run the extreme range of emotions. Viciously stabbing his own minion, the villain seemed more occupied with the state of his shoes, and taking selfies with the player-character, than the fact he was covered in people juice. 

The trailer also hints that the player might have deeper interactions with the villain. Could he be the overarching villain--replacing the staggering boring mob boss from Far Cry 3-- we'll get even crazier interactions with his generals? Or, could players be under the service of this maniac, and are forced to subvert his reign from the inside? Either way, I'm hoping he gets more screen time than Voss did in the previous installment. 

Check the link for the trailer. 

So what do you guys think? Is this new guy crazier than Voss? Let me know in the comments below! Stay tuned for more E3 coverage. 

Microsoft's Done Good. For Now.

So E3 started today and Microsoft didn't screw it up! Hooray! They managed to learn from their past mistakes, taking their horrendous E3 showing last year and turning it around to a meager"meh" performance. New X-Box head Phil Spencer  stuck with his "Game-First" initiative, as the majority of the 2 hour press conference was dedicated to games. It seems that Microsoft is starting to realize we want our gaming systems to focus on, well, the games.  They didn't just focus on AAA games either, but spent a good while showing off fantastic indie titles. Phil Spencer even had a ridiculous wardrobe change, ditching the suit for a hip Limbo T-Shirt--a hamfisted way to transition into Microsoft's upbeat indie game montage video. I'll give them that their indie developer support seems to be headed in the right direction, but again, Microsoft seems to be just now getting on the same playing field that Sony has been since last year. Though this press conference shows the momentum that X-Box has under Spencer's guidance, leaving me hopeful that the brand will soar to new heights.

With hype based trailers of a new Crackdown, Sunset Overdrive and the new Halo Collection, if Microsoft plays it's cards right they could very well pull ahead of Sony. Remember people, the console war is a marathon, not a sprint.

You can watch the full press conference here.

Here are some highlights:

5:00-Call of Duty: Advanced Warefare Demo
20:47-Evolve Trailer
21:27-Assassin's Creed Unity Demo
29:00-Sunset Overdrive Trailer/Demo
38:18- Fable: Legends Demo
44:09- Project Spark Trailer
46:50- Ori and the Blind Forest Trailer
49:26-Halo Trailer/Demo
1:00:00-Inside Trailer
1:05:39- Rise of the Tomb Raider Trailer
1:12:46- Phantom Dust Trailer
1:23:36-Crackdown Trailer

I Always Wanted to Be Harrison Ford....

Fantasy Flight's Netunner is the closest thing you'll get to actually being Harrison Ford. Check our first in a series of guides to mastering the game!