Sunday, January 03, 2010

Quick Update: Happy New Year Edition

My resolution is to stop making empty promises on my blog...

Here are the highlights since September:

- Asics DS Trainer 14 impressions - Pretty solid so far. I've probably run 200-300 miles in them so far and haven't had any problems. They feel a lot like the DS 13 with a little more polish. We'll see how they do in the next marathon (two weeks from today!).

- Batman: Arkham Asylum Review - Awesome all-around! The game exudes smart design and polish. It's rare that I play a game that is paced so well that I feel compelled to keep playing it to finish the story. This is how adventure games should be made. Ironically, it wasn't a game that was on my radar until the near it's release, but I'm sure glad I picked it up. I'm looking forward to finishing it on Hard.

- Scribblenauts - Clever game filled with charm and replay value. It has not disappointed, though I admit I haven't picked it up much since (mainly due to a blitz of huge releases though the holiday season).

- DJ Hero - Easily my favorite rhythm/music game now. The playlist is packed with great mixes that totally suite my music sensibilities. The gameplay is familiar but the interface breathes new life into the flooded genre. Unfortunately, it hasn't sold very well at all. Get out there and support this game!

- New Super Mario Bros. Wii - What a welcome entry into the Mario Bros. lineup. Classic 2D platforming at it's best. The cooperative mode is a great new twist although be warned if you're planning to play with your significant other. I can't tell you how many times my wife and I got mad at each other for causing the other person to fall to their death. And every time, we're just sooo certain it was done on purpose. (I swear, honey! I don't care how it looked, it's always accidental!)

- Left 4 Dead 2 - I had no intentions of getting the game, but then the trailer got me really hyped. I've played the first campaign twice and they're definitely not kidding when they say the difficulty has been amped up from "tough" to "ridiculous". I'd be playing this a whole lot more right now if it weren't for the next thing on this list...

- Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 - Ahh, here's the where all my gaming time has been spent. Man, Modern Warfare 1 blew me away and I wasn't completely sold on all the new locales that was to be featured in this game, but now that I've experienced it I can honestly say it's the best CoD yet. The campaign is nearly as thrilling and twisted as the first Modern Warfare, though I'd probably give the edge to the first one because it impressed me so much. The campaign is equally short, but that's not where the game truly earns its keep. The multiplayer is fantastic! The new gameplay elements and tweaks have totally rebalanced things, particularly the addition of the Death Streak perk. I've logged about 30 hours in multiplayer so far and I can see no reason why this game won't dominate my 2010.

- Ireland - My wife and I went on a wonderful vacation to Ireland in December. We had an amazing time filled with castles, waterfalls, Guiness, blood pudding, and ghosts!! (more on that later) It truly is a gorgeous country and a place I'd highly recommend visiting.

- Other new game purchases - Lego Batman, Pure, Stranglehold, Quake Territories, Frontline, Guitar Hero 5, Guitar Hero: Van Halen.

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