Giant Bombcast Giant Bomb Game of the Year 2010: Day Four

Hey, folks, it's a day four here of Giant Bombs. Game of
the Year twenty ten deliberations, is it? Uh? That's the voice of
one Bradley Shoemaker. I'm Ryan Davis, also Jeff Gersman. Video. Ella
are here? Am I? I don't even know anymore? Sitting in this
hot, sweaty room so far for so fucking long. You need to wipe
the pipe again? I don't know if I need to wipe the pipe.
It's not gonna do it dripping water. It's constantly dripping sweat. Back on
grossest you know you want to leave the store, always throw that enough people
here, Yeah, it doesn't matter. Everybody's in the bar are watching comedy.
So if you're by, yes, that's true. I'll open it all
the way. They are watching Joe Versus the Volcano. But we are pasta
there you go break out of here if fuck you guys, I don't care
whatever videos I think Joe versus the Volcano game. I'll meet you black by
the one. So we're past the halfway point here? Uh huh, it's
all town hill from here. Are we at the halfway? We passed it
since we started were about two minutes past halfway. We're two minutes to midnight.
Oh boy, we're all dead. You're already dead. The missiles are
on their way. Jeff Gershman, you have the list of our categories for
today. What have we got character we'd most like to party with? Okay,
Dave Snyder's Eastern Block Game of the Year brought to you by Dave Snyder.
Spider is not actually present, worst trend, best story, and the
best DS only game. All right, Yeah, I like these categories.
We get Dave on the phone already. We know what Dave's picks are.
So also, while we're talking about we just pick his, we still have
his uh tiebreaker. Yeah, as as mentioned during day one here, we
still have this little folded yellow note poised indeed the rip cord should we need
it, capsule in mouth, the doomsday option. And what does that say
on it? It says opening case of Game of the Year's Stalemate from Dave.
And it's clearly a bunch of text on here. So well that we're
not gonna have to worry about that, because I think it'll be a pretty
clear cut case of the year. Is I can kind of see through the
paper? Yes, don't don't it says Tard Aft. No does that saying
there, That's not what I'm seeing at all. I'm seeing Tard that's for
sure. Oh oh no, it's don't. Okay, what character we'd most
like to party with? Here's what we have written down on this list.
Okay, Broken game Room, Avatar, great John Vignaki, uhh, the
Elusive Man, and Irish from Red Dead Redemption interesting, so I all of
them? Get him in a room. I like, I like Elusive Man.
I just want to double check. Is that the mass effect two character
that we would most want to party with? You talking about Morton? Did
you read did you read his file at the end of Shadow Broker? Did
you read? Are you saying that Shadow Broker is the best game out all
of the year because we can go back, don't fuck up? But yes,
Miranda, it would be a good if you swing that way? Wait
what way trying to say? Saying? If you if you like the ladies
like Miranda, would be when you might want to party with or I would
rather party with Bayonetta by those standards. I don't know at this point that
at this point you're talking about like characters you want to get with? Yeah,
yeah, that is not the point of this cast. Kind of weird.
That's true. That's true. I don't know kind of parties, guys.
That's not we're not talking party like who, We're saying new care.
So this is more like which character, which want? Any character we'd most
like to party? Character you want to go sarging with? I submit to
you. Travis Touchdown from No More Heroes Too. Yeah, that guy is
nuts. All right, I will go to I will go to crazy punk
rock shows with Travis Touchdown and then slice dudes in half with laser swords.
I want to party with that little elf thing from connecta Moles that flies dude
party you mean strang Wait a minute, I got one living statues. Oh
man, what do you think? That's a real messed up party. What
do you think at a party? Something? Then I have been someone that
slips something in my drink. It's party's going really well. You think those
things are on nothing. They're not on anything, don't exists. They're in
your mind. Uh man. Yeah, A lot a lot of good character.
Monkey and uh and Pigsy. He knows how to party. He's a
dirty though. Party with him. He's a good character. He's keep him
in the game, he engages in activities of questionable legality. I'll bring it
up here and you gotta shoot it down. I'm just gonna say, they
might want a party with Francis York Morgan or what the hell is It rhymes
the guy who just not Michael Michael exactly. I could just spit rhymes the
entire party. They're the worst rhymes in the world of The poet says,
is there anyone from Uh from Super Street Fighter or any any characters from there
that you would like to party with? I don't know the line up that
well, so I can't think of anything off the top of my head.
But not really. I was gonna say Cody, but he that dude's just
a downer ever since he got out of the joint. Yeah, it's like
Dwayne style. I wouldn't mind UH bringing in. Wouldn't hit the piece pipe
with Tea Hawk. I would not hit a piece pipe with anyone. I'd
break a piece pipe over Teahawk's head. I personally would not like to party
with him, but that's just my choice. But Max from Samon Max Devil's
Playhouse is it might be a little too crazy for my taste. I think
I'm more of a Sam man. He just hang out talking about books with
Sam. Yeah, or something just made Dave, Sam and Rory just smoking
cigars or something drinking, just just silently drinking somewhere fins to Sam and Rory
could just sit down and start rapping with your party with cast Poker Night.
Uh. I kind of feel like I got that out of my sister.
Yeah yeah in that game. Mm hmmm, they kind of they kind of
scratch that itch already. Yeah, that that whole game is bringing bourbon.
Alan wakes a downer. Yeah kind of yeah, Sorry, Alan, want
to hang out with dude from Limbo Freaks me Out? Limbo Kid, No
Kane or Lynch No, definitely covered in cuts, naked, well, might
workout. Uh, anybody from Noble Team Nope, definitely, No, they're
all dead. That's true. It'd be a really blame party. Dude from
Spider House, the guy, the guy on the toilet in Comic Jumper in
the FMB. It seems pretty cool. It seems like it'd be all right.
Yeah, he's not too bad. Wipe his ass with the comic book
if he asked to. He's like, whatever, man, he's at the
party. That was a shot from the party. Yeah, uh, just
meat boy party, he's messy. Just cook him up. He is the
party, he's not. He's not a boy made out of meats. That
just seems like you'd have to be a really delicate party. That doesn't sound
Also, that's gross. Also put plastic down everywhere? Yeah no, good,
Well for the way I party, I put plastic down anyway. The
ipet you could get him in. I party with no ipet. Man,
I feel like we are drawing a blank here. I'm just making sure I
don't want to leave anybody out of the party. Uh what about Bowman from
Black Ops? If any one of those guys woulds could party? I bet
I was thinking of ice Cube? You know what? Yeah? How about
would your party with Reaver from Fable three? No? No, from Fable
two? Yes, yes, Fable three. Rever sucks? See that different?
Yeah, he seems like he's really into Esminym. It's it's got They
go into the dark stuff a lot more like he's he's more of a he's
more of a bum vivount. He goes into uh like yeah, I don't
know. Partying with Frank Woods would just be like he's got a Camaro and
a case of cours and he's like, let's do some burnouts and you're gonna
drive out to the edge of town and spin donuts. That sounds like a
good ass time to me. That's so bad. I like it, all
right. I like Frank Woods is a nominee. All right, So yeah,
France Morgan, I don't ye. I don't want any part of that.
I don't want to know. How about the chick Emily? Stop asking
Thomas. I meant this category was party with and not party with and maybe
that Emily and maybe maybe then. But George, guy, get some of
those seats. George bring bring it. Seeds smoke. Some of these can
arrest you for seeds. It's just seeds, alright. I think I think
we have a list. Okay, Broken Game Room, Avatar, John Minyaki,
Elusive Man, Irish Travis touchdown of Frank Woods. I like Frank Woods
is on there. I like Frank Woods. Yeah, I don't like.
I don't want a party with the broken gamer. No, no, what
what does he do? He hands hanging jacket on a real stiff. This
category is canceled. Fuck you, Brad. It's also Michael Jackson from Michael
Jackson the experience. I don't want one on one party. Also, it's
the like the likeness of Michael Jackson dancer dressed up like Michael Jackson. Maybe
not dude from Jess cause too. Rico nah nah, Ricos kind of a
dick. He's just he's just I don't know, he's a stereotype, all
right, that's all he is. All right, what are the three?
I really like the Elusive Man. I love the Elusive Man for this.
That is a that's like that is like weird high end, like he gets
eating eating sushi off of a naked cilarious. He's the one buying nude blue
label. But I also feel like that's a party where I ever interact with
the Elusive Man, like he would be his party. Yeah, he walks
around the bit and then disappears for pretty much the rest of man, and
then you just keep talking to people about like man this place. But but
there's like there's a chance that you might get get like the wave over into
like the back room, and then that then get even gets even if you
never brush elbows with the Elusive Man himself. But it's a hell of a
party. Do you get to do it in the like with a view of
like a sun exploding or whatever. It's in the Yeah, it's in that
room. It's in that room. He would be a great He never leaves
that room, and maybe he's just there virtually. He's in his little like
hologram. But if yeah, even if I didn't get to like hang out
and share drinks with the Elusive Man, if he threw a party and I
got to go to it, yeah, that party would be kicked pus.
You know, Miranda's probably gonna show up. You know, he's Miranda gonna
come. Illusive Man associates with some loose women. Yeah, she's coming,
and she's just wondering. Great, she's not the only one. Did you
read that again? Did you read the log in Shadow broke after Wallet at
my my favorite guy gets around. I'd love the show that listen Man's part
with Morton as is my wing. Many want this party? Yeah, that's
my would be my pick. Okay, Frank Woods, Losive Man and who
God, I'm trying to remember Irish. I don't know why I can't.
He's not in the game that much, is he He's pretty significant. You
do a big an string of missions with him. Right around the time you
get to thea's landing is when he pops off right around there. Yeah,
yeah, and then I can't remember what happens to him. It keeps going
bad for him. I just remember him being really drunk all the time.
Yes, that's accurate. Okay, okay. All of his problems stem from
his stereotypical Irish weakness to the drink, and so it's it's NonStop. But
doesn't he try to shoot you at one point when he's drunk? I think,
yeah, he tries, well, he but he thinks you're someone else,
or he thinks you're in league with someone else. To be fair,
all right, maybe remind me of what happens to him. No, you
don't remember he survived. I think he takes off in Mexico, doesn't he.
I think that's right. I think. I think once you go to
Mexico, you think, oh, that's right, he does. Yeah.
Okay, who wins the elusive man? Yeah? I think we need a
third right, Well, that's we have lucive Man, Irish and Frank Woods.
Okay, we cut Irish. We have John Irish kind of a bubber.
Let's cut Irish and put John in there. Yeah, okay, but
having partied with him before, I'll say that, yeah, I would like
to. But the Elusive Man, the Elusive Man, that's a party that's
a weird because you know he's he's kind of got that. He runs some
weird circles. He's gonna be like a bunch of weird people there. He's
got like that like hyper conservative edge. So you know that when he parties,
it gets fucking strange. Oh yeah, it's like like all of the
pent up stuff kind of starts unfurling and he's like, whoa, dude,
I just where did you get that much space cocaine? That's will you make
it? What do you think this exploding sun behind me is? We're cooking
cracking space. That's when he runs Space Meth Labs space trailer on the edge
of town. This dwarf stars the only thing that gets hot enough for cooking
meth meth and do some lines off his blue Ladies ass. That's right,
Dave Eastern Block Game of the Year, all right, what we're what we're
Dave's nominees Metro twenty thirty three, Stalker, Call of prip Yatt, and
Mocknarium. And what did Dave pick that's a good. That's a good.
I'm glad we were able to have this this list a game arums this year.
Yeah, yes, I wouldn't to Dave pick stalker. Stalker congratulations.
Awesome. Moving on, let's get Dave to do all our categories unless even
think of any other ones we just subvert. The only other one he mentioned
was Mafia two. But no, right, no, yep, congratulations Stalker.
Yeah, way to go, Stalker. Worst trend, worst trend.
We've got a got a list here. Vignetting, Johnnyting, I would party,
that's a that's when they darkened the edges of the screen. Yeah,
like all of Nailed, yes, or all of Limbo, Limbo, split
second, Alan Way Blurred does it? Does it? Does it? I
think I feel like Limbo is the only one that we just mentioned that can
get away with it. It's suffer to the sea, for sure. You
don't see it as much. Color separation, that is when you look at
candles too. It's it's yeah, it's like colors the party basically see you
kind of like the red green blues. If you get hitten bleeding out from
each other. Blur's got it, cals has got it? Uh? Facebook
slash Twitter support any of that external posting stuff like the SIMS on console.
Yep, Blurre did that. Yep, ironically need to being hot. Pursuit
does not do it, even though it has a wall in it and all
the social features. It's all some impressive self restraining through that trailer You're Home
Free, right, which which, for the record, the trailer is not
on this list because that's the only game that did it. Not a trend,
don't it? Not a trend? Motion controls damn. There are a
lot of those. Yeah, retailer specific pre order bonuses fuck which you know
it extends beyond this year, but it seems like this here's the year where
it started getting yeah yeah, Like like it went from being exclusive in the
bad sense, like you are being excluded from the things you want. I
feel like it went from being there was one like game Stop would have or
if you pre ordered anywhere you got the bonus. But now Amazon best buy
in game Stop at the least always Walmart. Best trend is Amazon missing their
pre order bonus and then getting apologies constantly from apologies in the form of credit
Yeah and Eco boxes, yes, you know what those are there? The
stupid gasses that don't fully cover, you know, the area where the disc
is. So if you were to say, keep a game in a bag
that had your keys in it, it might just puncture through the box and
cut up the disc a little bit. Or it's like why have the box?
Like why? Yeah, exactly, Like if you're not going to protect
to the part where the fucking disc is then then yeah, they just feel
funny to me. I don't. I don't feel the packaging. I've I've
had multiple games now that have had that have tears in them because the paper
and plastic are not strong enough to keep them from getting dinged up. And
someone who's who you know, tries to keep a nice looking collection. It's
the worst. Uh, as we was just moving towards no boxes, man,
I uh. I don't have an issue with vignetting. I think that,
Yeah, it's there's been a lot of it more. I don't think
it's necessarily category called worst, worst trend worst. I don't have an issue
with color separation. I think of that. I think I still think it
looks cool. They are laying vignetting going pretty thick. Though there there are
there is and you will see some cheap vignetting as well, but I don't
feel like it has. We haven't crossed over into a lens flare. It's
it's only it's only getting water on the camera territory with blue water sweat on
the basketball court. Yeah, yeah, exactly, it's only getting there for
me, and like that, everybody just uses it for damage, like you
took damage, you know, fuzz out the edges of the screen, and
then you your visibility is hindered at your weakest moment. Sure, what is
the cloaqu wheel term for that? Now? I don't know. Isn't there
on the screen. What do you call it? I think I've seen it
called strawberry jamming before. That's that's different, I mean that's the Yeah,
that's like that's the metal of flashing all over the screen, right, more
than than just pure red vignetting. It does look like strawberry jam Yeah.
Yeah, but yeah it doesn't. It doesn't bother me so much. I
mean mostly because uh, you know, that's the games. I think,
you know, yeah, I think that that that one can be cut because
I think there are ones that are way worse on the list. Yes,
color separation kind of same deal. I thought blurry us didn't looked great.
Yeah, I think this this was the year for like some good, interesting,
tasteful color separation and you know, hey, god willing, next year
it'll be completely overdone. I mean it's it's a good shorthand to kind of
you know, make it seem like this is just a handheld camera. It's
it's you know, it's it's an interesting way. It's if you think about
it, it's crazy because they're trying to emulate the imperfections of actual cameras.
I don't know the whole thing. It's crazy. And similarly, like the
vignetting is is you know, supposed to make it look more cinematic, so
you don't really get much color separation. No, it is like VHS,
right, some color separation, but or like chromish is gonna be. They
have to hurry while there's still people from that generations because as soon as we're
done, it's like it's like modem noises and hit. Yeah. So that
leaves us with Facebook, Twitter support, motion controls, retailer specific preorder Bonus
does, and eco boxes. I gotta say we should cut motion controls.
It's not exactly a new trend, you know, it's become a much more
prevalent trend now that you can do it on any platform just about. But
for now, I guess you know what, let's I'm willing to cut it
and let's keep an eye on it. Let's see if let's see if games
that shouldn't have it right start bringing its notice. Yeah, if you start
adding super controls in trouble and I think eco boxes fucking wins you do.
I don't know, I don't give. I hate retailer specific pre orders.
Those are the word lock me out of content. That's that's terrible, like
especially since you see to shooes between like multiple like, oh, it would
be great to get all this content, but you can't and can't, right,
and there are some cases where that stuff doesn't go on. That's the
terrible post script. They don't actually even and even give you the chance to
buy it, alright, So the most egregious thing I can think of right
now for top my hand. I know there are probably worse ones. Uh
Enslaved had the ones like the outfits for Monkeys which comes which were basically like
game breakers, which which you pre order and you get like one that will
they will completely break the game. But they they are huge there, like,
yeah, weear this outfit for unlimited Stammo. Yeah, and that's like
they're just thinking weird or maybe it's just more, but yeah, it's it's
it's terrible because the pre order should be for people who are very excited about
this product, who are fans, right yeah, yeah, and they're using
this to to it's it's a pure manipulation of the consumer. It's anti consumer.
It's it's just it's a it's especially because those fans are the ones that
you know are gonna want all that content when you start splitting it up across
multiple retailers. Yeah, like that Mass Effects that were really upset me.
Like luckily, luckily it was all bad. Well like even you know,
we're in our position, we were able to like you know, solicit and
and get some of those codes. But yeah, it would, it would.
Uh yeah, that's if you love BioWare and you love Mass Effect,
you know, and you want to see all of the cool shit that they
made for that game, you're kind of out of luck. Yeah, and
that and that sucks. That just completely sucks. Even if it is kind
of you know, it's it's it's usually peripheral things. It's not like yeah,
but I think the worrying part about the trend is that it isn't always
stuff that is purely peripheral and stuff that is you know, like if you
want those totalities, you know, like, yeah, that's gonna that stuff
suck. Specifically that is it's a bad trend. Is gross, and you
know it's stuff that uh eco boxes, the social networking integration stuff. I
feel like that's on the way, though I feel like, I don't know.
I think we're still I think we're still running up. It's gonna get
worse. I think we're still I think they're still figuring it out. But
the E three this year, Facebook was the game to beat. Like every
single game like had some sort of hook for tweet out your thing or you
know, like you know, it's it's not necessarily the worst example, but
def Jam rap Star. They built an entire social network you know around that
game that also had that also had the spam, Uh was expam your friends
list or something? Right, It wasn't like I posted a video come check
it out. No, I remember getting something from one of you guys.
Sports MMA had a thing where, uh, if you told twenty friends to
download the demo or told ten of them and five of them did download the
demo. You unlocked an additional fighter that was pretty gross, and I mean,
so it didn't I feel like calling it Facebook Twitter integration. I feel
like it's more of just like social networking in the games. Yeah, okay,
well, because because like even even Hot Pursuit does the like there's an
achievement for having X number of friends on your friends list that have played the
game, right, Like, that's that is crazy, but that's they're doing
that to incentivize you to the point where you get to experience the one of
the key features of that game. Because the Hot friends list doesn't have any
players on it they're playing the game, you're missing out on on one of
the key things they have developed, which I think is their fault. They
shouldn't have like, you know, they should have accounted for that in a
different way. Hot Pursuit is the tasteful exception to the rule, but it's
still it's like, hey, get your friends to buy our games so that
you can get these points. Yeah, granted, playing with your friends is
the best part about playing Hot Pursuit, So like that's the ends aren't bad,
but just sort of what the Yeah, what the context is. But
I think retailers specific because is cock sucking worse especially in this in this in
this sense, because that is a trend that seems to be snowballing. It's
getting worse. Well, it started out bad and it got better. You
think, I don't know, it started with uncharted. Wait till you're talking
about the and then they turn it off. No, no, no,
I'm talking about I'm sorry, that seems to be getting I think that wins.
I think at least eco boxes better. Does this need to be something
that like, this is something that's gonna sit on my shelf until I am
dead, and then it's going to be buried with me. The environment doesn't
enter into it. Factory, Well, I'm saying these are things that need
you know, the boxes are there to preserve the contents of the boxes.
I's talking about your box. I'm talking about the amount of patroleum and plastic
used to make that box. Well, they should be making the boxes out
of something cooler than instead of just leave out a third of the box out.
Of course, it's they're going they're fixing the problem the wrong way.
The right way is to get rid of the box. I was gonna wait
until the next console there won't be any more boxes, and then that I
could That's the one outcome I could be okay with because if they finally just
get to that point, it's like, all right, it's getting to the
point of like what do you need even need the box for anymore? Like
dis no manually from into flames. Just put the disk into like those clam
shells and just sell it on the behind a poster. All right, if
you pre order from games that you got an actual box, I'm in,
yeah, everything, all right, dad wins. Right, that wins the
worst retailer specific pre order bonus. Right, your local congress persons, fill
in my box. What what is your next best story? We have three
games on this list right now, so if anyone has any additions that we
need to discuss, then we should discuss them. But right now we have
Red Dead, Redemption, Enslaved, and StarCraft two. I will put a
pitch in and this has a caveat with it that mass effect too. It
does not necessarily have the main best story on the main thread, but the
supporting stories are. I think this needs to be a bullhog like you do,
like you can't just be like, you can't just say this part of
the game story great, but they all that okay with the whole mass effects
to story like that, the whole story in that game is basically recruiting a
team, right, so the team stories are part of your main story,
so that you should we should just wait and have this conversation at the end
of this whole thing, because it's going to come back up. It's Ocean's
eleven. You spend a large chunk of time getting your together, which and
then at the end of the thing is the heist. Well, so should
we write down to talk about it? Dude? You know what, that
giant fucking space robot alone just qualifies that game from this category. Wells totally
blows boss doesn't necessarily reflect it all on the story. I don't know the
game that game would. I mean, if that thing had been like a
giant space robot box or a mex suit, it would have been way less
ridiculous. So that has nothing to do with the story. It is.
The story is the ending of the story in the fact that they're grinding up
humans and pumping them to rot. If the robot looked like a mech instead
of a baby, or what what if it's like it's like a terminator.
What if it looked like R two D two but menacing. You know,
it's like you can replace that one thing and fix your complaint with it and
the story because then they'll stop talking about that. But the thing is terrible,
but it's fine, but not in the context of the best story argument.
But it's the story because they are they are building it in the shape
of a human because they think that that is the epitome of evolution. In
this cycle of the mass effect, like the aliens recreate themselves based on the
what they think is the best evolution, So they have to recreate themselves,
like before it was squids, whatever species at was the great things. So
like the fact that they kind of have to make themselves, and I feel
like they got locked into a corner at the end in some like mass effect,
like like mopping the floor into the corner, like it's gotta be a
human, we have to make this, and then it's just I don't know,
it's look it kind of I love that game. It lessens the game.
It lessens the game. But yes, I didn't mind it that much
at all, But I think it was. It looked hokey, but it
wasn't like, oh, this is the worst and it was. It was
it was like five minutes of hoke Yeah. So like in the middle of
an like this intense, crazy suicide mission, like high fucking drama, they
build it up so much that they should have finished stronger than Well. The
bigger thing is is if we are I mean, I'm very open to including
the the the entirety of the all the stories into the best story from aspect
too. If you if you look at the Critical Path and that that game
story is a little weaker, that's that's my problem. It's a series of
fantastic little vignettes that are based on each character individually, but like the connective
tissue of the overarching story not that great. Yeah, it's basically go to
the collector ship, go to the go through the thing, like if you
But I do think that's the story is collecting the team. So that stuff
is good and probably in the context of whatever the whole trilogy ends up being,
it'll be fun. But I think I think you count all that stuff
as part of this. I think that the story just saying best Critical Path,
we're saying best story and game, right. I mean because because if
you take the Red Dead I mean, all that stuff is going to have
to play in for the rest of these games on this list too, because
all of them have I mean, StarCraft two has branching story stuff, and
if you just take the main story, which is stop the desserve right,
Well, any any game, any story can be reduced to a single sentence,
that's right. So like, so Mass Effect too, you have to
take I think you have to take the entire game Red Dead just you know,
we have to take the entire all the side missions and all that stuff.
So I think it's fair to include Mass Effect even with the sides stuff.
I mean, you have to do some of the sides. Are three
better stories than that this year? What are there? Right? This is
just the argument to get it added to this make it on the list.
I mean, he's enslaved to one of the three best stories of the year.
Probably not, I mean, like it's two. I'm not so sure
about that one either. I didn't really enjoy the story. Yeah, StarCraft
two, and it's good set up. I mean it was good enough for
me to as a non multiplayer player of that game, to say yes,
but a man. Much like Mass Effect, it's just like a piece of
It's like a piece of three games. Just so is every game coming out.
Ever, everything is a trilogy. You set it yourself. This morning,
Red Dead is a very complete story from start to finish. Yeah,
But but I don't I don't know if I feel like none of these are
great stories, it's the quality of the story telling. It's it's the the
actual stories. If we were just gonna boil down pure story, like I
almost might say Tron Evolution here, Yeah, because the particulars of it are
very interesting in the context of advancing. You know, there's enough there for
that to be the middle chapter of a Tron trilogy, taking the other the
movies, as you know, book ends around it or something like that.
But with the way it's told, it doesn't necessarily it's it's definitely not one
of the three best game stories of the year when you take that into account,
because I mean, yeah, like, yeah, any anyway to look
at the complete picture of this stuff. Yeah, I agree. The Allen
Wake story hit anybody kind of thinking about Allen Wake, I felt, you
know, it's really good right up until toward the end. I guess I
feel like that. One's not like story or stellar storytelling. It's mood and
atmosphere is what really makes that stuff work. Likes it. Once it got
to the ice, Once we got to the end of that game, and
I was like, oh wow, that was really like weird ambiguous ending.
And then the first deal she came out and said, no, here's exactly
what happened. Oh you you intended for me to absorb all that from the
game. I mean, I got what they were talking about. It's just
such a cliffhanger. It's so obviously designed to facilitate DLC. I just did.
I honestly did not know what the fuck happened at the end of that
game. Yeah, maybe, I don't know. I thought it was pretty
clear that from the imagery what had happened to him, like he switched places
with his wife basically, Yeah, but where was his wife? She was
in the nether world, she was she was under the ghost lake. I
don't know if she was in the backwards talking place with ghost Laura Palmer,
window merle Man. They do. They do a really good job I think
with that episodic format, though, like the end of those episodes on some
pretty cool cliffs and then the Roy Orbison pops in, and yeah, I
wouldn't have a problem adding it to that this list. It's not like the
like the end of every episodic chapter made you really want to start the next
one because they knew when to cut it off. How about so so again,
like that's that's not necessary, that's not the story, but it is
the storytelling. Yeah, I think I think that should be included. Okay,
I just think it's it's like that is. I think that's the difference,
and I think that's that's what we can really suss out as being better
than another. How is How is king Oly too anything? Because they set
it up kind of cool. They need to get the fuck out of there,
and then they get the fuck out of there. Yeah, they needed
more story beats than they had, all right, they know that cell phone
and stuff and weird. They seemed like it was a cool there's there's some
cool there's I feel like they it's missing an act. Yeah, exactly exactly.
It ain't. It ain't all there. Yeah, it's too bad because
if they're fine, if they had two more hours past the events at the
end of that game, because it's them hijacking a fucking commercial airliner. Yeah,
if they had carried on from there. But that's actually where it stops,
and it's like a very abrupt like kind of stylistic Yeah, this is
the end of this thing, and you don't see what happens to them.
And then that's like kind of a cool way to handle it. But the
problem is that is that between them deciding there's time to get the fuck out
of here there and they get the fuck out of there, all it is
is shooting. So it's like, at a certain point in the story they
realize, Okay, that's it, We're done here in Shanghai, right,
uh, and so then it's just shoot, shoot, shoot, cover,
cover, covers, the end, and then credits and the credit there's no
there's no there's no story at that point. Yeah, so it's yeah,
it doesn't it doesn't belong on this list. There was a category for least
story of the Year. That might be I don't know. There's a couple
Reach, I don't think so, I don't know. There are parts of
Reach that I really like, but that was that was one of the things.
It was towards the end of the game. It was a combination of
kind of where the story was going. And also the repetition of the game
play was what kind of set in to make me just kind of lose interest
with it. Uh, yeah, I agree it was they connected it to
Yeah, I feel like the way they the way they connected to the universe
of the End is done nicely. They do do a pretty good job making
you care about those characters. Yeah, it is definitely better than the Odious
t story, but I think that's primarily due to the lack of Nathan Phillion.
He's in There isn't a fire five voice. He's in the story for
like three lines. Yeah, oh that's right, he is. Yeah,
there's that one part. Also, there's nothing wrong with me? Yeah,
nothing wrong with you. I thought his performance and O DST was lacking.
Lacking. Yeah, black Ops. I was gonna say, black Ops,
but tell me what black ops means? What do you mean? Tell me
what the black ops means? What are about to tell me what the numbers
are? What are what are the numbers? Uh? I kind of lost
the thread black Ops. I like the storytelling in it, but the and
it well, I really like the premise of it, like like there's a
lot of stuff that is very much like very wheelhousey for me because I really
like numbers, stations and all that crazy stuff. I mean it's essentially sleeper
cells, right, yeah, yeah, and the flashbacks are kind of interesting.
I think it's just you know, towards the end, it really starts
to go off the rails and some some bad ways. You end up with
that stuff with the sunglasses, and I feel like a lot of the Vietnam
stuff is uh not done all that well story wise. I lost track of
like what the how the flashbacks were relating to the sleeper cell stuff. Like
the flashbacks seemed more the story of Resinov. I think just if you think
of think of that game as Assassin's Creed Brotherhood where he had to relive all
of the events leading up to current day in that chair to access the last
sequence and figure out what the numbers. But like like he had been he
had been touched at the beginning, very beginning, and it was hidden in
there. Yeah, it was like he had to relive all of that stuff
because he was continual realized that Resinov didn't actually exist, so stuff, and
then once he realized that he could tell them what the numbers mean. Yeah,
then once once, once he could like was able to come to terms
with that, I was like, oh man, oh god, oh god.
I I just snap realization of you know, what he'd been doing for
the past decade or something, and that that twist and also just telegraphed Yeah
pretty hard. Yeah, well, I don't feel like I feel like they
don't try to hide it at some point, and when they do, just
literally just being like, you're the what I just keep going. But it's
but it's way way before that though. I kind of figured putting it together.
But even at that point, it's like, if you're gonna have a
twist, have a twist, like, you don't need to nudge me a
bunch of and it's you know, they're taking so many elements that story end
up getting taken out of other things that that it just felt like a bunch
of connected references to other movies and stuff. Yeah, that's that's kind of
where where it loses it for me. I don't think it has to be
on those I just wanted to to talk about. There's some elements of it
that are really good, but then it just it goes a little too far,
too much fight Club, too much Manchuri in Canada or something. It's
just not yea I could call that's that's definitely the comba Uh. I don't
remember the story from Conviction, Save your Daughter, Daughter, Daughter something?
Where's my daughter? Where I had a flask? Here? Have you seen
it? I get to I did get to the Washington. I wish Darksiders
weren't so crazy because that was kind of interesting, but it's it's a weird
twist and the Apocalypse. The same thing with Band that if I understood the
story, I might actually don't even know what it's not most story Dead Rising
two zombies right, there wasn't much there. They over the military, Layton
anything because the first Laton was actually kind of cool. I would I would
put that on the list. Yeah, I didn't. I haven't finished the
new one yet. The mystery it's pretty man. I wish I kind of
wish I had now because it's there's a lot of intrigue so far. Future
Layton is the villain. I mean it sounds like future laure future London with
a future iron fist. That sounds pretty interest but it does. But without
having finished feel confident, I'm saying that heavy rain, what would you do
you you that? No? No, no, the whole game. I
hate no, I hate the twist. I hate their they hate their bullshit
red herrings. There was only the one that I can remember, but it's
but it's insane, it's huge, and they never address it. Well what
they never explained the oregonmy in fucking dude's hand. Oh that's right, like
the black Yeah, they're like, that's the killer, that's the killer,
that's the killer. Assholes. It's too bad because I think there is great
storytelling there, but they just completely sabotage themselves with with the their their choice
of the twist, and with the bad red Herring. They're just it's cheap,
sloppy moves and in a game that otherwise shows like a pretty incredible level
of sophistication with true story. The scene, the scene in which they choose
to reveal the twist is also almost nonsense. Yeah, like it seems a
little forced. The clock store, the watch store killing makes no sense when
they play it back, all right, I don't like it. It sets
men. It sets me because they were like three alternate choices away from having
just a really really well told, intense story true so Red Dead mass effect
Alan Wake. Uh, I like it. I guess so, yeah,
I like it. I can't think of it that us cutting StarCraft Vegas Vegas.
It's yeah, I didn't make it through, you know. The My
big problem with that is is that it's, you know, because they spent
so much time letting you kind of choose the different factions, like no one
of them felt particularly strong quantity over Paul moving, Yeah, gotta WARSI yeah,
there's definitely some some interesting elements in in Fallout, but it's it's not
not the stories. By the end of it, when you're kind of storming
the damn and doing all this stuff, it just at all it kind of
fell apart. Uh, Salmon Max story is pretty good, but you know,
it's goofy and kind of all over the place. At some point it's
it's funny, but all right, I like that. I like that.
Three. So we said, I don't know StarCraft. Talk to me about
StarCraft. I know, I'm torn. I I haven't even convinced myself yet.
I'm curious because it sounds like that could be a good contender. But
I just I didn't play. I don't know the ending of that game.
In the context of like the StarCraft universe is momentous, dude, whatever what
it like nothing, no single event could have happened in the StarCraft universe that
would make more of an impact than what happens at the end of that game.
Yeah, yeah, yeah, But does that make it a great story?
I'm not sure, but I don't. Yeah, that thing is I
don't know, like, like how well is the story told up to that
point? That like almost the easy move for them, Like was that kind
of the cop out to like, well, they definitely like do the thing
that is the most crazy? Yeah, it is. It is quite possibly
the one of the most crazy things. I also feel like it's other than
happens someone else switch sides, switch races or something. I always feel like
it's a pro toss. I mean, let you make the next game as
well and a way. Yeah yeah, I mean it's certainly it's like we're
crazy implications for the next game. Like it's almost kind of a frustrating cliffhanger
because they don't address at all what it means for what's gonna happen. It's
just like, oh shit, this came out of nowhere. It happened credits,
Yeah, and then now you have to wait however long it takes a
Blizzard to make the next game, or you could watch that apparently done.
So I'm just I'm trying to think about everything that happens up to that point.
And there's some interesting stuff, you know, some neat side stuff with
the you get search and you get they introduced the super the super h Yeah,
like the hybrid Zilnaga or whatever. I don't know. It feels all
feel revisit Alien and a Predator. Man, it feels a little bit like
Mass Effect me and that it's kind of disjointed, like it's a little all
over the place, like it goes here and there, just like Mass Effect.
Like they're both games that are fairly nonlinear. You've got a long list
of missions that you can kind of go tackle in more or less whatever order.
So they they don't have like neither of those games have like the strongest
like linear storyline. Because I don't know, I don't know, I don't
know if I agree with the Mass Effect in comparison, just in terms of
like there was because there's you know, there's the ticking clock at some point
in Mass Effect where that's the main storyline, and then yeah, stuff was
handled so badly too. That really rubs me the wrong way on that game,
because you don't see better space. Man, they don't. There is
a taking clock, though they never show you, and then and then you're
penalized for it if you do exactly what they wanted you to do. It's
no fable three. No, certainly not. It's not nearly that, but
it's it's it's crap that you can you know, you can have people die
because you did certain things that you had no idea about. I don't know.
I felt like they gave you the impression pretty early on that you are
going to need, like the beginning of the games, you are need every
single resource that you can possibly ring out. So that's why it's terrible because
if you cross a certain point in the core storyline, but you still have
side stuff left to do and you go to if you do too much of
that side stuff after you cross that point, people will die at the end
of the game and there's nothing you can do about it for no apparent reason.
I remember that last I just really wanted to do all the side stuff
and I didn't, but not rung into that problem one because I just did
as like whenever there was side stuff or an obviously core thing. I always
did all the sides, so even if even if you do their Tea mission,
they can die. Yeah, it's like people have broken it down and
like flow charted it online. See it Like why I had to go back
to an earlier save because basically, like it was a little like specifically what
it is is if you do the Reaper iff mission. See but this is
where like if you look that step up line online, you start breaking it
down. You kind of are unraveling the mechanics of the game in a way
that was never meant to be because at the beginning of the game they say
people are gonna die. So if you just if you just go through,
I'm just kind of serious. If you go through in the in the fiction
of the game, dudes die. Look, it looks like it's for no
apparent It's almost like they're feeding into their own marketing plan at that point.
It's like, this is the dark second chapter, the stark second act of
our three act play. You know, it's like and having you know,
like playing through a couple of different ways and seeing how they handle people dying
and people not dying. Stuff like that, Like I think that's all really
cool. I didn't mind it, but like you just wanted to have a
clean save to go into mass Effect three plus an achievement for having no one
dying, Like, that's not a valid Like that's a that's a valid way
to play that game, but it's not not a valid thing to hold against
it if they penalize you without any warning at all. They give they give
you so many different options for that ending though, But a kind of cool
Fable three is that having no one survived Fable three. Fable three is just
it is. It is a victim of like poor notifications combined with that same
that's the same kind of Fallout three, like impetus to keep moving along the
main storyline. Yeah, like, but this is basically the same thing.
It's like you, if you do that story mission and then you do more
than x number of side missions after that, then when you go finish the
game, they're gonna be people people dead. But like Fable three, head
literally has a calendar that just jumps around like it's showing you. I mean,
we're not arguing that Fable three is one of the best stories of the
year here, no, no, But I'm saying in terms of the way
they approach that that kind of mechanic of of a ticking clock I think is
handled better in Mass I mean, I don't think any of this is really
material to the story off topic, But at the same time, I think
that Red Dead Redemption as a much stronger storytelling style, and that story stays
strong to the very end, like when that when the title card hits and
and you have you've wrapped up your loose ends like that was That's a impactful.
Uh. It's also weird though story You could kind of miss the ending
of that game if you are like, oh, I guess what makes it
Genyeah, uh yeah, that part's okay. I just the side quite like
the stuff in between, some of the storytelling elements in that game I found
I found a little tedious, whereas a sorry, I mean, I think
it's I think for I feel like like Mass Effects too, it's it's not
the story. It's not the storytelling, it's the characters, like like,
I don't I don't know that necessarily the story is that they tell for each
one are are always super strong. There's there's some good ones in but but
but they always like their strength always comes from there is a super interesting character
at the core, Like that's that's always the thing. I definitely felt like
they were all worth seeing. Yeah, but definitely at no point that I
feel like, oh, that loyal mission was like complete guards You're you're crazy
to finish that game without doing every loyalty russion. But but like the beats
of the missions themselves, like why you like, what you're doing to get
their loyalty isn't as interesting as what you learn about them over the course of
that mission. So it's it's really more character building than it is storytelling.
Yeah, that's all. That's all still story. I mean, it's yeah,
it's it's it's a I guess it's it's it's a facet of it.
But I'm just saying talking with before breaking this down, and we're trying to
talk about like what is it that we are celebrating with this category? Yeah,
uh, you know, the we we have our character specific stuff,
and that's that's where Mass Effect two really really shines is with the characters.
I think that the actual but story beats well, I think that, I
mean, but what are we actually arguing about, because I mean, are
we just saying the Red Dead wins, and that these three games the right
games. I mean I would I would only argue for Mass Effect two and
that the world of Mass Effect two is told through these characters as well.
You could piece together all of this stuff from dealing with interactions, and the
story is told, and you've got a pretty good sense of this outstanding universe
that Mass Effect is built. Uh. And in Red Dead you get the
personal story of John Marston told. But that's kind of it. But they're
not at all. There is a very strong thematic backdrop to Red Dead,
which is like the encroachment of like the modern world and industry on what's less
Like every every step of the way, you're seeing like, yeah, the
federal government moving out there, and automobiles, cars and blacks, like people
freaking out at cars driving down the street, so you get tough driving a
car our lines. I mean, uh, there's a lot going on there.
Yes, I mean I liked the three, but I do I believe
that Red Dead Redemption is the best story. I think that that that had
the most the most impact. And the fact that because game stories never end
well, so rarely do you get like a good satisfying finish to a to
a game story, and and Red Dead Red Dead ends and then it ends,
and then it ends. It is so confident in its endings it's able
to do it thrice. When it ends, it fucking ends. Yeah,
when the third end comes, like, okay, yeah, that's that's the
end of the story. I got to there. Uh and it's uh yeah,
it's it's really really impressive. It's rare, Yes, it is.
It is incredibly rare, all right there you haven't Yeah, that the encroachment
and stuff I forgot about and that was a big part of that. That's
a nice little and there's great stuff with like the power struggles and meet the
new Boss and that stuff's really good part of that game. Us Ignition John
Marston with a big red tree going out of him Best DS only Game.
Here's what I've got written down here. Uh, pick Ross three D?
What was it? What was you? I'm sorry? What was the other
nominee? Alan? Wait? Okay, Best DS only Game? Pi Ross
three D, Professor Layton and the Unwound Future, super Scribble Knots, Where
are You aware? D I Y and Dragon Quest nine. I haven't played
any of these games. Pitcross three D is your DS game? Well,
we have to get down to three. Yeah, I think Pick Ross has
to stay on this list, and I will fist fight over it. I
can't shake the feeling that we've forgotten something. I didn't Nintendo shipp anything else.
Big, it's Golden Sun. There's that Mario versus Donkey Kong. Yeah.
Uh, maybe not? Yeah? I mean I think Warrior Worre d
I Y and Pick Across three D are the two that I feel strongest about.
Maybe later on that liston. Yeah, it's like Pokemon Ranger, what
Heart Gold, Soul Silver. I guess that was this year, wasn't it.
Yeah? But yeah, poke a Walker. There was that crazy Fire
emblem game, right, which I'm sure those are great. Say what they
remade the first Yeah, but with a bunch of crazy shit added to it,
like online And that was madness. I couldn't have been this year.
Tell me that is not this year. That does not feel like this year.
Maybe it wasn't. Maybe I'm wrong. Question, Am I sanity here?
Uh? No? I think I think there's a little Riding Hood Zombie
Barbecue. Uh, there's Sima Contense, Strange Journey, m hm, excuse
me? That was That was a neat game? But pick a Crosscross Professor
Layton or super scribble knots. They did kind of make good on the control
stuff that that really did they That's yeah, nice to hear. Yeah they
didn't. They did, So that's that's a fine game. Now. I'm
sorry. I'm still just double checking, double checking, cruising through lists,
making sure we're we're hitting our bases. But I'm feeling more and more like
we have the games we're gonna have. Notebook. They didn't ship a new
new Super Mario Brothers this year, did they. No? They did not.
No, they didn't. Too busy making it for the three dsh That's
all I have. That's all I have. Yeah. Yeah, So what's
what's the Dragon Quest? Uh? I mean, that's a traditional ass dragon
Quest game. It's just slimes. It's metal slime by those standards. It's
really really good. It's it's not for anyone here. Yeah. Yeah,
So, like I like an RPG, Yeah, why don't you play it?
Then? I know it came out, it came out. I don't.
I don't think we can pay. Yeah, we can't. We can't.
We're not. I'm not saying we should keep it, just we don't
need to try to be artificially definitive here, it's what are the DS games
that we played? I always pick up a Dragon Quest game and then it's
it's on my shelf. Uh, Like I wish I had played some more
Golden Sun, because then maybe we could have that conversation. But I didn't.
I made the choice to not so. Uh in Warrior or Day,
Yeah, that that was. That's an awesome, crazy thing that was kicking
tanks. Yeah. Yeah, yeah, that's as much as I need to
know. I's trying to forget about it, about all that crazy stuff that
building and downloading and sharing. Yeah. I think pick Ross three D is
incredible. Yeah, I think you're right. It's question is the number the
number three slot? If it's if it's latent, has boss battles, also
has future Latent, it has super scribble knots like ditches, the like platform
me Star collecting Angling goes for like pure puzzle stuff. Uh, really really
making good, not just on the control stuff because you can you can choose
to either use the dpad or touch based stuff for for moving around, but
they really they From what I played in the game, which again not a
huge amount, but what I played of it they've they've really focused on the
strengths of that first game. There's still the issue of having you sit they're
on the DS screen and fucking tap out your words, and it's like,
well, that word and you're doing that a little bit more now because there's
adjectives. But but at the same time there's adjectives. But then it's like
I found I found a lot like too often. I found the words that
I was putting in just weren't weren't bringing up anything. So I don't know
if my vocabulary is bad or I was trying to be too fancy about it,
but even to the point where'm like, okay, I just need to
solve this puzzle, Like what fucking lee is not an adjective? See,
this is this is why Super Scrub and Notts can't be ONCT. We have
to go copy out of your review. I gotta go make some sid you
give a final replace on that engineering. Yeah, but yeah, I don't
know. I love Layton, I think that that's a cool series, but
that brand of puzzle solving at some point around the second one started kind of
rubbing me the wrong way. How many match stick puzzles are zero to their
credit that they've they've I think they've realized that that's everyone's joke and they're just
alight. Well I mean, but more generally, like they do a good
job of not rehashing puzzles from the previous two games, like they always feel
like new kinds of puzzles. I really like Layton, but I did not
touch that in order? Did I touch h scribble knots play scribble knots this
This Layton is better than the second Layton, But I don't there's a super
scribble knots. I guess, I guess I'm alright, if you know,
I feeling that strong about late. I mean, I think it's it's great.
Yeah, it's a great, it's great. So it's kick ass number
four. Yeah, I guess I can love with that. I really got
to go to the bathroom. How you're gonna sell it? Now? It's
get done, all right, So we've got Pickcross three D. I feel
like next year, just get down to three. That's the hardest part now
and super scribble knots, congratulations to Pitcross three D. I mean, gangster
is shit? Oh I need to good bye? Then? Yeah, you
do to you do? It's cheap that is a life changing product. Man.
If you thought pick Cross was awesome before, man, wait till it's
in tries dimensions. That game has been the only game that's been in my
DS like on a regular basis. First, So what happens we get the
three DS? I'm moving it over there and blowing my brains out. Jeff,
give us a rundown of today's character we most liked to party with.
That's the elusive man. Not a mass effect too. Dave's Eastern Block Game
of the Year, brought to you by Dave. That's a stalker, brought
by Dave's beer on the table. Yeah, who are we supposed to fight
over it? I'm just gonna make Dave, who who did you drink it?
Who needs it the most? That's gonna send this whole discussion so sideways.
I think if any of us start drinking at all. Stalker call of
prip Yatt from Dave worst trend retailer specific preorder bonuses? Yes, but holes,
but but what was it? But fuckingly but fuckingly yea best story,
Red Dead Redemption Yeah, and the best DS only game Pie Cross three d
day four in the books, gentlemen, Right, that's right? Only two
more of these. Yeah, man, a good thing. We decided to
do these one per day. And if any your list is going to be
running, it's true. I take a gamble on what it's gonna be.
At the top of my list, I have an idea. I'll keep it
to myself. Yeah, don't tell anybody I know. I bet you and
I have the same things. And and as well more of our our famous
friends providing some top ten lists. Yeah, check those out, as well
as Giant Bombs. Game of the Year twenty ten continues. We'll be back
tomorrow another one of these day five. Don't miss it. Don't come,
don't come.