October 10 - October 14

Section: 

Two things you should know about the way I look at this week. 1st, Forza 3 was my Game of the Year in 2009. 2nd, Forza 4 is my most anticipated game of 2011. Above Battlefield 3, about Skyrim, above Deus Ex and, yes, even above The Old Republic, the first game I would ask for above and beyond all of those is Forza 4.

It's hard to explain exactly why. It's not that I expect Forza 4 to be a major departure with clear distinctions from where the series was 2 years ago. I don't care about the Kinect integration, and thought the new Wireless Speed Wheel is an impressive piece of tech and surprisingly precise, it doesn't really fit the way I play. For me it's about the continued refinement of the driving model, the improvements of the career mode, the depth of the garage, the Rivals mode and even the integration of Top Gear into the game. No racing series has ever made me feel as connected to the cars and the environment at Forza.

As if that weren't enough, Heroes VI has long been sitting in my Steam games as a preorder, Dragon Age II gets a Feliciariffic expansion and Orcs Must Die has kind of come out of nowhere to tease and tantalize. And if you can't find anything to get you excited this week, it's time to start thinking Arkham City for next week. Truly, we're in the thick of it all.

PC
- Dead Rising 2: Off the Record
- Might & Magic Heroes VI
- Skylanders: Spyro's Adventure Starter Pack
- Dragon Age II Mark of the Assassin (DLC - $10)
- Blackwell Deception (download - $15)
- Orcs Must Die (download - $15)
- Renegade Ops (download - $15)

Xbox 360
- Ace Combat: Assault Horizon
- Dead Rising 2: Off the Record
- Forza Motorsport 4
- Kinectimals Now with Bears!
- Michael Phelps: Push the Limit
- Red Dead Redemption Game of the Year Edition
- Sesame Street: Once Upon a Monster
- Skylanders: Spyro's Adventure Starter Pack
- Wipeout 2
- Dragon Age II Mark of the Assassin (DLC - $10)
- Insanely Twisted Shadow Planet Shadow Hunters (DLC - $5)
- Guardian Heroes (XBLA - $10)
- Real Steel (XBLA - $10)

PS3
- Ace Combat: Assault Horizon
- Dead Rising 2: Off the Record
- Red Dead Redemption Game of the Year Edition
- Rune Factory: Tides of Destiny
- Skylanders: Spyro's Adventure Starter Pack
- Wipeout 2
- Dragon Age II Mark of the Assassin (DLC - $10)
- Real Steel (PSN - $10)
- Sideway: New York (PSN - $10)

Wii
- Go Vacation
- Rune Factory: Tides of Destiny
- Skylanders: Spyro's Adventure Starter Pack
- Wipeout 2

Nintendo 3DS
- Mahjong Cub3d
- Marvel Super Hero Squad: The Infinity Gauntlet
- Skylanders: Spyro's Adventure Starter Pack
- The Hidden
- Wipeout 2
- 1001 BlockBusters (eShop - $2)
- Furry Legends (eShop - $5)

Nintendo DS
- Aliens: Infestation
- Wipeout 2
- 1001 BlockBusters (DSiWare - $2)
- Furry Legends (DSiWare - $5)

Comments

All-in on Forza 4. I'm also mildly interested in the Rune Factory game for some reason: some sort of JRPG itch maybe.

I might need to get that checked.

Looking forward to giving Guardian Heroes another try. One of the best Saturn games.

Just the Dragon Age DLC for me. I'll probably take a flyer on Heroes VI when it goes on ultra-sale.

- Furry Legends (eShop - $5)

I always wanted a video game where I could dress up as a sexually confused animal and hang out with friends.

Guardian Heroes FTW!

This week is all about Forza! Hoping to get some multi-player races in as well! We gonna make a racing club or such?

Guardian Heroes coming out on Xbla? what a nice surprise

Unfortunately, I'm not excited for any of those releases, not even Arkham City, since I didn't like Arkham Asylum very much. I might spring for Rune Factory, though. The first Wii one was quite interesting.

Winter is coming.

Looks like it's now time to dig out those pre-order receipts. It begins with Forza 4...

Nothing for me this week, and I'm very happy about that

I still have to finish Dragon Age II, The Witcher 2 and Deus Ex: HR...

I will probably pick up Once Upon a Monster to play with my daughter.

I am very releived to say that there is nothing out this week that interests me. A friend bought me Forza 3 for Christmas, and I haven't removed the shrink wrap. I just haven't had a yearning for sim racing this year at all.

AndrewA wrote:
- Furry Legends (eShop - $5)

I always wanted a video game where I could dress up as a sexually confused animal and hang out with friends.

Sorry, you've got this confused with something else. Furry Legands is the tie-in to the fanfic film "Legends of the Fur," an epic tale of three rabbits living in the wilderness, starring Bunny Hopkins and Lickety Pitt.

- Sesame Street: Once Upon a Monster

OK, I know these things are usually a joke, but I've got a 3-year-old. Anyone have any experience with really young kids and the Kinect? Waste of money or valuable kid-distraction tool?

Nathaniel wrote:
- Sesame Street: Once Upon a Monster

OK, I know these things are usually a joke, but I've got a 3-year-old. Anyone have any experience with really young kids and the Kinect? Waste of money or valuable kid-distraction tool?

I play kinectimals and my two year old thinks it is the coolest thing she has ever seen. If you can pick one up cheap, i recommend.

wipeout 2 on the 360 freaked me out until I realized it was that silly gameshow. womp womp

Nothing for me this week. Back to Ico.

Coolbeans wrote:

This week is all about Forza! Hoping to get some multi-player races in as well! We gonna make a racing club or such?

There will undoubtedly be a GWJ car club once we get our hands on the game. Keep an eye on the Forza 4 thread for getting signed up (however that's going to work) and racing.

HoMM VI (I'm just going to call it that) for me this week. I didn't pre-order it until trying the demo on steam. After 8 hours of play time with it, it seemed the right thing to do.

Aliens: Infestation is apparently a pretty solid 2D Metroidvania that I'll be checking out when I get the chance. Don't be scared by the movie licensing; this one supposedly doesn't suck!

ClockworkHouse wrote:

Aliens: Infestation is apparently a pretty solid 2D Metroidvania that I'll be checking out when I get the chance. Don't be scared by the movie licensing; this one supposedly doesn't suck!

sh*t. That comes out this week? If I had my jorb it would be a no brainer, but...dammit.

Ah well. I'll continue dying in Demon's Souls, and possibly replaying Batman: Arkham Asylum to gear me up for Arkham City.

ClockworkHouse wrote:

Aliens: Infestation is apparently a pretty solid 2D Metroidvania that I'll be checking out when I get the chance. Don't be scared by the movie licensing; this one supposedly doesn't suck!

It's the same team that made Contra 4. I vouch for them. They're the last, truly good DS developer left, imho (outside of Nintendo, of course). The platform may more or less be dead, but they're still pouring their passion into their DS games.

Nathaniel wrote:
- Sesame Street: Once Upon a Monster

OK, I know these things are usually a joke, but I've got a 3-year-old. Anyone have any experience with really young kids and the Kinect? Waste of money or valuable kid-distraction tool?

My six year old girl loves playing Kinectimals, Kinect Adventures, Kinect Labs, and Wipeout ITZ.

My 2.5 year old boy tries sometimes, but it usually thinks he's ducking because he's so low, and he loses interest quickly. He will sometimes sit and watch his sister play.

The three titles in that list that caught my attention are Wipeout 2, Kinectimals Bears (DLC essentially) and Once Upon a Monster. Once Upon a Monster is a definite buy for my house as a combination of video gaming, Sesame Street, and Double Fine (all household favorites).

Stoked for Forza 4. Count me in on the GWJ Club.

Wasn't Wipeout 360 a goofy surprise hit? I remember seeing a Quick Look on Giant Bomb and they seemed to have a blast with it.

EDIT: Crap. I was thinking of the free Doritos branded Wipeout game. Is that the same thing?

Aaron D. wrote:

Wasn't Wipeout 360 a goofy surprise hit? I remember seeing a Quick Look on Giant Bomb and they seemed to have a blast with it.

EDIT: Crap. I was thinking of the free Doritos branded Wipeout game. Is that the same thing?

Don't know about the Doritos thing, but Wipeout 2 is based on the television show. One day I'll buy it when I find it in a bargain bin as the QL sold me on its stupid fun.

garion333 wrote:
ClockworkHouse wrote:

Aliens: Infestation is apparently a pretty solid 2D Metroidvania that I'll be checking out when I get the chance. Don't be scared by the movie licensing; this one supposedly doesn't suck!

It's the same team that made Contra 4. I vouch for them. They're the last, truly good DS developer left, imho (outside of Nintendo, of course). The platform may more or less be dead, but they're still pouring their passion into their DS games.

Supposedly their Thor movie game was also good, despite being licensed.

I am intrigued by Dead Rising 2: Off the Record.

One of the reasons I skipped DR2 was I'm not real big on "children in peril" storylines. They always feel cheap to me, like my emotions are a Final Fantasy XIII controller and the developer just keeps hitting "X."

(Maybe that just means my emotional responses are poorly designed, or that I haven't undergone 30 hours of tutorial emotions. ;P)

Anyway, putting the guy from the first Dead Rising into the environment from Dead Rising 2 seems like an interesting concept, especially since it's not a full priced game.

After spending the entire weekend on the SWTOR beta (awesome, by the way), I thought that was going to be my most anticipated game of the year. That was until I saw Sesame Street: Once Upon a Monster. Because really... cookies.

They're good enough for you?

LarryC wrote:

They're good enough for you?

I am ashamed to admit that I got the reference immediately. Sesame Street is the soundtrack to my life right now, with a 21 month old and an 8 month pregnant wife.