I don’t own a whole lot of extraneous video game merchandise. That’s not to say that I choose not to, or that I’m categorically opposed to filling my house with bizarre video game paraphernalia (my wife would throttle me), it’s just not financially viable all the time. Sure, kicking back with my life-sized Solid Snake cardboard cut-out would rule, but unfortunately, it’s not meant to be.
Enter a shirt that might make me spend my money like it’s going out of style. This Left 4 Dead shirt is kind of one of the greatest things I’ve ever seen. It totally adheres to the “less is more” policy as far as t-shirts go, and I find that to be a welcome thing. Who says you can’t kill zombies in style?
So, who else is drooling over one of these? What’s the coolest video game merchandise you own?
Each and every year, video game developers push to come out with that mega blockbuster that shatters sales. And each and every year, the final list of which games sold the best is always slightly baffling. While we gamers have our top titles, the general public doesn’t always feel that way. So how about this year?
Well, MTV Multiplayer has combined the numbers across consoles to figure out the top 5 selling games of 2008. You might be surprised. List after the jump!
Zachariah Scott of LitFuseFilms is at it again with some more GTA IV machinima tests, the newest of which is called Dirty Brake. This one involves some good old fashioned driving and destruction, something we can all relate to in terms of the GTA series. A particularly epic shot has to do with a light pole. You’ll know it when you see it. Also, make sure to check it out in HD.
So I’ve been noticing some new faces around here. Or rather, new names, with no faces next to them. Which is indeed a problem.
At GamerSushi, we use Gravatar to add profile pictures next to our names. So, if you’d like to see that happen, just head on over there and sign up for the service. It’s really easy, and just requires the same e-mail address you use for the account you made here. Add a picture, and then you’re good to go. The best thing about it is that any site with Gravatar will use this information. Kind of rules.
I love gaming amalgamations. Combining all kinds of fun flavors to make new and exciting things is simply fascinating. Take this mash-up of Fallout 3 and Halo 3, for example, where someone added the V.A.T.S. combat system to the beloved Bungie shooter. Awesomeness ensues.
There are lots of discussions going on these days in the gaming blogosphere about whether or not PC gaming is dying or not. While the place to game 10 years ago was on the PC, console developers have really stepped up and given our computers a run for their money.
However, Bioware begs to differ, and asserts that PC gaming is doing alright. Since they are kind of veterans in the PC gaming realm, along with other greats like Valve and Blizzard, I suppose maybe we should listen to them, eh?
One of the biggest hill that consoles war upon is the hill of graphics. Fanboys of ages past can easily recall arguments over which system or game had better graphics, and this has long been a standard for gamers to declare their position. In this newest generation, HD graphics have been given prime importance in the eyes of many, but is it the most important thing?
Apparently not, according to the masses. Loot Ninja posted an article about this very issue recently, looking at the successes of the current day, most notably that of the Nintendo Wii, which does not support HD resolutions of any kind. Studies seem to show that nearly 60 percent of minutes played on video games are played on the PS2, Wii, XBox or GameCube. I guess people haven’t gotten the next gen memo yet.
With many households not even being HD ready, this definitely makes sense. Personally, I’m not much of a graphics whore, but I definitely think that current consoles should maximize on the capabilities that HDTV offers. So what do you guys think? How important are HD graphics to you?
When I was a kid, realism is all anyone wanted out of video games. Virtual Reality was the buzzword of the times. If an enemy acted realistically, that was amazing. If a character’s portrait in a cut scene looked anything like the real thing, we were in awe. As graphics got better, the dream became closer to reality. Games like Flashback and Heart of Darkness wowed gamers with photorealistic graphics, crude by today’s standards, but jaw dropping back in the days when Kurt Cobain was still smashing guitars.
Even though graphics were getting more real, the gameplay was still crazy. Cloud and Sephiroth may look like real people in the cut scenes, but obviously no human could really wield that giant sword. This was a happy medium, but it never really set right with me. I preferred the awesome summons animations and the scenes with WEAPON and other unreal events. You know: stuff I have never seen.
Um, this kind of blows my mind. This YouTube video actually allows you to “play” Street Fighter through YouTube. Every now and then you’ll get choices like moves, characters, etc, all of which come in to play against your opponent. Wait too long to strike, and your opponent will decimate you. So yeah, YouTube Street Fighter. What will they think of next?
You all know of my love for Mass Effect and its awesomely epic sci-fi space opera ways. As I’ve said before, it’s one of the more underrated games of this generation, and deserves a spot right near the top of the heap because of its excellent story telling, something that not many games do that well to begin with.
So, it should excite some of you Sony dudes to know that Second Story Gamer is reporting a rumor that Mass Effect and its eventual trilogy of games are all going to be hitting up the PS3. Their source says that this decision was made by EA due to the economic climate, and the official announcement will drop during GDC (also where Mass Effect 2 will first be revealed).
As I said before, this is a rumor, but even the idea of it is exciting. The thought of more gamers getting to experience such a fun title is always a welcome one. So what do you guys think?
The power of the Internet is a fascinating and ridiculous thing. Take last week, for instance, when news of the plane crashing on the Hudson was first reported via Twitter as opposed to major news sites like CNN.
For those of you who are not familiar with Twitter, it’s like a mini blog of sorts where you can post short, instant updates for all your friends to see. Definitely a nice way to keep up with the newest stuff from your favorite sites, bloggers, etc.
Recently, it looks like some dudes put together a list of ALL (and I mean all) the video game industry people on Twitter it could find, all for your viewing pleasure. So, if you want to keep up to date with your favorite developers, press releases, etc, this could be a super useful tool. Good reading!
A few days ago, I beat Metal Gear Solid 4, excited about having finished the game. I figured, hey, I’ll go to bed after this is over. Having heard it was long, I estimated that this would be about 20 or 30 minutes later, and I would be tucked away and dreaming after seeing Snake & Co’s fate. Boy, was I wrong. The ending was nearly an hour and a half long. Leaving me tired and disheveled at work the next day.
This got me thinking. I do that sometimes. I remember an age in gaming when cutscenes were welcome with anticipation. Hell, part of the draw of the original PSX hits like Final Fantasy VII and Metal Gear Solid were the spectacular cut scenes, because it brought gaming to a new level in that generation. But then you have a game like Portal or Left 4 Dead which uses little to no cut scenes in order to fully immerse you in the gameplay, and it works just as well.
So- what’s the perfect kind of cut scene in gaming? While we can all probably agree that an hour and a half is much too long, what’s too short? What should a cut scene accomplish? What are your thoughts about cut scenes in video games? And what are your favorite examples? Answer away!
Here’s a new machinima short from some of my favorite machinimators on the planet, The Duo Group. It’s actually created with Call of Duty 4, so that’s rather unique as far as machinima goes. While it’s a little unbelievable that this man would survive, I still love the way it all looks. Great voice acting, too.
Some footage from an internal meetnig at Free Radical has made its way to the intertubes today, given the company’s recent shut-down. In it? Gameplay videos from Star Wars Battlefront 3. Even from the grainy footage, you can tell that this game was going to be a blast.
It’s sad, really. Let’s hope this thing finds a way to get released. It looks fun!
We all know that Square-Enix has taken its sweet time on the last couple of Final Fantasy games, most notably Final Fantasy XIII. While many gamers were under the impression that it was coming to the US and Europe in 2009 (it hits in Japan later this year), that doesn’t seem to be the case.
Yes, ladies and gents, Final Fantasy XIII will not be coming to the western hemisphere this year. In fact, Square-Enix has recently said that FF XIII won’t release before April 2010 on these shores.
While I understand that these things take time, this to me is almost laughable. I mean, why were we seeing trailers for this 2-3 years ago if it’s so far from release?
So, is anyone still interested in this game? I want it to be good, but man, I’ve been seeing the same trailer over and over for years now so much that it’s hard to be excited.
Apparently, there are rumors that GTA V might drop as soon as this freaking year. While I’m not putting too much stock in these things just yet, it does bring up an interesting discussion. Will we return to Liberty City? GTA III moved to both Vice City and San Andreas, so what are the likely candidates for the next free-roaming installment?
The XBoxist has put together a list of their top 5 candidates for GTA V. They’ve got a pretty interesting breakdown as to why some of these settings would be ideal, namely Moscow, Paris, Tokyo, Hawaii and the future.
As some of you know, I’m a big fan of that last one. Also, I could see Tokyo make for a great GTA world. What do you guys think? What should the next Grand Theft Auto city be?
Like most gaming sites, we here at GamerSushi are all about year-in-review awards, in which we give prestigious designations to some of the best (and easiest to make fun of) video games from the year before. The Sushis are no laughing matter though, and represent the highest standard in gaming opinion.
Ok, well maybe that last part isn’t true. But they sure are fun.
The Sushis are basically just our take on the last year, for better or for worse. Some of the awards are goofy and some of them are legit. We hope you get as big of a kick out of it as we did of playing these games. So, without further ado, here are the 2008 Sushis, picked out by both Anthony and yours truly.
Ok, so the other day we showed you the one man Zelda theme band. This is possibly even better. One dude with a stupid amount of talent plays a variety of instruments to create the Wind Waker theme by himself. And when I say a variety, I mean a variety. Watch out for the chorus. It rules.
I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again. Valve is genius. They really know what they’re doing, especially when it comes to Steam. That’s why even EA comes to them for web distribution of their games. It kind of rules.
In a move that makes Steam rule your face even harder, Valve has delivered in-game web browsing to Steam in a new update. So now, you can get your game on, your snack on, your noodz on, and whatever else you want to get on while you play their awesome games.
Heck, you can even read GamerSushi while you play. Right? Right? Who else thinks this is awesome? Spread the Valve love.
Fanboys. Got to love them. Actually, you don’t have to, I take that back. Personally, I think fanboy-ism is completely ridiculous in the sense that you’d defend a console or company no matter what, out of loyalty. But whatever, what do I know.
What I am sure of, though, is that making fun of said fanboys is hilarious. Which is where Hardcasual enters the scene with their new angry fanboy letter activity. Basically, it works just like a mad lib, where you insert different words to create the absurd fanboy rant to a company that has changed a beloved franchise.
Welcome to GamerSushi!
I don’t own a whole lot of extraneous video game merchandise. That’s not to say that I choose not to, or that I’m categorically opposed to filling my house with bizarre video game paraphernalia (my wife would throttle me), it’s just not financially viable all the time. Sure, kicking back with my life-sized Solid Snake cardboard cut-out would rule, but unfortunately, it’s not meant to be.
Each and every year, video game developers push to come out with that mega blockbuster that shatters sales. And each and every year, the final list of which games sold the best is always slightly baffling. While we gamers have our top titles, the general public doesn’t always feel that way. So how about this year?
So I’ve been noticing some new faces around here. Or rather, new names, with no faces next to them. Which is indeed a problem. 
There are lots of discussions going on these days in the gaming blogosphere about whether or not PC gaming is dying or not. While the place to game 10 years ago was on the PC, console developers have really stepped up and given our computers a run for their money.
One of the biggest hill that consoles war upon is the hill of graphics. Fanboys of ages past can easily recall arguments over which system or game had better graphics, and this has long been a standard for gamers to declare their position. In this newest generation, HD graphics have been given prime importance in the eyes of many, but is it the most important thing?
When I was a kid, realism is all anyone wanted out of video games. Virtual Reality was the buzzword of the times. If an enemy acted realistically, that was amazing. If a character’s portrait in a cut scene looked anything like the real thing, we were in awe. As graphics got better, the dream became closer to reality. Games like Flashback and Heart of Darkness wowed gamers with photorealistic graphics, crude by today’s standards, but jaw dropping back in the days when Kurt Cobain was still smashing guitars.
You all know of my love for Mass Effect and its awesomely epic sci-fi space opera ways. As I’ve said before, it’s one of the more underrated games of this generation, and deserves a spot right near the top of the heap because of its excellent story telling, something that not many games do that well to begin with. 
The power of the Internet is a fascinating and ridiculous thing. Take last week, for instance, when news of the plane crashing on the Hudson was first reported via Twitter as opposed to major news sites like CNN. 
A few days ago, I beat Metal Gear Solid 4, excited about having finished the game. I figured, hey, I’ll go to bed after this is over. Having heard it was long, I estimated that this would be about 20 or 30 minutes later, and I would be tucked away and dreaming after seeing Snake & Co’s fate. Boy, was I wrong. The ending was nearly an hour and a half long. Leaving me tired and disheveled at work the next day.
We all know that Square-Enix has taken its sweet time on the last couple of Final Fantasy games, most notably Final Fantasy XIII. While many gamers were under the impression that it was coming to the US and Europe in 2009 (it hits in Japan later this year), that doesn’t seem to be the case.
Apparently, there are rumors that GTA V might drop as soon as 
I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again. Valve is genius. They really know what they’re doing, especially when it comes to Steam. That’s why even EA comes to them for web distribution of their games. It kind of rules.
Fanboys. Got to love them. Actually, you don’t have to, I take that back. Personally, I think fanboy-ism is completely ridiculous in the sense that you’d defend a console or company no matter what, out of loyalty. But whatever, what do I know.
Anthony
Quitting felt like such a relief. That’s how you...” 
Eddy
Petyr
DaPurpleSharpie
Editor-In-Chief:
Contributing Editor, East Coast:
Contributing Editor, West Coast:
Webmaster/Contributing Columnist:
Media Overlord/Contributing Columnist: