Great Betrayals In Gaming HistoryPosted by Anthony on February 10th, 2010

Ever been playing a game and everything is moving along swimmingly: health is full, skills are maxed and victory is within your grasp, when all of a sudden, the game turns on you, like a digital Brutus. Et tu, PS3?

This has happened to me a few times and while I tend to not get too caught up in things like that, there are a few instances where the wound in my back from the knife still feels raw. And no, I’m not talking about crap where your favorite series, long exclusive to one console, suddenly becomes multi-platform. That’s not betrayal, that’s business.

One such example is Final Fantasy VII, kind of the most obvious one, so we can start with that. Aeris dies. *GASP* Well, yeah, and while it made some people cry (I call them “pussies”), it made me emotional for a whole other reason: I had spent quite a long time leveling her up earlier in the game and those hours were now wasted! I felt like the game was saying to me, “Sorry, Anthony, maybe you should have taken up another hobby, one that won’t wave its junk in your face and leave you crying in a heap on the floor, numb to all feeling except for the new rug burn on your face!” Or something like that, it got garbled in the translation.

Another time where I felt like the game was out to get me was Devil May Cry. I had spent time, blood and tears building my skills, honing my craft and kicking tons of demon ass in order to be ready for anything the final boss could possible throw at me. And what do I get? A complete change in game mechanics, where it turns into Star Fox 64! How lame is that? Developers: dance with the girl you brought, ok? Don’t change things at the very end just to be able to add another bullet to the back of the box.

But the final betrayal that still stings, that really pisses me off, that actually gets to me emotionally is Chrono Cross. See, in Chrono Trigger, which I played about a dozen times, the game has a nice happy ending. Chrono and Marle get married and become king and queen of Guardia. Until Chrono Cross.

When Chrono Cross starts ten years after Trigger and Guardia, which, if you will remember, we just left happily ever after, has been DESTROYED. That’s right and by their seemingly peaceful neighbor, Porre, too. In fact, to rub a little more salt into this gaping wound (minds back out of the gutter, please), in Trigger, you did all kinds of good deeds and even left the mayor of Porre as a kind and generous man.

You don’t find out the truth until late in Chrono Cross, but it you eventually meet the ghosts of the three main characters of Chrono Trigger. And though countless theories abound, it would appear that they decided to KILL OFF the characters before the game even starts. So much for being a sequel to Chrono Trigger.

The only pain I feel that comes close to this horrific betrayal is when I watch Alien 3 and see Newt and Hicks dead BEFORE THE MOVIE FREAKING STARTS. This is the gaming equivalent and I have to tell you, it hurts. I didn’t play Chrono Trigger over and over again in my youth just to have those characters butchered OFF-SCREEN shortly after I reach the end of the game! Bad Square Enix!

So that’s my outpouring of pain. Do you guys have any stories where a game has treated you like a doormat after you lovingly invested hours in it?

Bayonetta Combat Gameplay MontagePosted by Eddy on January 4th, 2010

A game we haven’t talked about much here but that is covered elsewhere in copious amounts would have to be Bayonetta. Partly for her boobs and lack of clothing (she sheds it as you perform greater combos), and also because people love those old school action combat games. Me, though, I’ve never been too interested in them. Honestly, Wolverine is one of the first ones I’ve enjoyed after hating Ninja Gaiden, feeling so-so about God of War, “meh” about Devil May Cry, etc.

However, I must say that this Bayonetta combat gameplay video is sick as hell, and looks like lots of fun. Who else is wanting to play this game?

GamerSushi Asks: Drinking the Kool-AidPosted by Eddy on November 8th, 2009

Oh yeah!

With all the new games coming out every year, it becomes tricky to negotiate which games you should/shouldn’t buy. Already this Fall, I’ve bought a game I didn’t expect to (Halo: ODST) and I’ve been tempted by two other titles I didn’t have any plans on buying (Forza 3 and Borderlands). However, there is inevitably the game that everyone else seems to love, but you don’t necessarily drink the kool-aid for the way others do.

For me, that might be Left 4 Dead 2 this year. In previous years, games like Bioshock and any of the Devil May Cry games have failed to catch my fancy. Same thing with Mario Galaxies. Also, and this one might get me yelled at- Ocarina of Time. Though others loved them, I just never caught the fever. What about you guys? What recent great games do you not drink the Kool-Aid for like everyone else does? Flame on!

GamerSushi Game Blog! You Pick The Game!Posted by Anthony on July 13th, 2009

You guys know about my horribly long gaming backlog. I have made progress and setbacks, as I have beaten several games, but bought two, as well. Soul Caliber IV was ten bucks, what was I supposed to do?? So I thought I would blog about whatever game I play next from my collection, not what I get from Gamefly or anything.

So I came up with a list of 5 games. You guys get to pick. What follows is a brief description of each game. It is RPG heavy because my sarcastic manner is better suited to writing about these types of games. I mean, how can I make Devil May Cry half as interesting as Final Fantasy? Even I am not that talented. And if you disagree and think I am, tough. I still ain’t playing Devil May Cry again.

Dragon Quest V: Hand of the Heavenly Bride (New) – This RPG is unique in that you start off as a boy with his dad on an adventure and eventually you grow into a man, choose 1 of 3 women to marry (sorry, Big Love fans) and have kids of your own and go on adventures with them, as well. So it follows 1 man’s life through 3 generations, which is really cool. Plus, you can recruit up to 70 monsters into your party and use them in battle.

Phantasy Star (New) – Originally released on the Sega Master system way back in the day, it’s a tough, old-school, kick-your-ass-and-make-you-like-it RPG. If you want me to go totally batshit during this blog, pick this game. Seriously, I am scared of this game and what it may do to me.

Suikoden (New) – Ah, a PS1 RPG I missed out on. I hear this one is pretty easy and short, too, about 15 or so hours to complete it. You play a soldier who recruits an army of 108 members, known as the Stars of Destiny and do battle with an evil…wait for it…EMPIRE! Sounds and looks like fun, though.

Breath of Fire II (New) – I only rented this back in the SNES days, but it is a steller RPG and it always intrigued me to because you can merge certain party members into one to create a new member. Got a wolfman and a fish? Make a wolf-fish! How cool is that? Other than that, it is a standard RPG, but a fun one from what I hear.

Final Fantasy III (New) – Remade for the DS, this game was previously unreleased in the U.S. and I know why: it’s freaking hard. No saving in caves or dungeons, only on the world map. Tough enemies, lots of grinding, but a fun job system (not as much fun as FF V’s, though) make this an old school RPG worth playing.

So there you have it. The 5 who were chosen. Now it’s up to you guys to pick which one I play. Keep in mind, I will be writing about the game for you guys, so pick something you want to read about.

UPDATE: I have edited the post per Eddy’s suggestion that I only do a new game (new to me). So since no one had voted for an old game yet, this works out. VOTE NOW!

Next Gen UnderachieversPosted by Anthony on November 3rd, 2008

Remember when your teacher would give you progress reports and it always said something like, “Not living up to potential”?
Yeah, me either. But I am sure it happens to people out there, just as we know that some games are not living up to their next-gen potential. This post will examine these chronic underachievers.

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GamerSushi Face Off: Dante vs. AlucardPosted by Anthony on September 9th, 2008

It’s fun to fantasize, isn’t it? Jessica Alba, Britney Spears circa 2001 and myself are all living happily together in my fantasy world. A world without The Hills and other nonsense. A world where video game characters collide. Unlike other dream matches, I am going to keep it real. So here is the first GamerSushi Face Off:

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