So far 2009 has been a rather quiet year, so much so that despite our best intentions to the contrary we simply couldn’t bring ourselves to do this little article on the games we are most looking forward to. Ok, it is only mid-February, but at Piranha Poodles we like to have high standards. Anyway, now that F.E.A.R. 2: Project Origin has finally graced us with its eerie presence (stay tuned for our impressions of that one) we’ve been reminded that 2009 actually does have some real gems and here are our picks for your enjoyment, the 100% official Piranha Poodles “games to watch for” 2009. Interestingly we agree on absolutely none of these, so we’ll do them separately.
Senortubbs
The Sims 3
I must admit that I was a bit of a late-comer to the digital dolls-house that is the Sims. This is doubly strange as I have always been a huge fan of designer Will Wrights’ more “personal” simulations in the past, SimTower and SimTown. It wasn’t until I received a free copy of the original Sims that I even began to get into it, and despite having enjoyed that experience quite a lot I still waited four years before finally trying out Sims 2 and all of its expansions. This time however I am determined to get in on the ground floor and was quite disappointed actually when the release date got pushed back by a few months. The game is actually looking a little bit more like SimTown with its larger area to spread out in, something that can only be good for the series. As with all editions of the Sims thus far I also can’t wait to see what the user-generated content community will be able to achieve.
Empire: Total War
These days all that gun-smoke would be accused of causing global warming.
Back when I was a purely Mac gamer, the Total War series was one of those games that I was extremely envious about. The mix between the Risk-esque grand campaign and beautiful real-time battle interfaces was everything I had ever wanted in a strategy game and inevitably it was one of the first things I picked-up when I finally bought a PC in 2006. Strangely though, I just haven’t been able to get excited about the games enough to actually play them properly thus far. All of that has changed though with Empire: Total War. Bringing the series further forward in time and introducing ship battles and artillery is just what the series needs as far as I am concerned, and I’ll be there on day one wearing my tricorn hat, affecting a dodgy accent, and trying to take over the world!
Oldgaulian
Resident Evil 5 :
The follow up to the brilliant Resident Evil 4, sees the return of Chris Redfield as the main character, and has built on the improved gameplay mechanics from Resident Evil 4. This will be a strong contender for Game of the Year come January 2010. Being a staple of console gaming through the latter half of the 90’s, the Resident Evil series had a slump in form for a few years. Resident Evil 4 reinvigorated the series, with a shift from fixed camera angles to a dynamic over the shoulder camera and a movement away from the traditional zombies leading a major overhaul of the game’s mechanics. Resident Evil 5 is set to continue with this evolution of the series, again leaving the slower zombies for faster more aware ‘human’ enemies, and the introduction of both a partner character in the solo game and the ability to play through the entire game in co-op mode is yet another reason to spill out the money on this one. You can be sure to expect a good variety of weapons, fantastic visual flair and enough scares with this one.
Persona 4
I call this my "mellow yellow" persona
Firstly, kudos have to go to Atlus and Ubisoft for actually bringing this to Australian shores. Secondly, this is the game that will single handidly kill any remnant of a social life I have left. Persona 3 was the greatest JRPG (S: that’s Japanese Role Playing Game for those playing at home) of our generation – and Persona 4 may well become the greatest JRPG of all time if it can improve on its predecessor. Atlus has moved Persona from it’s traditional modern day Shibuya stylings to a more ‘humble’ rural Japan to keep things interesting for those of us still making their way through the additional content in Persona 3 FES. Persona 4 continues the series’ mainstay mix of turn-based RPG combat and dating simulation aspects with hopefully more ‘teenage kids shooting themselves in the face’ infused action (S: what the..?). Maybe with less shooting in the face. But what really makes Persona a seminal RPG series (besides the style it absolutely exudes) is the sheer balance of the combat where enemy weaknesses can really be exploited to your advantage, which is truly highlighted by the fact that your friendly AI, which you do not directly control in battle, is actually, Intelligent. And the impact that social links have on the strength of your character’s persona (similar to the ‘summons’ in the Final Fantasy series) really give you a reason to play and explore all aspects of the game.
Retro Game Challenge
Having grown up on 8-bit (and an Amiga 500) I can’t wait to experience this game. Recreations of seminal NES era games (with different names of course) and a self-referential steeped in videogame culture, this is the DS game to look out for (providing you’ve already imported Order of Ecclesia.) In truly Japanese fashion the story (or curiously the strangeness of it all) behind this one is enough to get me excited. Based on a Japanese game show called “Retro Game Master”, you are challenged by a games master to complete simple tasks and objectives in representations of old japanese Famicom and arcade games including Dragon Quest, Star Soldier and Galaga. Sound excting? Well combine that with references to videogames of old and videogame culture and you’ve got yourself a winner.
Madworld
- Madworld celebrates getting past the Classification Board with a little gratuitous violence
Ultra stylised – ultra violence on the Wii. From former head of Clover Studio, Atsushi Inaba-san, this Platinum games debut is sure to deliver a spark of creative genius not seen since God Hand and Viewtiful Joe. This may well be the Wii’s greatest moment since Super Mario Galaxy. This graphic novel inspired ‘artwork’ is the very reason, alongside a handful of other titles, that videogames could be considered art forms. Like Smash TV a LONG way before it, mixed with some Manhunt story premises, the game places your character in a world controlled by terrorists who have turned the world into one giant, violent television gameshow. This game will no doubt have me swinging around my nunchuck and wii-mote crazily as I dismember, decapitate and impale people as streams of bright red blood fill my television screen. Of course all this violence is treated as comical. Tom and Jerry eat your heart out.
Red Faction Guerilla
I’m not a shooter fan. While I love Half Life and everything it continues to do to enrich my life, I don’t eagerly await many First Person Shooters . There are a number of exceptions, one slot of which I dedicate to the Red Faction series. And a seven year absence has been too long. So when it was announced that the next installment of the series would be third-person, I was intrigued. What originally made Red Faction stand out way back in 2001 was its use of Geo-mod technology to allow level and environment destruction. Blowing up walls in a videogame was special back in those days. But now thats all day to day business for most developers, what interests me the most here is what developer Volition brings to the table to make Red Faction: Guerilla stand out. And the game’s transition from a first person perspective to a third person has me awaiting this one even more if only to see if they can pull it off. The return of the evil empire, Ultor, just sweetens the deal.
Star Ocean : The last hope
Tri-Ace are one of the underdogs in the JRPG landscape. Yet their catalogue exudes charm, style and most of all, brilliance. The PSP ports of Star Oceans 1 & 2 have been a wonderful distraction that have reminded me of why I am waiting for this game. While Star Ocean doesn’t stray terribly far away from traditional JRPGs, what it does do well is spin a good yarn. While more ‘real time’ than other JRPGs, it still in essence is a team-turn based RPG. And the Japanese take on a sci-fi universe in an RPG sense is a unique one. For these reasons alone, Star Ocean is worth picking up, certainly in my mind, while waiting for Final Fantasy XIII.
Patapon 2
Pata Pata Pata Pon… Like Loco Roco 2, more of the same of what was in the first game is reason enough to NEED this game. Patapon is synonymous with style. Taking on the role as a god in the first saw the player sidescrolling their way through combat situations, inputting, or drumming different commands to your units in order to defeat enemies and progress. The successful melding of rythym and strategy made this an instant cult classic. While information on the sequel is scarce, following the same formula would be enough to win me over in a sequel – which means that any improvements that make makes it a must buy game.
Others?
There’s also a few more games that we’re certainly very interested in but we will hold off getting excited about them until we see a confirmed date with an 09 on the end of it. These could well be the 2009 pre-christmas rush, but don’t start writing your letter to Santa just yet. Just so we can laugh about what we thought would come out, here’s a list:
Beyond Good and Evil 2
Bioshock 2
Brutal Legend
Diablo III
Gran Turismo 5
God of War 3
L.A. Noire
This is Vegas
So that’s it, the games that the Pirahna Poodles are personally keeping an eye on, and in most cases have plonked down cold hard cash on pre-orders for. Feel free to comment with any other games that we may have missed (and to be honest, there’s probably many) or to whinge about the ones we have picked – just don’t expect us to change our minds!
The Piranha Poodles 