Unfortunatley being focused over at BeefJack.com I won’t be writing for Video Game Daily as often. But don’t worry I have no intention on closing the blog! On occasion I will make posts seperate from BeefJack.com so make sure to check back.

BeefJack.com

“Especially when you’re pulling shit out of your ass. Come on man, interview about your game. Not OURS! Call of Duty: World at War can stand on it’s own merits, leave ours out of it. Like this gem of a quote from today’s article on CVG…”

This particular quote is in reference to Noah Heller a Senior Producer of Activision which you may also notice is the owner of Infinity Ward. Noah Heller has been giving interviews for the recentley released Call of Duty: World at War. Robert has some issues with these interviews however I’m going to take a guess and say that isn’t the only thing he is angry about.

“Can you guys please stop interviewing this guy, talk to someone who actually works on the Dev Team at Treyarch and knows what the fuck they’re talking about. Not Senior Super Douche Noah Heller from Activision – who apparently has never played the game and doesn’t even work at the developer.”

Ouch… I can’t speak for Noah Heller or about the accusation of being a “Senior Super Douche” however I do have to wonder how secure fourzerotwo’s job is these days. Looking back I also noticed that Noah Heller is the very same man who made comments about Brother in Arms, which led to some serious damage control over at Infintiy Ward…

fourzerotwo blog

However before you brush this game off as a let down and pass it by for other more flashy titles I want you to remember one thing. While Mirrors Edge may have it’s share of flaws it also marks an original concept that deserves recognition.

The game industry is based on what sells, why else would EA put out a yearly Madden game without many improvments? It’s because it consistentley sells millions. With this in mind many game developers and publishers are hesitant with trying new things, an example of this would be Psychonaughts, while critically acclaimed by the media the game did poorly financially.When a risk such as Psychonaughts doesn’t pan out this only encourages a studio to avoid taking a chance with new IP’s.

So with this in consideration you may want to look at Mirrors Edge in a new light, while it may not be perfect it was has serious potential. But by passing it up you are denying any chance of an improved sequel, or the encouragment of original and innovative games in the future.

I myself can’t tell you how good Mirrors Edge is, I have only played the demo just like anyone else. But what I do know is that this style of game provides a fresh look at what can be done in this generation of games.Take a look, try it out, you make be suprised that a review is just one opinion. What matter is yours.

Overall Scores

A follow up trailer to the original “Mad World” has been released. This is just in time for Gears of War 2. The trailer is entitled “Last Day”. Incidentally it is also produced by the same company as the original. The song featured is by How it ends by Devontchka.

When looking at the library of games out there for the Wii quality third-party games are a fairly small minority. Party games and shovelware tend to find their way straight onto the Wii. Thankfully de Blob is neither of those. Instead de Blob presents itself as platformer. Moving around levels as a blob of paint players are changing a world of black and white to one of vibrant color.

The story of de Blob revolves around I.N.K.T. a government banning color from the world. Going to each new environment de Blob works through levels in tiers. In de Blob you earn points for simply coloring the world, completing missions, and by changing specific government buildings into public art. After earning enough points new areas open up and even more missions become available.

Something I wasn’t expecting from the story of de Blob were cutscenes, the game is brought together with a genuinely funny story. On top of this the loading screens are ton as comic books giving even more backstory to a game where I wasn’t expecting any at all.

What makes de Blob more than just an average platformer is the way you go about it. Moving about the world is done by jumping and sliding on surfaces, when you hit a vertical building you slide along the length of it, this allows you to string together combos.

Controls within de Blob incorporate motion only in basic ways, which isn’t a bad thing. To jump you flick your controller either up or down. Other uses include shaking the remote to paint a special building. The camera in de Blob is controlled by the game, few problems arise from this but when they do you can easily center the camera with the C button.

The biggest issue in de Blob (which is pretty small) is that you can’t save in the middle of the game. You instead have to complete an entire world before you can save your game. Levels can range from 30 minutes to an hour depending on how you play. This becomes an annoyance as to play de Blob you have to make sure you can invest the time to finish a level before ending your game.

Sound is another strong point of de Blob, at the start of each level you pick a theme, from Jazz to “Bliss”. While in the game the music has a base tempo, however when stringing combos of color together the music changes and fits perfectly to your movement. With a large procedurally generated craze these days I guess it could be considered an instance of procedurally created music.

Graphically de Blob is one of the best looking games on the system. Depth of field as well as good draw distances gives the game a great look with enough artistic flair to differentiate itself from other games. Starting a level in all black and white and ending with a bright world makes completing a world a reward.

de Blob is proof that third party games for the Wii can be done. de Blob ties together addicting platforming, interesting music, and an enjoyable story to make a game worth your money. The few problems with de Blob cause no real detraction from the overall game. In the end de Blob is simply fun, and really why else do we play video games?

five out of five

Have no fear however as I keep all of you up to date on the goings of the Open Beta and the game in general. This year looks like it could be better than last. Which is surprising to say as I thought last year was pretty satisfying.

If your anything like me this holiday season’s release schedule is hard to keep track of. I figured I would put together a list of a major titles coming out this month.

Viva Pinata: Trouble in Paradise – Sept. 2, 2008

Spore – Sept. 7, 2008

Rock Band 2 – Sept 14, 2008 (Xbox 360)

Star Wars: The Force Unleashed – Sept 16, 2008

Crysis Warhead – Sept 16, 2008

Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning – Sept 18, 2008

Samba de Amigo – Sept 23, 2008

Lego Batman: The Video Game – Sept 23, 2008

de Blob – Sept 26, 2008

These are only the titles that caught my eye. If you have a game in mind you think others would be interested leave a comment and I will update the post with the release date.

These two new videos show off the opening scenes of Spore and the booth for Rock Band 2.  The panel covered the first three parts of Spore: Cell, Creature, and Tribe. The demo was fantastic although I must admit I would have liked to see Space.

The first video opens with the start of Spore in the cell stage. During the second we see parts of the Creature stage and the Tribe stage.

Click the jump to see the second of the two spore videos as well as the Rock Band 2 booth.

I was unaware of this until last night and have removed the video when I found out about it.

If I am able to release the videos I will, however I cannot now.

It is my goal to provide coverage of the games from PAX it is my intention however to follow the individual requests of specific developers and publishers.

Thank you for your interest.

~ Irogon
videogamedaily.wordpress.com

From PAX 08′ comes one new video for Left 4 Dead. Check back later for videos from the Spore live stage demo!

After the jump you will find the combined pictures of both Day 2 and 3 of PAX 08′. Videos including more Gears of War 2, Spore, and Left 4 Dead will be up soon! PAX 2008 came to a close today and it was the best year yet. VG Daily will be sure to cover PAX 09′ and other gaming events as they happen.

Enjoy the pictures and again make sure you check out the PAX 08′ day one pictures and videos. Also make sure to check out other PAX Coverage to go up soon!