Player 1 Start

There was a blog here. It's gone now.

It's been a while.  As is often the case, I get burned out on writing, then after a while I get the urge to do it again.  Good thing it's just a hobby and not a job, huh?

The ol' blog has a new layout, partly because I stopped paying for TypePad premium, but also because I just wanted a change of scenery.  Apart from that, it will be business as usual around here.  I'll be reviewing games I complete, writing the occasional feature article (A History of Video Games, A Work of Box Art, Crappy Custom Cabinets), and maybe the occasional collection update.  

Speaking of...

I'm currently sitting at 3,255 games.  Big Box PC Games are the largest part of my collection at 447, which is about 13% of the entire thing.  SEGA Genesis remains in second place with 298, and PS4 is in third with 266.  In case you were wondering, yes, I did obtain both the PlayStation 5 and the Xbox Series X at launch.  It's difficult to catalogue XSX games because they're multigenerational, but I've got a decent little collection of 39 PS5 games.  

Anyhow, I'll get to reviewing a few of the games I've beaten recently in the next few days.  I'm currently battling a nasty cold, so it's a perfect excuse to get back into writing.

A New Review System

One of my favorite things since I began collecting and completing games in earnest a few years ago has been updating this blog with reviews of games I beat.  I have no idea how many people, if any, read them.  I don't look at my blog's stats, nor do I really care.  For me, it's just fun to write.  I enjoy cataloguing my thoughts and critiquing games.

When I first started this blog, my intentions were to keep up with a lot of the latest games, as well as have a lot of retro-oriented content.  To that end, I felt having a review system was key so anyone who might potentially stumble across my blog could get a general idea of what I thought without the necessity of reading my often extremely verbose, long-winded reviews.  Eventually, I did away with the review system because I felt it was unfair to quantify a game into a number without justifying it.  I could say, "This game is a 7," but what does that mean?  As compared to what?  And what exactly makes it a 7?  Are the controls bad, or the graphics outdated, or are there a plethora of bugs?  Not all 7s are created equal.

Over time, I've once again warmed to the idea of implementing a scoring system, and it's only fitting that it's cribbed from GamePro Magazine's old "face" system.  Anyone who read GamePro back in the day undoubtedly remembers the cartoon faces (with corresponding numbers) they used to visualize their scores.  It was a simple, effective, and attractive way to score games - one quick glance, and you knew what they thought of the graphics, sound, control, and fun factor.  Ultimately, it still boiled down to numbers associated with those faces, but it was unique and memorable.

I say it's fitting because it's obvious that, while I do still enjoy modern games, retrogames are my passion.  What better what to quickly sum up my thoughts than by using a retro review system from a defunct gaming magazine?  I'm not going to break down each aspect of a game as they did.  Each image represents my overall feelings on the game in question.

You can use this handy guide as a reference for what each face means:

1.0 Atrocious - A game with absolutely no redeeming qualities whatsoever.  Undoubtedly one of the worst games ever made, and you should avoid it at all costs.

 

1.5 Bad - A minor step up from Atrocious.  Its biggest positive is likely that it's so bad it's funny, but as a whole it could still be considered a terrible game not worthy of anyone's time or money.

 

2.0 Mediocre - A game that is technically functional, but still loaded with problems, glitches, and strange development choices.  An overall underwhelming and largely unenjoyable experience.

 

2.5 Meh - Similar to mediocre, but with more indifference.  Mostly functional, but just not very fun to play thanks to stupid design choices.

 

3.0 Average - Like the description says, a purely average game.  There's nothing that stands out, but it's also fully functional and occasionally fun.  These are games that some people may love, and others may hate based on personal bias.

 

3.5 Decent - A game likely worthy of your time, but not without some flaws and caveats.  It may not blow your mind, but you won't feel like you've wasted your time either.  Often these are good time-wasters.

 

4.0 Good - Recommended.  It may not reinvent the wheel, or possibly it tries too hard to innovate and falls short, but it's definitely fun, functional, and an overall solid experience.

 

4.5 Great - A game with very few problems, most of them minor, that hold it back from perfection.  Generally fun all the way through, save maybe one or two unfair segments.  Definitely worthy of your time and money.

 

5.0 Incredible - As close to perfection as you can reasonably get.  A game that really should be in everyone's collection, or that everyone should play to completion at the least.  These can be games that set a new standard, or games that take existing concepts and refine them to perfection, but either way, you don't want to miss them.

Game Over?

Nay!  The game is not over!  It's set to freeplay.  Well, technically, it's more like $8.95 to continue playing each month, but I do get unlimited time!

Over time I've lost focus and interest in blogging, but every now and then the bug bites me again, and I decide to give it another go.  This time I'm going to try something a little different, yet again.

I'm going to try and give this blog a more personal touch.  Over the course of the last year I have really been into collecting games once again.  Not just modern console games, but all things retro.  Thanks to a wonderful little independent game shop that opened up less than a mile from my house, several other chain stores that specialize in older games, and of course the internet, my collection has grown rapidly and I'm going to chronicle my continued collecting.

Of course I'll still give my opinion on games as I play them, but look for them to be a lot looser and less professional.  This time, I plan to write in my signature style, which is very humorous, if a bit off-color.  The nice thing about collecting is that I have a huge backlog of games to finish now, so during those summer months when there's a drought of new releases, I'll always have something to play. 

I completed only 27 games in 2014, but in fairness, I didn't start avidly playing until May when I beat Phantasy Star II (Genesis) for the first time.  After that, I tackled a diverse array of games both old and new, including Super C (NES), Gargoyle's Quest (Gameboy), no less than five Castlevania games (NES, SNES, and Genesis), Flashback (Genesis), Eternal Darkness (Gamecube), Skies of Arcadia Legends (Gamecube), Batman: Arkham Asylum (PlayStation 3), and Dragon Age: Origins (PC).

With over 1,000 games for consoles including all the most famous Nintendo, Sega, and Sony devices, there will never be a lack of things to play.  Sometimes I may cheat a bit and use a code for extra lives, or emulators so I can save states in games that did not offer a save feature.  After 20 or more years for some of these games, I think I can allow myself that caveat.

Hopefully the joy I get from collecting and playing all these games will spill over into my blogging.  It's easy to dismiss my blog as something that takes up valuable gaming time, but truth be told even I need to put the controller down once in a while.  When I beat a game, I rarely start another immediately after, and that's the perfect time to run to my computer and put down my thoughts.

With that in mind, it's time to get back into the game.

Insert Coins to Continue

After over a year of lying dormant, P1 Start is continuing on with new articles.
 
It was never my intention to let this blog go so long between updates.  Several factors contributed to the long hiatus.  Between maintaining two other blogs, both of which have also gone silent for quite some time now, tragic life events such as a house fire (that nearly destroyed my entire gaming collection - but didn't, thank goodness) and the completely unexpected sudden death of my father, and far happier, but equally time consuming events such as numerous concerts and beginning a relationship that is still going strong (yes, it's true, gamers can attract women), Player 1 Start simply seemed to be the most expendable.  The length of time required to write one of my reviews when I could write several articles over at Media Junkie just seemed like it wasn't worth it, especially with so many other gaming blogs out there.
 
That said, gaming is still a passion of mine.  Playing, discussing, reminiscing, and writing about them are all still passions of mine.  With that in mind, and an iPad to assist me, I plan on revitalizing this blog with several changes.
 
In addition to the op-ed pieces and reviews, I'm going to be introducing something called Impressions.  These are not fully fledged reviews per se.  I am of the belief that you cannot truly review a game unless you've completed it.  It's entirely possible for the first 2/3s of a game to be spectacular only to fall apart in the final act, just like many films and books do.  If you review a game prior to discovering that, you will be providing an inaccurate summation of the product.  With the amount of games that I buy, my schedule, and my relatively short attention span, finishing games is a luxury I don't often have.  Many games I purchase go unbeaten for years at a time, and some are never played to completion.  This is where Impressions come in.
 
Impressions are just that - my initial impressions upon playing a game.  In each piece, I'll describe roughly the amount of time I've put into the game to formulate those impressions.  Some of these are likely to be kneejerk reactions to the early-goings of a game and it's my plan to revisit some of these impressions should my opinion change upon playing further.
 
Reviews themselves will be considerably more retro-oriented.  With so many gaming sites out there, there's simply no reason to write lengthy reviews for newer, modern games.  I may do one occasionally if I feel a game is exceptional and worth the time, but given that I spend so much of my time playing older titles, the bulk of my reviews will cover older games that people may have forgotten about.  I realize there are plenty of retro sites out there as well, but I truly feel that the Golden Age of gaming is behind us.  I still love gaming and all, but it's no coincidence that my banner is made up entirely of sprites from classic arcade and console games.  Those were the games of my youth, and those are the games I remember the most.
 
So without further ado, let's put in a few more quarters and keep playing.

Changes to the review system

I realize it has been a while between updates, but I'm working on it.  Time is scarce with the holiday gaming season in full swing, but on the bright side I have completed quite a few games.

When I eventually get around to writing more reviews, there will be a slight change to the review system.  In light of the rumor of GameSpot writer Jeff Gerstmann's firing over his review of Eidos' Kane & Lynch due to advertiser pressure, I have decided to do away with scores completely.

I already do this on my other blog, Media Junkie, and I feel it will fit well here.  The problem with assigning a score to games is that the whole point system is rather arbitrary in the first place.  After doing a few reviews I realized I was handing out a lot of tens simply because I scored the games based on how much fun I had playing them.  While I still feel that is the most important factor when reviewing a game, I don't want it to be summed up by a number that people will scroll down just to see and skip the text of the review.

A game, a film, an album, a book, or any other piece of art should be viewed as an entire package.  Everything has to come together to make it truly exceptional and it shouldn't be simplified into a number.  As a result, I am completely doing away with any kind of grading system.  Games will now be reviewed as text.  If you want to know my opinion of a game, you'll have to read the review from start to finish.

I am not going to change the reviews for the games I have reviewed previously.  I still stand by the scores I gave them and the text of those reviews backs them up, but going forward there will be no score or grade assigned to any games I review.

The Holidays Are Upon Us

Yes, gamers, it's that time of year. This is the time where it is both a blessing and a curse to be a gamer. Gamers everywhere are making their lists, checking it twice, and balancing their bank accounts to see just how many games they afford to purchase.

For me, this year is going to be a real test. There are an absolutely insane amount of games coming out over the next 3 months, and I have already had to make some cuts to the list. As it stands right now, here are all the games I plan on purchasing before the end of the year:

Nintendo Wii
Super Mario Galaxy (November 12)
Super Smash Bros. Brawl (December 3)
NiGHTS: Journey of Dreams (December 18)

Xbox 360
Virtua Fighter 5 (October 30)
F.E.A.R. Files (November 6)
Mass Effect (November 20)

PlayStation 3
Haze (November 27)

That may not seem like a lot, but consider this: That is 7 games in 3 months. That's over $350 in games. That does not include all the upcoming HD-DVD and Blu-Ray movie releases I will absolutely be buying before year's end, nor does it including any potential gaming purchases I may make, or Xbox Live Arcade or PSN downloads (such as Puzzle Quest on XBLA and Everyday Shooter on PSN, both available this week, along with Half-Life 2: The Orange Box, which I'll be picking up tomorrow).

PlayStation 3 in the house!

Yes, the day has finally arrived. After nearly a year of fretting over the fact that I did not own all three of the major consoles, I took the plunge and purchased a PS3. With the rumor of a $400 model looming, I decided to just do it and picked up the $500 60GB model. Unfortunately, I didn't have the money to purchase any actual games with it, so I'm left with PSN Store demos for the moment, but I must admit I was pretty impressed with a few of those. Resistance: Fall of Man should be heading to my house from GameFly very soon, so I'll at least have a full game to play around with for a while.

There are some positives, and some negatives about the system at this point. I don't care about the aesthetics of the device. Sure, it looks like a George Foreman grill, but it's still pretty sleek and shiny. It's a little on the large side, and easily the heaviest gaming system I've ever held - even heavier than the original Xbox. But none of those things really matter.

The interface is slick, as it's practically identical to the PSP interface. It's easy to navigate, which is about all you can ask for. I did notice that at 1080i, the text seems awfully small. This isn't a big problem for the menus, but when surfing the web or browsing the PlayStation Store, it can be difficult to read some of the text.

Speaking of the PlayStation Store, I have to say that I like the Xbox Live Marketplace much better. I think it's cleaner and laid out much better. It also runs considerably faster. There were numerous instances of clicking a selection on the PSN store where it appeared like nothing was happening and many seconds later it would jump 3 pages back. Downloads also go considerably slower than Xbox Live downloads do for me. Not by much, but there is an apparent difference.

I do much prefer using my PS3 as a media sharing device. My 360 has an obnoxious problem of not being able to find my shared folders after I shut it off and turn it back on. My PS3 seems to work flawlessly every time and it was super easy to set up.

This may be old hat, especially since Sony announced the existence of a SIXAXIS with rumble at this year's Tokyo Game Show, but the current controller still feels too light and floaty for me.

Of course, what really matters are the games, and it's tough to judge based on demos. I was impressed by the Resistance demo, and even the Gran Turismo HD download (even though I'm not a fan of sim racing games), but I'll reserve judgment until I've played something in its entirety.

I did pre-order Unreal Tournament III for the PS3 last night as well, so as long as it doesn't get delayed, chances are that will be my first PS3 game purchase - along with a mouse & keyboard.

Though I don't have much use for it yet, I'm proud to be a PS3 owner, if only for the reason that I now have all the current generation consoles.

Updates

First off - I finally made a real banner! Thanks to Scrollboss, VG Museum, and The Shyguy Kingdom for all the sprite rips used to create the banner.

Now then, updates have been a little slow here as I've been working on my other blogs, although I'm working on some more reviews slowly but surely.

The big news is that by October I will be a PlayStation 3 owner. I hope to have the system within the next 2 weeks, though it must be said that I am not planning on purchasing any games just yet. At the moment, I am buying the system solely as a blu-ray player. I don't anticipate buying many games before the end of the year (though if Unreal Tournament III makes its November release date, you can be sure that will be my first PS3 game), so I'll be sticking with PSN Store demos for a while. I don't want to perpetuate the rumor that there are no good games on the system - there is just nothing I feel I MUST purchase (not even Resistance).

I would have purchased Lair, but by all accounts it's pretty miserable. It's a shame, because the premise is fantastic, and Factor 5 was responsible for the best Star Wars flight games since the X-Wing series on the PC, but you can't win 'em all, I suppose. Heavenly Sword is fun, but incredibly short. I don't mind short games, but $60 for roughly 5 hours is a little too short.

Despite the lack of desirable games at the moment, I must admit that I'm excited to purchase the system. The PS3 is the first system in a long time I didn't purchase on launch day, and I've felt my gaming setup is lacking without its presence. It will be nice to have a blu-ray player as well. I already own the Xbox 360 HD-DVD drive, and I love it, but there are plenty of fantastic films available only on blu-ray, including Identity, Memento, and loads of outstanding titles coming soon, such as Bram Stoker's Dracula (which is cause for extreme excitement for me, as this is one of my favorite films of all time), the Spider-man trilogy in October, and the Die Hard trilogy in November.

The rumors of a $400 PS3 are a slight cause for concern for me. I would hate to purchase a $500 system, only to have the $400 40GB model come out a week or two later, so I'm hoping Sony will confirm or deny the existence of such a model at the Tokyo Game Show this week so I can plan accordingly. I may still buy the $500 model, due to the fact that the newer PS3s rely on software emulation for backwards compatibility, but if the $400 model will be available by the time I purchase the system, I may go that route and save myself $100.

As I stated, there will be more updates coming forthwith. In fact, I may do a more proper update later this day - possibly another retro-review, this time of an arcade classic.

Virtual Console Releases: Monday, 23 July 2007

Ooh, a fairly exciting batch of releases on the Virtual Console this week should help take the sting off the fairly uneventful console release list.

First up we have Shining Force on the Genesis (800 Points), the classic tactical, turn-based strategy-RPG. Remember when games with the Shining name attached to them were great? Now we get Shining Tears and lame hack & slashes like Shining Force NEO.

Next there's Kirby's Dream Course from the Super NES (800 points). I've never played this one, but it's apparently a golf game with Kirby.

Lastly, Devil's Crush from the Turbo Grafx 16 (600 points). I remember this pinball game being pretty good for its time. I'm curious to see if it still holds up.

So there you have it. Shining Force alone should be enough to keep you occupied for quite some time. It's remarkable how good this game still is. To this day it's still one of the best strategy-RPGs this side of Disgaea.

Upcoming Releases: July 22-28 (Update 1)

Slim pickings this week for those of you looking for a new game to play. RPG fans have a little something to cheer about with the new Shin Megami Tensei game on the PS2 and yet another remake of Final Fantasy II, this time on the PSP. Other than that, I'm sure Nascar fans will be lined up to pay $60 to drive in a circle, just like they did in the last 10 Nascar games from EA.

These dates are subject to change. All dates are taken from the EB Games release lists.

Xbox 360
Nascar 08
Wing Commander Areana (Xbox Live arcade - 800 Points)

Wii
Alien Syndrome

DS
Dynasty Warriors DS: Fighter's Battle
Ultimate Puzzle Games: Sudoku Edition
Chameleon: To Dye For

PlayStation 3
Nascar 08

PlayStation 2
Nascar 08
Guitar Hero Encore: Rocks the 80s
NHRA Countdown to the Championship
Shin Megami Tensei: Persona 3 Special Edition

PSP
Alien Syndrome
Final Fantasy II

(Updated: Added Wing Commander Arena to the 360 release list. Virtual Console games will be added in a separate post tomorrow.)