Advertising by itself is not bad. I have no problem with advertising and I even work for an advertising company, but I am not learning anything from these ads. I am getting no benefit from them other than the annoyance of having to click past them. It is really the main reason why I also unsubscribed from the Playstation Store newsletter. All of the news for the PSN store I get from Joystiq and Kotaku days before the Thursday update. They send the newsletter on Saturdays. It’s old news.

I am all for them to keep the ads there, as long as they let me turn them off. If I care enough to go through the menu system to turn them off then they must know that I am also somebody who already spends well over $15/month on Playstation Store games.

“Oh, but let them advertise because PSN is free”

Absolutely not. The fact that I do not pay for PSN like people who pay for Xbox Live does not mean that Sony can just advertise on it. In fact, I would totally love it if Sony makes a premium PSN service that gives people actual features that would not be available if you didn’t pay. Features like backing up of game saves on their servers and integration with some of the more popular Social Networking websites around the web. Oh and paying for Xbox Live doesn’t stop you from getting ads either.

Why are you spending so much time on the XMB anyways?!

I don’t really spend that much time on the XMB, but I spend enough time on it that they’re starting to bother me every time I’m just browsing. Again, its more of the aesthetics of the whole thing, it just makes it seem cluttered and its also pointless since I know what I’m going to buy before the Playstation Store is even updated.

With that said if you have a PS3, you should go get LittleBigPlanet right now. The rest of us who already have the game need to be talking about what we will create once the servers are back up. Yes, seriously because playing through the Canyon levels was just way too much fun and I’m afraid we need more online content to bring the servers down again.

<3 Sack-Morouxshi

So what do you do then? Well, turns out they had it right the first time around, when they merged with TechTV and became G4TechTV. I would watch The Screensavers all the time. I love that they had Call for Help helping with people’s questions live on the air, I found it so interesting and so educational that even though I’d rather be doing something else, I would sit down and tune to it, or I would just have it in the background… More than ESPN even.

After the the dust settled. G4TechTV dropped the TechTV from their name, and went to a video game only format. Everybody that left went on to do great things on the online space. Kevin Rose, while now better known for DIGG, has quite a following through Twitter and his weekly podcast Diggnation. His co-host in Diggnation, Alex Albrecht, has a plethora of different podcasts on the Revision3 network. From The Screensavers, Leo Laporte has This Week In Tech and Patrick Norton has Veronica Belmont co-host with him in Tekzilla. Hell, even Sarah Lane got a show, Pop Siren.

You know what’s sad? I watch all of these shows in a consistent basis. These are the shows that you have to watch if you want to be in the ‘geekeratti’. I also listen to 1UpYours on Fridays, a weekly audio podcast from the editors of 1Up.com that give me as much as I need to know about video games. This is what the new G4 TechTV should have been, this is what it should be. Geeks talking to geeks about geeky things. Sure, eyecandy is great and most models can read at a 6th grade level but I’d rather take Veronica Belmont talking about Rockband any day of the week.

The newly updated format includes a section called ‘G4 Rewind’ that basically plays old episodes of their programs in a ‘Pop-Up Video’ format. Which is ok but really not enough. Here is what I would do:

1. Get into some kind of partnership with Revision3, republish some episodes on TV or get some original content from Rev3 on the network on a regular basis.

2. Give whoever wants their show back… their show back. I think Leo Laporte might be a bit too comfortable now days with the TWiT army, but hopefully a revitalized Screensavers might peak his interest.

3. Whatever you do, DO NOT take X-Play off the air. It’s one of the only shows that is good on the network.

4. Make Attack of the Show a prime time show, make day shows be a show like Call for Help and another like The Screensavers, this will balance out the programming.

5. Get rid of all the car shows and automotive competition shows. If necessary, make them about technology in cars or cars of the future. I really never understood why a channel about video games or technology always has drifting on… If dropping automotive racing is not possible, get the WRC back on American TV. PLEASE.

6. Get Can’t Get A Date from Logo. They ruined that show making it only about homosexual relationships, this can be more balanced with people who have problems through all ages/races/orientations and G4 would benefit from this.

My whole idea here is that if you have the geeks watching, the less tech-savvy people will notice and will also watch for all their tech questions. Then again, what do I know. I dont watch G4 anymore.

I would like to point out that while I will talk about the game I will refrain from specifics for two reasons. First, this is something that had me like a little boy in christmas as I was discovering just how much was possible in this game, I do not want to ruin that for anyone. Secondly, I was so excited about getting the beta key, I totally ignored the EULA; I will just not give specifics or just talk about features you might have already heard before so I don’t run into any problems with SCEA or Media Molecule.

It starts innocently enough presenting you with what Little Big Planet is, which while not the most original story ever, but it will do. The intro sequence I believe was quite thoughtful and interesting. When you start the game you don’t really have much in your inventory, but as you go through levels you can unlock new things and start building your inventory of Stickers, Decorations and Costumes. This is something you dont even have to think about as soon as you open an orb containing that item it automatically gets added to your library. It’s so intuitive even my girlfriend got into it… well once I made a Sackgirl for her.

It is a side-scrolling platformer, but you have three lanes. So there is some sense of depth. You can go behind or in front of objects if they are in your given lane. Again, this is something that comes completely natural to people as soon as they play for a few seconds. The use of only one stick for movement also simplifies things a lot, because a lot of people have problem with the two stick controls so this is a game that anybody can really just pickup and play and have fun with it. It has a life system, and it is not individual it is actually a combined tally based on the checkpoint you last went through. You can see how much ‘life’ you have by looking at the rim of the checkpoint, the white will be depleting slowly and at one point it will actually just be flashing between red and white and sirens will be going off meaning you are close to ‘dying’.

As you progress through the levels you get to place elements in the environment. Meaning that even though you are not in the ‘building’ area of Little Big Planet, you are still modifying the world you are in in certain ways. For example, if you put a sticker somewhere, it will indefinetly stay there.

I am completely in love with this game, it is fun, it is entertaining, it is endless. Creating games and going through games I can see countless hours spent (not wasted) going thorugh this, specially since my girlfriend has also gotten into it. If they create a website or a service so that you can broadcast your favorite levels and you can just bookmark them online and then play them when you get home. That would be amazing, and the rumors of a PSP version make so much sense, it is really interesting that Sony may have found it’s voice in this Media Molecule game.

I have stopped playing the Beta. I will not play it again until the whole game is available in retail, trying to get through my other games before that happens. (Missing 3 trophies in Burnout Paradise… that includes the platinum one so I’m almost there.)

It’s no secret that I have been spending probably more time than I should playing Burnout Paradise. I am really happy with this game. It’s, interesting, has a great sense of speed to it and the crashes never get old. The last few days however, I have been trying to get the Carbon Cars which require me to get all the Smashes, Billboards and Jumps.

Last night I got all my Billboards, but I didn’t. There is one missing billboard in Palm Bay Heights, but I can’t find it for the life of me. Worse still, I went around and re-smashed all 20 of them and have still not been able to get it.

Has anybody else seen this? I will re-smash them all again tonight just to be thorough, kind of annoying though.

Update: Went through all of them again, and this time I got them all. Now to find the smashes and that last jump.

Just the announcement of Diablo III boosted the sales of the Diablo II battlechest to the top of the Amazon.com sales charts. Incredible what a press release can do. I was amongst one of those people who immediately went out and picked it up fromm my local GameStop (this is the third time I purchase Diablo II… always make sure you take your games with you if you move >.>). As the screenshot shows, I am quite happy playing with my Lv 6 Amazoness. How does this make any sense? I have a PS3 and have beaten MGS4 3 times…

Well turns out its not about that. Its not about how good the graphics are or how great the soundtrack is. It is not about how many countless hours of development went into the product. Its about the game bringing something to the table that is simply unique. Something that can’t be replicated. I don’t consider myself a retro-gamer but I love me some Tetris. I always have to play Galaga or Raiden whenever I see one of those wonderful arcade machines somewhere, even though I have experienced the challenge of Ikaruga. I don’t even own a Nintendo DS or a Sony PSP and yet I only have one game in my hacked iPhone, Super Punch-out!

Classics are games that remind you of why you play games. With Super Punch-out! it is the simplicity of the controls that makes it so fun to play during my commute to work.

It can be anything really, new classics are created all the time. In fact, let me point out the breakout hit of 2007, Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare. Even with its quirks it is a beautiful piece of software. The costumization options you get and the RPG type elements are a welcoe touch to the genre, not saying this is the first time that has been in a FPS, they just made it exciting and interesting. It will most likely be a game that will be talked about years from now. Just like Halo II was discussed before it.

Games are about having fun. I can still remember beating Psychonauts and how interesting the level design was in that game. I remember the years (about 3) that I spent playing FFXI with my Lv.75 RNG/NIN. I remember when SSX Tricky came out, how fun that was with my brothers.

Theres games that I remember because they just meant something to me. Final Fantasy VII, the first game to ever make me shed a tear (I am dying for a re-make of that one, specially after Square-Enix teased it), showed me what storytelling in a game can achieve. The first time I played Metal Gear Solid I was literally scared when I was trying to fight against Psycho Mantis. How did he know what games I had been playing and how did he move my controller? (note: MGS was the first game to feature rumble for the PS2, if not the first then amongst the first) Ten years later, with Metal Gear Solid 4 I finally get closure to what happened that day, and it is just amazing at how the game has matured and grown with me ( MGS4, Act 4, -amazing-).

It is these things that stay with you. A video game is no longer just going up and down and hitting a square with your rectangle. They tell stories, they involve you into their world. They force you to make desicions that you do not want to make (Bioshock or GTA IV anyone?).

As the video game market keeps getting bigger and new people get drawn in and get to experience games for the first time it will be very interesting to see what games get staying power. After all, with the Wii, this is the most amount of people that are able to experience a Mario game ever, hopefully they take the time to go back and get to know their roots.

I have a fulltime job, I have a girlfriend, I have a mortgage and I have a incredible love for the worlds I visit when I turn on my games.

I will now go back to playing Diablo II and getting psyched about StarCraft II and Diablo III. Happy 4th of July everyone, Happy Birthday America.

–Warning: Total Geekery Ahead –

Just wanted to point out, Square-Enix announced that they would be bringing some PS1 titles to PSN, twelve in total. It is unclear which titles these will be, but in Japan two were already released, Xenogears and Einhänder. I had a total geekout when I heard the news. If you have not played either of these games, I suggest you ebay them RIGHT NOW and you go play them. If not, wait for them to come to PSN and then play them.

Xenogears has a fantastic engaging storyline that is told through anime and you get to either fight as a person or as a Gear (mecha). If that is not enough of a draw for you to go get this RPG, I can’t help you.

Einhänder is one of the best sidescrolling shooters ever made. I already called my brother and asked him to mail me my copy of it asap, I can’t wait to play it again. I think I have already pointed out how much of a sidescrolling shooter fan I am in this post. But seriously, the music is amazing and the action is fast paced and engaging. Not to mention you fight bosses that dont fit in the screen.

That is all, I promise I will talk more about computers and less about video games from now on…

The ticket reads:

From: Liberty City
To: San Andreas

MR Niko Bellic

If you remember from Grand Theft Auto III, there were billboards that read “See you in Vice City” which apparently foreshadowed where the series was going next. Is this the same?

Niko’s cousin in the game Roman calls me and asks me to go drinking, I agree, since his likeness for me is at 92% and I think this will get him to an even 100%. We go to Vlad’s bar Comrades over in Hove Beach, South Broker. So far, so good. He is telling me about how we’re going to make it and we’re going to take over the city when a group of guys that were outside the bar when we come out, Roman trips and falls over on them. They were already saying how they did not like us being around there, they start punching us.

I try to run away, but I am so drunk I just end up tripping over and over. They keep punching us, my life falls to just a sliver and then I hear gun shots… I thought that was it, and I’d have to pay the 10k~ to get out of the hospital.

I was wrong. It was Liberty City’s Finest chasing after and shooting at the guys who jumped us. In the commotion cars started going all crazy people started abandoning their cars, and one of these cars hit the Cognoscenti I was driving a little bit too hard (It was pretty beat up to begin with). It catches fire.

I stumble as fast as I can across to the diner and just as I get the cut-scene that I made it in. BOOM! The Cognoscenti explodes.

Once we got out, and I am no longer dying thanks to the food from the diner, I see this parked right next to where my Cognoscenti exploded.

I wish that driver luck considering the paint was not scratched but her back wheelbase is no longer there either.