Holy S**t
If you've started reading this before watching the trailer at least two more times, stop, go back, and watch it. Now watch it again. I'll wait for you. Watched it? Take a few minutes to recover. That was one of the most powerful minutes I have seen in a trailer this year. It wasn't flashy, and it wasn't over the top. The reason why it's so jaw dropping is because it was so damn REAL. The issues were real, and terrorism is very real. These "Patriots" even believe that they are liberators of some kind by strapping a bomb to a dude's chest and tossing him out a window to explode on a crowded city street.
Between this trailer and the "early look" one we got to see last month, this game has me totally sold and looks like it could be Tom Clancy's best to date. The narrative (as of now) doesn't seem forced, and this debut trailer was both amazing and terrifying. My only concern that the realism of the terrorism (I mean for goodness sake you can hear people screaming in horror when the bomb goes off and you can actually see some people getting blown up) is going to raise some concerns from the big wigs in Capitol Hill. Hopefully Patriots can be crafted in such a way that we can keep the intensity and realism from this trailer and still get it onto shelves, cause 2013 is a long time to wait.
Tuesday, December 13, 2011
Bioshock Infinite Gameplay Trailer
Acoustically chaotic
There's something beautifully morbid in the newest trailer for Bioshock Infinite. While some people complain about the song choice (which is the only sound we hear while it's playing) I don't think they could have gotten it more perfect. The song added such a quiet melancholy to the footage we were seeing, and offered a sense of peacefulness as we watched this world crumble around us. This trailer definitely sets a tone for the upcoming game, and it's going to be a doozy.
Oh yeah, and the whole thing was put together using in game footage (which seems to be a thing to tell people know). So we at least know that Infinite is going to look beyond gorgeous.
There's something beautifully morbid in the newest trailer for Bioshock Infinite. While some people complain about the song choice (which is the only sound we hear while it's playing) I don't think they could have gotten it more perfect. The song added such a quiet melancholy to the footage we were seeing, and offered a sense of peacefulness as we watched this world crumble around us. This trailer definitely sets a tone for the upcoming game, and it's going to be a doozy.
Oh yeah, and the whole thing was put together using in game footage (which seems to be a thing to tell people know). So we at least know that Infinite is going to look beyond gorgeous.
Feature: Stephen Johnson, Lead Editor of G4's "The Feed"
The man behind The Feed... and Skyrim comedy videos
Walking around the G4 offices is like taking a stroll through all of the great video games you’ve ever played. You can see cubes and offices lined from wall to wall with memorabilia, action figures, and signed posters. Stephen Johnson’s desk slightly different, more toned down with only a couple hanging pictures and even a signed picture from Kevin Pereira, the host of “Attack of the Show”. So how do you take people that have these kinds of memorabilia next to the computers that they write on seriously?
Walking around the G4 offices is like taking a stroll through all of the great video games you’ve ever played. You can see cubes and offices lined from wall to wall with memorabilia, action figures, and signed posters. Stephen Johnson’s desk slightly different, more toned down with only a couple hanging pictures and even a signed picture from Kevin Pereira, the host of “Attack of the Show”. So how do you take people that have these kinds of memorabilia next to the computers that they write on seriously?
This is why: Stephen Johnson is the lead editor of the Feed on the G4 website, and believes that video games are on the precipice of something amazing. Something that only comes around once every century. Something that many forms of entertainment strive to achieve but only few transcend into that greatness. Soft spoken with glasses just barely thicker than his goatee, he thinks that video games are as close as they’ve ever been to becoming works of art.
“Video games right now are at about the point where films were in the 30’s.” Johnson said, who has written for all kinds of publications before coming to G4 in 2005, ranging from movies to horse racing. “It’s starting to find the language in which it wants to speak to us to be considered art.”
In August of 2010, Roger Ebert said in his Chicago Sun-Times blog that video games can never be considered art. He barely even chooses to defend his argument, he just makes it and refuses to budge. The blog post itself has over four thousand comments on it to date, and both sides very enthusiastically defend and dispel video games as an art form. Johnson is on the other side from Ebert on the fight, and that’s one of the reasons he enjoys going into work every day.
Whether or not video games can be considered art, they are still a huge part of the entertainment industry and are covered by a multitude of publications. Johnson thinks that the evolution of games into an artform has fostered all of the coverage that you see today. “I think that the idea of journalism in video games is relatively new because as an art form it’s grown to support the industry of video game journalists.” So as much as people want to argue about the legitimacy of industry, as long as it sells, there will be those there to cover it.
Eric Eckstein, director of the games editorial section of the G4 website, surely seems to think that Johnson is more than qualified to make these claims. “His other interests in film really brings something unique to the tabe,” said Eckstein, “he’s more about the narrative of the game than the intuitive design”. He went on to reference LA Noire and Alan Wake as two games Johnson was particularly excited about because they featured more in depth narratives than flashy gameplay.
“I love the gaming industry itself. I love being involved with something thats on the edge of something,” Johnson said, and he seems to be right. The release of Call of Duty Modern Warfare 3 shattered the opening weekend sales records of any major form of entertainment in history, and copies of major titles often sail into the millions for units sold.
Graduating from college in the early nineties from Emerson College in Boston
While his co-workers may poke fun at Johnson’s seniority over them, he does notice a unique dynamic between himself and all of the younger members of the office. “It’s less about the generations and how much younger they may be, but more about what they’re doing in their lives,” Johnson said, “I’m married and have a child so if I didn’t have those things I think there would be even less of a difference between me and them”.
But while there may be differences in age, there is certainly not a difference in how involved Johnson is with his subject matter. And he is very excited about the direction video games are going, and how that direction could keep pushing the industry into an art form. “There are ways of imparting thoughts and emotions that you cant do through other mediums, you being able to decide what direction a story goes in. Games are running up the limitations of giving the player choices.”
Working at G4 has provided some unique experiences for Johnson, the most unique being the opportunity to be on Feedback, the weekly video podcast about video games posted on the website. Johnson said that speaking on camera didn’t exactly come easy at first. “Oh man, I was so nervous the first time,” he laughed, “it’s just not my style to do that.” But as the number of appearances increased, so did his poise in the public eye. Now he’s extremely excited whenever he’s asked to go back on, and often catches himself talking about what will be on the show with co-hosts before he even sits down in front of the camera.
While video games have been a part of Johnson’s life for as long as he can remember, he still remembers that it is a job and it supports his family. This doesn’t mean he wouldn’t have done things differently, though. “I would have pursued what I really wanted to do younger, but I made excuses like ‘oh, I don’t have any experience’ and that held me back”.
Nevertheless, now Johnson is exactly where he wants to be, surrounded by his video game swag, writing about something that is evolving into something exquisite. He seems completely comfortable in his surroundings, and is showing the world that games can be art through his journalistic work. Eckstein puts it perfectly, “He’s been here for years and playing games for even longer... he’s a self starter that knows film, and when he sees the convergence of the two, he really notices.”
You can follow Johnson on twitter @steveajohnson.
Monday, December 12, 2011
Tony Hawk's Pro Skater HD - Announcement Trailer
So much nostalgia, so little time
36 seconds is all you need to make every gamer from the nineties pee themselves in excitement. Tony Hawk is back following in the footsteps of the (surprisingly) popular HD remake movement. It looks like we're going to get at least the original game back in beautiful high def to relive the magic over and over, and I would be surprised if they didn't include content from the second and third games as well. I for one welcome this remake, as we haven't seen a good Tony Hawk game for far too many years. And if your last six games fail... might as well remake the one that didn't to look good.
Unless you were born under some form of a rock, you would recognize the iconic warehouse level that millions of skaters discovered their love for the franchise. Down the ramp, up and through the overhang (why is that thing even there in the first place? No practical value), grind around the concrete lip, over the gap to the random middle rail, and on to a ramp on the other side. It's a well known route, and one that I'm dying to take on again in 720p.
36 seconds is all you need to make every gamer from the nineties pee themselves in excitement. Tony Hawk is back following in the footsteps of the (surprisingly) popular HD remake movement. It looks like we're going to get at least the original game back in beautiful high def to relive the magic over and over, and I would be surprised if they didn't include content from the second and third games as well. I for one welcome this remake, as we haven't seen a good Tony Hawk game for far too many years. And if your last six games fail... might as well remake the one that didn't to look good.
Unless you were born under some form of a rock, you would recognize the iconic warehouse level that millions of skaters discovered their love for the franchise. Down the ramp, up and through the overhang (why is that thing even there in the first place? No practical value), grind around the concrete lip, over the gap to the random middle rail, and on to a ramp on the other side. It's a well known route, and one that I'm dying to take on again in 720p.
Hitman Absolution Cinematic Trailer
Now you see me... now you're dead!
This trailer is actually the second in a cinematic series that started back in November. This first one has Agent 49 sneaking into a house and killing a bunch of guards. His target is a woman taking a shower, but the trailer ends before we know if we know if he shoots her or not. Well in this trailer, turns out he did (a couple times) and she's holed up in a hospital trying to be taken out of it by masked dudes with guns. Agnet 49 is there kicking tail once again, doing what I can only assume is finishing the job.
While cinematic trailers might not show us any gameplay, they play the crucial role in exposing us to a little bit of story if done well. There was a definite focus on a coin the woman was holding, I wonder how that coin will play into the story, and what personal connection that Agent 49 has with it. Whatever the reason, any return from Hitman is a good one and this game should be a very well crafted one.
This trailer is actually the second in a cinematic series that started back in November. This first one has Agent 49 sneaking into a house and killing a bunch of guards. His target is a woman taking a shower, but the trailer ends before we know if we know if he shoots her or not. Well in this trailer, turns out he did (a couple times) and she's holed up in a hospital trying to be taken out of it by masked dudes with guns. Agnet 49 is there kicking tail once again, doing what I can only assume is finishing the job.
While cinematic trailers might not show us any gameplay, they play the crucial role in exposing us to a little bit of story if done well. There was a definite focus on a coin the woman was holding, I wonder how that coin will play into the story, and what personal connection that Agent 49 has with it. Whatever the reason, any return from Hitman is a good one and this game should be a very well crafted one.
The Last of Us - VGA Trailer
Uniquely Familiar
There was something beautiful about the opening to the VGA trailer for "The Last of Us", Naughty Dog's venture into the very crowded land of zombie games. Through the first seconds, there seems to be a peaceful tranquility to the apocalypse. Moving from the sound of birds and green trees, we slowly see that the world is in obvious ruin, overgrown and still bloodied from whatever caused this round of flesh hungry zombies. Then we meet our subjects.
It appears to be either a daughter with her dad or just two random people who have met through this madness, but the girl definitely seems much younger than the guy that she's with. She comes across the man beating a tar out of an infected person with a two by four, and after they barely start searching him, three more bad guys show up. Cut to them running into a city street overgrown with vegetation, and we have a setting for "The Last of Us". The message is simple, their daily routine is to survive no matter what. It may be a market that has been tapped into way to many times, but I'm really interested to see what kind of angle this game will take on the zombie genre. As long as it's not another Dead Island, there's a lot of potential from this trailer alone.
There was something beautiful about the opening to the VGA trailer for "The Last of Us", Naughty Dog's venture into the very crowded land of zombie games. Through the first seconds, there seems to be a peaceful tranquility to the apocalypse. Moving from the sound of birds and green trees, we slowly see that the world is in obvious ruin, overgrown and still bloodied from whatever caused this round of flesh hungry zombies. Then we meet our subjects.
It appears to be either a daughter with her dad or just two random people who have met through this madness, but the girl definitely seems much younger than the guy that she's with. She comes across the man beating a tar out of an infected person with a two by four, and after they barely start searching him, three more bad guys show up. Cut to them running into a city street overgrown with vegetation, and we have a setting for "The Last of Us". The message is simple, their daily routine is to survive no matter what. It may be a market that has been tapped into way to many times, but I'm really interested to see what kind of angle this game will take on the zombie genre. As long as it's not another Dead Island, there's a lot of potential from this trailer alone.
Thursday, December 8, 2011
Rayman: Origins - 10 Ways to Win Trailer
Who knew terrifying beasts could look so cute?
First off, I really need to play this game. I miss the golden age of platformers (and this is a side scroller to make the deal even sweeter) and it simply looks like a ton of fun. I really enjoy that games like this aren't totally dead yet, and we can all put down our first person shooters to enjoy some fast paced, classic gaming. Not to mention that their marketing campaign has been brilliant: this is the third "10 Ways" trailer that I've seen, coming after "10 Ways to Get Around" and "10 Ways to Die". It's a simple way of showing how much you can do with the game, and how damn good it looks while you're playing.
My favorite part of this trailer is that by showing 10 ways to win the game, it's simultaneously showing the huge amount of replay value in Origins. If you're a completionist (like me) or an achievement whore (guilty) then seeing a ton of different ways to get to that magical 100% mark is a challenge I am more than willing to accept. Not to mention it's another example of how smoothly the game flows together, it takes a certain kind of brilliance to put together such vibrant worlds that a character can flawlessly maneuver through. This is definitely on my list of games to try this holiday season. Hello, Redbox!
First off, I really need to play this game. I miss the golden age of platformers (and this is a side scroller to make the deal even sweeter) and it simply looks like a ton of fun. I really enjoy that games like this aren't totally dead yet, and we can all put down our first person shooters to enjoy some fast paced, classic gaming. Not to mention that their marketing campaign has been brilliant: this is the third "10 Ways" trailer that I've seen, coming after "10 Ways to Get Around" and "10 Ways to Die". It's a simple way of showing how much you can do with the game, and how damn good it looks while you're playing.
My favorite part of this trailer is that by showing 10 ways to win the game, it's simultaneously showing the huge amount of replay value in Origins. If you're a completionist (like me) or an achievement whore (guilty) then seeing a ton of different ways to get to that magical 100% mark is a challenge I am more than willing to accept. Not to mention it's another example of how smoothly the game flows together, it takes a certain kind of brilliance to put together such vibrant worlds that a character can flawlessly maneuver through. This is definitely on my list of games to try this holiday season. Hello, Redbox!
Batman: Arkham City - Skins Pack DLC Trailer
Now the old guys can play too!
Two days ago, Arkham City fans were graced with an awesome downloadable opportunity. The Batman skins pack gives players access to unique costumes that have graced the cape crusader since we first met him. This short trailer shows a whirlwind of ass kicking as 1970's Batman, Animated Series Batman, Year One Batman, The Dark Knight Returns Batman, Earth One Batman, Sinestro Corps Batman, and Batman Beyond. If none or almost none of those names ring a bell for you, then obviously this isn't something you should buy. But for you hardcore bat lovers out there, I can almost hear your cheers of celebration (right there with you).
Batman Beyond looks by far the coolest to me (I was just entering my teenage and therefore extremely impressionable years around the show's release) while Year One Batman looked, well, chunky. The funniest one is Animated Batman because he looks like a cartoon compared to the rest of the bleak, dark world that he has to fight in. Needless to say extra skins are a great addition to the game, and if you're a fan of the Dark Knight, then it will definitely be worth picking up.
Two days ago, Arkham City fans were graced with an awesome downloadable opportunity. The Batman skins pack gives players access to unique costumes that have graced the cape crusader since we first met him. This short trailer shows a whirlwind of ass kicking as 1970's Batman, Animated Series Batman, Year One Batman, The Dark Knight Returns Batman, Earth One Batman, Sinestro Corps Batman, and Batman Beyond. If none or almost none of those names ring a bell for you, then obviously this isn't something you should buy. But for you hardcore bat lovers out there, I can almost hear your cheers of celebration (right there with you).
Batman Beyond looks by far the coolest to me (I was just entering my teenage and therefore extremely impressionable years around the show's release) while Year One Batman looked, well, chunky. The funniest one is Animated Batman because he looks like a cartoon compared to the rest of the bleak, dark world that he has to fight in. Needless to say extra skins are a great addition to the game, and if you're a fan of the Dark Knight, then it will definitely be worth picking up.
World Gone Sour Announcement Trailer ft. Method Man
What... did I just watch?
That's the question I think most people are going to ask themselves after watching this... well, it's called a trailer so we'll go with that. What the hell did I just watch? One of Method Man's homies busts open a bag of sour patch kids, sending them all over the room. Method Man essentially curses him out, then says that he's put them all in danger. Cue the beat, and he goes into a three minute music video all about the sour patch kids as they all slowly come to life. Apparently the candy is not that dangerous, they just like screwing around with the music levels and salt shakers.
My big question: why? Why is Method Man rapping about candy, is the business really that tough? Why is Capcom, of all companies, taking over a project like this? Why is a music video the choice for an announcement trailer, when it explains nothing more than there's going to be a game, and it will involve sour patch kids? The list can go on and on. Although I will take one positive away from all of this mess... those little gummies can really break it down. Holla.
That's the question I think most people are going to ask themselves after watching this... well, it's called a trailer so we'll go with that. What the hell did I just watch? One of Method Man's homies busts open a bag of sour patch kids, sending them all over the room. Method Man essentially curses him out, then says that he's put them all in danger. Cue the beat, and he goes into a three minute music video all about the sour patch kids as they all slowly come to life. Apparently the candy is not that dangerous, they just like screwing around with the music levels and salt shakers.
My big question: why? Why is Method Man rapping about candy, is the business really that tough? Why is Capcom, of all companies, taking over a project like this? Why is a music video the choice for an announcement trailer, when it explains nothing more than there's going to be a game, and it will involve sour patch kids? The list can go on and on. Although I will take one positive away from all of this mess... those little gummies can really break it down. Holla.
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