Weekend Confirmed 157 - God of War: Ascension, Gears of War: Judgment, Luigi's Mansion: Dark Moon

GARNETT!!

the author is Michael Moorecock!!!! AHHHH roger zelazny is horse shit :-p nah not really but the whole elric/multiverse stuff is fantastic! the elric comic is pretty good too. Eternal champion would be an interesting video game device though, in agreement with you there.

Don't waste your money buying this game, you can download it for free from Mygame9.com

http://jezebel.com/5992787/game-developers-conference-features-sexy-dancing-ladies-because-tech-is-super-welcoming-to-women

So very, very, very, very tired of the whining.

Seriously, lets just rename 'Women in Games' to 'Whining in Games' and call it a day. You're going to RESIGN over the presence of some dancers at an after-hours party?

Maybe, I don't know, just ask that some male dancers be added? Or request this doesn't happen again in the future?

Throwing a damn temper tantrum over inconsequential bullshit does nothing to add credibility to the notion that women are fighting real issues and not just playing the victim for attention whenever the smallest of opportunities presents itself.

Weekend Confirmed, do you have a link to this Shiny Variant video mentioned at the start of segment 2? Thanks!

Bioshock Infinite is so very very, insanely, ludicrously good. Irrational Games can do no wrong.

I am absolutely dumbfounded that they were able to build so much hype around this game, and STILL blow away expectations.

And I'm not even playing the 'master race' PC version that is supposedly significantly better.

*kneels before Ken Levine, son of krypton*

http://www.shacknews.com/article/78437/the-phantom-pain-is-metal-gear-solid-5-developed-by

The shark as been jumped. It has then been tagged, released, found again and jumped again.

Good god, Kojima.

**BioShockInfiniteSpoilers**
Still confused about the ending well i created a timeline showing what happens dont click unless beaten game
http://tinyurl.com/cm5kk44

Anyone doing a Weekend Confirmed Fantasy Baseball league this year?

Does anyone know where to post questions/ ideas for hosts? Is it here? New to podcast as well as the site. Thanks

So Square Enix is restructuring in the face of losses.

Here's an idea Square Enix. Maybe 2 million, 3 million, and 3 million unit sales of new IPs and long-dormant franchises WOULD be enough, if you weren't funding giant time and money-sucks in Japan under the Final Fantasy banner.

I mean, the fact that Versus 13 is still even fucking a thing, and not some cancelled product we can all look back on and chuckle about 'yeah, THAT was stupid' is a testament to this company's abilities to get with the fucking program.

The 5-6 year dev cycle for products that are 50/50 gameplay and CG movies is DEAD. Move on. Fund the shit that gets turned around in a reasonable amount of time, on budget, and gains traction and momentum with great buzz and critical reception (ie, all the products in your portfolio made in the West via Eidos).

http://www.shacknews.com/article/78394/square-enix-restructuring-as-huge-losses-forecast

Kind of a random thought, but I can't help but notice the new mobile gamepad Samsung showed off alongside its Galaxy S4 unveiling: http://asset2.cbsistatic.com/cnwk.1d/i/tim/2013/03/17/gamepad_610x344.jpg

It strikes me as further confirmation that this is the form factor of the future for gaming portables. Wouldn't the Vita be much more appealing if you could take it out of the gamepad, and use it in portrait mode for a Kindle App, web browsing, and comic books?

Just wanted to jump in with a few quick thoughts about Gears of War: Judgment.

I've played none of the campaign, and only about an hour of multiplayer, but I was instantly struck by the look and feel of the game, and not in a good way.

In anticipation of GoW:J, I've spent a lot of time replaying GoW 3 over the past 2 weeks. Back to back, Judgment has a clear "B Team" look and feel. The graphics aren't nearly as impressive as Gears 3, and the controls are noticeably stiffer and less responsive. Hit detection also seems a bit off with some of the weapons.

I'm also puzzled by how many critics are expressing appreciation for the bright and colorful visuals. I've only seen a tiny portion of the game so far, but what I have seen is far less colorful or vibrant than most of Gears 3.

So far, I have a hard time recommending Judgment for anyone other than the uber-fans, at least not until it drops in price a bit.

Tomb Raider is REBOOT. Not a REMAKE.

It is a REIMAGINING of the Tomb Raider world and the character of Lara Croft, that attempts to keep a few of the core tenets of that character in check.

What was the original Lara Croft's motivation for her lifestyle? What made her into the skilled, thrill-seeking person she is?

The notion that players were owed the same Lara Croft and the same balance of exploration/combat as previous Tomb Raider games is gamer entitlement. Period.

Another fantastic show, WCers.

The discussion of Tomb Raider was much more measured, and Garnett, I felt that you made your case with better examples, less ad hominem frustration, and more analysis. Thank you.

The piece of this that you all seem to be missing is that this is one of the very rare cases in recent video games in which a strong, largely realistic, and sympathetic FEMALE protagonist gets to do so many of the things that male action heroes do all the time--kick ass, develop superhuman skills, fight back against enemies, survive, and still be a hero (which includes looking good), without selling her soul. To suddenly demand in what Garnett calls "idealism" that the female hero acts emotional in a narrative style more befitting a novel or film just doesn' t make sense. Tomb Raider is a game.

If you haven't read these two articles about Tomb Raider by female journalists, you're missing a desperately important facet of this game and its reception:

http://hellmode.com/2013/03/21/this-isnt-the-article-i-wanted-to-write-about-tomb-raider/

http://www.escapistmagazine.com/articles/view/editorials/op-ed/9747-Get-Back-Up

This game matters, a lot, and its beauty, its incredible design, its fun-factor, and its narrative all are a credit to the state of gaming, the glory of late-generation games, and the progress we have made as a community.

On that note: to Marcus and his absolutely absurd, recidivist, neanderthal attitude towards social equality and discrimination, all I can say is that you have proven your complete backwardness better than anyone else ever could. I look forward to never listening to or reading anything that you have to say. What an absolute embarrassment that finishing move was.

here's the NikoleZ explains the Gears of War Franchise

Enjoy. :D

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e3H6INYlQbg&feature=youtu.be

Can someone link the youtube video Andrew was talking about where the guy catches a pokemon and freaks out? (or something like that)

Andrew and Jeff M completely nailed what my disconnect was from Tomb Raider, great job at articulating it succinctly.

There is something else that I only saw come up on the Polygon live stream I think; the game does an amazing job at removing all the hud elements yet it constantly is displaying all the exp you are getting from being a crack shot or being brutal. Really throws off the mood.

Also Garnett made a great point about the finishers especially I believe is the assault rifle one. She takes the gun places it against there stomach and pulls the trigger letting the force of that lift the gun up the persons body continually pumping them with lead.

Hurray for more Mattas!

In the paragraph about the gamefly app in the article, you have the link listed as episode 156.

I don't see how we can defend ANYTHING Ritciello did.
He was an infamy for the gaming industry,
EA has been named the worst conpany in the US last year, that speaks volume.

I will just mention the fact that they shut down the servers for Lord of the Rings Conquest less than a year after its release, that game had NO REASON TO EXIST WITHOUT THE ONLINE. I wrote to EA to be refunded and they NEVER even replied to me. This is Ritciello's EA.

He transformed a gamer company in a Shareholders company. He's a disgrace for gaming...

I find it interesting and also depressing that in Tomb Raider's attempt to address killing and how that affects a main character people get to slag it for the disconnect of playing AAA video games

Meanwhile, other games that don't even acknowledge the issue get a completely free pass. I've never

Why does Tomb Raider alone have to answer for the sins of video games in general? Why do people feel uncomfortable/disconnected from this game alone? Is it that she had a history where she wasn't an action hero? Is it a gender role disconnect since we're used to only seeing dudes in that context? Is it simply that they brought up the topic at all? Is it a combination of many factors?

I just don't know, it feels really weird when you play this game and see stuff which has plenty of precedent in every other action-y game and even a very similar analogue in Uncharted. How did Uncharted get 3 sequels before people even mentioned "yo there's a lot of people getting dead in this game," and Tomb Raider gets raked over the coals right away despite having a far stronger sense of place and character then most?

I can't figure it out

Loved this week's show guys. Great work :)

Back to the Tomb Raider discussion, Jeff and Garnett briefly touched on an issue that I want to hear more about.

Garnett asked if Jeff unlocked and used many of the execution moves. Jeff said "No, I used the bow almost exclusively" (paraphrasing here).

I think this might be a huge part of what lead to Jeff and Garnett having such polarized opinions of the game's theme and tone. I feel that some of the execution moves are so over-the-top gratuitous that Lara DOES come across as bloodthirsty. I feel like the player is supposed to ENJOY these extreme displays of violence, which goes completely against Lara's supposed struggle with her own morality.

But if Jeff rarely saw any of these executions, suddenly the entire tone is shifted back into a more balanced position.

Good podcast again. Few corrections and a small rant.

As far as the direction for the God of War 3. The idea for each game to take place in a different era is not correct. In an interview with Game Trailers he "suggested that the battle with Zeus would be set at the beginning of the game. Kratos would kill Zeus, creating a vortex that would suck all mythologies - Greek, Egyptian, Norse etc. - into one world. While in this world, Kratos would ultimately stop the people from believing in these gods, thereby ushering in the new age of religions, beginning with Christianity. The ending of the game would see you playing as the Three Wise Men. The origin of the Sphinx would also be explained as a monster that Kratos froze with Medusa's Head, whilst Kratos ultimate fate would be to sacrifice himself to live with his family in Hades."

Now my small rant is that I think people take this whole "bros before hoes" issue way to seriously. It's right that the naming of the trophy was rather silly and misplaced but if you take the time to actually look at the context of which said trophy belongs to you can see just how much of a misfire that whole dissociation was. I was rather surprised that last week's podcast had two guests discussing the issue with no real research behind them. I would expect something like that from Marcus Beer but from a guy Cannata who usually does his research very well; I just excepted more. I was also very amazed that Sessler, who played the game itself, kinda misfired on that one. At Garnett said in advance that he has very little knowledge of said "controversy."

Now I know I can come and ask "Well if it wasn't such a big issue and was taken out of context, then why did Sony went and change it?"

Well first off all they changed it because the naming itself was, as I've said before, very silly. Second, did anyone really except them not to?! With the way people are today, every time the word "I'm offended" are thrown around, companies just have this reactive reflex to go on a denial path. Not saying that every case is bogus or real but people have been inflating the issue so much that eventually people will just look the other way every time someone will try to say "I'm offended."

Also, How come no one complained and yelled "MISOGYNY" about that scene in God of War 3 where Kratos used Poseidon's Princess, who herself is chained in a cell while she is crying for help, to hold the crack so the two big metal gates can stay open, after which he goes through and she gets crushed under the crank by the weight of the metal gates.

You want to know why no one complained nor cared about that? Because there wasn't a Dead Island bust that pretty much bust the flood gates open.

Well that's it from me. Great job as always. This one of the very few podcasts I actually listen to. I hope someday you will have the Giantbomb guys, or as least one of them, over as a guest.

i think the problem that people have with you garnett is when you talk about something or talk down about something you have this elitism to it.. for me it still goes back to the PS4 podcast.. you have this PC elitist to all of your opinions.. where you dismiss a game because you didnt agree with it.. where you think you're more evolved than everyone else and you dont need to deal with the neanderthal problems with games. that its beneath you.. some others in the group are the same way but not as bad.

Cool to see Mattas back! His presence has been missed on the past few shows.

Great episode. Really nice to have the gang back together. I appreciated Garnett's mea culpa this week acknowledging that he may have gone a bit overboard relying on Sessler's commentary regarding God of War. Sessler is always entertaining but he is prone to histrionics when discussing certain topics. It always seems like an acknowledgement that the evidence behind his point is pretty thin but the subject matter itself is clearly something he feels passionate about.

Loved the Cart Life talk. Amazing freaking game.

The gamefly ad with Jeff during the podcast is way too long. I know I can just skip it but it really drones on for over a minute, cut that shit down. Love the show otherwise.

Miasmata is the only game that has given me that 'oh shit, I'm lost in the woods and night is coming' feeling that any real life hiker has probably experienced.

Yeah it would be cool if the 3D environment was more interactive but hey -- it's a game made by literally two people. It's never going to look as good as Far Cry 3 and honestly it comes amazingly close and bests it in some ways (the clouds!).

I must say, this is the first time that I've actually been interested in getting a 3DS. Having listened to the Luigi talk, and with Lego City, DK Returns and Pokemon X & Y incoming, I might have to grab one.

Mattas is back! More Nikole!