So I know last Spring I said we were done, it was over between us, time for us to move on. Well I was wrong UMass, so very wrong. It turns out I still need you, and I hope you still need me. Anyway, I’m back for one more semester and as long as I’m back so is The Videogame Connoisseur.
Where to start… The PS3 may not be the complete failure I once thought it was. Most of its exclusives, like Final Fantasy, have jumped ship for release on the Xbox 360, but its still got Metal Gear Solid, which is pretty cool. And Hideo Kojima has said he’s not making any more, so you have to get a PS3 if you want to see how the series ends. However, this isn’t the first time he’s said that it was his “finale” so I wouldn’t be surprised if a spin-off appeared on the Xbox in the near future. The series is too big, too lucrative, and too popular to just end it now.
What’s coming as a pleasant surprise is how well the PSP is doing. I have to say it’s not really competing with the Nintendo DS-the two systems offer their users different things. The DS is more on the family-friendly side (like the rest of the Nintendo in America), while the PSP seems to be heavily focused on sequels to console games and PSone ports. The PSP also offers graphics the DS really hasn’t been able to tap into and it also has different game line-ups. I also have a slight feeling that the ease with which you can hack into a PSP has something to do with its popularity.
I am enamored with Rock Band, easily the greatest party game of all time. And imagine my elation when they announced there would be a Rock Band 2. I have to wonder if it will be a whole new game, or more of an expansion of the current game. It’s also been said that you can transfer all your songs from the current game to the new one; I hope the talk of the extra cost of doing so is just a rumor.
As videogames are interactive, I ask: why can’t this column be interactive as well? I want all the readers out there to please, please, get in touch and request reviews, ask questions, give comments on my reviews, and, if you want to, just plain argue with me. I’m here. I’m a student just like you, so please feel free to ask for my opinion, on games, or systems, or which graphics card to use in your new gaming rig. Stop by the Mass Media offices in the back of Student Life (third floor, CC) and demand to talk to me. Drop me a line anytime at [email protected] and just maybe I’ll address your questions or comments in the next column. I look forward to serving you once again with a full helping of the VGC every week. And. until next time, remember: always SAVE at every chance you get.