March 30, 2010

It's been a year since we've seen a truly worthwhile PS2 release in the US.  Sakura Wars: Song Long My Love might just be the last game to fit that category.  It's been said after every reasonably good PS2 release for the past few years, but this baby's been holding this mantle for a full lap around the sun now.  Maybe this time, it's serious.  Oh, and don't even think about suggesting a game with a year in its title be considered worthwhile, no matter what some rouge thug at IGN has to say.  Sports games plumb don't count towards life.  Period.  It's the mantra of the non-sub-human.

Speaking of sports, there's a new item in the "Most Recent Stuff" column, and it's pretty interesting despite being only tangentially pertinent to video games.  Or maybe that's because it's only tangentially pertinent to games.

So the 3DS has been out for a good 48 hours here in the States.  Mine is on the way - the details of the acquisition are none of your concern, but rest assured I'm making 'em all sound more interesting that they really are.  Not sure how much I'd pay for it.  When I first heard about it, as well as experts' initial reactions, I was immediately sold on it.  Guess I bought the hype.

Promises of greatness at face-melting levels abounded as well as those of a fantastic launch lineup.  Well, the day one lineup is a bit disappointing.  Based on the Nintendo press conferences, I thought we'd get a Paper Mario remake, new Kid Icarus, Ocarina remake... and other more interesting titles I can't immediately recall.  I knew they wouldn't blow their load at launch, but from my perspective, if your most interesting title is a Streeter Fighter IV port, watered down as it likely is (even if it's easy to see how 3D effects can enhance the experience), my boner shrinks.

From my POV, the first game that comes close to a must-have, and I'm rounding up here, is Devil Survivor: Overclocked, a remake of a game that's hard to fathom how 3D would significantly improve things.

But hey!  I can't be too down on getting a new system with no harm to my bank account.