Virtual Vox Pop: What’s the hardest 2D game you’ve ever played?
Virtual Vox Pop is a weekly open mic in which we ask you, the reader, to sound off on a particular topic. This week, it’s the hardest games ever.
Games just aren’t as hard as they used to be.
Don’t mistake this statement as one coming from a person looking to artificially give his gaming accomplishments more weight – - I see it as fact. Outside of a few throwback titles (Mega Man 9, Mega Man 10), few contemporary games achieve the level of hair-pulling insanity that ran rampant through the 8- and 16-bit eras.
The 2D-X team has decided to list our most frustrating 2D games and, as expected, they’re all pretty old. Agree? Disagree? Let your voice be heard, folks.
Virtual Vox Pop: Should SEGA return to hardware?
Virtual Vox Pop is a weekly open mic in which we ask you, the reader, to sound off on a particular topic. This week, it’s Dreamcast 2 speculation.
Ever since the pre-mature death of the legendary Dreamcast, hardcore SEGA fanboys have held on to a small, minute, glimmer of hope that the company would shift from being a third-party developer for Microsoft, Nintendo, and Sony and return to making its own hardware. The passion and love has even gone so far that some delusional types believe that Sonic the Hedgehog 4: Episode 1 may be the first title for what may very well be the Dreamcast 2.
Virtual Vox Pop: What are the best and worst 2D to 3D video game conversions?
Virtual Vox Pop is a weekly open mic in which we ask you, the reader, to sound off on a particular topic. This week, it’s video game series moving from 2D to 3D.
The news of Team 17’s new 2D Worms game, Worms Reloaded, caused the proverbial warm fuzzy, not only because I’m a massive embassador of 2D games, but due to the fact that it also caused me to painfully reflect on the travesty that was Worms 3D.
Really, I can’t fault Team 17’s attempt at a 3D Worms video game; after all, it was the era before the 2D video game rebirth that began with Mega Man 9. Everyone was doing 3D. What I do fault, however, are the horrid camera angles and overall suspect execution that led to a subpar title.
Still, not all 2D games that have crossed over into the third dimension have crashed and burned. The Metal Gear Solid series is a prime example of the transition done correctly. The reason why it worked is that the MSX and NES Metal Gear games have always been 3D at heart; the technology to embrace the stealth gameplay wouldn’t come to years later.
So I hand you the mic: what do you consider to be the best and worst 2D to 3D jumps in video games?
Virtual Vox Pop: Can Street Fighter IV be successfully ported to iPhone/iPod touch?
Virtual Vox Pop is a weekly open mic in which we ask you, the reader, to sound off on a particular topic. This week, it’s Street Fighter IV for iPhone.
I’ll be frank: the internets can play home to all manner of bullocks. From Tommy Hilfiger dropping the n-word on Oprah to aliens plotting 9-11 to steal NYC’s soul, there’s massive amounts of rubbish to be found. So when I discovered chatter about Street Fighter IV coming to iPhone, and casually dismissed it as the imagination of a mad man. Then I saw this:
I clicked the link out of pure curiosity and was taken to IGN’s coverage of Street Fighter IV for iPhone. My mind raced: I checked the calendar to make sure that it wasn’t April 1st. Nope. I looked at the tweet again–it came Capcom itself. This appeared to be real, but it didn’t make sense.
Virtual Vox Pop: Are you hyped for The Behemoth’s Battleblock Theater?
Virtual Vox Pop is a weekly open mic in which we ask you, the reader, to sound off on a particular topic. This week, it’s Battleblock Theater.
When it comes to weaving 2D video game magic, very few indies or majors do it with such passion and love as The Behemoth. Starting with the run-and-gun shooting of Alien Hominid, and pushing forward to the new-classic Castle Crashers, the California-based dev team has given fans plenty of wacky action, and eye-catchingly cute characters and environments. Now, The Behemoth is back with its third title, Battleblock Theater.
Not much is known about the game other than what news was released last year – - it will be competitive multi-player game in the mold of Super Smash Bros. that this writer thinks looks positively bad ass. Like past hits, Battleblock Theater is XBLA bound; no word on PSN or WiiWare.
So I turn this over to you, dear reader. Do you think The Behemoth can strike gold one more time with Battleblock Theater?
Virtual Vox Pop: Should Capcom abandon sprites in its future fighters?
Virtual Vox Pop is a weekly open mic in which we ask you, the reader, to sound off on a particular topic. This week, it’s Capcom’s stance on sprites.
Street Fighter IV is awesome fighter that brought hardcore fighting back to the mainstream. Tatsunoko vs. Capcom is a a damned fine fighting game that manages to capture the insanity of previous “Vs.” games while maintaining its own distinct feel. What do they have in common? They both feature sprite-less games that utilize 3D polygonal models on a 2D plane. 2.5D, if you will.
Virtual Vox Pop: Is Ron Jeremy right about violent video games?
Virtual Vox Pop is a weekly open mic in which we ask you, the reader, to sound off on a particular topic. This week, it’s violent video games.
At CES 2010, Ron Jeremy, the male face of the adult film industry squared off against anti-porn activist Craig Gross. According to PC Mag he performed verbal bukakke all over the game industry.
Jeremy insisted that the industry only caters to the over-18 crowd. “We don’t want kids to watch porn,” he told the crowd. Though if they do, he added, there are far worse influences out there — like video games. “[Studies have] found that violent video games are much bigger a negative influence on kids.”
That’s a pretty ballsy statement to make at the convention that birthed E3, especially by someone that looks very much like Mario. His argument, based on numbers/research that he didn’t recite, is certainly one that has been around since the days of Mortal Kombat and Night Trap – - but is it true? Make your voices heard, brothers of the joystick.
Virtual Vox Pop: What’s Your Most Anticipated 2D Game of 2010?
Pictured: Hope.
Virtual Vox Pop is a weekly open mic in which we ask you, the reader, to sound off on a particular topic. This week, it’s the 2D games of 2010.
2009 proved an absolutely amazing year for 2D games with strong showings in virtually every genre conducive to the style of play. However, the calendar is poised to flip, and with that happening will come a new year filled with a slew of fresh titles designed to dazzle the gamingverse. A quick run down of some of the early standouts:
- 8-bit Left 4 Dead
- B-Boy Brawl
- Dark Void Zero
- Final Fight: Double Impact
- Glory of Heracles
- Matt Hazard: Blood, Bath, and Beyond
- Sands of Destruction
- Super Street Fighter IV
- Tatsunoko vs. Capcom: Ultimate All-Stars
Personally, SEGA’s Project Needlemouse has my joystick ready to rock thanks to a teaser video that hints of a new, 2D Sonic game. Anyone who’s familiar with my gaming history knows of my sorted love affair with the hedgehog (and my desire to see the heartbreak come to an end), so 2010 is already shining bright.
What are you most looking forward to playing in 2010?
Virtual Vox Pop: Is Capcom Preying On Gamers’ Retro Love With Dark Void Zero?
Virtual Vox Pop is a weekly open mic in which we ask you, the reader, to sound off on a particular topic. This week, it’s neo-retro games (potentially) gone wrong.
Never let it be said that Capcom doesn’t know how to capitalize on a hot property.
Much like the multiple incarnations of Street Fighter II, Street Fighter Alpha, Street Fighter III, and Street Fighter IV, Dark Void, the upcoming jetpack action game developed by Airtight Games, will have another franchise entry come January: Dark Void Zero.
Dark Void Zero is a game designed explicitly to siphon the Dark Void hype, help build buzz, and net Capcom some decent coin. Unlike Jetpack Attack, a free, simple, Web game that is essentially Dark Void in 2D, Dark Void Zero is a prequel gloriously rendered in 8-bit. Capcom even whipped up some delightful awful old school box art a la Mega Man 9 and Mega Man 10, and even created a bogus back story.
Virtual Vox Pop: What’s You Favorite Metal Slug Game?
Virtual Vox Pop is a weekly open mic in which we ask you, the reader, to sound off on a particular topic. This week, it’s your favorite Metal Slug game.
Metal Slug XX, the upgraded multi-player version of the underrated Metal Slug 7, is headed to the Japanese XBLA sometime next year as SNK Playmore’s 2010 offering to 2D lovin’ gamers. A conversation with a friend regarding where we would rank its quality in comparison to the other entries in this long running- series sparked this week’s topic.
Sam held aloft the banner of Metal Slug X, but I had to give props to Metal Slug 3. Yes, I know, its a pretty cliched response, but it contained a solid mix of hardcore military action and absolutely bonkers in-game features. When I first realized that an attacking zombie doesn’t kill you, but turn you into a zombie ( a zombie that spits a stream of what appears to be acid-laced blood), well, I just knew it was meant to be. It was one of the final games that the old SNK developed before its bankruptcy, purchase, and then rebirth as SNK Playmore, and you can see all of the loving care (the trademark of the old SNK), that was poured into the title.
So, as always, what say you?
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