I can’t stop playing Starcraft 2. It’s an addiction. There were all these games for Xbox that I wanted to try out, but I haven’t turned my Xbox on for almost a month. Limbo is still in limbo, Death Spank has no life, and Final Fantasy is a fantasy. There’s only one game that has a chance to get me away from my mouse and keyboard, and that’s Halo: Reach, so I figured I’d take a look at why.

For those who have been living under a rock, Halo is basically the reason that the Xbox brand still exists today. It was a revolution in first person shooters on the FPS, but the series has been showing signs of age in recent years. Halo: ODST sold a ton of copies but didn’t achieve the staying power of previous entries. I’m cautiously optimistic that Halo: Reach can buck the trend (or at least take me away from Starcraft 2 for a little while) – here’s why.

Epic Story
Spoiler alert: Everybody dies.

At least I’m pretty sure they do. If I have my Halo lore correct, Reach is the planet on which Spartans were trained and it fell to the Covenant in the big war – leading to the death of many Spartans (and the reason why Master Chief is the only Spartan left during the events of Halo). It seems Reach is going to be similar to ODST in the sense that you are following a squad throughout the game. The difference is, instead of ODSTs, you are following Spartans – Noble Team. Amongst the team you have your standard characters – heavy guy, sniper, etc. You assume the rule of a new member of the team (another rookie), but who knows, maybe you’ll get to play as the other guys as well.

I am pretty excited at the stories Reach could present. It’s kind of like 300 – you know the good guys eventually lose, but there is tons of room for EPICNESS along the way. Maybe Reach falls, but I’m looking forward to taking down hordes of Covenant along the way. There is ample opportunity for tie ins to the other Halo games as well which fans of the forwards can look forward to. The nice thing about knowing the end of a story is that the joy is finding out how you get there – I am hoping that Reach can deliver that.

Reworked Multiplayer
I’m not sure if Bungie is going to do a complete working of the multiplayer, but it’s definitely going to be different as players of the beta can attest. Although I thought the new classes added didn’t seem as deep as I’d like, it still provides an interesting twist on the gameplay that I think can revitalize the series. I also wrote during the beta about my disappointment with some of the new gametypes, but I still think they can be a lot of fun.

Classes will be a good way to customize gameplay as well – I’m definitely looking forward to using the different items. Overall, Reach’s multiplayer is definitely going to feel like Halo, but with a new twist. I think it’ll be good for the series and the community.

Swan Song
Last but not least, I’m looking forward to Halo: Reach because it’s Bungie’s Halo swan song. Like the Spartans, Halo: Reach is Bungie’s last stand – they are ending their partnership with Microsoft after this and will be working on new IPs. Although I have no evidence to support this, this leads me to believe that Bungie is going to pull out all the stops. They’ve always been great to the fans and I think with this being the last Bungie entry in the Halo series they are going to make it awesome. EPIC.

So on September 14th, I will be taking at least one day off from Starcraft 2. It’ll be interesting to figure out how to split time after Reach comes out, I’m sure espion4ge and I will be torn. We’ll find out in two weeks!

Hi – my name is cmfl3x. And I’m an achievaholic.

Things didn’t start this way. I bought my Xbox 360 and started playing games just like I always had. I think one of the first Achievements I remember receiving was in Call of Duty 2. I had just completed the game: I heard a little beep-boop and saw a little icon. Achievement unlocked. Hmm, what could that mean? I didn’t think much of it, and for almost a year, continued to pay those little notifications no mind.

And then, something happened. I’m not sure if it was Halo 3 or Call of Duty 4. Or both. But suddenly, I found myself going out of the way to look for skulls. Or upping the difficulty to Veteran. Or shooting pigeons. Before I knew it, I was doubling, tripling, even quadrupling the time investment I’d put into a game. I told myself that I was just getting maximum value from the game. But deep down, I knew the truth. I knew why I was doing it. Beep-boop.

I started spiraling further and further down. Those two tones were changing the way I played games. No longer did I care about spoilers, I just wanted to know if there were Achievements I was going to miss. I started keeping elaborate files to help me keep track of what was going on. Assassin’s Creed 2? 1000 points. Brutal Legend? Found all the statues. Modern Warfare 2? All your laptops are belong to us. And then I started spending a lot of time beating time challenges, like Portal and Mirror’s Edge. I was sinking hours and hours into these games. But was I having fun?

Everything came to a head while playing Half Life 2. I needed my wife to direct me to all the Lambda caches. It was faster that way. She was patient at first, but eventually got fed up and told me to do it myself. She hates Achievements. She wants me to stop. So I’m trying to stop. But it’s so difficult! I started playing Half Life 2 Episode 2 the other day. I promised myself I’d just play through the game, without consulting an Achievement guide. But then…there are so many antlion grubs. That must be killed. For………….beep-boop.

I’m trying not to care, but as long as those lyrical, dulcet tones are there, I’m not sure I can stop. I’m carrying a garden gnome throughout my playthrough. I’m mapping out the best way to play through Final Fantasy XIII to maximize Achievement efficiency. WILL THE MADNESS END!?

I will try my best to play games without Achievements in mind. I just don’t have the time for it anymore. I love it, but it’s ruining my gaming life. I just want to enjoy games again. I just want my experience to be pure – I just want to experience the thrill of experiencing a GAME, not a chore. Can I ever kick the habit? Can I break this iron grip on my gaming soul?

Beep-boop.

Alas, the Starcraft 2 beta has ended. Unlike the Reach beta, SC2 sunk its hooks into me and refused to let go. It got me thinking about what types of multiplayer experiences appeal to me in my current “leveled down” state. Why was I done with Reach in 3 or 4 sessions while I played 5 times as much SC in the same amount of time? Hit the jump for my thoughts on the matter…

The major draw of the multiplayer games I’m into can be boiled down to one word: progression. I like to feel as if there is a goal I’m working towards, regardless of how well I’m doing. Modern Warfare still has my favorite progression system ever. No matter how crappy a player you are, you’re always leveling up in that game. It provides a perpetual carrot for you to keep playing for. Halo and Starcraft do it a little differently: you move up or down depending on how well you do. I prefer Starcraft 2′s method of doing this, because instead of having an absolute rank, you get to move up and down within a division of only 100 people.

The second and most obvious draw of multiplayer games is the gameplay. There is a reason why some games have huge multiplayer communities: they are a blast to play. Halo, Goldeneye, Starcraft – all the greats have amazing gameplay. After that it just comes down to personal preference and what type of game you enjoy the most. Halo is still an amazing game, but I feel like I have a better chance at being slightly competitive in Starcraft. Thus, right now, I like Starcraft better. Of course we’ll see come release time for both games.

The third thing I look for in a good multiplayer game is ease of play with friends. This boils down to both party and matchmaking and also my friends’ skills. It’s ideal to play a game where everyone is about the same skill level. I don’t really like playing multiplayer games by myself (not in a party); it’s much more fun to get a bunch of friends together and play together. I know it seems obvious, but for me, it’s crucial. If my friends aren’t playing, I probably won’t be either.

I’m past the point in my life where I think I have any shot of playing any multiplayer games competitively. In fact, I probably never had a shot, it’s just now I know it. Thus, I just want to play a game that makes me feel like I’m contributing to my team and progressing. I also really appreciate games that have strong matchmaking systems – I don’t enjoy being pwned by any stretch of the imagination.

What about everyone else? What do you all look for in a multiplayer game?

Last month I posted a gaming schedule for April, and I think it worked out pretty well. I was able to make my way through Final Fantasy XIII, Battlefield: Bad Company 2, Dante’s Inferno, and surprisingly, Army of Two: The 40th Day. A couple weeks ago, I posted a different entry discussing games that I wouldn’t mind paying a monthly fee for. But now that May is underway, I’ve realized that maybe being able to play all four games I was willing to pay monthly fees for at the same time is perhaps a bit too much – on top of Mass Effect 2, which carried over from last month. So, what the heck do I do in May?! Read on as I postulate my gaming schedule for the rest of the month.

With so many amazing games to play this month, I’ve definitely gone into gaming overload. I thought it was bad last month…this month is even worse, because now I’m getting hit with monster gaming titles that each really deserve their own several months to play. One thing that this deluge of excellent gaming titles has made me realize is that I don’t know if I should even be buying anything else this year. I think Alan Wake and Lost Planet 2 come out this month and maybe even some other major titles. But seriously – who has time? Look at what’s already on my plate (and don’t even get me started on my dust-collecting PS3 and my backlog for that system).

Starcraft 2 (beta)
July 27, 2010 was recently announced as the game’s release date, but it’s still a long while away. I haven’t played the game much as of late. Part of the reason is because of the number of other games I’m juggling with, but the other part of the reason is that I’m already starting to feel comfortable with the game. I think my main reason to play the beta was to learn the new mechanics of the game and just get comfortable with it. I remember prior to Warcraft III’s release my buddies and I played the beta practically every night back in college. Then when retail hit, it was easy to shoot to the top of the ladder since we had so much more experience than others. I did have a more competitive mindset back then. Today, with Starcraft II, I don’t imagine seeing myself really playing the game 1v1 too much when the retail releases nor do I plan to shoot up the ladder, so I’m not putting too many hours in now. I’m more interested in playing 2v2 at this point in the beta, so hopefully I get some of those in before the beta ends. I would have loved to see 3v3 or 4v4, but I guess it makes sense that Blizzard wants 1v1 & 2v2 to be tested first and foremost, since that’s probably where most of the imbalance issues can be more prominent. This game is going on the backburner for me unless I can schedule 2v2s with some of you.

Halo: Reach (beta)
I spent some brief time with this game on Monday, and some more time last night. After playing the game last night some more, I have to admit that my positive initial impressions I had on Monday were reduced a bit after last night. I like the whole class system, and the matchmaking system is excellent – queueing up to join your friends for the next match is thumbs up, and the party manager dropping out and taking everyone with him also is quite convenient. But as I played the game more last night, the gameplay is still very much Halo, and the whole 7-8 shots with your magnum or carbine rifle to kill someone is just too long for me. On top of that, grenade spamming is out of control. The damage on them is so high, and everyone starting with 2 grenades is probably not a good design decision. One grenade should be it! In any case, it seems like Halo: Reach has made some improvements over Halo 3, so Halo 3 fans will probably love this game. I’ll probably end up playing this game since everyone will be playing it when it releases, but it’s not a game I foresee myself playing solo online when no one else is on. The beta also ends in less than two weeks, and I’ll be out of the country on vacation by then so this is probably the only time I have to play the beta. I’m glad to have checked it out, but also glad to not have to worry about it anymore.

Modern Warfare 2
With all of the other games to play this month, Modern Warfare 2 has definitely moved to my backburner. For me a backburner is basically a game that I’m not going to really consider playing on my own, but will take out when other friends want to play it. I’m not even really ready to give up playing Modern Warfare 2 yet, but I just need to find time to play everything else on my plate. But, in those times when I do break out Modern Warfare 2, it feels good to be playing it again. I still love the game so if any of you still want to play it, just ask!

Super Street Fighter IV
It’s pretty neat that I can actually feel myself improving. Practicing my block strings and being more aggressive about throwing has allowed me to hold my own against characters that I am familiar with. With a combination of block strings and throws, my offensive game has actually gotten pretty decent. I seem to fight a lot of Dudleys and Juris when I play online so I’m getting good training against them and learning how they fight. With Starcraft 2 and Modern Warfare 2 on the backburner and my time with Halo: Reach coming to a close, Super Street Fighter IV is my primary online game for the moment. There’s so many improvements I need to make, but I see the steps I need to take so I’m not frustrated or anything yet. Now that my blockstrings and throwing are at a decent level, I’m going to need to work on my anti-air game, mastery of focus attacks, and better use of Ultra Combos to bring my game to the next rank…B? It’s a long road but I’m enjoying it. I just hope I don’t fall out of practice when I go on vacation.

Mass Effect 2
If you’ve noticed, all of the other games I’ve mentioned so far for May are all competitive games I’m playing. I need some sort of solo game that I can just play to not pump my adrenaline every gaming session. Mass Effect 2 is that game. And what a great choice for a “single player” sanctuary away from all of the competitiveness of the other games. I wasn’t the biggest fan of the first Mass Effect, but I think Mass Effect 2 is phenomenal. It’s what I wanted the first game to be, minus the planet surveying. I actually fall asleep during those parts and whenever I see unknown planets, I dread having to go survey them. But other than that, everything else about the game has me drawn in. Of course, it’s not the easiest going since I’m playing on Insanity difficulty from the get-go, but with a level 60 imported Shepherd from the first game, I’m doing ok. I sort of wish I wasn’t a Soldier class though, as I’m having to rely on Miranda all the time to use Warp and Overload since all of the enemies have shields or armor. Insanity is making me fall back upon my old MMORPG days, as I plant my teammates somewhere, run forward, find an enemy, and pull him back to my teammates to get the kill. Even on bosses, I have to come up with “cheap ways” to take them out. Those robots with Armor and Shield on Insanity difficulty take me several minutes to destroy, since I need to blow through those two layers using Miranda’s skills. Thumbs up though on this game. Excellent stuff and well recommended.

After a two hour download on Monday, I finally got to dip my toes into the Halo: Reach multiplayer beta. I’ve played about 15 matches and I’ll start with this: It’s Halo, and that’s a good thing. There are a few new bells and whistles though, so don’t just expect Halo 3 with better graphics. It’s a beta and a lot of things are still up in the air, so I figured I’d write about what I love, what I’m not so sure about, and what I’d like to see change.

What I love
Hands down, my favorite aspect of Halo Reach multiplayer is the introduction of new game types – specifically, Stockpile. Stockpile consists of two teams of four trying to bring four neutral flags to their home base. The catch is, flags are only scored at set times during the match (about every minute). The game only counts flags inside your base when a timer finishes, meaning you can throw an enemies flag outside of their zone 2 seconds before time is up and they won’t score it.

There is one word that describes Stockpile for me: genius. It’s an intense game mode that is tons of fun and there is a lot of strategy to boot. You can decide whether to grab your own flags and turtle or whether to put the pressure on the other team. Good teams probably will do both. If Stockpile was the only addition to multiplayer in Reach, I’d probably be pretty happy already.

Luckily, that’s not the only thing. The graphics have been improved (though I don’t really care about that), and I really like the new maps. I’ve heard some complaints about Swordbase, which is kind of like two four story buildings across from each other, but I think it’s fun jumping from floor to floor. Powerhouse is a beautiful outdoor map with tons of different paths and different ways to use the new jetpack.

Oh, did I mention there are jetpacks? Another great addition to Reach is new abilities that different classes of characters can use. You can sprint, use a jetpack, go stealth, or go into a temporary invincible mode (immobile). These different abilities have meters that need to regenerate and really add to some of the tactical aspects of the game. More importantly, all these different abilities are a lot of fun. I definitely love using the jetpack although I’m still not totally used to the physics yet.

The other thing I love about Reach is the introduction of new weapons. I don’t totally get how all of them work yet, but they are a lot of fun and definitely infuse some freshness into the franchise. Oh, and Bungie nailed parties and joining games and stuff like that, so put that on the “love” list too. However, there are some things about the beta the jury’s still out on for me…

What I’m not sure about…
Reach introduces a new class base system. Before you think Call of Duty, let me stop you. You can’t customize your class, but for each gametype you can choose from four class types. Each class comes with two different guns and an ability. Supposedly, as you play more, the starting guns for each class and the names of each class will change, but I haven’t gotten far enough yet.

I definitely enjoy the more personal customization, but I’m still a bit unsure about Halo’s new unlock system. For one thing, it takes quite a long time to level up. Secondly, it seems like most of the unlocks revolve around stuff like tricking out your armor. That stuff is cool and all, but I still like the idea of more personal customization of weapons. It doesn’t look like Halo Reach is going to offer that. I’m in a wait and see mode, but right now it doesn’t seem like there is the type of customization I want in Reach.

The other thing I’m not too sure about is whether Halo is going to have the same addictiveness it once had for me. Back in the day, Halo was the only game in town, but now there are so many good games out there, who knows if I’ll be playing it for a year like I did before. Time will tell for that one though, so I’m not saying Halo will be addictive or not, we’ll just have to see come next fall.

What I am not fond of
Grenades feel overpowered. Like, way overpowered. I don’t know if that was a design choice, but if it was, I don’t like it. Also, something about the gameplay feels a little sloppy to me. Maybe I’m just not used to Halo anymore, but I have a hard time knowing if I’m shooting someone and the targeting reticule gets unclear when I’m firing or something? I don’t know. Something feels a little bit off.

Another thing I’m not fond of in the beta is that they haven’t released the Invasion gametype yet! OK, that’s kind of cheating, but I really want to play it. I love objective based stuff!

Final Thoughts
Overall, my impression of the Reach beta is quite positive. I’m enjoying myself, and it’s fun being back in the Halo universe again. I’m also really looking forward to the single player. The beta’s only going on for two more weeks and I highly recommend checking it out. There are tons of things that I didn’t get to mention here in my short impressions. Sure, Reach is just a lot more Halo, but hey, that’s a good thing!

Yesterday, espion4ge wrote about his experiences trying to conquer hardcore games these days, and today I will do the same, albeit from a different perspective. I played tons of Starcraft in college as well, but I probably was never as good and usually would win more because of brains then because of actions per minute. That’s not to say I am very smart – it’s more like the only chance I ever had to win was to out-think an opponent, which sometimes was pretty rare. Anyway, when it comes to Street Fighter, my previous idea of strategy can be found here. So while I am finding myself relearning Starcraft in the sequel, for Street Fighter, it’s like I’m seeing the game for the first time, which is pretty cool.

Super Street Fighter IV
I promised myself I wouldn’t buy this game, although my steely resolved crumbled quickly under the weight of Team Leveling Down’s peer pressure (though now they’ve seen me play, bet they wish they hadn’t pressured me. Ha!). Anyway, I still think it’s a little lame that many of this game’s features weren’t in the original, but I think the ability to have lobbies (even though there is no matchmaking for teams) really enhances the hardcore aspects of the game.

For the first time since I was 12 I’m able to actually watch my friends play and learn from them live. So now my head is being flooded with all these new terms and techniques that I’ve never thought about playing a fighting game before. Focus-dash? Check. Anti-air? Check. Closing move? Check. Now that I can watch people who are good play and talk to them at the same time, I am gradually progressing from “no clue whatsoever” to “n00b” and it’s a lot of fun!

As a gamer, I’m generally quite aggressive, but since I’ve chosen Sagat as my main, I’m being taught by my senseis to take a more defensive approach. I’ve cheaped my way into a few victories and drawn the ire of some opponents. It’s awesome! What Super Street Fighter IV is doing is teaching me to actually think as I’m playing fighting games. Like espion4ge, the moves don’t always come out right which is frustrating, but for the first time I am actually starting to understand what moves I should use.

The replay channel in Super Street Fighter IV enhances the hardcore aspect of the game. Although there is no decent search function, I found a couple Sagat replays and found myself thinking about how I could incorporate those techniques into my game. Sitting back and roundhouse kicking won’t work forever! I’m definitely enjoying the game, but I’m also well aware that there will be a specific ceiling on my abilities. If the team battle mode had matchmaking, I’d probably be even more serious about improving my game, but as it stands, it’s not as fun beating 4 random people as it is beating 4 in a team so my motivations to improve may wane quickly without the competitive aspect, especially since I’m never going to put too much serious time into 1v1 stuff. Japanese game design strikes again…unfortunately.

Starcraft II
I just got the beta last Friday and haven’t gotten to put much time into it, but it feels like more of the same from Starcraft and that’s a good thing. I used to random, but since I don’t have the time to learn three races well anymore, I decided to focus on Zerg, my favorite. I’m almost done with my practice matches, which actually counts both 1v1 and 2v2 matches (kinda weird in my opinion). I’m 2-0 in 1v1s and 0-2 in 2v2s, so go figure. The people I played in 1v1 were pretty weak though and if I think they’re weak that’s saying something.

Starcraft 2 is a bit like switching from a single chain bike to a ten speed: the basic concepts are still the same, but a lot of the execution comes out different. Right now I’m just teaching myself hotkeys and tech trees, which isn’t really helping me get to the “strategy” aspect of the real time strategy. I think I’ve figured out a standard build order I like and I’ve been practicing my scouting (a major hole in my game), but I still have no idea when to tech up to Tier 3 and stuff like that. I’ve found that in general I’m pretty confused as to what to do with Zerg in the late game, once my early attack is fended off I’m at a loss for what to do. I’m also still learning the units and counters and maps – I’m looking forward to getting out of the practice league to see more of them.

The other thing that is challenging about Starcraft II is the overall crappiness of my computer; I have everything on the lowest settings and it still slows from time to time. It’s just something I have to deal with. I definitely am enjoying the game though, and I really hope that matchmaking will be such that I can find a nice little niche of decent but not great players who I can play against once the actual game comes out. I am too old to want to be SUPER competitive, but if I can find a nice happy medium where I’m winning only a few more games than I’m losing, I’ll be content. In the original game, I enjoyed 2v2 the most (less pressure, more strategerizing which is what I like to do), so hopefully I can find some partners who want to play regularly! Who knows, maybe some people might even finally quit Halo Wars to play Starcraft II!

The Future
One big difference between espion4ge’s and my hardcore gaming habits is that he’s been married for longer and thus is in a slightly more stable position when it comes to playing time. This weekend, I basically put in one to two hours of SSFIV and SC2 every night, PLUS another hour of FIFA World Cup 2010 to unwind afterwards. My wife was pretty nice about it, but ultimately that’s not going to be a tenable situation. It also makes me cry inside when she mocks me for sweating profusely while trying to execute my combos, so there’s that to contend with as well. Throw in the Halo: Reach Beta for the next two weeks and something’s gonna have to give!

My plan is to try to put an hour into Halo: Reach or SSFIV every night and then play one game of Starcraft 2. I’m perfectly content improving gradually; I just want to be competitive – I don’t need to be a master of anything. Once the real Halo: Reach comes out I definitely would make that my main game since FPS is my preferred genre, but I don’t feel a HUGE need to put too much time into the beta. However my playing time shakes out, I’m going to have no shortage of games to play until late June, so that’s a good thing. The immediate future is looking bright!

Having now completed the 8 hour game that is Dante’s Inferno, I’ve started thinking more about the crazy idea that this game retails for the same price as a game like Modern Warfare 2. With Modern Warfare 2′s Stimulus Package earning millions and millions of dollars amidst some complaining about the expensive $15 price tag, analysts have discovered that the $15 price tag was actually too low, since sales were higher than expected at that price. Maybe $20 would have been the sweet spot? In any case, it has gotten me thinking as of late about the disparity between the value of games. Are all games created equal? Of course not. Yet why are they all charging $60? I guess it works because in the end, games that are more than worth the $60 retail price will continue to sell like hotcakes while games that are not worth it will sell far less quantities. Game studios will make more for games that are worth more, but is it the best pricing strategy?

I may sound crazy when I say this, but I am actually willing to pay a monthly fee for certain games. Now this may sound ridiculous since why would someone offer to pay more for something when he’s already getting it cheaper? If I can play Modern Warfare 2 online for free already, why am I suggesting that I don’t mind paying for it? Because it’s one of the most entertaining games I’ve played in recent history that continues to captivate me month after month while other games get beaten and put back on the shelf or sold. Read on for the list of games being released this year (and Modern Warfare 2) that I would consider paying a monthly fee for and why.

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2
Many of the readers of Leveling Down are Modern Warfare 2 players. To us, the game is the pinnacle of current first person shooters and I’m guessing that the average time played among the regulars of the site is probably pushing 100 hours per person. Think about that. Not many other games you pick up are you putting in that much time, nor are you getting that much enjoyment from. It’s tough to really ask the question now if I’d be willing to pay a monthly fee for playing the game since many of us are “on our way out” so to speak, but considering we’ve played the game since it launched in November, it’s been a good 5 months of gaming for several of you. I honestly wouldn’t have minded paying $5-$10 a month to play this game, as it’s a stellar product. If Modern Warfare 3 released and was even better than 2 (although I wouldn’t hold my breath, as the whole Activision/Infinity Ward lawsuit has pretty much killed off any chance of a sequel worth considering), I would pay the monthly cost to play the game.

Super Street Fighter IV
Super Street Fighter IV arrives next week. A couple of you guys have probably put in over a hundred hours into Street Fighter IV (I guess that’s why you weren’t playing Modern Warfare 2), battling it out online against hundreds of different opponents. I’m getting more excited about jumping back into Street Fighter with Super Street Fighter IV, and based on what the game is going to provide, I can see myself actually paying a monthly fee to play this game online. Considering players still go into arcades and feed $1 bills into their local Street Fighter IV cabinets, to be able to play online against an infinite number of opponents with ranking for just a one-time $40 cost sounds like a great deal in comparison. Even if I had to pay a few dollars a month to play it online, it’s worth it if I want to get serious and stick with this game for the long haul.

Starcraft 2
The PC gets a little bit of its own loving this year with Starcraft 2. Starcraft 2 is only the sequel to arguably be the best PC game of all time and Leveling Down’s favorite game. When Starcraft 2 releases with the new Battle.net, it will have all sorts of ladders and ranking support that Warcraft 3 provided and I’m sure new features will be included. And like Warcraft III and Starcraft before it, most people will be playing Starcraft 2 for its multiplayer. When people are paying hundreds of dollars for just a beta key of the game, this sort of implies that the players of this game are willing to pay a monthly fee. And why not? The original Starcraft is still going strong today and is practically a sport. Some complain that Starcraft 2 got a price hike of $10 to $60 and is now being split across three boxed products. They’re still going to buy all three. Why? Because Starcraft 2 is definitely worth more than $60.

Halo Reach
Halo is the reason that Microsoft’s Xbox became successful in the first place, and before Modern Warfare came around, it was the premier online shooter of this console generation as well as last generation. Even now, 3 years after Halo 3 released, Halo 3 still manages to hold onto the second-most played Xbox 360 game week after week. How is that even possible? People love Halo multiplayer, and with Halo Reach actually sporting a substantial graphical upgrade and going into beta next month, there is certainly excitement in the air. I’m not a big Halo fan myself, but I have to admit that Halo: Reach looks promising. If this becomes my primary online game of choice this fall, I would be prepared to pay a monthly fee to continue playing this game. I guess we will see once the beta draws near.

Where Things Get A Little Muddled
To be fair, you could argue that any game that offers multiplayer online could then charge a monthly fee based on my claim. Battlefield: Bad Company 2, BlazBlue, Gears of War, etc. are all games with online functionality, but for me, I don’t enjoy those games enough to want to pay a monthly fee to play them online. Starcraft 2? No doubt. Modern Warfare 2? I would have back in November when it launched. Super Street Fighter IV? Sure, why not. Halo: Reach? Remains to be seen but signs indicate to yes. But the concept of charging a monthly fee for online games in general becomes a gray area – I didn’t enjoy Bad Company 2 multiplayer, yet I’m sure a good number of people are playing it online and loving it. So does that become a game with a monthly fee? Should monthly fees vary depending on the customer? I’m still a gamer first and foremost so luckily for me, I don’t have to think about pricing and trying to make a profit on my products. But for Activision to begin pursuing a way to charge a monthly fee for Call of Duty is honestly not a bad idea based on how successful it is. Of course, that was before Infinity Ward’s head fell off, so we shall see what happens next.

Before Things Get Heated Up
Keep in mind that I’m not advocating a straight up $15 monthly fee for all of these games I’ve mentioned similar to the World of Warcraft monthly fee. If I had to pay something like $5 a month for Starcraft 2, I’d have no issues with that. I honestly think that there could be some sort of pricing difference in a game that you pick up and are done with in under 10 hours versus one that you’re still constantly playing and enjoying months later. Of course, I’m certainly happy that I don’t have to pay a monthly fee to enjoy any of the games I’ve mentioned in this article – don’t get me wrong. But I wouldn’t be pissed if it was announced that they would charge monthly fees. And I realize that not all gamers are old like me and have jobs. How can we expect poor students to pay monthly fees to play their favorite games? Let’s just say that for now, I’m willing to pay the monthly fee on certain games and that this is only for myself. I’m not advocating that anyone else should have to pay it. Whew – hopefully that covers my bases…

My Newest Buying Strategy
With such a huge backlog and my “generous buying habits”, this article has really put my 2010 game buying plans into a clearer light. Each of the three games I mention above that are not released yet are games that I feel are worth paying a monthly fee for. This means that deep down, I know they are worth more than their retail price. This means day 1 purchase. But what about the other titles being released this year? What about the Alan Wakes and the Max Paynes and Dead Risings? I’ve actually come up with sort of a formula to give each game an actual value in my eyes. It’s clear from this article that if a game offers a multiplayer game that will have me playing for months, that means it’s worth a monthly fee. But if it’s single player only, depending on how good it is, the range should be something like 50 cents-$3 an hour for total game time. If Alan Wake is only a 10 hour game, it looks like it has pretty high production value so maybe it is worth that $3/hour and thus it’d be worth $30. Dante’s Inferno was pretty bad, so $1/hr would make the game really only worth $8 to me. This analysis has led me to conclude that any game that is single player only that is not an RPG is probably worth $30 at most. The $30-$50 range are RPGs that are lengthy and enjoyable (i.e. Fallout 3). RPGs that are lengthy and not enjoyable? Worth less or nothing – I’m not going to spend 50 hours grinding all day. So what does this all mean? Super Street Fighter IV, Starcraft 2, and Halo: Reach have already been pre-ordered and will most likely be the only games I buy this year at launch. The rest I can wait for sales/price drops when the games hit what I consider their “true value”. Of course, the value of a game is different for everyone. Bad Company 2 may only have been worth $20 for me, but for some, it is clearly worth more than $60. So, take my thoughts on the subject with a grain of salt since everyone is different.

With only a few games left in the running, cmfl3x and I have decided to combine the results discussion from Round 3 along with the starting the polling for Round 4.

Round 4 polls will close Monday, April 5th, at 6pm EST. cmfl3x will announce the two games moving into the Finals and open the voting on Tuesday. Hit the jump to see some commentary on the results and to vote for the Final Four…

Hollywood Region – Round 3 Results

(1) BioShock defeats (3) Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic [82-18]
I was actually surprised how much of a trouncing Star Wars got when it went up against BioShock, as it was able to squeak past Metal Gear Solid. Would Metal Gear Solid have also gotten destroyed by BioShock, the game that Leveling Down considers perhaps the best storyline in all of gaming? Talk about crazy. I voted for BioShock myself, as it was a gaming experience with a storyline and premise that still stands at the top today. The world of Rapture, its memorable characters, and the unforgettable plot twist helped BioShock easily make its way to the top in our Hollywood Region. I fell asleep a few times playing Knights of the Old Republic, but I did rebuy it on Steam recently and plan to make my way through it at some point because it does have its fair share of fans. I need to go back and see what I missed.

M16 Region – Round 3 Results

(3) GoldenEye 007 defeats (4) Halo 3 [58-42]
Is this an upset?! To me it was, even if GoldenEye ranked slightly higher than Halo 3 in the ratings. The score wasn’t that close – which means for us Leveling Down members, we are an older crowd that appreciated what GoldenEye did for shooters more so than what Halo 3 did. This is quite a shock for me, because we’re talking about a game that is two generations back that is going to make it into the Final Four. And unlike Starcraft, GoldenEye isn’t a game that quite stands the test of time (as eeyore has pointed out). Still, I voted for it, as I have never really loved Halo multiplayer, but I guess I’m not alone in this.

Sun-Tzu Region – Round 3 Results

(3) Starcraft defeats (1) Civilization IV [55-45]
Of the four matchups for the Elite 8, this was the only one that I was nearly certain Starcraft would win. Yet as I checked the polls over the last two days, the voting was pretty neck and neck. “Who are these people that are voting for Civilization IV?” I thought to myself. Well, in Civilization IV’s defense, its sequel is around the corner as well, so there are fans in both camps. It’s all about real time strategy versus turn based strategy. But, as the dust falls, we see that Leveling Down readers prefer a little more action mixed in with their strategy, and have gone the real-time route. Starcraft was almost defeated by Halo Wars in the first round, and almost defeated by Civilization IV in the third round, but in my head, it’s probably the #1 seed in this entire tourney.

(8) Rock Band 2 defeats (2) Street Fighter IV [58-42]
This is more of an upset in a technical way, as Rock Band 2 was not even among the initial list of games that cmfl3x considered for the Hodj Podj region. It went up against tough competition: Street Fighter IV is arguably the best Street Fighter game out there, and on top of that, Super Street Fighter IV releases this month. Still, there are many music game fans on our site, and the vote for Rock Band 2 is probably not so much a vote for the game as much as it is for the developer, Harmonix, and what they’ve done for music gaming. They brought Guitar Hero to us. They brought Rock Band to us. And while I personally feel they’ve kind of sold out, for anyone that enjoys musical gaming today, you still have to give Harmonix props.

espion4ge’s Forecast, West Region
Now it’s getting even tougher as we pit the champion of one region against another to see which game Leveling Down believes to be the better game. BioShock and its wonderful storyline goes up against Starcraft, the real-time strategy game that is treated like a sport in Korea with sponsors, “athletes”, and several television channels. With its near infinite replayability and sequel on the horizon, I would expect Starcraft to win by a longshot, but it didn’t have an easy victory against Civilization IV, and the majority of our readers are 360 owners so anything is possible!

espion4ge’s Forecast, East Region
What a strange East Region Finals matchup: GoldenEye against Rock Band 2 – I will dub this the couch multiplayer battle. Memories of us as kids playing GoldenEye on our couches with friends or playing plastic instruments with our friends – which one did we enjoy more? I’m actually having a tough time voting the winner of this one as well. GoldenEye and Rock Band 2 both surprised me with their respective Elite 8 victories, so this time we have two underdogs trying to move into the finals, where I have a feeling Starcraft will await. Can either of these two games defeat Starcraft? GoldenEye had a strong victory over Halo 3, while Rock Band 2 narrowly made it past Street Fighter IV. I actually have no idea which way this matchup will go. It’s too close to call! But either way, I will be happy for either game that moves onto the finals.

Now it’s up to you guys to decide:

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Voting for Round 3 is now open.

Polls will close this Thursday, April 1, 2010 at 6PM EST, so you will only have today and tomorrow to vote. I will post the winners for each of the four regions on Friday. These winners will move onto the Final Four next week as we get closer to the 2010 Finals. Hit the jump to cast your votes!

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After another furious round of voting, the Elite 8 is set! There were some pretty interesting Sweet 16 matchups, and a lot of the polls were closer than in the first round. At this point, 75% of the field has been eliminated, and we are 3 rounds away from finding out who is the winner of Leveling Down’s Video Game March Madness 2010! Hit the jump for a full recap, and feel free to express your utter outrage at the results in the comments!

Hollywood Region – Round 2 Results

(1) BioShock defeats (4) God of War [67-33]
This one was a real squeaker. I ended up voting for BioShock, but that’s a bit unfair since it’s the only game of the two I’ve played. And reading God of War’s story makes it sound really awesome. And I’m not sure if it’s BioShock’s story I love, or the setting. So maybe my vote was unfair. I also wonder if this is a referendum on Sony vs. Microsoft, since BioShock was an Xbox exclusive for a long while. Regardless, both these games are worthy titles, but in the end, it looks like Leveling Down users enjoy BioShock more, keeping the #1 seed alive.

(3) Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic defeats (2) Metal Gear Solid [55-45]
KOTOR has an excellent story, but Metal Gear Solid is tops in my book. Both games feature shocking plot twists, humorous moments, and mysterious sword wielding characters. Both also feature a memorable cast of characters, friend and enemy alike. But one, only ONE of these games features a scientist peeing their pants: and that is why it is a winner. Except it’s not the winner. In a close upset, KOTOR edges out Metal Gear Solid.

cmfl3x’s Forecast, Hollywood Region
I thought this was going to be God of War vs. MGS, but it turned out to be the exact opposite. It looks like the Star Wars license is carrying KOTOR, but we’ll see if the deep setting of Rapture puts Bioshock on top. I think KOTOR is going to take it to the Final Four in a squeaker.

M16 Region – Round 2 Results

(4) Halo 3 defeats (8) Resident Evil 4 [68-32]
The first Cinderella seed falls. Resident Evil 4 was a huge leap forward for shooters, but the fact of the matter is, Halo DEFINED this generation’s console shooters, at least until COD4 came along. Coupled with the incredible love for Master Chief, it looks like RE4 just couldn’t hold up. I voted for Halo 3 as well, and am pretty excited for its upcoming Elite 8 matchup!

(3) Goldeneye defeats (2) Uncharted 2 [67-33]
These results surprised me. I agonized over this decision, I loved both games, but ultimately, the nostalgia factor won out and I voted for Goldeneye. One thing that hurts Uncharted 2 is the fact that its probably not thought of as a shooter first and foremost – the first thing I think of when I think of Uncharted 2 is that its an awesome cinematic experience. It may have even done better in the Hollywood Region. But for 2010, it looks like James Bond > Nathan Drake.

cmfl3x’s Forecast, M16 Region
This is a really cool matchup, the defining shooter of this generation vs. the defining shooter of the past. Master Chief vs. 007. Brute hammers vs. golden guns. Online play vs. your best friend’s living room. In the end, I think it’s been too long, and Goldeneye may end up losing out because of it. My heart wants Goldeneye to win, but my mind predicts Halo 3 will.

Sun-Tzu Region – Round 2 Results

(1) Civilization IV defeats (4) Warcraft III [61-39]
Warcraft III, even though I voted for it, sometimes has the misfortune of being considered the fantasy version of Starcraft. That’s really unfair, since War 3 is completely different and introduced some really new ideas into the RTS genre, but that’s the reality. Civilization, on the other hand, stands heads and shoulders above other world conquest games. So it’s no surprise that Civ 4 ended up finding better traction, and thus it moves on to play another day.

(3) Starcraft defeats (7) Final Fantasy Tactics [58-42]
“The winner of this matchup goes to the Final Four.” – Leveling Down user. A bold prediction, and one that I think will bear out. Starcraft is the best RTS game out there, and FFT is the best tactical RPG out there. It’s a shame these two had to meet so early, but really, Starcraft is a juggernaut that cannot be stopped. Who will ever forget: “2v2 Lost Temple!!! 2v2 Lost Temple!!! 2v2 Lost Temple!!! Gone.” Heck, who just did that yesterday?

cmfl3x’s Forecast, Sun-Tzu Region
Let’s look at the tale of the tape. Round 1, Starcraft defeats the best console RTS out there. Sweet 16, Starcraft defeats the best tactical RPG out there. Who does Starcraft face in the Elite 8? Only the best turn-based game out there. Can this 12 year old game continue its run? You bet it can. It won’t even be close.

Hodj Podj Region – Round 2 Results

(8) Rock Band 2 defeats (5) NHL 94′ [71-29]
It was nice to see NHL 94′ make it to the sweet 16, but the reality is it had an easy matchup. Rock Band 2 is one of the most popular party games out there, and even though I loved NHL 94′ multiplayer, I voted for Rock Band 2 because it is way more universal. This is the only 8-seed remaining in the tournament, but it will be up against its toughest test in the next round. Which leads me to…

(2) Street Fighter IV defeats (3) World of Warcraft [82-18]
Wow. Pun intended. I thought this one was going to be closer, but I guess we have more console players than PC players on this site. It’s really amazing how Street Fighter IV put fighting games back on the map, and its success in this tournament is indicative of that. Just in time for Super Street Fighter IV! Hello, T-Hawk!

cmfl3x’s Forecast, Hodj Podj Region
The Hodj Podj Region was the most random region, since it literally hosted a hodj podj of games. Now we have a fighting game and a music game remaining, and the winner gets to avoid a potential matchup with Starcraft in the Final Four. Either of these games has a chance to make it to the final round and maybe win this whole thing. My prediction? I think Street Fighter IV is gonna pull an upset against Rock Band 2, which would likely be the people’s choice.

Final Thoughts
So, what do you think of my predictions? Am I crazy? Let me know in the comments! All I know is that the Sweet 16 was a lot of fun, and I expect the Elite 8 to be no different. Anything is possibleeee!