Starcraft 2 manages to keep players of all types hooked with leagues for their skill level.
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…
Is it even possible to play all of these significant games/betas this month?
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.
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.
How do cmfl3x’s thoughts on Super Street Fighter IV & Starcraft 2 differ from espion4ge’s?
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.
Games like Modern Warfare 2 and Starcraft 2 are worth more than their retail price.
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.
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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…
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!
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!
Voting for Round 2 is now open.
The polls will close on Monday March 29th, 2010 at 6PM EST. cmfl3x will announce the 8 winners moving into Round 3. Hit the jump to cast your votes!
After 3 days of voting, the first round of Leveling Down’s Video Game March Madness 2010 is over! There were some close matchups, some blowouts, and of course, some surprises. As a reminder for those of you who may feel that some of these games were unfairly seeded, we seeded all the games based on Metacritic scores. It’s all their fault!
Anyway, thanks to everyone for voting! The first 32 have now been cut down to the Sweet 16. After the jump, check out who I voted for, my thoughts on the results, and a preliminary look at the Sweet 16 matchups.
Tiebreaker note: I decided that casting a tiebreaking vote was too arbitrary and I felt uncomfortable with the power! So for tie polls, I tallied up the registered commenters who voted as the tiebreaker. It seemed like the fairest thing to do, so make sure you’re logged in to make your vote count the most!
