Judgement is Upon Us

Gears of War has never really held a large place in my heart.  I mean, I have always enjoyed the games, but not the the extent that garnered its immeasurable success and adoring fans.  To me, it had always been an enjoyable action title that could steal a few hours of my day.  I had never been a huge fan of the multiplayer, and I definitely didn't care for the characters.  They seemed to be throw away action heroes that had little impact on the world of gaming.  Gears may be a staple in the industry, but Marcus really shouldn't be. 

Nostalgia Mode Initiate: Looking for Modern Gems vol. 5

This time around we have a Double Feature.  Both are games with a "notable" celebrity proceeding the  title, and both are games that you've likely only seen stuck on the used shelves presuming neither would see the light of day.  These games are Vin Diesel Wheelman and Clive Barker's Jericho.

Raiders of the Lost Tomb

So, it has been a really long time since I've played a relevant or recent game.  After such a long and dark road of shitty games I have had to play, it was a nice break from the groove to play something new and exciting.  I have always been a fairly large fan of the Tomb Raider franchise, Lara Croft has always entertained me to a fairly large degree, so when I heard of a reboot for the series, I was a little bit on the defensive.  If it ain't broke, don't fix it, right?  Well, considering the shear number of previous titles, shit was getting pretty stale, luckily Square Enix and Crystal Dynamics figured out a way to keep the Tomb Raider feel while creating a fresh experience all the way through.

Preview: Bound by Flames from Spider Studios

We got a little teaser and a screenshot for a game called Bound by Flame over here at the Vidya Weekly that tickled my adventurer’s fancy with a look at a giant swampthing-boss-monster.  Here is a little snippet from the press release that was sent over to us:

Nostalgia Mode Initiate: Looking for Modern Gems vol. 4

So you might be wondering to yourself by now, "Why does he do it? Just because a game is on the shelf doesn't mean you have to buy it."  You are right, you don't have to, nobody has to buy anything.  But when you dig deep enough, you might end up finding a game hidden under the rubble that has something great, something that you'd miss out on otherwise.  Games like Beyond Good and Evil, Zack and Wiki, etc. might end up passing you buy because you weren't willing to subject yourself to chance.  Finding gems makes all the hunt worth it, when you play a game you were sure was going to be meh and it ends up changing your world makes all of the mediocre and even awful attempts worth it.

Nostalgia Mode Initiate: Looking for Modern Gems vol. 3

I cannot express to you how miserably I am failing over here.  I keep looking for gems for the current gen consoles that you people might not have bothered with or perhaps have even heard of.  So enters Mobile Suit Gundam: Crossfire.  I...okay first, let me explain a few things.  I know this game was basically a launch title for the ps3, I know that it recieved poor reviews, and I know that it has been under $10 one the used rack since the game was released (and has been sitting on the shelf for that period of time too).  But what I don't know, is why, for seemingly no other reason than self mutilation, that I was willing to subject myself to this torture.

Nostalgia Mode Initiate: Looking for Modern Gems vol. 2

As you may remember from my previous endeavors, I have succeeded in the past at finding a modern day gem of a game.  It was a fun and unique game for pennies on the dollar that anyone can likely find in the used section of your game store.  This latest title however was not nearly the success story of the prior installment of this now established series of Looking for Modern Gems.  This is a tale of tragedy, of lost hours, and even more so, lost souls.  Anyone unlucky enough to even so much as peek into the instruction manual of this title know of the horrors one must endure with this experience.  This is a cautionary tale of unfortunate proportions, so if you are actively looking for a way to ruin your week, have I got the game for you.