Shakedown Hawaii: A 16-Bit Upgrade from Retro City Rampage: PSX 2016 Trailer

     It's been an entire year since the last bit of news about indie game developer Brian Provinciano's homage-fueled follow-up to the tremendous Retro City Rampage, called Shakedown: Hawaii, but low- yesterday we received the gloriously pixelated PSX 2016 trailer.

     This game evolves it mayhem from the 8-Bit world to that of the 16-Bit, moving from the era of NES to that of the Super NES.  The story follows "The Player," the same protagonist from Retro City Rampage, and moves him 30 years into his future.  He's become older, fatter, and balder as he steps out of his corporate empire's boardroom and on to the streets in an effort to destroy the rising competition.

     Shakedown: Hawaii will be coming to Nintendo, Steam, and Playstation in 2017.

Gravity Rush 2: Delayed into January 2017

     Gravity Rush 2 Director Keiichiro Toyama has announced a disappointing delay to the highly anticipated sequel to the PS Vita phenomena- BUT! - we get something wonderful as a courtesy.

"In exchange for the longer wait, we have decided to release the premium DLC planned for the title free of charge."

     That is a great trade off.  The first game's DLC gave us extra missions and costumes and provided a lot of fun additions to the main campaign.  I wouldn't expect any less for the sequel.

     Gravity Rush 2 is set to launch itself to the skies on Jan. 20th, 2017.  This not only allows for a little more work to be done on it, but gives it room for sales because it won't be competing against games like The Last Guardian.

     Source [ Playstation Blog ]

Sony's Problem with the PS Vita

     As a Sony fan I feel this is a post I should make.  Well, actually, it's more of an updated reminder- because I said almost the exact same thing back in 2013.  The post was actually prompted by Sony's recent news that the PS Vita is getting 2 new colors in Japan (a silver-grey and metallic red).  It sells much better overseas than here in the west, but that doesn't have to be.

THE PROBLEM(S)

     The major issues with the Vita is really in 2 areas.  The first is cost (both the Vita itself, and secondarily the ridiculously overpriced proprietary memory cards).  To be fair, they did release a newer model of Vita (which is awesome) that is considerably cheaper- but the memory cards are still far too costly.  Though, this is really the lesser issue the Vita has.

     The larger problem is the games selection.  When the system was first marketed, it was supposed to be a portable Playstation in the palm of your hand.  Which we do have, but only without the AAA titles that make the system worthwhile.  The same goes for Nintendo's continued use of re-selling old titles on new handheld systems.  We want games that can't simply be played on a phone.
     What happened there?  Think of the Vita's early games that were, and are, still the best the system offered- Assassin's Creed: Liberation, Uncharted: Golden Abyss, and Gravity Rush.  These 3rd person action adventure games are unbelievably great.  We fans want more of this kind of quality.

POSSIBLE SOLUTION

     It's been my biggest complaint since I first got the Vita 4 years ago- the games selection.  They need better games.  Games.  Games.  GAMES!  More AAA games.  More exclusivity and original games.  Not just games that are already available for free on phones.  We want the true Playstation in our hands feel that a phone or tablet cannot give us.
     We want AAA-quality exclusive games.  Good freakin' lord- can you imagine what a new game that takes place in the world of The Last of Us could do on this system?  A NEW Dark Souls, a NEW Borderlands, Ico, Far Cry, Deus Ex, Batman: Arkham game, or even a new Bioshock?
     Or what about a new Metal Gear?  I wrote up a small outline for a game that would be a wonderful use of the franchise on the Vita- featuring The Boss from Metal Gear Solid 2.  The previous Vita Metal Gears were great, we could definitely use more of this type of game.  Hopefully it would be a little better looking than Metal Gear Survive.  The series could use some new content, and Konami might need a bit of guidance since Kojima left.
     Note that I specifically say "NEW" versions- we don't want more ports of console titles we already own.  We want portable experiences that the other companies and consoles cannot provide.  Less ports and more originals.  Real Triple-A titles that we can play on the go.  Sony, you have immense potential with the Vita, so why aren't you using it?  We want the content, it just isn't available.  Seriously Sony, a few NEW AAA games would cement the Vita as THE portable system to have.

     Back in May there was a reveal that there was an actual portable Elder Scrolls game in production for the Vita's precursor (the PSP) that was cancelled.  Can you imagine how unbelievably amazing a NEW Elder Scrolls game for the Vita could be?!?  A real first person Elder Scrolls game and not the stupid card game currently being peddled would be a tremendous money maker, and if it was a Vita exclusive...  that's a whole lot of sales.

VITA SUCCESSOR

     Sony Computer Entertainment's president Shuhei Yoshida was asked about a PS Vita successor by Eurogamer at the EGX 2015 and his response was:

"That's a tough question- people have mobile phones and it's so easy to play games on smartphones, and many games on smartphones are free, or free to start. 

"I myself am a huge fan of PlayStation Vita and we worked really hard on designing every aspect. Touch-based games are fun - there are many games with really good design. But having sticks and buttons make things totally different. 

"So I hope, like many of you, that this culture of playing portable games continues but the climate is not healthy for now because of the huge dominance of mobile gaming."

     This comment stuck with me (from a year ago) because as phones get better, they'll catch up to the Vita eventually.  A new Sony portable gaming system isn't needed- they simply need a better selection of AAA games that are extremely lacking from the Vita right now.  It doesn't matter how awesome the Vita is if there aren't games to show it off are non-existent.  I mean, you could have the greatest movie theater ever created, but if you only play Sharknado on each screen no one's going to show up.

     So, please Sony, give us some brilliant new reasons to dust off this amazing portable system.

Gravity Rush 2: New Tokyo Game Show 2016 Trailer Looks Amazing!

     As expected, the nearer we get the the release date the more material we'll get to see for the highly anticipated Gravity Rush 2.  This is the Tokyo Game Show 2016 trailer, loaded with new goodies for all of us fans.

     New moves, new character, and new costumes- what's not to like?  It appears that the sequel to the PS Vita exclusive Gravity Rush has taken everything we liked about the first game and made it better.

     Gravity Rush 2 will be available Dec. 2nd for PS4.

     For related posts [ Gravity Rush ]

Gravity Rush 2: Release Date & NEW HEIGHTS Trailer

     Fans of the Playstation Vita's most spectacular game Gravity Rush are all getting a dose of gravity altering excitement with this new trailer for its PS4 exclusive sequel.  Kat, Raven, and Syd all return as well as some new faces, including Angel.  A new helpful character with crystallization powers, that appears to aid Kat when she's being overwhelmed by the Nevi.

     The game isn't all about being serious though.  There's things to watch for such as people and animals reactions to being caught in your gravitational fields, silly Sailor Moon-esque finishing poses, and even a quest line where Kat is starring in a movie in the game.  Creative Director Keiichiro Toyama wanted to keep the game fun and upbeat, so the inclusion of these elements were a necessity.

     In addition it's been announced that Studio Khara will be producing an anime titled Gravity Rush the Animation ~Overture~, detailing the events between Gravity Rush and the sequel.

     Gravity Rush 2 lifts off December 2nd.

     Sources [ PSN Blog 1 ] [ 2 ]

Gravity Rush 2: E3 2016 Trailer!

     This is a game I've been hyped for for a long time.  The first game was what sold me on the Playstation Vita and how awesome that system truly is.  Sony has pushed this to the PS4 and essentially ignores their Vita, but Gravity Rush 2 will definitely benefit from the boost in console hardware.

     What also kind of bothers me is why did they not play this during the Sony E3 Press Conference?  It seems like something that would garner a lot of welcome attention.

     Gravity Rush 2 is expected in 2016.

     For my previous related posts [ Gravity Rush ]

Fat Princess Adventures: Available Today for Our Cake Eating Pleasure!

     In keeping with the series' wonderful humor and art style, the legend of the Fat Princess returns in a new game with lots of destruction, laughter, and cake.

     Fat Princess Adventures hit the PSN Store today for the PS4.  I'm hoping I'll be able to get this later tonight for some serious cake-fueled Diablo-esque dungeon raiding slaughter-fests.

     As an added bonus, anyone that purchases it before December 15th gets the DLC "Weapons of Might" for free!

Gravity Rush Remastered: Coming a Week Earlier Than Announced

     Last we heard, Gravity Rush Remastered was going to be arriving on the PS4 as an enhanced bundle port of the PS Vita's best game on February 9th, 2016 including the original game and all its DLC.  Earlier today, Sony Computer Entertainment of America's Nick Accordino Tweeted that we will be getting it an entire week earlier than expected on Feb. 2nd, and we can already pre-order it on Amazon.

Same goes for SCEA! We'll see you Feb 2! https://t.co/8lxgN4CMJi https://t.co/SQZIXHbszl

— Nick Accordino (@Nikoro) November 20, 2015

    Now we can only hope to see the sequel a little earlier than anticipated, with it's some time in 2016 release.  A vague time frame, but it already looks to be worth the wait.

Gravity Rush 2: New Combat Information & Trailer!

     During their Paris Games Week presentation Sony has given us a nice new chunk of information for the highly anticipated sequel to the single greatest PS Vita game created, Gravity Rush.

     What we get in this trailer is to see the world will now have 2 alternate modes of combat to expand her normal gravity altering fighting ability.  Lunar Style, making Kat lighter and swifter, and then Jupiter Style increasing her weight and subsequently her attack power.  There's also a nice tease towards the tag-team play with the AI controlled secondary character.
   
     The creative team has really been putting a lot of effort into giving players new options for the action portion of the game.  Apparently there's more than one way to combat skinning a gravity defying cat.

     Gravity Rush 2 will be out some time in 2016 exclusively on PS4.

     Gravity Rush Remastered will be available Feb. 9th in North America
          (Exclusively via the Playstation Store for $29.99)

     Source [ Playstation Blog ]

Gravity Rush 2: Story & Character Details Emerge

     After the SCE Japan announcement of the Gravity Rush (aka Gravity Daze in Japan) sequel and the Gravity Rush Remastered at the Tokyo Game Show 2015 during their press conference fans have been eager to learn more of what's to come of the heroine Kat.  

     The amazingly made Gravity Rush 2 official site has put up some new info:
      (thankfully translated for us over at Gematsu)

In the aerial city of Hekseville, reconstruction is progressing after the new weapons incident caused by the former mayor D’nelica. 

After a strange gravity wave disturbance was observed, the gravity princess Kat begins an investigation with her shifter partner Raven, and Syd, a police officer. 

Kat senses something strange and the area is hit by a gravity storm on an unprecedented scale. The three investigators are sucked into a gravitational whirlpool before even getting a chance to use their powers.

A remote, alternate dimension. Kat was engulfed by the gravity storm and finds herself in Banga Village, where people mine gravity ores amongst ruins for a living. 

Separated from Dusty, the cat who gives her the power to manipulate gravity, Kat is without special powers, and spends each day doing hard labor in the mines. 

One day she heads to work with Syd, who found himself in the same village, and a type of Nevi they’ve never seen before—called a “black insect” in this world—appears. The two are in deep trouble, but then… 

Kat
A girl who lost her memories. She saves the aerial city Hekseville from a gravity storm attack, and its people endear her as a gravity princess. 

Raven
A girl who used to be Kat’s rival, but now appears as her partner. 

Syd
A police officer who resolved a number of incidents with Kat. But he’s also a troublemaker that invites unrest. 

Gravity Rush 2
A bright and bustling town where you can feel the vitality of its citizens. 

A new dimension of gravitational action.
With your new power, face the threat that stands in your way, and discover the fate that awaits Kat.

      There's a bunch of small tidbits, but the good news is we get a new partner, a new place, and a new power all to help fight a new threat.  There isn't a whole lot for plot detail, but enough to keep our interest peaked.
     I'm actually really curious about the ability to feel the vitality of the citizens.  Could that be a hint to what the new power will be?  Will we see Dusty again?  So many questions to ask while we await the game.

     Gravity Rush 2 will be available on PS4 in 2016.

     Gravity Rush Remastered will be available in Japan on Dec. 10th, 2015...
          ...and in the EU and US in Feb 10th, 2016.

Age of Zombies: Quick Review (Android)

     Halfbrick Studios' hero Barry Steakfries returns in this semi-sequel to Monster Dash and Jetpack Joyride.  Steakfries is an 80's hero born in the wrong era, but in this game he finds his niche- through time travel.  After encountering his arch nemesis Professor Brains, he ends up  jumping through a portal through time.

     Age of Zombies is a nice little twin-stick shooter tossing players through time to slay hordes of zombies and undead creatures with a handful of various weaponry.  Each level has 3 stages and is themed, such as the prehistoric times including a zombie Tyrannosaurus Rex as a boss fight.  There's also Ancient Egypt, Ancient Japan, gangster infested 1930's, and "The Future."
     Though the campaign is short, even including the extra levels, the issue is slightly lightened by the addition of a horde mode, multiplayer, leaderboards to keep players going.  It isn't much, but enough to eat a 5 minute downtime and enjoy a couple chuckles while doing so.

     Halfbrick has used a surprisingly precise set of virtual controls, they are tight and responsive, everything feels extremely smooth.  The sounds and music are only average, but the art and animation is perfect for the nature of the game.

     The story is campy, and Steakfries comes across as a Duke Nukem wannabe written by a teenager, with his repeated swearing and crude jokes, but damn it, I still laughed anyway.  Age of Zombies is short and as to the point as one of Steakfries' own one liners, offering adequate action and absurdity for a couple hours of your time.

Gravity Rush Remastered: Falling Upward from the Vita to the PS4 & Sequel Update

     The Playstation Vita has some serious issues (and some obvious solutions) it really could be a huge portable option for Sony users, and one great proof of that fact was the 2012 PS Vita exclusive game, SCE Japan Studio's portable masterpiece, Gravity Rush.

     In late 2013, Gravity Rush fans got teased with a sequel, then in late 2014 another tease for the sequel claiming it was being developed for the PS Vita.  Now almost a year after the last tidbit of information we get more news in an nearly annual update fashion- with a bonus!

Gravity Rush 2 (Aka Gravity Daze in Japan)

     Since the last news update, we now learn that Gravity Rush 2 is being fully and exclusively developed for the PS4 and it is taking full advantage of the graphical power of the system.

     Gravity Rush 2 is slated for release in 2016.

Gravity Rush Remastered

     Developer Bluepoint Games, known for updating the Ico & Shadow of the Colossus Collection, the Metal Gear HD Collection, and more recently the Uncharted Collection have been hard at work updating Gravity Rush for the PS4.  In addition to the increased graphics, they've included all 3 DLC packs (The Spy Pack, The Military Pack, and The Maid Pack) that include extra missions and costumes.  Kat and her sidekick/talking cat Dusty will now be defying gravity in 1080p at 60fps through the city of Hekseville.

      Gravity Rush Remastered will be available in Japan on Dec. 10th, 2015...
          ...and in the EU and US in Feb 10th, 2016.

     Source [ Playstation Blog ]

Metal Gear: An Open Letter to Sony, Armature Studios, Konami, & The Great Hideo Kojima: The Boss for PS Vita

     Looking through my 836 blog drafts (that is an exact number) I happened to come across this gem, which ties to the Batman Arkham Origins: Blackgate game by company- Armature Studios.  Dated from July 2, 2012, it's a plea to create an original Metal Gear game that could happen from a company that brought the PS Vita HD remakes of Metal Gear 2 & 3 to fruition.
     Note: This is still essentially a draft post.

An open letter to Hideo Kojima, Armature Studios, Sony,
     ...and Konami...

     I would absolutely LOVE to see a Metal Gear game with The Boss (aka The Joy) as the main character.  A female lead that is highly intelligent and more than capable, arguably the best character of the entire series.  She's been called The Legendary Soldier and True Patriot.  She taught Naked Snake all he knew about war, survival, and the the great costs it has.  The perfect candidate for a pocket Metal Gear game.
   
     The way I figure it, the game would be her earlier mission(s) with the Cobra Unit.  The main story is already known from all the bits and pieces of Metal Gear 3: Snake Eater, it would only need a little expansion.  Part of it taking place in 1962 in Tselinoyarsk with The Sorrow, and fleshed out with flashback parts (even possibly back to the founding of the Cobra Unit in 1942) to the time with the Cobra Unit- all culminating in the inevitable end.   

     It would end with Joy and The Sorrow.  Everyone knows it would be coming, but the portrayal of it playing out could be amazing.  We already know he tells her to kill him so she and their child could live, only now we have to actually do it. 

     The game would be a Spartan tale, no more than 6 hours long, with the Metal Gear story staple of tragedy and loss with the greatest of emotional impacts possible.  The ultimate tragedy and sacrifice, love and loss, the mingling of Joy and Sorrow, beautifully intertwined.

     Honestly, I've been reading that Konami would like to focus on mobile recently, so here's a decent idea they could start.  It could be a tight story with a game that always sells well.  Although the reported issues with Kojima might makes things problematic.  The chances of this happening are far slimmer than the chances of anyone from Sony, Armature, Konami, or even Kojima actually reading this post.
     I can dream anyway...

Hunger: A New Game by Tarsier Studios

     Tarsier Studios, developers of Little Big Planet Vita and the wonderful game Tearaway, have released a trailer for their new game Hunger.  As with their past games they've got a lot of atmosphere and highly stylized animation.

     Hunger is the story of a small girl named Six trying to escape a strange and dark place called The Maw.  It has a very claymation-esque look and reminds me a lot of the game Puppeteer.  Tarsier's official site has this listed as a small description:

     "At its heart, Hunger is a simple idea. A young girl is trapped in a labyrinth full of monsters and wants to escape. It will be your job to help her do this. It’s a genre we’re calling ‘suspense-adventure’, on account of the fact that there will be plenty of both. Coupled with an unnerving ‘Dollhouse Perspective’, tactile controls, and characters with soft, dark centres, Hunger will take your hand and let it go at the worst possible moment!" 

     It's good to see small studios creating artful things like this.  Hunger is different and interesting, getting away from the typical game blockbusters we so often see, and it make me hopeful for the diverse types of games we may look forward to.

     No release information or platforms have been announced.

Official Site [ Tarsier Studios ]

Gravity Rush 2: Will be for the PS VITA!

     In some exceptional news for the day, I see someone questioned Sony's Yoshida on Ask Playstation:

Hello Mr. Yoshida :) I have a questions. You know something about Gravity Daze 2? Console? Release Date? Something? Thanks. @yosp #psvita
— Adherley Cruz Ortiz (@AdherleyCruzO) December 23, 2014

     His wonderful reply was:

@AdherleyCruzO Yes, it is designed for the PS Vita.
— Ask PlayStation (@AskPlayStation) December 23, 2014

     It is an excellent thing to hear that Gravity Daze (Gravity Rush in America) is getting a Playstation Vita specific sequel.  It has been over a year since the "Fall Again" teaser trailer was first put out and we get a late Christmas gift of a new update.  Gravity Rush still stands, to me at least, as the best game the Vita has available, and the system could definitely use a few more like it.  I think the Vita needs more amazing games developed specifically for it on its own.  So now we wait to see if there'll be another Uncharted or the like on the way.

     Source [ Niche Gamer ]

Home: PS4: Game Review

     I'd heard about Home quite some time ago on the Playstation Blog, and it has finally arrived via the PSN.  I picked it up on a whim because it looked both interesting, and had the very reasonable price tag of $2.99 which includes cross buy so I can play it on my PS Vita.

A Definite Reference to Poe's A Cask of Amontillado

     Home claims to subtly change with your decisions throughout the game but after numerous plays the changes are fairly useless.  In this respect the ambiguity of storytelling is a hindrance, and the things hinted always led me to pretty much the same conclusion at the end.  But I must applaud the effort, and I really am curious if this concept can be made to work on a much larger scale for future games.

     Because of the game's brevity, taking only about an hour to make it through to the end of the game, I can't talk too much about what the plot is without possibly spoiling things.  It begins with a man waking up in a strange place, and him attempting to recall the series of events that led him to where he was.  He must pick up pieces and decide whether or not he picked something up or did he really do specific actions.  Each action you choose is how the character relates his story- "Did I pick up the gun?" or "Did I take the photo?"  The sum of your actions only really matter in a couple small changes at the end, and only one decision alters the meat of the story in any way.  One pivotal moment surrounded by a handful of fairly frivolous choices.

     I think my reason for not fully standing by Home as a revolutionary game is the fact that this is a murder mystery where you decide what to believe, so even if the evidence says one thing, you may choose to not believe it- and that can be a problem.  If all the signs point to one particular interpretation, you can still deny believing it, going contrary to all provided evidence.  To me it feels like the illusion of a shifting story.  There's a trail of bodies and a mystery, but if you are someone that truly explores there are enough hints to point you in the right direction.  Meaning the solution to this puzzle is interpreting it, not necessarily how the facts are shown.

     Because I don't want to be too harsh towards this game I must say that it's sound effects are great and add a tremendous layer to the atmosphere.  The simple pixelated graphics don't detract from the play at all, and it was a nice little experience, like playing an interactive version of the story that so clearly inspired Home, Edgar Allen Poe's A Cask of Amontillado.  This is a short and sweet game that can be played and enjoyed in one sitting.

     For a meager $3 Home is a decent game, and worth a playthrough.  Overall it is an interesting idea, it just wasn't executed as well as it could have been.  I still recommend giving this a try.  Put on some headphones and turn out the lights.  It's a neat little experience that might get you questioning what really happened.  With that being said, I genuinely believe both Lone Survivor and The Last Door have handled this type of game much better.  (Disclaimer, I played a free copy of The Last Door chapter 1, then donated/bought a full copy of the game.)

     As a very interesting side, the Official Home site has a place where you may post your thoughts and read others' posts about what they think really happened.  [ Home: What Happened ]
     Personally I think the story was made so vague that we could impose too much of anything we want over what was really going on.  There is enough to point fingers in a number of directions, and the more things you examine, the the closer to a concrete ending you can have, assuming you "choose" to believe it.
     When it comes down to it, I would very much like to see another game like this in a much larger production, and I hope Ben Rivers' next game, Alone With You, keeps up the good work.

Fez: Review (PS Vita)

     Fez.  What an interesting game.  To be sure, I don't want to talk about all the hubbub surrounding creator Phil Fish, I just want to talk about this gem of a game he made with Polytron Games.

     In Fez, you play as a simple being named Gomez in a neatly made 2 dimensional world.  One day he is granted an extra dose of power with a fez that imbues him the ability to move in the 3 dimensional space.  And it never feels like a gimmick of a game mechanic.  It feels necessary.  Gomez gains depth in a flat land.  Which is exactly a perfect metaphor for the game itself.

     At its core, Fez is an homage to the platforming puzzle games of yesteryear.  There are many improvements of course, such as not having a high level of frustration inducing difficulty that gaming seems to believe it thrives on.  This is a casual nod to the games we loved in the 1980's not a punishment for lacking enough skills to play it.
     There are a multitude of locations and environments.  Finding interesting ways of solving problems to traverse the platforms is never too difficult.  Although I admit I got stuck on the "Mausoleum Puzzle" in the crypt full of many doorways for quite some time.  Overall though, when you see treasure chests and the Cubes you must find to progress, there is a heartwarming sense of progression.  For completionists there is a massive amount of Cubes, and even Anti-Cubes.  There are QR codes, and hints carved into the walls of rooms as glyphs.  There are owls that can only be met at certain times and some nice people met along the way.

     The colors and sounds are all crisp and clear.  Controls are perfect, I never felt that any mistakes were due to input issues- it was my own fault.  The game is so perfectly compact it is hard to find fault in it.

     Fez is about discovery, perspective, and enjoyment.  Once you get the hang of navigating in a pseudo-third-dimension you'll long for more.  Literally turning the world to alter perceptions is a wonderful game of logic-shifting and spatial reasoning.  It's even hilarious to see how the other people around Gomez can't really understand the "Devil Squares"- the Cubes that are outside their range of perception.  They just don't have the capacity to grasp the greater symbolism.

     I, for one, found Fez to be an amazing and completely immersive experience on the PS Vita.  Fez is not just a reminder about what made retro games so fun, it's an addition of another layer of depth to truly fill out our experience.

Metrico Review (PS Vita)

     The Playstation Vita exclusive Metrico initially caught my attention with its extremely minimal design, there's always some appeal in taking infographics and making them interactive in a unique way.  However, after playing the game I must say it has a lot of drawbacks the simplistic looks can't overcome.  With the visuals being so clean and simple, I wonder how they managed to have such a flawed system of interaction.

   

     The visual world of Metrico is its biggest draw.  Comprised of graphs, charts, and percentages that shift as you traverse the landscape it has a special wonder that is peculiar, subtle, and alluring.  Simple art design has gone a long way here to fill a whole world with wonderful graphs.

     The biggest hurdle Metrico suffers is through the compounding problem of input and motion controls.  Each level adds another option, another way to change the world around you.  The puzzle-platforming should've been as simple as the graphics, but they are not.  Just because the Vita has a plethora of control options doesn't mean you need to use them all.  If it works intuitively, go for it, but here there is no such common movement scheme- each new puzzle from level 3 on starts changing how each individual motion alters the world.  One area moving left moves things left, in the next area moving left might result in platforms falling off the screen.  There is no consistency.  Every movement or action the character makes changes the landscape and not always in the same ways forcing you to reacquaint yourself with the actions and reactions in every single puzzle.  It adds a level of trial and error that gets quite irritating at times.
     This might not be a problem had they added a hint system.  There is a sense of accomplishment from completing the puzzles, but when you are stuck it does get a bit frustrating.  There were a few times I ended up quitting and coming back the next day with a fresh perspective from time away and I retried and passed, but not everyone is so patient.
     Finding the solutions to these puzzles can often bring satisfaction when you are forced to try all available motion and action options, then stop to consider how to implement each option's reaction in the landscape- but the cost is having to use some unwieldy controls, and some very awkward Vita handling  Holding the Vita in strange and uncomfortable ways to avoid altering the puzzle itself.  So it becomes a large issue to try and balance the actual system as well as play the game when even the most minute motion causes a change.

     The good side of this is that everything you need to solve every puzzle is provided on screen.  The world designed grows quite complex but the difficulty here is fair, albeit occasionally frustrating, but mostly fair.  Handling the controls can be a pain once the later levels control schemes have been added making solving some more of a pain than puzzle fun.  It is a strange balance of ingenious puzzles and poor control response- especially the rear-touchpad for aiming when shooting.

     Had Metrico focused on the simplicity its visuals promised they might've had a subtle and moving game.  Because they thought it apt to dump a graph mountain of controls on players it makes us want to abandon the game instead of finishing it.

     Metrico asks us a question- do we play just for the elegantly charming puzzles' sake or just set it aside because of the technical fumbles you have to put up with to play it?  There's a lot of experimental things going on here making use of every aspect and mechanical novelty the Vita has to offer, but sometimes that winds up being a bit of a mess, which is how the last couple levels of Metrico felt.  In the end, I got this free on PS Plus and it exhibits a wealth of originality so I would say that yes, it is worth playing despite the issues- it's worth playing for the charm.

Thomas Was Alone: Review: PS Vita

     If you were to go back and name your favorite character from the last year or so, there's a good chance you would not name a quadrilateral.  Thomas Was Alone might change that.  I even laughed when I heard that this was a game about "friendship and jumping."  After playing it, I was stunned at its uniqueness took me by surprise.

Thomas was alone. Wow. A weird first thought to have.

     Creator Mike Bithell has gone and given more character to a bunch of four-sided shapes than some entire games do for human ones.  Thomas (an AI) gains self awareness and begins to attempt to free himself from his program and along the way he meets many other sized rectangles with their own personalities and special ability traits.  Who would've thought a bunch of generic names and colors could be contained with 4 tight angles to become entities we can relate to?

    The core game is a platformer reduced to its basic principles.  Getting each AI entity to their specific doorways out.  Sometimes it's one character and one doorway at a time, sometimes it many, many more.  Through simplicity Bithell has achieved a level of artful wonder that is compounded by the humorous commentary narrated by Danny Wallace.  The story, lighting and music are all perfectly meshed together to create a joy in gaming that is hard to match by anything in the Triple A game category.  Even the controls are honed to perfection.  Everything in this game fits together as well as the geometry that comprises it.

     Thomas Was Alone, but not anymore- it's short and sweet, with just the right difficulty curve without becoming frustrating.  The minimalism is so memorable, these quadrilaterals won't soon be forgotten.  Bithell has shown an understanding of games enough to have succeeded in making me sympathize with a handful of colored shapes for a small experience of wonder.  Thomas Was Alone is endearing and heartfelt, and can be considered a modern equivalent of a painting by Piet Mondrian.

     Note: This was from a draft on 04.27.2014

Bioshock Vita: Ken Levine Still Wishes He Could Do It

     Ken Levine has tweeted a few things about the Bioshock Vita that never came.  At one time, E3 2011, it was hinted that we'd be receiving a "unique" version for the Sony Playstation handheld system, but due to Sony and the publisher 2K couldn't quite get the deal worked out.

Wish I could do it myself, but lawyers and all that. I still love my vita.
— Ken Levine (@IGLevine) July 8, 2014

RT @chaddukes: @IGLevine what you had in mind for that game? --I was thinking a Final Fantasy Tactics style thing set in pre-fall Rapture.
— Ken Levine (@IGLevine) July 8, 2014

     Quite interesting to see what might've happened had this game been made.  I'm not the biggest fan of tactics-type games but given the person making it and the franchise, I would've definitely bought it.

     Since the closing and dispersal of Irrational Games it seems even less likely we'll see this type of game. Although the rights are there (2K owns the rights), and because this is a money making franchise, there still remains the possibility of future Bioshock games being produced, just not this one. Especially since it hadn't even begun.