What to expect from Call of Duty 6

True to form, next Fall we should expect to see another Call of Duty from Activision. All reports are saying that Call of Duty 6 will take off where Call of Duty Modern Warfare left off. One of the protagonists, "Soap" MacTavish, is airlifted out of a war zone by the Russian military, Captain Price's fate is unknown, and if the epilogue is any hint, there is a hostage crisis that leads to a larger international issue. I think it would be very clever of Infinity Ward to take off right at the point of jumping out of the airplane in the final phase of the epilogue, and maybe landing in hostile territory and having to fight your way out.

As of now, there doesn't seem to be any other contenders for biggest holiday hit for 2009, so COD: MW2 may completely corner the market. What would you like to see in this title? New, higher-tech weapons? More vehicle use? What kind of direction in the story line? Personally, I can't wait for this game. Call of Duty World at War has been a lot of fun, no doubt, but come Fall I'll be itching for a new Call of Duty.

An Offer You Can't Refuse

In 2002, I was pretty heavily into PlayStation 2. I had a sub-standard computer and I seldom played games on it. I don't remember how I found myself playing Mafia. Sure, the mechanics may not have been the like of Grand Theft Auto III, but it had such authentic 1930s feel to it, especially with Django Reinhardt's guitar pieces. I found myself enjoying Mafia more than the dark GTA III for many reasons.

It's no surprise, then, that I'm really looking forward to Mafia II next year. Granted, it's not going to eclipse such bound-to-be-hits as Call of Duty 6, Halo ODST, Halo Wars, Final Fantasy XIII, Resident Evil 5, or even HAWX. I hope it does get some attention though, because with its mobsters, guns, a Marlon Brando doppleganger, and the 1950s setting, it's bound to be something special.

Where I think this game could really shine is in multiplayer. I don't many details about the game, I don't think anyone does, but if there is a very open world feel to the multiplayer, where players can set up shop in a given district and run black market operations to gain money and prestige, I see a lot of people embracing this title.

Anyone else looking forward to this one?

Killing Nazi Zombies Ist Gut!

I didn't buy Call of Duty World at War simply to kill Nazi Zombies. I knew a little bit about the game mode, but I was really looking forward to the campaign mode. The voice acting by Sutherland and Oldman seemed awesome, the multiplayer was bound to stand on its own, and after playing the game through, I was glad I bought it.

The first time I played Nazi Zombies was online with three other buddies, and I had a blast. For such a simple concept, the game mode gives hours and hours of entertainment, and some stress when you get to round 19 or so. Who would have thought that in a video game you'd be blasting off the heads of decomposing national socialists with a futuristic ray gun?

My biggest hope is that Activision and Infinity Ward embrace this idea that Treyarch added into World at War and add it into Call of Duty 6 (coming next fall). I'm sure it doesn't take a lot of development effort to create such a game mode, and it's something that will keep me coming back.

Your thoughts?

A Whole New World, a New Fantastic Point of View

Just 3 weeks ago I was the type of gamer who denied he was any such thing. People would ask me about video games and I'd spout off half-knowledge, not wanting to appear to know too much about something so seemingly unimportant. Friends would come over and I'd turn off the video games unless I knew they were "cool." While my hippie friends would decry Call of Duty World at War as contributing to some systemic conditioning of the masses to war and violence, I would subtly bring them into the fold, nodding in agreement to the game's harmful effects on me while I inserted LittleBigPlanet. Soon they were slapping my sackboy around with such sadistic enjoyment as I'd never seen by anyone in Call of Duty.

I began to realize that video gaming appealed to many more people than I thought. There's something for anyone. The historian and I may dispute the accuracy of the newest Call of Duty title, or the plausibility of a future such as EndWar predicts. The athlete may marvel at Mirrors Edge, the pilot tries his skill in the digital cockpit in HAWX, and the person who fancies themself a problem solver is tested by Portal 2.

Video game companies are broadening their appeal, there's no doubt about that. Perhaps spearheaded by Nintendo and their Wii, we're going to be seeing an egalitarian shift by companies like Sony, Microsoft and Nintendo in order to sell more copies. What will be the breaking point though? Will a person who buys a will simply for Wii Fit and a healthier lifestyle be considered a "gamer"? Or the army private who trains with Call of Duty, will he be considered as such? This broadening of video games is what partly makes the industry so exciting to watch, and I see it being the norm for the next several years.

(Author's Note: Yes, the title of this blog is from Disney's Aladdin...it seemed appropriate.)

My views on some of this holiday's biggest titles

This holiday season is packed with huge titles for the PS3 and 360. Most of them are out, or will be out in the next couple days, in preparation for the Christmas shopping season. I've happened to play a few; I rented some, bought others, and here are some of my rulings:

LittleBigPlanet: A very fun, creative, cute game. I feel like I could let my little nephew play and feel comfortable that he'd enjoy it, if not only for the little SackBoys. A huge level of creative input from the player goes a long way. I've really enjoyed playing online, it's loads better than playing along.

EndWar: I was actually pretty disappointed on this one. I was looking forward to it probably more than any other, too. RTSs simply are a stagnant type of game these days. There needs to be a genuine breakthrough either in graphics or in handling of units. Simplicity will not do.

Call of Duty World at War: Waiting for this one in the mail today. Reviews are mild, but I'm itching for another CoD online experience, I've drained out of Modern Warfare every last drop of ingenuity.

Mirrors Edge: I played the demo for this one. Definitely innovative, but I would never buy it. Wasn't expecting too much from it in the first place, reviewers seem to justify that.

Gears of War 2: Pretty good, but not really my style. I knew that going in though, so I'm overly biased on this one.

All in all, I'm rather disappointed with the lineup I was so very excited for just 2 months ago. There may be a saving grace in next years picks though:

Half Life Episode 3
HAWX
Portal 2
Sims 3
Halo 3 Recon

Batman: Arkham Asylum to Feature Diverse Cast of Batman Villains?

Next year Rocksteady Studios and Eidos will be releasing Arkham Asylum. The basic idea, from what I can gather, is that there's some sort of problem at Arkham Asylum, where some of Gotham's worst baddies are housed (err...held against their will). The Joker, the Riddler, Killer Croc, Two Face and a host of other Batman villains will be supposedly let loose and Batman will have to deal with them all, the Joker being the leader of the pack. Also, I'm keeping my fingers crossed that Harley Quinn will make an appearance.

I'm curious to see how this one's gonna go, to be honest. From the screenshots I've seen, it looks to be a darker Batman title, much like the Nolan films are. Also, I read that Batman will be more of a detective in this game, which should be an interesting return to the Dark Knight's roots.

Keep your eye on this one, kids.

LittleBigPlanet: Re-Defining Community Gaming

I've never been a huge community gaming, downloadable content type of gamer. I'm more than convinced that this month's LittleBigPlanet will change that for me. Mixing a Tim Burton-eque style and fairly linear gameplay, LBP aims to take players to another world, where getting to the finish line is but a secondary mission. The first? Be creative with your strategies, utilizing the uniquely constructed environments that you very well may have created yourself. And that's what is so exciting about LBP, this idea that your entire world can be constructed creatively and shared with the rest of the world. It may very well revolutionize how PS3 gamers interact with each other. At least, I hope it does.

What will I be doing come this November? Playing EndWar, no doubt.

I've always been a fan of war RTS, though not in the typical sense. I've never really enjoyed the Command and Conquer franchise, though Generals a few years back blew my mind (true to my form though, it was unlike the previous or following C&Cs.)

This November Tom Clancy's EndWar comes out, and I really can't wait. I haven't been too excited about a game in awhile. Granted, I can't wait for the endearing nature of LittleBigPlanet, or the sure fire Call of Duty World at War. But EndWar brings something different to the table. I've never used a blutooth headset for a video game before. Hell, I even think it's stupid to use a headset in a video game. But now, I'm finding myself wanting to buy a headset just so I can play EndWar hands free. At least to try it out.

Am I alone in this, or are you all really juiced for this game?