My apologies for not posting this earlier, but there’s a new episode of Jumping the Shark kicking around, episode 131 to be specific.
Todd was in Vegas, so he didn’t join us, but Tom Chick did. Having missed Tom at E3, it was nice to get him on the show. Tom always brings a lot of upbeat energy to the show and it’s hard to not get pumped up when talking to him about games. Plus, Tom plays a lot of things, so whatever we’re playing, chances are he’s played it too and the discussion rarely lags.
This week was no exception as we covered Lollipop Chainsaw, LEGO Batman 2, Sins of a Solar Empire: Rebellion, Gravity Rush, the Tom and Bruce Kickstarter and various board games about French cities and space battles. We also get to the bottom of how in the world Tom knew about Red Hulk.
Given Bill’s preference for game play over plot, I’m surprised he didn’t have a warmer reaction to Mass Effect 3. The combat in that game is easily the best in the franchise…though it was often parceled out by story sequences so verbose that even I was caught making unconscious “wrap it up” motions with my controller.
How come there was a plan to have Ashley join the Lego Batman 2 party at a particular time? Is that a reviewing tactic where you deliberately play solo for long while before inviting a co-op partner, or simply a scheduling thing?
I hope Brandon has a chance to try The Amazing Spiderman. Beenox’s dedication to ensuring my character feels wildly out of control at all times has demolished my interest in the franchise, but as this episode proves, any opportunity to get Brandon started on superhero lore is one worth taking.
I haven’t played ME3.
W/ an active 11 year old kid like Ashley it’s always a scheduling thing.
Ready for a hexing? This Brit has an iPad and neuroshima ready to go – ::(Hobbes):: is my ame centre Id.
Ah. That explains why ME3 seemed like such a fleeting topic of discussion
For what it’s worth, even coming directly off of Mass Effect 2 where the combat was pretty solid, ME3 is a noticeable improvement. Weapons are more impactful, allies are more useful, and enemy types are much more varied and tenacious than before. It’s easily the most complete combat system Bioware has delivered since their Dungeons & Dragons days.
And the most commercially cynical too by a long shot.