The Fourth Annual Coint and Plick Video Games Poll - Part Three: #53 - 79

#63: Art Style: Light Trax – Wii – 17 pts – 2 votes
Official Game Site

http://wiimedia.ign.com/wii/image/article/107/1071651/art-style-light-trax-20100224023013453_640w.jpg

zappi: ok so i was hyped up for Light Trax cos i love the game that its based on, but holy shit did Skip deliver - the minimal bleep music & art style, the new freeway mode, the improved more tactical gameplay - its a shame i don't smoke weed anymore cos this seems to be designed for that

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ALe7wFWXFuE

abanana: a racing game that looks great. track memorization still required,
unfortunately.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W5HMRpN0UJE

It's like Tron, but not.

[Removed Illegal Link]

http://image.gamespotcdn.net/gamespot/images/2010/054/990142_20100224_640screen011.jpg

Eurogamer review

The illegal link: http://tubedubber.com/#S34olFV-eDo:OXuwkoRTamg:0:100:0:0:true

Wooooooooooooooooooo!!

thx to both of you wrt this, if i havent already made that clear

I believe the proper way to express that sentiment is WOOOOOOOOYAYUH

YAAAY-UH

Two-way tie for 61st.

#61: Kirby’s Epic Yarn – Wii – 19 pts – 2 votes
Official Game Site

Polyphonic: Amazing levels, incredible visual style. This game could really use the horsepower of the PS3 to give those cloth textures more appeal (i.e. Little Big Planet), but still one of the most creative games of the year.

http://wiimedia.ign.com/wii/image/article/112/1120639/kirbys-epic-yarn-20100914060905480_640w.jpg

Silby: Cute.

http://wiimedia.ign.com/wii/image/article/112/1120639/kirbys-epic-yarn-20100914060914434_640w.jpg

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vkht8JTdyOo

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3035/2507256940_c99e909ef6.jpg

Zero Punctuation

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1PsOCN4RU88

Eurogamerzzzz

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lly6rCcp09E

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2622/4522008012_a168f8214e.jpg

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ozPkEBhFzuw

Oops, meant to go image - quote - image up there. I am terrible at this!

doing fine boyo

Last one for today.

#61: Alan Wake – 360 – 19 pts – 2 votes
Official Game Site

http://multiplayerblog.mtv.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/11/alan-wake.jpg

Craig G: This game genuinely spooked me and got me panicky in places when fighting/running for survival. The narration really reminded me of Max Payne, which I loved back in the day. I didn't finish the game, but I really want to, just to get the rest of the story (though I think I heard it ends on a cliffhanger). The episodic layout of the game had an almost certainly deliberate Twin Peaks feel to it, and also fits quite nicely with my short attention span.

http://mktplassets.xbox.com/NR/rdonlyres/5DDA154F-EDCB-4D43-9A6F-1D3EF6C43672/0/simAlanWake00.jpg

GM: the visuals are not a problem at all. kinda digging it so far, despite similarities to failures like Heavy Rain and Silent Hill: Shattered Memories.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sSB4QcQMm6E

Cozen: the visual style reminds me more of the 2005 remake of the fog

http://i.telegraph.co.uk/multimedia/archive/01417/alanwake2_1417057c.jpg

bnw: some good ideas behind this game but plagued with an unlikable main character who never shuts up ... I think its biggest issue is that its just not freaky/weird enough especially in comparison to SH. it tries for this psychological thriller level but isn't smart enough to move it past cliches.

http://xbox360media.ign.com/xbox360/image/article/107/1070128/alan-wake-20100218084206752_640w.jpg

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AECv-qHCz_c

Euro-Gamer

jjjusten: not one scare in the whole thing, ultra repetetive gameplay to the point of huge frustration, garbage script, super boring visually, makes the color palatte in FO3 look like a rainbow brite episode, pointless driving sections, terrible characters, and for bonus points direct ripoffs of other games and the most noxious product placement ive ever seen (not in quantity, but in the way its done). god i hated this game.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MzoA09eTmxo

Holding true to my one major error per post ratio.

hahaha yeah that was my biggest disappointment/most hated of the year vote iirc

Chime was ass, wtf is wrong with you people.

i played the hell outta chime. really enjoyed it.

it felt like a weaksauce version of Lumines

and tbh I always thought Lumines was pretty overrated in its own right

i just like philip glass

I do too! but not that song. if they'd picked the epilogue from Satyagraha I would be calling it the best game ever.

derp, I mean the epilogue from Akhnaten (the one working in all the Einstein on the Beach bits)

Should I do more this afternoon? y/n

http://teamofmonkeys.com/maze-mazes/images/maze-of-uppercase-y-yonatan-frimer-1000.png

Yes!

the answer to that question is always yes

Alan Wake plot summary: The darkness took her so I had to write a story about the darkness so I could get into the darkness to save her because my story about the darkness became real!

Eight-way tie for 53. I only have time to do one this evenin'.

#53: Super Crate Box – PC – 20 pts – 1 vote
Official Game Site

http://www.pixelprospector.com/wp-content/gallery/super-crate-box/super-crate-box-02.jpg

Super Crate Box is coming to bring back the glory of the golden arcade age, when all that really mattered was getting on that high score list. Grab your baseball cap and loosen your pants, it's time to fight endless hordes of enemies and collect every weapon crate you can. Prepare for an arcade delight with interesting, refreshing game mechanics, cracking retro art and a terribly hip chiptune soundtrack.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9JlGC8GVlJM

Bamcquern: not as good as the demo version but the basic idea of collecting as many crates as you possibly can no matter how doing so will disadvantage your position is still there

http://www.pixeljoint.com/files/icons/full/coverback2.gif

Rock Paper Shotgun review

http://image.gamespotcdn.net/gamespot/images/2011/067/623298_20110309_640screen002.jpg

MTV blog review

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O8aeZ_41Z3E

http://lh5.ggpht.com/_4MUf6T4VzPw/TNdMAGZdPvI/AAAAAAAARtY/Y4vz_PK2fhU/vlambeer-super-crate-box-papercraft.jpg

#53: Space Funeral – PC – 20 pts – 1 vote
Official Game Site? I think?

http://www.indiegames.com/blog/images/timw/spacefun5a.png

Bamcquern: jrpg less interesting for how it interrogates the limits of the form than for its atmosphere, unlicensed music and its Platonism-themed punch line

http://www.gamingdaily.co.uk/images/spacefuneral-2010-10-12/sob.png

Nhex: Some people have pushed Space Funeral as the quirky horrible RPGMaker game of the year, but mostly it is just terrible

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=syDXH-ZPXvA

RPS review

http://www.rockpapershotgun.com/images/10/oct/spacefuneral.png

http://davidszondy.com/future/Living/space_funeral_02.jpg

Celestis makes it possible to honor the dream and memory of your departed loved one by launching a symbolic portion of cremated remains into Earth orbit, onto the lunar surface or into deep space.

les rallizes denudes track in that youtube clip - nice!

#53: Mirror’s Edge – iPhone – 20 pts – 1 vote
Official Game Site

http://cache.gawkerassets.com/assets/images/9/2010/09/edgephone.jpg

Autumn Almanac: The designers really thought about how to execute parkour platforming on a touch screen and it shows.

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3264/2829849839_765697c938.jpg

abcfsk: Mirror's Edge is just wonderful.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i791LVFlxQg

http://i.neoseeker.com/gg/uploads/news/10-2008/news_img_14791_5.jpg

Touch Arcade review

IGN review

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pr5LQq42l4M

Probably my last one until next week, btw.

bummer. i hope this list finishes before we start soliciting ballots for 2011

If forks has some free time he can always tag in during my absence.

bummer. i hope this list finishes before we start soliciting ballots for 2011
too late TACTICS OGRE 4 PRESIDENT 2011

honestly wish i had more time for this guys. candle already burning on both ends

Well, let's see if I can polish off the 53's at least

#53: Ketsui: Kizuna Jigoku Tachi – 360 – 20 pts – 1 vote

http://media.giantbomb.com/uploads/3/33346/1349472-ketsui_large.jpg

We have the year 2054 and we are in the middle of a War. An Evil Company by the name EVAC is making massive Profit by, illegally, Producing and selling Weapon Systems. The United Nations discovered EVAC's doings and asked them to immediately stop all actions and to Destroy all Facilities. EVAC refused to take any action and now the United Nations started a preventive War against the evil Company.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UhSLrU6jtjk

Trivia: The Evil Company's name EVAC is the word CAVE spelled backwards

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FcBJUBc-3qY

#53: Guwange – 360 – 20 pts – 1 vote

http://javs.it/files/2010/02/Guwange.jpg

Despite being more well-known in the West for games like DonPachi and Deathsmiles, Guwange is one of Cave's most revered shooting titles in its native Japan. This is for two reasons: its medieval setting is a nice break from the usual science-fiction fare found in the genre, while its unique "shikigami" mechanic turns what could be a tedious shooter into an enthralling blend of frantic action and delicate positioning. - Kotaku

http://download.xbox.com/content/images/66acd000-77fe-1000-9115-d80258410a78/1033/screenlg2.jpg

Alan N: This was the year that I officially regressed into a moldy retro gamer. the focus is really narrow on my list: shmups, j-rpgs, and platformers. I'm basically OK with that.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WaAYgvxyHCg

Eurogamer review

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zz0gGDRNCMc

were these last two voted on by the same person?

hah, yes. that would be me.

#53: Epic Mickey – Wii – 20 pts – 1 vote
Official Game Site

http://slyoyster.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/11/Epic-Mickey.jpg

Princess TamTam: An enchanting journey into a dreamworld of magic.

http://static.gamesradar.com/images/mb/GamesRadar/us/Games/D/Disney%20Epic%20Mickey/Everything%20Else/Super%20Review/epic-mickey3--article_image.jpg

Warren Spector Interview

http://image.gamespotcdn.net/gamespot/images/2010/333/reviews/975515_20101130_640screen013.jpg

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YN0RcVD6_RA

Eurogamer review

http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_XdP6Lp2ceqY/TIMZWdCcCHI/AAAAAAAAa5c/XJ_pvWhOSf8/s1600/4827461956_3508bc8771_z.jpg

i do love ade's facetious quote for that one.

Additional quotes:

salsa shark: Not too sure what IGN is on about. I think the camera works fine for the most part, with only rare instances where you can't swing it behind you or go into first-person mode. Otherwise, you can move it all around you, though it's a bit slower than I'd normally like. The control scheme is basic but there are only two times it's irritated me: first, when trying to jump near a NPC, who I then end up talking to, because A is both jump and 'interact with NPC'; second, when trying to paint/unpaint a chunk of scenery on the ground and not being able to paint it because for whatever reason the game doesn't seem to understand where I'm pointing (it's hard to explain, but thankfully so far this hasn't rendered crucial parts of the game unplayable).

If there's anything that has me near Wiimote-throwing point, it's the poor quest management and the way every task seems to turn into a fetch quest. A number of non-essential quests 'expire' if you neglect to complete them during a specific moment/area of the game (the world isn't fully explorable; I don't think you can retrace your steps and revisit old areas unless it's part of the storyline moving forward), and I find the quests themselves are all kind of redundant. Collecting 5 spark plugs turns into 5 fetch quests for various NPCs who all look similar and are easy to forget/mistake for one another. It's all 'oh yeah, I have a spark plug, but you can't have it unless you throw these bunnies into a vacuum tube,' or 'yeah, I'll give you this statue, but you have to find me a flower so I can woo Henrietta,' then 'I'll help you arrange a bouquet of flowers, but you have to find me three flowers first,' then AARRRGHGHGH WHERE TF ARE THE STUPID FLOWERS JUST LET ME GET TO THE NEXT PART OF THE GAME ALREADY. Okay I love quests and adventure games but seriously this is almost too much even for me.

But it's a very nice game to look at and I'll stick with it for a while longer.

CaptainLorax: I read this thread before I went to sleep last night and at one point in the dream I was playing this game or something. I just remember the Bunny Kids except they were Bunny Boys that had chairs for faces. They were actually pretty cute.

Noodle Vague: Emo versions of kids cartoons are probly the most horrible fucking thing ever invented ever.

Warren Specter followed up this success with writing a DuckTales comic.

DuckTales!

#53: Deadly Premonition – PS3/360 –20 pts – 1 vote
Official Game Site

http://beefjack.com/files/2010/08/deadly_premonition_03.jpg

jjjusten: yeah yeah everybody is going to think that im being captain challops here but this really was my second favorite game of the year. it is completely unhinged but theres something so good underneath the slapdash budget production that everyone (well everyone w/a 360 at least) really ought to give it a try. this is a game that should be used as an example of the difference between badly thought out mechanics and broken mechanics, and a lot of reviewers seem to have flubbed that one. the gameplay is at times, and maybe often, kind of shitty (it does get better), but that isnt the point here, its a suda 51 sort of experience where the depth of abject weirdness just gets more and more satisfying until suddenly you dont care that the cars all drive like bricks and the combat mechanic is pointlessly easy once you get one of the special weapons and that the character models are at least a generation or two behind par. also make no mistake, the dudes behind this game are totally in on the joke, and if you stick with it long enough you will reap the rewards.

FAIR WARNING: if you have a pulse, you will hate the first hour or so of this game, no question, but stick with it because it's worth it. Repeat this mantra the first time you drive (oh and also be sure to hit the a button to talk every chance you get, there is hidden gold, especially when you are driving alone). Also keep this persistence creed in mind the first time you have a long long long series of timed button presses to escape from danger (trust me, you'll know it when you see it).
also, BEST PAUSE MENU IN ANY GAME EVER.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rp5krDoflLI

Jordan: i'm heartened that there are still broken + hilarious games being made for the youth of today

http://xbox360media.ign.com/xbox360/image/article/104/1043970/deadly-premonition-20091110000512473_640w.jpg

Polyphonic: I enjoyed playing the first two hours of this. Definitely going to pick it up at some point. It is sort of a so-bad-it's-good thing though. I think you could combine elements of Nier, Deadly Premonition, and Alan Wake and make one amazing game.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rzvXBFwcyek

Eurogamer review

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C3AI7riy1Qk

Something Awful review

http://xbox360media.ign.com/xbox360/image/article/104/1043970/deadly-premonition-20091110000457552_640w.jpg

Goole: you know now that i think of it "deadly premonition" makes some actual sense as a phrase unlike "resident evil" and "silent hill" which are just stupid.

http://img.listal.com/image/1403774/936full-deadly-premonition-artwork.jpg

poly seriously you are awesome dude. thanks

#53: APB – PC – 20 pts – 1 vote
Official Game Site

http://gamernode.com/upload/manager///News%20Images/PC/epic_games_may_save_apb1284740256.jpg

Princess TamTam: Like James Dean... taken before its time…

http://www.pcgamersworld.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/apb_11-05-10_11.jpg

Will M: that oficial apb character artwork is really boob. i mean uh breasts. good. i meant good.

PC Gamer review

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5T8HjJNvqYo

Ste: APB doesn't look as impressive as first suspected

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7JpVHuYRfWA

And that'll do it for 53s. See ya next week.

that deadly premonition cut scene is just, well, i cannot find the words

I just read that APB is actually coming back.