Bite Size 2008 is my wrap-up of moments in games from the past calendar year. This post is themed around stuff that is downloadable. Check out this listing for the rest of my Bite Size 2008 posts!
Racing Along “She Is Beautiful”
Along with being a huge gamer, I also try to listen to a lot of music. So, as a music enthusiast and a gaming enthusiast, I was excited to see the release of Audiosurf. It could almost be defined as relying on user generated content, since you provide the MP3s for the game to generate tracks for. The first track I loaded up on the tutorial level was Andrew W.K.’s “She Is Beautiful”, and that really set the par for the course. I had a blast playing, and got to listen to a song I enjoy going a little crazy to. What was even more fun, was playing songs I’ve written. Especially the songs with tempo changes and parts that crescendo and accelerando and the opposites, allowing me to have this extremely varied experience of playing a game backed by music I’ve written. This is an easy grab for one of my top titles of the year.
From The Screen To Your… Screen?
I’ve been a huge fan of Penny Arcade for years. Even when my interest in gaming waned a bit (during a period in high school when I thought I had the skills to be in a band), I still checked Penny Arcade daily. Then, as if a reward for my perseverance, we were told of Penny Arcade: On The Rain-Slick Precipice of Darkness. However, I was skeptical of the possibilities of the PA game. I feared the humor would not translate into the game, and that it would simply try too hard to be Penny Arcade-ish. These fears were alleviated with the release of the game to XBL and PC. It hit all the nails on their heads, with spot on comedy along with a world that evoked the PA atmosphere on top of a game that was not dull and derivative (Unlike Lost: Via Domus, but I still played that). From start to finish, the six or eight hours I spent in the PA game were enjoyable, and the second one was equally so. I am a bit afraid for the rest of the series, but if it is only a four-part story, as the opening video implies, then it will be over before it gets too stale. Here’s to Episodes 3 and 4.
Something About An Atomic Bomb and Platforming
Braid. What can I say that has not already been said? (I totally meant to make that entire sentence full of links but I got lazy, but you still catch my drift). The ending of the game floored me, and totally threw me for a loop. Aside from the big reveal in Bioshock, this was one of my most significant “OMFG” moments in gaming ever. I salute Jonathan Blow and all his hard work, and as the gaggle of my friends and I sat to discuss Braid, we could only speak highly of it.
Honorable Mention That I Do Not Want to Write a Paragraph For:
Harmonix gets an honorable mention for their consistency with providing DLC every week! I’ve scored some tracks that I simply love playing, and I commend them for that!
That’s all for today’s post! I’ve got a few more moments to count down – probably two posts worth - and then I’ll discuss the course I’m charting for 2009. Back tomorrow with more!
