Beware the Frog

6 January 2011

Avatar Kinect

Looks like a great tech demo implemented in the most useless possible way.

# 2011/01/06 - 20:50 — originally published on @garoo

8 January

I’m enjoying Guitar Hero more than I expected. Added bonus: look! everything in my room is flying upwards now!

# 2011/01/08 - 23:06 — originally published on @garoo

I’m also (and it’s no coincidence) not nearly as bad at it as I was afraid I’d be.

# 2011/01/08 - 23:10 — originally published on @garoo

9 January

I always make the sexiest avatars in my video games, and then I’m more frustrated every time I see them i a cutscene. #guitarhero

# 2011/01/09 - 19:35 — originally published on @garoo

12 January

Yeah, Rock Band is definitely better than Guitar Hero, even for this noob here it’s very noticeable.

# 2011/01/12 - 21:18 — originally published on @garoo

13 January

The local tracks for the European version of Rock Band 1 are spectacularly bad. Harmonix must really, really hate us.

# 2011/01/13 - 03:13 — originally published on @garoo

I wanna turn on Rock Band to take a photo of my guitarist and play the songs I bought yesterday, but if I do I’ll spend the whole day on it again.

# 2011/01/13 - 18:16 — originally published on @garoo

Why is Rock Band 2 for PS3 — and only that one — unavailable both on Amazon and on the official Rock Band store?

# 2011/01/13 - 21:57 — originally published on @garoo

17 January

World of Goo on the iPad can occasionally be awkward but the physicality of dragging the goo balls around more than makes up for it.

# 2011/01/17 - 03:17 — originally published on @garoo

27 January

Thank god the Playstation phone isn’t named that

More like how Windows 7 phones have Xbox Live. Not altogether absurd.

# 2011/01/27 - 00:19 — originally published on @garoo

“Sony’s next PSP, codenamed NGP”

I don’t really like the design but, with a 5-inch 960x544 and (finally) two actual analog sticks, that’s a nice gaming device. Though with such power, 3G, GPS, and a touchscreen plus touchpad (whaaa?), it’s not gonna be cheap. I’m sure Sony was happy when Nintendo finally announced the price point for the 3DS — no coincidence that they waited until that info was released.

That first video shows an interesting — if gimmicky — use for the rear-touchpad, but it also demonstrates how awkward it’s going to be, holding and using the device with games that support it. Do you ever hold your iPhone in landscape orientation without supporting the back of the screen with your fingers? And the third video, showing how you climb vines in Uncharted with the touchpad, is a very good example of how most games forced to use it will make it cumbersome and silly as hell. (Remember Sixaxis?)

I wonder how it integrates with Android. It has to run it, if it’s compatible with PlayStation Suite games, but I’m not sure if it’s a dual-boot situation or the native games will actually be developed on Android.

And they didn’t mention battery life, did they?

# 2011/01/27 - 19:39

28 January

PS3 update stuck at 0% downloading. So much for playing a quick game of GT5. Goddamn fucking asshole of a console.

# 2011/01/28 - 20:48 — originally published on @garoo

Trying to download the PS3 update from the web. Fucking joke. Should sell it before I throw it out the window.

# 2011/01/28 - 21:42 — originally published on @garoo

29 January

There’s a time trial in Gran Turismo 5 that begins with a 45-second pit sequence every single time you retry. I hate this game so very much.

# 2011/01/29 - 02:21 — originally published on @garoo

I originally wanted to wait until Little Big Planet 2 was discounted or on the used game market, but I think I need the cuteness, stat.

# 2011/01/29 - 21:56 — originally published on @garoo