Cicrle Pad Pro

I finally got my hands on the Circle Pad Pro accessory for my 3DS.

I looked for it at every EB Games and GameStop (who are the exclusive retailers for the accessory) in the HRM and no dice. They kept telling me it was either sold out or dis-continued, some clerks also told me that it would be coming out packaged with certain games down the road, similar to the Wii's Classic Controller Pro.

I asked Nintendo about it and their spokesperson told me that it wasn't discontinued, and she was a little peeved that the retailer was telling me a different story.

So they sent me a review copy from their inventory, I'm hoping I can hold onto it instead of sending it back.

Why do I want to keep it? Because it is awesome at what it does despite its shortcomings.

Let's get this out of the way first nice and quick, like ripping off a bandaid - This accessory simply should not have to exist. Shipping the 3DS without a second analog stick was an enormous design flaw. Did Nintendo not see how it affected the original PSP or even with their original DS line? (although it wasn't as crucial back then)

The fact that we need a Circle Pad Pro accessory now shows the error in the 3DS' original design. Nintendo's audience will now be divided - those who have the circle pad pro and those who don't. splitting the market for games as well - those designed with dual analog control and those without.

And there may be those out there who will now wait for a 3DS refresh, with a second analog stick built in, before taking the plunge.

Ok there. Bad Nintendo. Remember this next time.

Anyways. The accessory itself, despite its girth, is surprisingly comfortable to hold and use. When I saw images of it online I was taken aback by its sheer size. However, now that I've held it and played it for long periods of time, it's actually more comfortable to use a 3DS with a Circle Pad Pro than without.

A lot of the comfort has to do with its ergonomic design. It lays in your hand just like a controller would.

The second circle pad and the shoulder buttons are placed nicely, and it improves the overall experience during games like Resident Evil: Revelations.



However, the accessory isn't without its faults. The device relies on its own AAA battery, it doesn't charge with the 3DS or anything fancy like that. It also won't fit on the 3DS charging cradle, so you need to take your 3DS out and put it back on after each play session in order to charge the handhelds admittedly small battery life (4-5 hours)


But the Circle Pad Pro does what it's supposed to do - It provides dual-analog gaming on the 3DS and it even makes long-term gaming more comfortable, while simultaneously eliminating any chance of putting it in your pocket.

Angry Birds Space A Hit!

The champion of the mobile format, Angry Birds, has been feeling a little stale lately. With the original and spin-offs including Rio and Seasons re-hashing a lot of the same elements we've come to love, it was time for a change. Enter Angry Birds Space.

Space adds completely new play styles while maintaining that classic Angry Birds experience. Physics and strategic firing of birds to topple those snorting pigs is still the primary goal here, but there is a huge emphasis on things like gravitational pull to take into consideration before flinging your heroes aloft.

The first few levels are incredibly simple to get people used to the new mechanics and environments. The birds themselves have changed in some ways to compensate for their space-faring adventure. I won't spoil too much, considering there are a lot of Angry Birds fanatics out there.

So far I've only played through the first chapter and it feels and plays great, no issues with freezing or crashing which is quite the accomplishment considering it's still version 1.0

The cartoonish visuals remain, along with the hilarious sound effects, but overall the game feels more polished. I'm playing on my iPhone 4, so I can only imagine what it's like on the shmancy new iPad.

This is probably the biggest release for the Angry Birds franchise since the series graced our iPhones all of those years ago, changing gaming-on-the-go forever.

Releasing on March 22nd for iOS, Android, Microsoft Windows and Mac OSX, Rovio (the developer) is poised to make another killing at the bank with it's addictive and popular franchise. For the iOS version, it retails for .99 cents on the app store.

What's almost more amazing is how Angry Birds has permeated popular culture. There are plush toys, t-shirts, a rumoured TV show, and the games continue to be at the top of the bestsellers list for months, even years. It could also be responsible for the rise of smartphones being seen as true mobile gaming platforms, to the detriment of Nintendo and Sony, as they continue to lose marketshare.

All this being said, fans and newcomers to Angry Birds will enjoy this refreshing take on flinging birds into pigs.

Spoiler Alert: Mass Effect 3 Ending Analyzed

Well, here we are, the finale to one of the greatest video games ever made. Although Bioware and EA will certainly continue the Mass Effect universe, thank the Goddess.

Mass Effect 3's polarizing ending has led to tens of thousands of fans signing petitions and even one over-zealous nut filing a complaint with the Better Business Bureau, OK buddy.

Those thousands of people, just didn't get it.

That's my honest opinion. The ending's grand design was totally lost on these people, maybe that is the fault of the developer, but the ending's philosophical and visceral finale was not as it seems.



Spoilers begin, be careful those who scroll beyond here:

The 'ending' we'll say, begins when Shepard make his way to London, after hauling fleets from all over the galaxy to Earth in order to re-take the planet, and connect the giant Crucible project to the Citadel, which turns out was the Catalyst (object needed to complete the project and defeat the Reapers) all along. A pretty good 'gasp' moment. The Citadel? The height of government and culture in the galaxy actually an integral part to its design. Wild.

The Reapers brought the Citadel to Earth to protect it, as that is where most of the living synthetic ships were, creating the perfect setting for a final stand. I love the incredible sense of drama this creates and the thousands of allied ships jump into view on one side, the giant Reapers on the other.



Shepard and his task force is able to punch through and make his way to London, where they are trying to get to what essentially mounts up to being a transportation beam up to the Citadel, which has all of its arms closed tight to prevent the Crucible from working, and any ships from docking. Those clever Reapers.

Shepard makes his way to the beam although not before getting knocked back by a Reaper laser, where most of his team is presumed dead.

This is where things get interesting, and where fans start to lose grasp on what's actually going on.

Shepard is not actually going up the beam to the Citadel.

What?

Nope. He's being indoctrinated. By the Reapers. They are controlling his mind, which they've done before on other characters like Saren from the first game and the Rachni Queen as well.

Which is why things seem so dream-like or un-real. Things aren't quite right when he makes it up there. The rooms he see's are similar to ones he's seen in previous parts of his life. The Collector Base, there are elements of Omega and the Citadel. It's all an attempt to control and warp Shepard's mind. Show him the familiar so it's believable. Similar to the Geth mission where Shepard enters the Geth Consensus, but more fleshed out.


Why else would Admiral Anders also have made it up the Citadel with him? Why did no one else? Why is the control room right next to where he beams up? It's all happening inside of Shepard's mind. And this fight is actually a fight to save his mind from being indoctrinated by the Reapers and becoming like Saren, The Illusive Man and others.

There are hints throughout that illustrate this, and I can't possibly go through them all, but if the player pays attention to the subtle things happening throughout the game, like the child he see's on Earth and in his dreams, it's a sign that the Reapers are attempting to control Shepard through emotions. It's been happening since he met Harbinger.

The duel of words that happens between Shepard, the Illusive Man, and Admiral Anders is all a trick by the Reaper indoctrination process.

The Illusive Man representing the Reapers and Anders representing Shepard's humanity. Depending on how you played through this part, you can see how this works. The Reapers are constantly trying to convince you that you don't need to destroy them all in order to save humanity, you can attempt to control them or join synthetic and organic DNA, bringing about the final stage of evolution, according to the Reapers. It's a trick.

This is the final test, and if you chose the correct path, the one on the right, and destroyed the conduit (the deceptively 'renegade' red one) Shepard's mind has defeated the indoctrination process. And instead sees images of the Reaper defeat with the a giant wave of energy, spreading all over the Galaxy. And the Normandy landing on a lush and strange environment, a sign of hope.

This is why the hologram on the Citadel looks so much like that child on Earth, he was never really there. Shepard was the only person who ever saw him, because he was already being indoctrinated, which can be a slow gradual process. The child was a way to play to Shepard's heartstrings and integrating him into the final test brings the whole process full circle.

What's not clear, and hopefully Bioware/EA will address this, is what happened in reality? Were the Reapers actually defeated, or did Shepard just prevent himself from becoming a Reaper slave? That is what is unclear.

But you can't always have a cut and dry ending that sums up absolutely everything. There is clearly going to more to the Mass Effect universe, and to cut and run like that would be a disservice to the fans.

Perhaps the developers should have made it more clear what was actually happening in that epic final scene, but slowly discovering the reality is what Mass Effect is all about. This is why I think the hubbub about the ending is pretty much an enormous misunderstanding.

I personally loved the ending, and I'm hoping EA/Bioware doesn't change this internal struggle, but shows more of what happens in reality.

This youtube video sums it all up beautifully, but I will digress I realized a lot of this before watching, but it puts it together so elegantly it's a must-watch.


I can't wait for the next chapter in this amazing universe. Well done Bioware.

Mass Effect 3 Continues to Impress

Note: I'll do my absolute hardest not to spoil any story elements, as I know how frustrating that can be.

I've been playing a lot of Mass Effect 3 lately, A LOT. We're talking multiple-hour long marathon sessions on a regular basis. I knew this was coming, just as surely as Command Shepard knew the Reapers were on their way to destroy us all. My only regret here is that it's taken time away from other games I'd like to try like Mario Party 9 (don't judge) and Journey, the latest PSN darling. But I'll have time for those soon.

 Mass Effect 3 has basically consumed my life since getting it earlier this month. Both the multiplayer and the single player campaign have me completely hooked. This isn't much of a surprise personally as ME1 and ME2 also had me utterly enthralled when they released.

But I'm terrified of how it ends. Everywhere I look I hear of people complaining about the ending. From my buddies who've already beaten it, to the masses (heh) on Twitter, and even EA/Bioware themselves saying they're 'looking into it.' That is really scary. I've been head-over-heels in love with this series since it came out in 2007. It was the reason I bought an Xbox before a PS3. Not Halo, not Fable - Mass fucking Effect.

The idea that this epic series ends on not only a flat note, but a terrible one has me shivering. I know, I know - It's just a game! And that's what I get for investing so much into it. But when a game is crafted as brilliantly as this one, it's hard to ignore such critiques of how all the cookies crumble.

That being said, the bulk of the actual game, what I've played so far, has been fantastic. It does stumble at times and there is the odd glitch, for example sometimes Shepard will talk to someone with his head pointed in the other direction, just looks odd. But in true Mass Effect fashion, the story and characters shine through. Although I do find I'm missing some of the amazing crew from Mass Effect 2, and the loyalty missions that went with them.

But one thing this part of the series has more than the two earlier games is an uncompromising sense of scale. Shepard has never faced odds quite this dire. The Reapers, the mysterious villains hinted at in the first two games, are here in full force, killing and harvesting millions of people as they go. Decisions you make not only save lives, but entire planets. It's quite something to witness. I would go into more detail but it's really something the player needs to experience first hand.


Multiplayer has also been a surprisingly fun way to take a break from the main story but still stay involved with the universe. Although sometimes when I get into it, I just want to quit and go back to the story. I don't know if I'll stick with it when I complete the game. And depending on the ending, I don't know if I'll replay the single player like I did with ME2.

But so far, pre-ending Mass Effect 3 has been an absolutely incredible experience, and I can't recommend the series enough. To me it is the crowning jewel of this console generation.

Kid Icarus: Uprising

Wow, Nintendo's been nice to me this month. Latest game they've sent me - Kid Icarus: Uprising for the 3DS.

The game came with lots of goodies, which I'll show off now before I give my impressions later this week.

Note the interesting packed in 3DS stand. Certainly comes in handy.

Consoles Are Here To Stay... For Now

There's been a lot of doom and gloom going around about the end of the console era. Pundits saying that the golden age of dedicated gaming machines has come and gone, this mostly being blamed on 'disruptive' technology like the iPad or new business models such as 'freemium.'

I say... hold your horses.

This has been the longest 'generation' of consoles since they've been coming out. Nintendo, Sony, and Microsoft have been sitting on their current machines because they can still do new things with them, and studios are finally capitalizing on their full potential.

From VGChartz, not 100% accurate

Certainly sales of the current generation of consoles (360, PS3, and Wii) have been shrinking for the last couple of years. Why? Because everyone already owns them. So of course sales are going to slow for a product which has been out for years after its release. Console makers don't release a new box every year like Apple does. I believe the next wave of consoles, starting with the Wii U this year, will bring some of that interest and marketshare back to the more traditional game-makers.

Nintendo and Sony have also been using this void to release new handhelds - 3DS and Vita to keep momentum going.

And yes the ominous threat of the iPad and .99 cent games are giving everyone the chills about the future of game consoles, but for the near future, I believe these boxes under our TVs will remain, providing top of the line gaming and new entertainment options. I don't just use my PS3 as a gaming machine, I also watch Netflix on it, play my Blu-rays on it and download new and amazing digital gaming experiences such as the recently released Journey.

Devices like the iPad may make some people reconsider spending money on a home console, but the lack of a dedicated controller and notable games like Mario, Halo and Uncharted will keep the consoles going.

I don't think it's as simple as one more market canibalizing another, if anything what we're seeing is an expansion of the overall video game market. And people who enjoy casual experiences on iPhones/iPads will be more willing to check out home consoles, because that barrier has been removed.

Also my lovely girlfriend made this point and wanted me to share it "Games on my phone are a distraction, when I'm bored they kill time. If somebody wants a true gaming experience they sit on the couch, turn on the TV, which is a much bigger screen by the way, and play for hours on end, you can't do that with a phone."

Send Cheryl to Space!

This has absolutely nothing to do with video games, but we need to send Cheryl Hann, from Picnicface, to space.

vote here: Race for Space

I interviewed Cheryl last year along with fellow comedy troupe member Bill Wood for a story in OpenFile and had an awesome time going around the city looking at places they used to perform, and where they filmed scenes for their show on the Comedy Network.



Cheryl is awesome and deserves this trip of a lifetime.

Let's blast her off into the cosmos.


Here's a video of our adventure!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=LAykt9_Ts_E