Top Ten Games I’ve Played In 2007

10. Sim City 4

Sim City 4 is a game that really drew me in, and it’s cool looking cities and it’s god-like tendencies kept me playing for hours. Necessity of micromanagement, and a strict financial leash, kept me hoping for a better fix in the next Sim City… So much for that.

9. Stuntman: Ignition

The thing about this game is that you can love it one minute, hate it the next. I was twisting my controller in frustration one minute, and smiling with a feeling of great accomplishment the next. I, for one, can’t wait for a (improved) sequel.

8. Lego Star Wars II: The Original Trilogy

Hilarious cut scenes, lots of characters, big, expansive levels. Unfortunately, all of this was brought down a tad by the limited replayability; grinding through the same level again and again for some stupid canister is not my idea of a good time. Other then that, the game was another surprise hit for me.

7. Star Wars: Battlefront

Battlefront does a really good job of immersing you in the Star Warsexperience, and of being a really good first/ third person shooter too. Zooming around in X-wings and stomping infantry with AT-STs is a thrilling experience, one that’s brought down just a bit by the somewhat stale Cl@sses.

6. Command & Conquer: Generals

Good ol’fashioned Command & Conquer, albeit without a traditional C&C story. The RTS action is great, both online, offline, and in the campaign, and the three different factions are enjoyably different from each other. The story is a bit off the usual C&C story, but it’s still good and links the campaigns nicely.

5. Sid Meier’s Pirates!

I swear I will start talking like a pirate if I get anymore into this game. In between the impressive graphics (for the PSP) and the great gameplay, you hardly need a decent story to hold it all together, but it’s there anyway. It’s just another one of those games that grabs you and won’t let go!

4. Burnout Revenge

Burnout Revenge is a pure adrenaline spike, and that’s what makes it great. It’s every Burnout game, with a new twist: now you can hit traffic it it’s traveling in the same lane as you. This makes the series all the more white knuckle and intense; blowing through 30 cars to take some down just never gets old.

3. Mercenaries

GTA with really big explosions and lots of guns. There, I described what Mercenaries is and why I love it. The cool story helps to, but it really is the unique missions that also make this game a real winner.

2. Worms: Open Warfare 2

I used to think the turn-based strategy genre was dead, and boring. I was wrong; it might my dying but after playing Worms I’m convinced it’s not boring! Funny, explosive weapons, on your feetstrategy, online multiplayer, hilarious worms, inventive campaign… The list of what makes this game great goes on and on.

1. Ace Combat 5: The Unsung War

Ace Combat has always been about intense arcade flying, awesome graphics and a vast selection of planes. Well, 5 has all that and something else: a likable story. You’ll notice that I said likable, not good, because this story is not good, not compared to, say, Mass Effect, KOTOR, or even Call Of Duty 4. It does more then move the game along, because it’s very… endearing. I love it, and it’s absolutely gorgeous cut scenes, along with the rest of the game.

-Paul

http://www.aceenergydrink.com/aboutus.htm

Dude, REALLY?? Holy FUCK. What’s next?? Vietnam War themed drinks with Dead Civilians and Bad Draft Laws versions?? Seriously. Total Russian CIVILIAN casualties for WW2 alone is 19 million people!! Innocent civilians!! That sounds like energy drink material to me! 

Yeah… Sorry for the yelling. It’s a touchy subject. 

-Paul 

I’ve also been playing the DiRT demo quite a bit. The damage model is really impressive, and it’s really fun to play that game like you’d play Burnout. You fail miserably every time, but it’s super fun. Something that seems enjoyable is having a realistic racing sim like that combined with something like a toned down Pursuit Force. The second player would sit in the back/passenger seat and shoot at the opposition and drop C4 and other mad stuff like that. I dunno, I guess it sounds pretty stupid, but in the hands of good developers it would be rad. 

On another note, I saw the latest episode of The Office. Pretty funny, but something’s missing.

Late.  

The concept of the Electoral College is relatively simple; each state is assigned an amount of electors, (who each have one vote) based on it’s size. After the election, the electors go to their state capitol and vote. This is a broken and unnecessary system! The American people (who voted, of course) have spoken on election day, and the Electoral College is simply a possible loophole, another way for a dishonest candidate to  game the system. Even if the Electoral College operated flawlessly every single year, it would still be a completely superfluous organization. If you already have America’s opinion, why would you base who becomes president off of a much smaller group of people? 

In conclusion, the Electoral College is a completely unneeded and flawed system. Even Russia, a formerly communist nation has a more sensible system for electing their government officials; they use direct election in lieu of an Electoral College or something similar. Support election reform!         

A) The PSP store doesn’t run on a Mac, and 

B) The PSP store doesn’t run on a PSP??

I know that most people say that Sony just had to get the store out, and in time the store will be on the PSP, and that’s probably true. Here’s what gets me: why not just wait?? Why does the world need the store now? Couldn’t Sony just wait and work out PSP and Mac support? I dunno, probably just over reacting, but just seems odd. 

Anyway, I’m thinking of sending in a couple of my reviews to this GameStache site. (www.gamestache.com) Currently the site has 5 reviews, all written by the same guy, but he’s a good writer. I’ll at least send in a review or two for some constructive criticism. I’ve tried contacting some GameSpot staff about taking a glance at my reviews, but with the recent staff shortages I’d imagine they’re worked to the bone, and have way more important things to be doing then looking over some review. 

On the tv front, I finished The Office seasons 1-3, and part of 4. Really great show. I also started watching Heroes Season 1, and it’s pretty cool. 

Well, I’m going to go try out the God Of War demo. 

-Paul  

-Paul 

Oh, and listen to this if you like Lost.    

Also- GiantBomb.Com  

Anyway, I’ve started watching Office again. I watched season 1-3 on DVD but couldn’t watch 4 due to lack of TV. (That would be a problem, huh?). Anyway, NBC has just followed ABC’s lead and put up a video player. My rating? It sucks. Horribly. Due to some weird glitch, I have to watch two commercials at the commercial breaks (which, by the way, occur twice as often as in ABC’s player). The quality isn’t as good, the controls look like I could throw them together (I’ve never coded), and (this is the worst) you can only watch like 6 of the most recent episodes. I watched the entire first season of LOST on ABC, but apparently NBC can’t get that I want to watch I whole heckva lot of Office. I will say- the player is a lot less browser intensive, so the damn thing doesn’t crash nearly as often as ABC’s. Still, only a couple episodes; NO DEAL!! Still, whatever, I’m totally watching it. What can I say, The Office is a horribly, horribly addicting thing. I love it. And I have no reason. Anyway, I was reading Kevin VanOrd’s blog and it sounds like he found a boyfriend. I know he’s been burned in the past, and it sounds like they really like each other, so I’m happy for them.  

I went to tennis lessons today. Pretty much a forced thing, but it actually wasn’t that bad. I suck at tennis, but it could be worse. 

Well, I’m out.