Team Fortress 2 Raises Over $430,000 For Japan Relief Efforts

That above is the exact amount: $430,543.65. All of it will go directly to the American Red Cross to be put to use in relief efforts for the devastating natural disaster that occurred in Japan a month ago.

The money was raised from TF2 players purchasing special hats that were available to purchase for a limited time. I've decried and bemoaned TF2's Mann Co. Store since its inception, but this was a very nice use of the service and I commend Valve for doing putting this together. Of course, if they really wanted to raise a lot of money, they'd include earnings from selling crate keys, but that's a whole different story...

Congratulations to Valve for raising a lot of money for a very worthy cause.

3LL's 3DS Odyssey: Part 1

Hello, dear reader. It's been a week since I've made a new blog post, and coincidentally, it's been a week since the 3DS was launched in North America. And what a week it was. A week of seeing, a week of believing. A week of StreetPassing, a week of SpotPassing. A week of reality augmenting, a week of face raiding. A week of... umm, sorry about that. Didn't mean to go all Charles Dickens on you. Apologies.

I decided back then to forgo rushing some quick impressions up on the site and instead wait a week, get a good feel for the device, learn its ins and outs, and then write about my impressions, thoughts, criticisms, and what have you. I'm going to break this up into parts, since I'm sure no one wants to read giant, rambling walls of text. This first part, appropriately titled "Part 1", will be about my launch day experience, which I'm sure a lot of you will find boring, but just think of it as a necessary introduction into more interesting things to come later, okay? Alright, here we go.

Before I could set my eyes upon the 3D screen for the first time and start playing, I had to, you know, buy one. All signs leading up to the launch suggested incredible scarcity, so naturally I didn't do a pre-order, because I'm just that cool. Instead, I phoned up a bunch of local retailers to see if they were going to have any. First GameStop, no luck. Second GameStop, the same. Third GameStop, they said they'd probably have a few. Cool. I decided to also try the local Target, and the helpful man on the phone said that they were going to have a bunch available. Right on! I always knew not being prudent and refusing to get a pre-order would pay off in the end.

Early morning, Sunday March 27th, and it's time to head out and pick up my 3DS. I got there a little bit before the store opened, just in case there was going to be a bunch of people lining up. There weren't. Oh well. I got in and, at last, purchased my Aqua Blue 3DS. The person working there said they had 24 3DSes, which surprised me a little that they had so many available, but as I'd learn later, it seems like supply shortages turned out to not be much of an issue at all. A lot has been made about whether this means the 3DS is selling poorly or whether it just means that Nintendo manufactured an adequate supply of units this time as opposed to the Wii launch, where there was nary a Wii to be found anywhere (except on eBay for a ridiculously gouged price). I'm inclined to believe the latter.

And so, triumphant, with 3DS in hand, I returned home. Then, all of a sudden, without warning, THE MOST INCREDI*... nah, I think I'll stop here for now. Tune in next time to hear about my initial impressions! Same bat-time, same bat-channel.

* nothing exciting or unexpected actually happens, I'm just trying to drum up suspense for the next part of this feature.

3LL on 3DS: Let's Be Friends!

Hello there! As you may have heard, the 3DS was just released in North America. Hopefully you’ve been able to pick up yours, as I have mine (unless you never cared about the 3DS in the first place, to which I question why you are reading this in the first place).

I decided to do a quick little post just in case any of you 3DS owners out there wanted to share Friend Codes. Mine is (if you haven’t seen the image on the right side of the site) 4468-0967-9973. If you want to be friends, add my code to your 3DS and then post your code in the comments section below (or email me, or tweet me).

Let’s become 3DS super best pals! I almost promise you won’t regret it. Almost…

3D-Day Imminent

It was a little over a year ago today that Nintendo dropped the bob-omb on the unsuspecting gaming public by announcing something called the 3DS. This successor to the money-printing DS could supposedly create stereoscopic 3D without the need for glasses (probably through the use of some manner of dark sorcery, but we couldn't know for sure since we didn't really know anything about it at that point).Then at E3 a couple of months later, everything was revealed and it completely stole the show. Fast forward to now, the eve of the 3DS' North American launch, and we're all ready to fix our eyes upon the magical screen.

I didn't pre-order a 3DS (because I like to live on the edge of danger), but I'll be out there nice 'n early to snag mine (hopefully [maybe]). If you're doing a launch event, line, or what have you, then I hope you have a lot of fun. If you've pre-ordered one, then congrats on being prudent and smarter than me. If you could care less about the 3DS, then keep on... doing whatever it was you were doing before.

And so, the launch day is finally at hand. Game system launches always kind of have a certain magical feel to them, kind of like a holiday just for us gamers. Good luck getting yours and have fun!

Is Super Street Fighter IV the 3DS' Best Launch Game?

Video Games | Super Street Fighter IV 3D Edition | GDC 11: Full Experience Interview

Xbox 360 | PlayStation 3 | Nintendo Wii | PC Games

Above, I've embedded a new interview that GameTrailers did with a man from Capcom about the upcoming 3DS iteration of Super Street Fighter IV. While the interview itself is pretty good (albeit lacking in any info we didn't already know), I thought I'd use it as more of a launching point to discuss SSF4 and the rest of the 3DS launch lineup.

In case you need a little refresher on what games will be available for the 3DS on Day 1, I wrote a piece about it back when the announcement was first made listing which titles would be coming out as well as my thoughts on the selection. While I did concede that there wasn't a blockbuster killer app among the games, I wasn't upset like a lot of people were. I felt like it was a very solid lineup, with a few games that seemed legitimately good and not just launch day cash-in shovelware. As we draw ever closer to the North American launch (one more week!), it's time to now focus on just which game(s) are worthy of a purchase alongside the 3DS itself.

A lot of video game websites out there have received their 3DSes and the first reviews are starting to trickle in. The game I'm paying a particular interest in is Steel Diver. It was always the 3DS launch game that I was drawn to the most (despite cries of "boring!" from the comment section of pretty much every major gaming site on the web). The one thing, the ONE thing that I was always apprehensive of was whether or not it had enough content to justify a $40 dollar price tag. Unfortunately, it seems like Steel Diver comes up short in that respect.

As a poor, nigh destitute person of meager income, I must try and be as wise as I can with my gaming purchases. And so, rebuffed by the realities of Steel Diver's lack of bang-for-the-buck, I began to think of other possibilities for a Day 1 purchase. Pilotwings Resort? Nintendogs + cats? Eh... those aren't really for me. Super Monkey Ball 3D? While I'm a fan of the series, the 3DS version doesn't really have me interested. Madden? Please... EA is so ashamed of this hack-job they didn't even dignify it with a year in the title. There really is only one standout, one game that rises above the rest: Super Street Fighter IV 3D Edition.

GameTrailers named the embedded video above the "Full Experience Interview", and that reflects precisely what SSF4 on 3DS is: a full experience. Not only does it bring nearly every feature over from the console version of the game, but it has numerous added touches that utilize the 3DS' unique functionality. StreetPass, new touchscreen control options, and, of course, 3D visuals.

I'm going to admit, I'm not exactly the most experienced "street fighter". I, like so many others, plunked down my fair share of quarters at the local Street Fighter II arcade cabinet back in the day, and I've also put in a lot of time with Marvel vs Capcom 2 (if you care to consider that a Street Fighter game). I'm not really all that good at either game, but they are certainly a lot of fun. I've never played Street Fighter IV in any form, so playing it on the 3DS will be a completely new experience for me. I know a lot of people are turned off to the 3DS game because they've already played it so much on the XBox 360 or PS3, but obviously that's not going to be a problem for me.

So, to reiterate the question posed in the tile of this blog post: is Super Street Fighter IV the 3DS' best launch game? It seems very possible, if not outright likely. Everyone's certainly going to have their own opinions, but I believe the general consensus will prove SSF4 to be the cream of the launch crop. It's the one game I'm going to try and pick up along with the 3DS on launch day, so I'm hoping my suspicions hold true.

Site Note: The Blogger Formerly Known As...

First of all, apologies for the extended silence on the blog (last post was almost a week ago). I am nothing if not a slacker.

Now to the matter at hand: I've changed my Blogger display name from "Mayor Defacto" to "Alex Agahnim". When I first decided that I wanted to try my hand at blogging, I figured I needed a cool blogging moniker to go by. As I pondered names, "Mayor Defacto" seemed to click in my mind. If you don't know, anytime you start a new city in the SimCity series, you're asked what your name is and are thus named "Mayor Whatever-your-name-is". The default name is "Defacto", and as a fan of SimCity, I thought it would be a neat reference. Starting a brand new blog is kind of analogous to starting to build a new city, so it seemed to fit (and the video game allusion was already built-in).

However, now that I'm a few months into my blogging adventure, I don't think the name fits anymore. As I start to actually communicate with people across the spectrum of internet social sites, the name "Mayor Defacto" just seems too cold and anonymous. I have no qualms about using my real name (Alex Fuller!) on the interwebs, but like I said before, I wanted to have a "blogging name" to go by that was video game related somehow.

And so, with the knowledge that it would be too boring to simply calling myself by my real name, but that it would also be too impersonal to go with a completely anonymous alias, I decided to go with a combination of both: which turned out to be (by using all of my brainpower at full capacity for several consecutive days straight to come up with) "Alex Agahnim". If you have no idea what an "Agahnim" is, then you probably never played A Link to the Past. I liked the name not only because LttP is my favorite game, but because "Agahnim" was actually Ganon's alter ego. I thought that it was fitting, since my blogging/internet identity is kind of like an alter ego of me IRL. Also, you got that double "A" alliteration thing going, so you know, it sounds kind of cool (read: incredibly lame).

And... wow, I can't believe I actually just wrote a lengthy blog post about what arbitrary name I call myself online. I think I need to go read Homer's Odyssey and brush up on the fallacies of identity and perception. I don't even know what that means.

TL;DR: I'm the same person, I just changed my display name from "Mayor Defacto" to "Alex Agahnim". I'm pretty sure all of the old posts now show the new name, so if you're a new reader, you won't know what the hell I'm talking about here anyway. Just call me "Alex" if you want. I really don't want to confuse anyone.

The Shogun Pack Brings Feudal Japan to Team Fortress 2

In their typical out-of-the-blue update style, Valve released to TF2 players everywhere today the latest major content pack in the venerable online shooter: The Shogun Pack. It brings with it 4 new weapons and 4 new hats, each imbued with the spirit of feudal Japan (why not; the stylistic coherency of the game was abandoned long ago anyway). Here's what the new update brings:

The Concheror: A secondary slot weapon for the Soldier that operates similarly to the Buff Banner. On buff, some of the damage your teammates dish out comes back to you as healing.

Conniver's Kunai: A melee weapon for the Spy. The player starts with -65% max health, but you absorb the health of every opponent you backstab.

The Fan O'War: A melee weapon for the Scout. It does -90% damage, but on hit, it marks that player and does mini-crits on him for every hit.

The Half-Zatoichi: A melee weapon for both the Soldier and Demo. On kill, it restores the player's health back to 100%. However, once it is drawn, it can't be put back until it kills.

The Dread Knot: A hat for the Heavy. It looks like a the kind of knotted haircut you often see sumo wrestlers sporting.

The Geisha Boy: A hat for the Medic. A geisha hairstyle for the Medic? Really? As a primary Medic player, I'm offended.

The Noh Mercy: A hat for the Spy. An awesome kabuki-style oni (demon) mask, easily the best hat out of the four in this pack. I'm guessing it'll fetch a pretty penny on trade servers.

The Samur-Eye: A hat for the Demo. A plain ol' samurai helmet, not unlike the Soldier's Killer Kabuto.

Also, there's the Koto Noisemaker, which is a noisemaker that makes some stereotypical Japanese-y noises. Buy a bunch and troll your friends!

This pack was just released as I write this, so I haven't had time to try out any of the new stuff yet. Just from reading the descriptions, I don't think I'd really use any of them, but I usually think that about all new weapons in TF2.

GDC 2011: New Shadows of the Damned Trailer

See more Shadows of the Damned Videos at Shadows of the Damned Official Site.

"Garcia Hotspur was a man that had it all: a killer motorcycle, a sweet leather jacket, and a hot girlfriend... FROM HELL!"

So begins this awesome new trailer for Shadows of the Damned. I could try to describe the awesomeness that lies within, but it's best if you just watch it for yourself. This should leave no doubt that DMD is going  to be a hell of a ride (even I groaned after that terrible pun...).

3LL's 25 Favorite Legend of Zelda Songs

To me, the Legend of Zelda series is video games. Everything I love about video games and everything I feel videos games should be are characterized in Zelda. Unquestionably, it's my favorite series of all time. If you were to ask me my top five favorite games of all time, three of them would be Zelda games (A Link to the Past, Ocarina of Time, and Majora's Mask, in case you were curious which three). I've been playing games all of my life, and nothing invokes a more overwhelming sense of nostalgia in me than Zelda music. That's why, in honor of the 25th anniversary of the Legend of Zelda, I decided to compose a list of my 25 favorite song in the series.

Given the breadth and richness of the Zelda soundtracks, this was obviously no easy task. There are certainly a great deal of wonderful songs that I couldn't fit into this list, and perhaps even more that slipped my mind to even consider. I selected these songs not based on which I think are generally the best or greatest, but on which I have the deepest personal connection and reverence to; simply put, my personal favorites.

The name of each track is a link to a YouTube upload of the song. I only ordered the top ten songs, the rest are in no particular order.

#25 - #11, in no particular order

Mabe Village (Link's Awakening)

Realm Overworld (Spirit Tracks)

Hyrule Field (Ocarina of Time)

Ocean (Wind Waker)

Shop (Ocarina of Time)

Guessing Game House (A Link to the Past)

Overworld (Adventure of Link)

Title Theme (A Link to the Past)

Calling the Four Giants (Majora's Mask)

Windmill Hut (Ocarina of Time)

Game Over (Legend of Zelda)

Clock Town Day 3 (Majora's Mask)

Mini Game (Ocarina of Time)

Hyrule Field (Twilight Princess)

Opening Demo (A Link to the Past)

#10) Clock Tower (Majora's Mask)

More so than any other video game (much less Zelda game), Majora's Mask brings you into its world and compels you to experience every emotionally resonant trial and tribulation of its characters. Despair, hope, sadness, love, longing, loneliness, mortality, redemption, and much more in between. In one of the game's early moments, we are treated to this piece. You'll recognize the Song of Healing within it, which serves as a sonic and thematic motif for the rest of the adventure.

#9) Linebeck's Theme (Phantom Hourglass)

Link has had a lot of sidekicks in his quests over the years: Navi, Midna, and even Zelda herself. My favorite, though, is Linebeck from Phantom Hourglass. His theme is just like his character: boisterous and adventurous, but with an underlying goofiness. Even though his grandson, Linebeck III, makes an appearance in Spirit Tracks, hopefully we'll see the original show up in a game again at some point in the future.

#8) Kokiri Forest (Ocarina of Time)

Whenever I hear this song, I'm taken back to the first time I picked up Ocarina. Just running around exploring Kokiri was an amazing experience. It's a wonderfully care-free few moments before you have to leave Kokiri and the story expands considerably in both scope and stakes.

#7) Hyrule Castle (A Link to the Past)

All good video game music is supposed to set a certain mood, and this theme undoubtedly accomplishes that goal. It sounds just as you'd imagine an enemy stronghold would: imposing, with a militant drive that conjures up images of a conquering army. The song certainly adds a sense of urgency when you know you're in the middle of the castle, surrounded on all sides by guards.

#6) Kakariko Village (A Link to the Past)

A perfect town theme; calm, serene, and soothing. A welcome escape from the danger that seems to lurk around every bush of Hyrule. The tune is reprised a few more times in later Zelda games, serving as a de facto town theme, and it's great in every iteration.

#5) Dragon Roost Island (Wind Waker)

Wind Waker was such a departure from previous Zelda games that it took everyone a little while to accept it, much less love it. But once most people got a chance to play it, that's just what happened. The spirit of WW, I feel, is captured in the Dragon Roost Island theme. It's breezy, organic, and unlike anything you've ever heard before in a Zelda game. I defy you to listen to it and not find yourself whistling along (unless you can't whistle, of course).

#4) Palace (Adventure of Link)

Although Adventure of Link has gained a reputation as being the outcast game of the series, this song has endured as one of its finest. It's dynamic, and you can just feel the action in the music. The side-scrolling style of Adventure of Link emphasized action game elements a lot more than its predecessor, and the Palace theme certainly reflects that.

#3) Overworld (A Link to the Past)

What do I really need to say about this one? It's one of the most recognizable and iconic songs in video game history. In my opinion, it was never more powerful than in A Link to the Past, so that's the version I included on this list.

#2) Dungeon (Legend of Zelda)

The perfect sonic manifestation of exploring a dark and ominous cavern. It sounds like you're delving deeper and deeper into a winding labyrinth, which is accentuated by a foreboding sense of dread brought on by the the bass. No dungeon/temple/palace/whatever theme has yet matched this arrangement.

#1) Dark World (A Link to the Past)

An absolute masterpiece. My favorite song from my favorite game of all time. Powerful, iconic, exhilarating... there is no praise too hyperbolic for this song. Incredible.

Site Note: A Little Sprucing Up

Some of this stuff is really old, but I figured I'd mention them formally in a post anyway just to have it "on record", I guess. 

First: the new banner. Just something I whipped up on Photoshop, but it looks infinitely better than the banner I was using beforehand (and no one will know what that looked like because I have no reader base, so I'm in the clear as far as that's concerned). Can you identify the fonts I used? Most gamers, especially 16-bit era stalwarts, will probably get the title font, but the subtitle font may be a little trickier. It certainly has a nice link to a past great game (so long, subtlety!). 

The next thing is that 3LL has a new commenting system courtesy of IntenseDebate. I'm still looking for that first comment on the site, so if you're an awesome person, you'll leave a comment because leaving comments is what an awesome person would do. If you'd please leave a comment, it would be much appreciated. Comments.

Last and perhaps least, I re-did a bunch of the tags on all of the old posts so now it's easier to navigate around the site and find the stuff you're interested in. Just take a look at the tag cloud over on the right side of the site. Own a PS3? Click the "PS3" tag and you can see all the posts relating to PS3 games. Want to watch the latest and greatest trailers? The "trailer" tag awaits! 

So that's all for now. Kind of boring, but oh well. I'll have cool, exciting video game things to talk about later, so stay tuned.

GDC 2011: Nintendo Announces Netflix, New Mario Game for 3DS

image from 3DSFocus.com

Earlier today, Nintendo President Satoru Iwata gave a keynote address at GDC, of which the 3DS was a main focal point (glasses-free 3D pun!). A number of cool things were announced for the device, including Netflix functionality, which launches this summer. Also, Game Gear and TurboGrafx-16 games will be available for the 3DS Virtual Console, which you'll remember comes along with the eShop update that's scheduled for late May.

The biggest news, though, is that a new Super Mario game is coming to the 3DS! It's being developed by the same team that did the Galaxy games on the Wii, which can only portend amazing things. We'll learn a lot more about this one at E3.

Thanks to GoNintendo for being awesome as always.

Watch This New Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim Trailer

More Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim Videos

Read the title. There's nothing I can say about the greatness of this trailer that isn't already totally self-evident when you watch it. I am completely nonplussed. Well, I guess I can say a couple of words about it...

F***ING AWESOME.

That is all. Have a nice day.

Nintendo Announces Launch Day Games for 3DS in America

At long last, Nintendo has revealed which games we'll be able to play on launch day (March 27th, in case you've forgotten) and not just in the "launch window". There are 16 games in all (not including the built-in AR games or separate versions of Nintendogs), 3 of which are from Nintendo themselves. They are:

• Pilotwings Resort
• Steel Diver
• Nintendogs + cats
• Super Street Fighter IV 3D Edition
• The Sims 3
• Madden NFL Football
• Pro Evolution Soccer 2011 3D
• LEGO Star Wars III: The Clone Wars
• Ridge Racer 3D
• Super Monkey Ball 3D
• Bust-A-Move Universe
• Samurai Warriors: Chronicles
• Asphalt 3D
• Combat of Giants: Dinosaurs 3D
• Rayman 3D
• Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon Shadow Wars

From what I've seen around the interwebs, a lot of people are unhappy about this lineup. The reason, I'm guessing, is because there isn't that AAA marquee killer-app super-awesome hyperbole title like a Zelda or a Mario. I, on the other hand, am perfectly content with this lineup. Allow me to explain.

Nintendo knows a thing or two about how to print money. They know that with as much hype as there is surrounding the 3DS, they don't need to have a major franchise ready right from the start in order to move units. In fact, it's better that there isn't one big title hogging all of the spotlight. This allows the wealth to be spread around to all of the other launch games, which means higher sales for third parties, which means more interest and investment in the 3DS from third parties (which is one of the main goals Nintendo had for the 3DS to begin with). Never doubt the business savvy of the Big N.

Also, at least in my opinion, there are indeed some good titles available. I'm very excited for Steel Diver, which could be a great sleeper hit. I'm not much of a Nintendogs fan, but I appreciate that it's a quality title as well. And then you've got Super Street Fighter IV, which (at least from what we've seen so far) is a console-quality port which makes use of a lot of the 3DS' new features.

Of course, if you think that the lineup is lacking, then that's fine too. There's no harm in waiting out the launch mayhem and buying a 3DS when some games you like start to roll around. For me, however, I'll be there March 27th with a 3DS in hand and eyes gazing into the aether... if I can get one on launch day. It'll probably be pretty hard, ya-know?

Thanks to GoNintendo for relaying the info.

Graphing Calculator Runs a Legit Port of Doom

There have been knock-off versions of games like Tetris and Mario running on graphing calculators for as long as there's been bored students in stats classes, but an actual, functioning, honest-to-goodness port of a game? Well, a group from coding enthusiast community Omnimaga is working on doing just that with the original Doom.

It's still in beta and it crashes every 20-60 seconds, but still, it's very impressive. Obviously there's no sound, it being just a graphing calculator after all, so here's something to listen to as you watch the video.

New RAGE Trailer Will Make You Wanna Rage... Right Now

(For those of you who aren't SF Giants fans, this is what I was referencing in the title.)

Is it "Rage" or "RAGE"? Either way, it's 3LL's 6th most anticiapted game of 2011, so it's always nice when a new trailer comes out.

Prepare to rage come September 13 on the PC, Xbox 360, and PC.

New, Bloody, Kick-ass Shadows of the Damned Screens

If you didn't already know that Shadows of the Damned, the Grasshopper Manufacture project helmed by the team of Suda 51 and Shinji Mikami, is going to be incredible, then allow me to point you in the direction of some kick-ass new screens. There's one up above, and you can see the other 9 over at either Kotaku or Joystiq.

You may recall that Shadows is 3LL's 4th most anticipated game of 2011, so yeah, I'm pretty pumped for this one. I'll be on the lookout for more info and media from the game to share with you guys, so stay tuned.

Duke Nukem Forever Balls of Steel Edition is as Awesome as the Duke Himself

image from Kotaku.com

Damn, this special edition is looking good.

For a mere $99, true Duke enthusiasts can enjoy all of the goodies provided in the new (and appropriately named) Balls of Steel Edition of Duke Nukem Forever. The centerpiece of the package is a handsome likeness of the Duke, which any true connoisseur of ass-kicking and gum-running-out-of will proudly display on their mantel. The full package includes:

• Collectible bust of the greatest alien ass-kicker of all-time
• Numbered, limited-edition certificate of authenticity
• 100-page hardcover book: The History, Legacy & Legend: Duke Nukem Forever Art from the Vault
• Duke Nukem Forever postcard series
• Duke Nukem Forever radioactive emblem sticker
• Duke Nukem Forever collectible comic book
• Duke Nukem Forever foldable paper craft
• Duke Nukem Forever poker chips
• Duke Nukem Forever mini-card deck
• Duke Nukem Forever radioactive emblem dice

The only thing missing is a pair of actual balls of steel.

New Crysis 2 Trailer Shows Off Multiplayer Details

When it was released in 2007, Crysis probably became known more for being the bane of weak-hearted PC rigs everywhere than for anything relating to the game itself. Having played the original, I can attest that while there were a lot of cool ideas in there, some questionable design choices left me frustrated (zero gravity alien level, being confined to hallways when all I wanted to do is run around the jungle and be a badass, etc.). One thing that I felt was lacking in the original was the multiplayer. It was probably too ambitious for its own good, providing players with huge maps and a vast array of weapons to buy from an in-game shop. Basic, primal fun seemed to fall by the wayside.

On March 25, EA and Crytek will bring us Crysis 2. Above, you'll see a new trailer that explains some of the new features and ideas that are being put into multiplayer. It all looks kind of cool on the surface, but it seems like balance could become a big issue. I don't want to head into a multiplayer server, only to constantly get my ass handed to me on a silver platter by some guy with a ridiculously powered-up Nanosuit. Hopefully that won't be an issue, because the multiplayer here looks like it could potentially be pretty good. Potentially.

Activision Pulls the Plug on Guitar Hero

 (2005 - 2011)

Guitar Hero, we hardly knew ye.

It doesn't seem all that long ago that Guitar Hero was a cultural phenomenon. Now, as has been confirmed by Activision themselves, the franchise is no more. As Kotaku points out, sales of the series have been on the decline for a while now, so it shouldn't come as much of a surprise that the series was axed.

From where I'm sitting, there's a couple of different reasons why the series died. First, Activision more or less flooded the market with, essentially, the same game over and over. In classic Activision form, they took a popular franchise and tried to squeeze every last dollar out of it by cranking out games as fast as they could. Second, I think people got tired of having to buy and store those plastic instruments. Lastly, perhaps the entire genre was merely a fad that has finally passed. It's easy to see how people could become disenchanted with the game when you consider my previous two points.

So fare thee well, Guitar Hero, it was fun while it lasted.

New Screenshots and Art from The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim

Skyrim Skyrim Skyrim Skyrim Skyrim... Skyrim. It's ridiculous how much I'm looking forward to making a return journey to Tamriel later this year (if all goes well... big bucks no whammies no delays STOP!). We got some cool details about the new game engine earlier, but now the Official XBox Mag has some delicious new screenshots and artwork for your perusal. Dragons and yetis and mammoths, oh my!

First Official Look at the Playstation Phone

If you're a loyal reader of this blog (and I know none of you are, but humor me for a second), then you know I kind of completely skipped over the reveal of the NGP / PSP2. Kind of big news, but I was busy and I just never got around to writing about it. I apologize.

That being said, here's the long-rumored Playstation Phone, officially know as the Xperia Play. We don't know much about it now, but at least we've got a picture. We'll know more about it Sunday Feb 13, so stay tuned.

IGN has coverage of the device here, and Kotaku as well here, so thanks to both of them.

Awesome GTTV Interview with Reggie Fils-Aime About the 3DS

Video Games | Nintendo 3DS | Reggie Fils-Aime Extended Cut

Xbox 360 | PlayStation 3 | Nintendo Wii | PC Games

Geoff Keighley from GameTrailers recently got together with Nintendo of America Prez Reggie Fils-Aime to talk about the upcoming 3DS game device machine, which you may have heard about. The Regginator is in fine form here, knocking "disposable" iPhone games down a peg and (more or less) saying "haters gonna hate" with regard to people complaining about the 3DS' software lineup. Other topics include digital content, the eShop, AR games, retail game prices, future announcements, and an awesome Bowser backpack.

Look Back: The Music of Square SNES Games

Without a doubt, my favorite game system of all time is the SNES. It had an absolute abundance of amazing titles, too many for me to even attempt to list them all. And where there's great games, great game music is sure to follow. For this blog post, I'm going to focus particularly on the games of Square (now Square Enix).

Some game developers, in my mind, become almost synonymous with certain systems because of the library of awesome games they create on those systems. Rare with the N64, Valve with the PC, and Square with the SNES are some examples for me. The SNES was a hotbed for amazing RPG games, and Square was right in the thick of it, developing a number of incredible RPGs for the venerable console. Below, I've embedded a song from six different Square RPGs for the SNES. Each game had so many great tunes that I could have easily picked 7 or 8 per game, but I've got to stop myself somewhere, right? Enjoy!

Final Fantasy IV

Boss Battle Theme - composed by Nobuo Uematsu



Secret of Mana

What the Forest Taught Me - composed by Hiroki Kikuta



Super Mario RPG

Nimbus Land - composed by Yoko Shimomura



Secret of Evermore

Ivor Tower (The Town) - composed by Jeremy Soule



Chrono Trigger

600AD (Yearnings of Wind) - composed by Yasunrori Mitsuda



Final Fantasy VI

Locke's Theme - composed by Nobuo Uematsu

Platinum Games Debuts Teaser Trailer for Anarchy Reigns

One of my favorite developers out there today is Platinum Games, makers of such titles as MadWorld, Bayonetta, and, most recently, Vanquish. Their games always have a masterful blend of action, style, and all-out fun. So, it should go without saying that I'm pumped for their next project, Anarchy Reigns. Check out the debut teaser trailer below:

More Anarchy Reigns Videos

Jack! In beautiful HD! In case you're unfamiliar with the game, Anarchy Reigns is being described by Platinum as a "Massively Multiplayer Melee Fighting Action" game (or, MMMFA, for those of you who like to make up acronyms). Here's a story that descibes the game in a little more detail. Frankly, it sounds awesome, and it should be another surefire hit for Platinum.

Anarchy Reigns is tentatively scheduled for release this Fall on the XBox 360 and PS3.

Be the First to Comment!

Three-Life Legends has been around for a little while now (since June 18, 2010, to be exact), and one thing that has thus far eluded this humble blog is a reader comment. Someone, somewhere, who read this blog and left their mark by leaving a comment/question/spam/flame/nonsense/exclamation/"first!"/whatever.

Well, I think it's about time 3LL got its first comment, and I intend to make that happen by, in true fledgling blog fashion, shamelessly pandering for one. If you are the first person to leave a comment on the site (on any post), then you win a prize! What do you win? Who knows, but it could include, although is certainly not limited to, my undying love and devotion.

So will you be the first to comment? Perhaps! But even if you aren't, be sure to leave a comment anyway. It would please me mightily.

North American 3DS Launch Date & Price Revealed

At long last, we have the launch info for the 3DS in North America. It'll arrive on March 27 and will retail for 249 US dollars (sorry, couldn't help myself).

We've known for a while that the 3DS would launch sometime in March, but it's nice to finally have a day to mark on our calendars. As for the price, I think most people were expecting a $250 price point, but it's still a little disappointing that it wasn't a bit lower. As for launch titles, all we learned was that there would be 30+ titles ready for the "launch window", which was defined as the time between when the 3DS launches and E3 in June.

Not much other new info was given at Nintendo's New York press event earlier today. We did learn that the dreaded friend code system would rear its ugly head once again, but now there's only one code per 3DS which will work for all games instead of a new code for each game. It still kind of sucks, but at least it's a step in the right direction. Also, titles you downloaded for your DSi will be transferable to the 3DS, so that's nice.

March 27. Prepare yourselves, game enthusiasts.

Awesome New Details About The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim

Oh my. Game Informer has an amazing new article revealing a bunch of new information about the technology that's being put into The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim. Do yourself a favor and read it in its entirety for yourself, it really is worth it. One of my favorite parts (among all of the awesome details) is this:

"Perhaps the most impressive use of the Behavior technology is how Bethesda is using it to create the dragon animations. Bethesda has worked meticulously to make sure the beasts look powerful and menacing when banking, flapping their wings, gaining altitude before making another strafing run, and breathing fire on their hapless victims. None of the dragons' actions are scripted, and Behavior helps make the movements look non-mechanical, even when the dragons are speaking/shouting."

Man, all I can say is that the wait for November is going to be unbearable. Skyrim was already #3, but I may have to bump it up a bit on my list of most anticpated games for 2011.

3D Video Recording a Possibility for 3DS

More 3DS news? Yessir. It is 3LL's most anticipated game (system) of 2011, after all.

In the most recent "Iwata Asks" feature, Shigeru Miyamoto mentioned that Nintendo president Satoru Iwata was interested in implementing 3D video recording into the 3DS. Here are the money quotes:

"Miyamoto: But Iwata-san also wants to include 3D video in the future! (laughs)

Iwata: I think it will be fun if we're able to include video recording capabilities with future updates.

Itoi: I have no idea, but when you take 3D photos and videos, is there some kind of capacity limit?

Iwata: An SD card goes in this slot.

Itoi: Oh, an SD card! Like two gigabytes?

Iwata: It comes with a 2-gigabyte card, but you can, for example, use a 32-gigabyte one as well.

Itoi: Oh, okay, I see. So you seriously can take as many as you want.

Iwata: Yes. Long videos, lots of photos, they'll fit."

It isn't clear if the "future update" Iwata mentions is going to be a downloadable  firmware update or a new hardware iteration (a "3DSi", if you will), but it's cool to know that the brain trust at Nintendo are thinking about every possible way they can maximize the enjoyment people get out of the glasses-free 3D device.

New 3DS Details Emerge from Nintendo World

We're drawing ever-closer to the the launch of the 3DS (which, you'll remember, is 3LL's most anticipated game [system] for 2011). A few little bits of info have come out of the Nintendo World event in Japan, the most important of which concern the system's battery life and launch titles.

While playing 3DS games, you'll get 3 to 5 hours of battery life, and 5 to 8 hours if you're playing a regular old DS game. Seems kind of low, huh? Nintendo handhelds are usually renowned for their battery life, but it looks like the demands of advanced tech has finally caught up with them. A little disappointing, but I'll live with it.

As for the games themselves, the 3DS will launch in Japan on Feb 26 with these 8 games: Nintendogs & Cats, Winning Eleven Soccer 3D, Super Street Fighter IV 3D Edition, Samurai Warriors: Chronicle, Puzzle Bobble 3D, Ridge Racer 3D, Battle of the Giants: Dinosaurs 3D, and Professor Layton and the Mask of Miracle. A pretty decent lineup for day one, I'd say. The US launch lineup is obviously going to be a bit different, so we'll just have to wait and see what us Americans get come March (presumably).

Thanks to Kotaku for relaying the info (here and here).

Valve Experiments with Double Health in TF2

It looks like the Team Fortress 2 beta game is finally going to have a purpose beyond testing Natascha variants. Earlier today, an update was added to the beta version of TF2 that doubled the base health of all 9 classes (and sentry guns, too). Now the mighty Heavy roams Dustbowl with a robust 600 health, making backstabs and headshots all the more important to bring down the big Russian.

I played a little bit of the beta with the new health modifications, and I have to say, it doesn't dramatically affect the game as much as you'd think. It just takes a little bit longer to kill or be killed. In one instance, I rushed up to the side of an enemy Heavy as a Pyro, and it took me at least a full five seconds to bring him down at point-blank range with the flamethrower. If that guy wasn't a terrible player and didn't just stand there and let me kill him, he could have easily turned around and chased me off with his minigun.

I very much doubt that Valve would bring this into the true game, but it's an interesting experiment nonetheless.

3LL's 10 Most Anticipated Games of 2011

2011 is going to be an absolutely ridiculous year for gaming. Just taking a cursory glance at the release list makes my wallet silently weep within my pocket. So, in anticipation of the glory 2011 will surely bring, I put together a little list of the games I’m most excited about. In a testament to the amazing depth of titles coming next year, I had to leave off games like Crysis 2, Dragon Age 2, L.A. Noire, Gears of War 3, Batman: Arkham City… the list really goes on and on.  Of course, there’s always the ever-present threat that some of these games might get pushed back to 2012 (or beyond), but for now I’ll just assume everything will remain on track. Aaaaaand the survey says:

10) The Lord of the Rings: War in the North

An M-rated Lord of the Rings game exploring a little-told history of Middle Earth? Yes, please, with sprinkles. It even has 3 player co-op, so your friends can join in on the orc slaughtering.

9) Deus Ex: Human Revolution

If you ever need to get a PC gamer’s attention, just say “Deus Ex”. The 2000 original still holds its place as one of the greatest games of all time, so if Human Revolution can be more like that and less like Invisible War, then you’ve got a winner.

8) Marvel vs. Capcom 3

I wanna take you for a ride. Now that I’ve made that reference, I don’t know what else to say about this one. It’s Marvel vs. Capcom, it’s going to be awesome.

7) Portal 2

Spoiler: Gabe Newell ate the cake.

6) Rage

This game impresses me based on the tech alone. If id can really make that next quantum leap in FPS gameplay and enemy AI, then Rage will be a surefire hit.

5) Duke Nukem Forever

Any other year and this would be a joke, but this time it actually seems like Duke Nukem Forever is, in fact, nearing the end of its 13 year odyssey. Thanks to new developer Gearbox, it looks like we’re finally going to get to play The Duke’s latest endeavor into ass-kicking and bubblegum-running-out-of in 2011. Hail to the king, baby.

4) Shadows of the Damned

Suda 51? Awesome. Shinji Mikami? Just as awesome. So the two of them collaborating on a new game? That’s, like, double-awesome, isn’t it? Shadows of the Damned: double-awesome, as proven mathematically just now.

3) The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim

Is there anything better than a game that sucks over 100 hours of your life away, but you love every minute of it? Perhaps, in fact I’m sure there are a lot of things that are better, but the point I’m trying to make is that Oblivion was awesome, and now the next game in the venerable Elder Scrolls series is on its way. All we’ve seen so far is a short teaser trailer, but all I need to know is that it exists and I’m pumped. Dragons!

2) The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword

Anytime a new Zelda game is on the horizon, it instantly becomes one of my most-anticipated games, and Skyward Sword is certainly no exception. This is perhaps the biggest leap in game design the series has seen since Ocarina of Time, with the Wii MotionPlus being heavily relied upon for precise swordplay and actions. Buggy E3 2010 demo aside, I can’t wait to experience how this game plays. And as a last thought, I love the graphic style. It’s like what A Link to the Past would look like if it were a 3D game.

1) 3DS

Wow, what a cop-out by me, picking an entire system instead of a single game. Nonetheless, my most anticipated game (system) for 2011 is the 3DS. Why? Because it offers a completely new gaming experience that actually has the potential to enhance games by providing players with a sense a depth to better estimate distance. Also, no stupid glasses. Also also, the games: Ocarina of Time, Metal Gear Solid, Resident Evil, Super Street Fighter IV, Kid Icarus, Star Fox, Mario Kart, et al. Who knows if all the games we saw at E3 last year are going to see the light of say this year, but it’s still an impressive list. DS, you’ve had a great run, but 2011 belongs to the mighty 3DS.

3LL: The Return

It’s been a long time, hasn’t it? Six months without a post… I’d be more remorseful about abandoning the site if I had, you know, readers, but I still feel kind of bad. There needs to be a blog before there can be readers, so not posting for half a year certainly didn’t help matters. However, with the dawn of a new year (2011 AD, for those of you keeping score at home), I think it’s time to make a comeback!

My New Year’s resolution this year is to redouble my efforts here on 3LL. That means, at the very least, one post a week. Hopefully I’ll be doing more than that, but I’m going to try for sure to never go too long without an update. My hope for this new year is that I can carve myself a niche into this world wide web of ours, however small. The goal is simple: get 11 people to become regular or semi-regular readers of the site. 11 for ’11. That’s less than one a month! Certainly within reach, wouldn’t you think? If I can get 11 people to read my blog on any semblance of a consistent basis, then I’ll be thrilled.

With this new beginning, I feel I should restate the mission statement of this blog: At its core, Three-Life Legends is a video game blog that chronicles video games and gaming culture from the past, present, and future. I know there are a ton of video game blogs out there, but I try to separate myself from them by making each post unique, thoughtful, personal, and most of all, fun to read. I’m not going to just dump a bunch of links or dully copy-and-paste a bunch of banal video game news without thought. I aim to put my passion as a gamer into every post I make. There’s no real format to 3LL, so I can post anything at all, from news to rumors to reviews to videos to pictures to opinion pieces to retro articles and so on. Whatever it is, I’m going to try to make it worth your time.

TL;DR? 3LL is back and going to be better than ever. The goal this year is going to be “11 for ‘11”, 11 regular readers by the end of 2011. I’m sure if you give this blog a chance, you’ll become one of the 11 in time. Oh, and if you’re the first person to leave a comment on 3LL, I’ll love you until the end of time, so there’s that. And if you do become a fan, spread the good word and link to 3LL on your forum or social media network of choice. That would also win you my undying love.

Video games!