Valiant Hearts: a hit with kids & dogs

Gamer Dude’s playing Valiant Hearts — released today on XboxLive and there’s a valiant dog protagonist that’s caught our dog Astrid’s attention. She’s watching the screen wagging her tail and offering her computer game dog friend the lacrosse ball she pinched from the ball bag! LOL

Valiant Hearts was released today for Microsoft Windows, Playstation 3, Playstation 4, Xbox 360, Xbox One and Steam.  Powered by the same engine as Rayman Origins the game was developed by Ubisoft Montpellier. I’m already a fan. The game art, storyline and musical score is compelling and has a arty feel to it. It’s not an epic war game, but this game has plenty of heart. From the looks of things, the puzzles are satisfying too.

According to Hayden Dingman from PCWorld.com,

Far from a detriment, the silent-film nature of Valiant Hearts is one of its greatest strengths. The game is able to support a multicultural cast—French, German, American, Canadian—without any one culture dominating. And still, these are some of the best characters I’ve played in recent memory, thanks to some strong archetyping and brilliant animated cutscenes.

You also fall in with a trained war dog early in the game, and it’s this dog that most of the game revolves around. The story is the primary draw here, but play revolves around solving a cadre of puzzles more than actual combat.

I’m literally watching Dude play as I write. I’ll update later after the game’s done!

 

Moves like Draugr? FanMom likes!

Looks like I’m turning into a JT Machinima fanMom. Was scrolling through reddit today and found this fantastic Skyrim video, “Moves Like Draugr,” performed to the tune of what else? “Moves Like Jagger.” Love it.

Your turn! Xbox One or PS4?

Many gaming enthusiasts are still on the fence about whether they’re investing in next gen Xbox and PlayStation consoles. At the beginning of August, JT Machinima recorded and published this YouTube video, which I featured on MOMmentary on Games blog.

Tell us which option you’ll choose!

PewDiePie review of Thomas Was Alone: two thumbs up

Just watched PewDiePie’s recent gameplay of the indie puzzle platformer by Mike Bithell, Thomas Was Alone. Two words spring to mind: happy-making and visually-pleasing (OK, I cheated with the word count). It was first released as a browser game in 2010 but has recently been made to accommodate Microsoft Windows and Mac OS X in July last year. Playstation 3 and Playstation Vita versions were released in April this year.

If you’ve got a gamer of your own, you’ve likely discovered the playful, f-bomb-dropping Swedish YouTube gamer, Felix Kjelberg, better known as PewDiePie. He’s massively popular with GamerDude, and as of this week, with 12 million others who’ve subscribed to the 23-year-old’s unique brand of entertainment/game review. I could do without all the salty language, which honestly, doesn’t add anything to his videos. PewDiePie is very watchable — even for people over (ahem) 30. And often, as with Thomas Was Alone, he takes time to spotlight offbeat, visually unique indie games.

Here’s PewDiePie’s YouTube review. Check it out here:

Related articles

• PewDiePie, the new King of YouTube (damieniciouailleurs.com)
• PewDiePie Isn’t Bad, But It Really Isn’t Good Either (adweek.com)

Ibb and Obb: on for the whole family

Looking for a game that will delight everyone in the house? I think you’ll find it in Ibb and Obb — the winner of Best Title at Develop’s Indie Showcase at the beginning of July. The game developers plan to release this game on PC through Steam, but at present are focusing on their PS3 version, which has been available since August 6 in North and South America. They have plans to release it in Europe too.

Ibb and Obb’s play is a cooperative two-player game requiring both players to work together to advance. Its graphics and the lines are simple and beautiful, though there’s nothing simple about the game’s design. One of the most interesting and elegant aspects of the game is its interplay with a world consisting of two sides — both from which gravity operates in differing directions. The parallel perspectives of the players is a point of interest, a game challenge and one of the most aesthetically pleasing features of the game.

Check out the trailer below:

Trolling for Good?

I was on YouTube the other day doing some research for MOMmentary and I stumbled on video blogger, MinnesotaBurns’ video, COD4 Hacker Rehab (below). MinnesotaBurns aka Trollarch CEO, Burnsy, and John Trollsten, started his channel January 2011 with the intent of trolling gamers (usually kids) who’ve hacked games (usually Call of Duty 4 and World at War). He calls the game hackers out, records the conversation, and, as in the video below, attempts to turn cheaters into good sports.

Not all of MinnesotaBurns’ videos are SFW (or family friendly) though. GamerDude and I watched/listened to the video featured above and I was surprised at the level of support my boy had for MinnesotaBurns’ methods. Game Hacking is apparently a common and reviled activity. Among gamers and gaming platforms alike, hacking is an absolute no-no. According to XboxLive:

“We’ve designed the Xbox LIVE service to help create a place where our members can interact and have fun online. To help protect that experience for our customers, the Xbox LIVE Enforcement team monitors the service for behavior that violates the Xbox LIVE Terms of Use and Code of Conduct. Violations of the Xbox LIVE Terms of Use and the Code of Conduct can result in a variety of actions, up to and including a permanent suspension of a console from connecting to Xbox LIVE.”

I’m interested to see how well a Trollarch staff-assisted rehab goes. MinnesotaBurns is compelling because he’s part tongue in cheek, part irreverent, and part big brother to the kids he calls out on his YouTube channel. It’s clear he’s passionate about gaming as well as the gaming community, and his efforts to maintain the integrity of these online games seem legitimate (though his methods are sometimes questionable — see Mom & Granny Rage video by Trollarch Director, TrollMunchies).

I know some may view Trollarch activities to be a form of online bullying, and maybe it is. I asked GamerDude what he thought and he said he didn’t believe it was. I’m inclined to agree, but I’ll admit I haven’t even come close to completing a thorough review of all of the MinnestoaBurns and Trollarch videos.

What are your thoughts folks?

Uniting the generations through Call of Duty

Gamer Boy has been after me for ages to let him buy & play Call of Duty franchise games. Specifically, he wants to play COD: Black Ops. So I’ve been info gathering and reviewing the game for him (& you!). In my searches I found this wonderful video, posted just two months ago on YouTube by a teen — it’s an edited video of him playing COD: Black Ops with his 84-year-old grandfather. They’re both having so much fun together. And I know the point of the video is to view the older man’s reactions to playing, but I loved the interplay between the two. If you haven’t seen it — watch here:

UPDATE:

The boys (brothers) who made the video of their grandfather playing video games with them seem very sweet and well-mannered to boot. I found this thank you video from one of the boys — posted after their video went viral. To his mother and father; nice work! (I’ll bet he sends thank you cards too!)

Can’t Take Another Harlem Shake Vid?

You’ll want to see this gem by Jordan Maron aka CaptainSparklez: