My View on ME3 Ending (Archived)

So I know this is months old, but I just wanted to share my thoughts on the Mass Effect 3 ending, and also archive my thoughts on the game so maybe I could come back to them later. This was orginally posted as a topic on the forums on Giantbomb. Anyway, enjoy :)

Is Piracy Actually a Good Thing?

With the rise and fall of SOPA and PIPA earlier this year, piracy has become an even bigger issue than it was over a decade ago with the creation of Napster. Over the past 13 years companies have tried any number of ways to fight the free sharing of content over the internet, and whether it be some form of DRM, or trying to get legislation passed, it’s been a struggle for them to find an adequate solution to the problem. As many people that play video games know, DRM can do more harm to legitimate customers than it does to piracy, and finding a reliable, friendly way to make sure a game, music, movie, or program doesn’t get pirated is an almost impossible task. The internet will find a way. It always does, and it seems as if there may be nothing to stop people from stealing content because there will always be people who try to circumvent copyright protection. With this in mind we need to ask ourselves if there’s really any way to stop piracy, and maybe, if it even should be stopped.

Greatest Games: The Legend of Zelda Ocarina of Time

Yes, in the second installment of Greatest Games I am going to talk about what is widely regarded as the best game of all time, and is almost always one of the first games mentioned when the topic of “favorite” or “best” games comes up, The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time. Right up there tied for first with games like Super Mario Bros. 3 as my favorite games of all time, Ocarina of Time is one of those games I can say has had an enormous impact on my life and my love of games. I can definitely say that if it wasn’t for games like this, I wouldn’t have the love of video games that I currently do.

Trials Evolution Review

For those of you who played Trials HD, you will basically know what you are getting into in this sequel, but that’s not to say the game hasn’t changed at all. Trials Evolution features the same challenging, and often times frustrating, dirt bike obstacle course gameplay as the previous game, with added multiplayer and a larger variety in the locations and layouts of tracks to make for a more complete experience. Trials Evolution will keep you replaying tracks over and over to either just complete them, get a better ranking medal, or simply show up your friends by posting a better time than they did.

New Super Mario Bros. 2 Announced

Nintendo just announced that New Super Mario Bros. 2 is coming to the 3DS this August. As the follow up to New Super Mario Bros. on the DS, and New Super Mario Bros. Wii, this game will also be an old school side scrolling platformer just like its predecessors.

The announcement was made by Nintendo president Satoru Iwata during the Nintendo Direct conference in Japan. Some screen shots were released with the announcement, and it doesn't seem like there will be anything out of the ordinary to this game, at least nothing that we know of yet, but I'll let you decide for yourself.

Halo 4 On Conan O'Brien, TONIGHT!

It’s official, Halo 4 is set to release on November 6th. Rumors started popping up yesterday about the release date of Halo 4 based on tweets by Senior Producer at 343 Industries Allison Stroll, and Microsoft’s Major Nelson. It was said that there would be a more official statement made this morning, and here we have it:

“We are beginning a new saga with Halo 4 and embarking on a journey that will encompass the next decade of Halo games and experiences," said Phil Spencer, corporate vice president of Microsoft Studios. "Millions of fans worldwide have been eagerly awaiting the opportunity to step back into the boots of Master Chief, and, with Halo 4 leading the charge, we're confident 2012 will be the most successful year in Xbox history."


Microsoft hasn’t been shy about presenting its Xbox products on late night television, and with Halo 4 they will be at it again. Members of 343 Industries will be on Late Night with Conan O’Brien tonight at 11pm on TBS, but it’s unknown exactly what they will be showing.

Oddly enough, the release date is actually the same day as election day here in the US. Could this mean there might be a few people reluctant to vote in favor of playing the next big installment in the Halo franchise?

New Mario, New Luigi, New Pikmin

In a recent interview with the spanish newspaper El Mundo, the creative legend behind many of Nintendo’s great franchises Shigeru Miyamoto let some things slip about new games coming for both the Wii U and the 3DS (link). Miyamoto said to El Mundo:

 "I'm working on several projects but I think that I cannot talk about them all [laughs]. Some are small but important projects for Wii U. Also on a new Pikmin, which will take advantage of the new HD screen resolution, and on Luigi's Mansion for 3DS."

I don’t know about you, but I am be EXTREMELY excited for the next long awaited entry into the Pikmin franchise, but the Pikmin and Luigi’s Mansion slip is taking a backseat to a new mario game for the Wii U that Miyamoto said would be shown at E3 this year. What lends even more credence to his statements is that Nintendo officially responded to Eurogamer by saying:

"In a recent interview, Mr. Miyamoto confirmed that a new Super Mario Bros. game for the Wii U system will be shown at this year's E3 Expo," a Nintendo spokesperson said. "We'll have more to announce about our plans for the E3 Expo at a later date."

It isn’t really unexpected that a new Super Mario Bros. game would eventually be coming out for the Wii U, but with the recent aquisition of SuperMario4.com by Nintendo, could this next game be the ever awaited sequel to Super Mario Bros. 3? In any case, we should all know fairly soon considering E3 is just around the corner.