The Alternative GOTY Awards

Well what a year in which nothing actually happened. Sure we got many great games but as an industry it sort of stood still asking “Is Modern Warfare 2 here yet?”. Without a doubt this year will be seen as the year of the Modern Warfare to most but to me it’s the year of the 2. Left4Dead 2, Assassin’s Creed 2, Modern Warfare 2, Uncharted 2, Killzone 2, Resident Evil 5. (Yeah it’s not a 2 but if you flip over the 5 it makes one) It’s also the year in which the 2 vastly improved itself from it’s predecessor number 1. All the sequels had improved upon the previous instalment without fail, the same can rarely be said for the film industry.

But the main reason for this article is for my own personal take on GOTY awards making use of some more obscure awards. So without further a due, I present to you the Vinies. … Continue Reading

The Next Zelda: Breaking News

While on my online travels today, earthbounding notified me of some breaking news…

Breaking News

What we learn:

–Aonuma has said he wants to make New Zelda Wii’s world vast and realistic. He then said that Twilight Princess would be the basis for some improvements.
–In Aonuma’s eyes, Twilight Princess failed in the overworld department, and wants to fix that in New Zelda Wii … Continue Reading

The Next Zelda: December Recap

While out and about on my online rambles today, I saw earthbounding had a new video…

December Recap

What we learn:

–Aonuma-san has been busy throughout the second half of November and into December–he has spoken to Eurogamer, GameSpot, IGN, and Iwata Asks to name a few sources … Continue Reading

‘The Appetizer’ – Modern Warfare 2 (singleplayer)

The MonsterVine staff converge for this year’s biggest game, Infinity Ward’s Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2. Will, Marcos, and Craig discuss selected missions from the singleplayer component of the game. We tackle the ‘Cliffhanger’ mission in an attempt to pick up the storyline from the previous Modern Warfare. In addition, we talk about the highly controversial ‘No Russian’ mission with a tone of gravitas. … Continue Reading

‘The Appetizer’ – GTA: The Ballad of Gay Tony

Will and Gyuri serve up the final installment of the GTA IV series of Appetizers with a look at Rockstar’s latest DLC, The Ballad of Gay Tony. We take a look into the lives of the main protagonists, “Gay” Tony Prince and business partner Luis Lopez. This time we took the opportunity to showcase the varieties of different missions and activities found in the episode and discuss interlocking storylines, sibling rivalry, as well as pondering the psychology of base jumping. … Continue Reading

The Next Zelda: New Wii Clues

After peeling myself away from a walkthrough of Tales of Symphonia 2, I saw that earthbounding had a new video…

New Wii Clues

What we learn:

–New Zelda Wii will be shown next year at E3 (confirmed by Aonuma-san)
–He also revealed some new info about the game and talked about an idea that could change the series entirely. The idea? It is not known just what it is at this time, but we will know when E3 2010 comes
–When asked how different New Zelda Wii will be from past games, Aonuma-san said that if we followed the same structure again and again, long time fans will not be surprised. This contradicts what Miyamoto has said before.
–Is it possible that Aonuma and Miyamoto have a little rivalry? (i.e. Aonuma wanting a very different Zelda, and Miyamoto saying “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it?”
–Aonuma also mentioned that Team Zelda is working on shaking up the “explore field, beat dungeon, rinse, lather, repeat” pacing. Twilight Princess DID do this to a degree by bringing some action onto the field (eg. the fight at Eldin Bridge, missions in the Hidden Village, and the river and snowboarding sequences) New Zelda Wii could have more sequences like this
–Aonuma-san has looked at fan speculation, and was surprised that they were right on several things, including the Master Sword being. This means the girl being in the picture is, in fact, the Master Sword.
–On the Wii Motion Plus front, Aonuma-san has confirmed one on one swordfighting, but whether or not it is first person is unknown at this time.
–Switching perspectives for every fight would be annoying, but according to earthbounding, a first person Zelda is very possible given what is outlined above. How it would work is another question entirely.
–In the latest Nintendo financial briefing, Miyamoto mentioned that Team Zelda is working on great graphics for New Zelda Wii–Miyamoto wants the game to be realistic in every respect.
–According to Mario’s VA, Link will not speak in New Zelda Wii, and likely will never speak in any Zelda game.
–The fact that New Zelda Wii will be at E3 next year also confirms a 2011 release (since Mario and Metroid were shown this year and will be released next year)
–Although some analysts predict that New Zelda Wii will come next year, all this new info renders that impossible, if not very unlikely.
–As for the “new idea”, you may be able to figure it out from what Aonuma has said about it: The structure will be shaken up, you will see it at E3 2010.

So what do you think it is? I can hardly wait myself!

Stay tuned for more info as I find it.

Happy gaming,
SparklingBlue