Our Favorite Low Budget Games of 2010

As the year comes to a close, it seems as if everyone and their mother is dropping their two cents on the best and worst games of 2010. To set our list aside, I want to try something different. Since you can go to just about any place on the internet to find a best of the year list, let's try this:

Our Favorite Low Budget Games of 2010

VVVVVV by Terry Cavanagh (PC, XBLA)
It doesn't get much more simple than this. Commodore 64 inspired graphics, three button gameplay, and a soundtrack of banging chiptune beats. Released in January of this year, VVVVVV captured gamers' hearts with its simple allure, and breaking point difficulty. The plain, outdated look on its face belie VVVVVV's complexity, which feels almost like a Metroidvania game circa the 1980s. 

Super Meat Boy by Team Meat (PC, XBLA)
Based on the successful Newgrounds flash game Meat Boy, Super Meat Boy picks up where its predecessor left off; by making you want to kill yourself. Fans of fast action platformers and punishing twitch-reflex difficulty immediately fell in love with Super Meat Boy. Team Meat made some enemies along the way, like PETA and lamers who wanted a fun and relaxing gaming experience, but sometimes you need to break some heads to get to the top.

Limbo by Playdead Studios (XBLA)
Limbo earned a healthy buzz mostly for its "art game" presentation as completely black and white. In its entirety, Limbo never strays from it's noir style; the characters are little more than blobs of shadow, though the backgrounds are detailed and beautiful. Music is left out in favor of ambiance. With plenty of tricky platform puzzles to solve, Limbo is a slightly disturbed yet hauntingly lovely slice of low budget gaming.

Shank by Klei Entertainment (PC, PSN, XBLA)
Shank is one super pissed off badass motherfucker looking for revenge on the dudes that ruined his life. What better means to do this than a gory side-scrolling stylized action game with slick hand drawn graphics and an epic southwestern soundtrack? While the story wasn't the best, the insanely fun fighting and on-the-fly weapon switching made stringing together combos pleasing for both your eyes and your id.

Minecraft by Markus "Notch" Persson (PC)
What would this list be without Minecraft, arguably the low budget title of 2010. Technically, Minecraft was released in 2009, but it only really began to blow up this year. Starting as a one man job, Minecraft is a game where you can pretty much build anything you want, from the simplest log cabin, to a god damned working CPU. After an incredible increase in popularity this year, Notch hired some more people and created a development company funded strictly by Minecraft sales. As of December 29, 2010, Minecraft has over 2,750,000 registered users, and over 900,000 purchases. Not too bad for a one man project.

Our Most Disappointing Blockbuster Games of 2010

There were tons of gaming disappointments in 2010, some more unforeseen than others. It's easy for a small studio with limited funding to make a bad game, but when a big budget gaming blockbuster goes wrong, it's that much funnier. So without further ado, let's take a look.

Our Most Disappointing Blockbuster Games of 2010

Red Dead Redemption by Rockstar San Diego (PS3, X360)
By no stretch of the imagination is Red Dead Redemption a bad game, in fact, most outlets have it pegged as the game of the year. I however, am growing increasingly critical of Rockstar's games, which is why I found RDR to be a huge disappointment. As a fan of westerns, be it movies or games, I was incredibly excited to hear of an open world western done by Rockstar. There was so much potential, so much that could be done to create a new experience. Beautiful graphics and involving story aside, in the end, Red Dead Redemption ended up feeling too much like a reskin of the Grand Theft Auto series, which felt like a crushing blow and a waste of potential to do something fresh.

Fallout: New Vegas by Obsidian Entertainment (PC, PS3, X360)
In late 2008, a game by the name of Fallout 3 snuck up on me and held me prisoner from the real world for an unhealthily long period if time. The follow up to one of my favorite games of recent memory had to be good, now that the developers had some time to work out the kinks of the original, as well as listen to and implement community suggested changes. Nuts to that! Development was handed over to Obsidian Entertainment from Bethesda Game Studios, and Obsidian didn't really feel like making any tweaks. The moved the story to Vegas and called it a day! Fallout 3 while awesome, wasn't perfect. There was plenty of room for improvement to make the experience even better, but why put in extra work when you can move copies on the strength of the series' name?

Fable III by Lionhead Studios (X360)
The simplistic yet involving Fable series has always been a joy to play, even if it did seem like the game was built to be played by a 12 year old. 2008's Fable II had an interesting story to go along with a dreadfully easy, but enjoyable combat system that delivered an entertaining experience from start to finish. Fable III claimed it would allow you great moral decisions, as the purpose of the third and final entry in the series, is to start a revolution as you see fit. Unfortunately, most of the game's decisions were binary, and rigid, leaving little room for experimentation. You're forced to make promises to allies to earn their trust, and in a turn for the anti-climactic, only at the end of the game are you allowed to renege on your word. 

Epic Mickey by Disney Interactive Studios (Wii)
The name Warren Spector is held in high regard to just about everyone in the gaming industry. Deus Ex, Thief, System Shock, and now Disney's Epic Mickey. One of these things is not like the other! Working with Disney, the talented Mr. Spector became all about the mouse, seemingly living, breathing, and pooping Disney. Unfortunately, his Epic Mickey turned out to be a convoluted mess, where teases of a dark, steampunk tale where Mickey would be responsible for the fate of other characters was way overblown. The morality system seemed like no more than a throw in, with no real weight on the outcome of the game. The controls were spotty, with Wiimote support seemingly added last minute just for the sake of motion controls. Level design, story, graphics, it all left much to be desired.

NBA Elite by EA Sports (PS3, X360)
The NBA Live series has been releasing yearly installments since 1992, and since 1995 under the Live moniker. In 2000, 2K Sports threw their hat into the basketball game market, and had been steadily outperforming the Live series since. With Michael Jordan appearing in their latest title, along with other classic ballers of yesteryear, it seemed like the Live series would have to do something drastic to outdo NBA 2K11. So they decided to change their name to NBA Elite, because people like new and improved names, right? Countless bugs, missteps, and general fuck ups later, the game was outright canceled, and the world would be without a yearly EA NBA sim for the first time in almost 20 years. 

More Uncharted 3, Less Fallon

A few weeks ago, Uncharted 3 made its grand gameplay debut on NBC's Late Night with Jimmy Fallon. I understand that Jimmy Fallon is a game geek who may or may not have a few million loyal watchers, but I still can't fathom why you debut such an anticiated game on a show who attracts a fanbase which may not even own a PlayStation 3. 

Now that I've gotten that off my chest, let me tell you how happy I am that Sony has offered us a little more of Uncharted 3, and a lot less Jimmy Fallon. These two videos give us pretty much more of the same, pure awesome. Watch Nate and Sully deal with some unsavory characters in new and exciting ways. Nate fights two people at once, picks up ammo automatically, and gets his cover shot out from in front of him. Sully stands around and barely manages to pull his weight. Good times!

Dragon Age 2: Fast and Slow

This developer diary for Dragon Age 2 tries to make some dude look ominous by way of dramatic lighting. Nice try. However, it also details the different ways you can tackle battle; as a fast paced action RPG, as a slow and strategic point-and-click affair, or as a combination of the two.

A few things here. First, I'm most definitely playing as rogue Hawke. Second, the combat system looks like loads of fun, and my type of ordeal. Rush in and deal/recieve incredible damage in typical rogue fashion, then back out and strategize moments before dying prematurely. Hopefully there will be a way to pass the threat onto the much more deserving mage. Better you than me, squishy.

Be the Multipurpose Weapon in Crysis 2

I never played Crysis, mostly because I'm not much of a computer gamer. I just cant afford to be shelling out a couple hundred a year to assure that I'm always getting the most out of the games I play. No game illustrated this point better than Crysis, which was so cutting edge that it was necessary to have a super computer to play it.

Crysis 2 however, is a different story. Maybe it caught my eye because it'll be available for PS3 and Xbox 360, or maybe Crytek just made a better game than the first. Whatever it is, it's working, because the game looks sick. The latest trailer depicts the different ways you can handle a situation and the different powers your nanosuit gives you. Use your strength to attack enemies with the environment, or throw them off cliffs, your speed to parkour in and out of battle and power-slide under enemy fire, and your stealth to silenty handle the unsuspecting. Add a splash of color and a frantic pace and you have what could be a very, very good title.

Explodemon! Bursts Forth, Gets Pushed Back

I can never get too excited about PSN exclusives, if only because I've never really gotten into the swing of using PSN. Maybe it's because I don't own a Bluetooth headset, and the system doesn't come with one. Leave me alone, I'm frugal, dammit! 

Regardless, Explodemon! is a PSN exclusive that I've been hot for since I first took a look at its earliest trailer. Unfortunately, it doesn't seem the title will make its scheduled winter 2010 due date, instead now aiming for a January 2011 release. Can't hate on that, it's just a months difference, and it looks like the wait will be well worth it. To tide those looking forward to the Mega Man X/Splosion Man hybrid, here's a new trailer that shows a lot of dope action, puzzles, wall sliding, and of course, explosions. 

via Destructoid

PlayStation 3 Gets some SNK Game Pad Love

In honor of PSN releasing a bevy of old school Neo-Geo games (updated with online play), SNK has decided to go all out and release its gamepad for the PS3. Neo-Geo CD collects dust on a bookshelf, but every time I look at it, I remember how awesome its gamepad was. Second only to an arcade stick, these babies even blow the well constructed Mad Catz SFIV FightPads out of the water. I dare you to play a fighting game with a Neo-Geo gamepad and not pull out all of your moves with staggering precision. It's almost impossible.

Currently it's a Japan only release, but you can have one imported for $45. If you're an old school gamer or a fighting game enthusiast, believe me, it's money well spent.

via engadget

Marvel vs. Capcom 3 is all About the Crack

Crack is a highly addictive illegal substance that will make you do stupid things in order to get a steady intake of it's fix, often sold in vials. The term crack can also be applied with similar definition to non-illegal substances. The Capcom's Versus series is crack. Therefore it's only fitting that Marvel vs. Capcom 3's story trailer has the universe's combatants fighting over a vial of the good stuff. 

I know what you're thinking. Let me dispel your confusion by saying, no, you are not crazy. I did say Marvel vs. Capcom 3 and story in the same sentence. Renowned comic author Frank Tieri is penning the story, which is a good indication that all the fighting will have some sort of underlying meaning for once in a Versus game. 

Deus Ex: Release Date Convolution

The next episode in the Deus Ex saga, Human Revolution, has just been delayed. Instead of March 2011, the hotly anticipated title's release slides back, to the broad area of anywhere up to Spring 2012. Square Enix says that the delay is necessary to add more 'polish' to the game. 

That guy at the desk is our hopes, and Adam Jensen's kick ass arm-blade is a cold serving of reality.

REVIEW: Vanquish

Space marines, cover-based battle, and quick-time events are some of the most cliched ideas in the action genre. Vanquish attempts to build on the mundane by allowing you to spring out of cover and slide a hundred meters forward on your knees, while skillfully picking off your opposition with sniper rifle headshots, and at the end of your jet-propelled dash, breakdancing into an evasive roll, before dashing up a 30 foot tall robot, to punch his head off, clean. Sure it sounds good in theory, but can Vanquish pull it off in practice?

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