Gaming : I want Rock Band edition

Despite being flooded with Triple A games that should last me until the end of the gaming drought that follows the holiday season, I'm still inexplicably craving for some Rock Band to come my way. Region-lock loving EA has seen fit to keep the US version of the game out of the Asian (and European, Australian, etc) market, and with no set release date for the NTSC-J version I'm left to silently cursing them while scouring the interwebs every hour or so for information (some rumors point to a March 2008 Singapore launch, ugh...). Baah, I'm pretty sure that when I do get the game, there'll be something else I'll be wanting profusely, gamer habits never die. :(

Mass Effect has been keeping me busy, I'm clocking in at 18 hours so far and I'm enjoying every bit of it. As some reviews pointed out, it's a flawed masterpiece, with texture pop-in, annoying elevator sequences that break up the pace, a slightly uneven feel for combat, and an annoying inventory system (how the hell did something this counterintuitive come from Bioware?). These issues however are minor and do not detract from Bioware's finest game to date. The story is engaging, the conversation system is terrific (the voice acting is spot-on, save for a few characters) and pulls you into the world, and when combat works (with your NPC squadmates pulling enemies onto a vortex while you blast them with your shotgun) it gives you that "Hell yeah!" moment that you usually get with action oriented titles. The game's another GOTY candidate in a crazy crowded list of awesome games this year.

I also finished up Call of Duty 4 two weeks ago (another GOTY candidate), Infinity Ward as usual has delivered an excellently paced, pulse pounding action-fest. There isn't really anything revolutionary about the game, and in a lot of ways it's just Call of Duty 1 in a modern setting and some semblance of a plot. This does not change the fact that it is tremendously enjoyable and is a must-play for all FPS and action junkies. I'm going to be coming back to this for sure once I'm done with Mass Effect and Assassin's Creed.

And then there's Assassin's Creed, which I haven't played much of yet. The game is freaking gorgeous and the thought of roaming around, exploring, Crackdown / GTA style on a setting like this gets me frothing. I'm liking the whole freerunning aspect of the game, but I'm a bit worried about the whole climbing on top of viewpoints, eavesdropping, pickpocketing, and swordfighting being repetitive. (Bonus link: Damn Interesting has an article about the origins of Assassins, which ties somewhat to the setting of Assassin's Creed, definitely a recommended read)

We also had our LAN party last weekend, 6 people shooting the crap out of each other from Saturday night to the wee hours of Sunday morning is always fun. We played Call of Duty 4, which will now replace HL2DM and The Ship as our main game for future LP's. CoD 4's multiplayer is the perfect mix of realistic weaponry, and fast-paced combat this side of Counterstrike, and the promotion perks / unlocks keep the experience fresh with new weapons and abilities. I'm loving the Last Stand perk (which allows you to pull out your handgun and get some retribution when you're on your death throes), taking down your opponent-who just shot you up- with you never gets old.

Crap, I didn't know how much gaming I'm getting these days, and yet I bitch about not getting Rock Band this holiday season. Still, I'm dying to rock out to Highway Star and I'm not going to stop whining like a spoiled brat til I getit, at which point I'll whine about something else.

(Oh and some last minute Rock Band awesomeness : VH1 has a documentary about Rock Band Band, the greatest band EVER. thanks Game|Life :).)