GameCynic wrote:

Game developers are often cuttingly insightful about the flaws and successes of games they play and games they make; the discussions in the studio or among colleagues are miles away in focus and depth from the average review.

GameCynic wrote:

I've always enjoyed ambitious, combinatorially complex emergent behavior games, but I have a fondness for narrative and story. I've always hated games on rails; at least leave me the illusion that I'm making meaningful choices!

GameCynic wrote:

Maybe my eyes aren't 24 years old, or maybe they're blurry from too much crunch-period death marching, but despite the lovely PSP screen, that wooden-handled hammer just doesn't pop from the rusty grey/tan medical cart.

GameCynic wrote:

Now, I'm hardly an FPS player -- you won't find me in demand on any deathmatch ladders.

GameCynic wrote:

I like open-world games, but COD4 was just so viscerally superior to the allegedly open-world Medal of Honor that it wasn't a contest. I like a good narrative, and like the survival horror games of old, COD4 distracted me so completely that I was only distantly aware that I was on rails. The fiction was more relevant -- I only assume that Penny Arcade's written some strips about the endless WWII themes, because they've been -- well, endless. The game had just enough veneer of tactical simulation to suspend my disbelief. It is very much the shooter version of "24" -- our heroes are insanely martially competent, the enemies are rooted in CNN, and the action is so fast, with lots of intermediate rewards, that you never question the believability of the story.

GameCynic wrote:

Activision's been so enamored of the Madden model (new year, new game, 5 million-plus in sales!) that they might be missing the real opportunity: more episodes.