Coming in near the end of a project is pretty interesting.  You’ve got to adapt quicker than usual and try to work within everything that has been done previously.  Typically you might have a grace period of sorts where everyone is figuring out what and how things need to be done, and you might have a milestone or two to hit, but not an end of project deadline.  It’s been good, though, and I’m working on things that have to be done or the game doesn’t ship.  It may not be the most prestigious stuff, but it is important.

Guitar Hero: Metallica was just released last week for the PS3, 360, and Wii, and it’s gotten some really good reviews.  Even though I didn’t work on it, I still feel a sense of pride sitting next to people that did.  Hopefully it will be a sales success, and lead to many more high profile projects for the studio.

My latest game purchases have been Fallout 3’s “The Pitt” expansion, and a DS+Henry Hatsworth and Scrabble for my wife’s birthday.  The Pitt was worth a purchase, and more story driven than the last expansion, operation: anchorage.  I’m still amazed at the scope Bethesda pulled off with Fallout, and it makes me want more.  It does make me question the DLC(downloadable content) from others, though.  For 10 bucks, you get roughly 5-6 hours worth of new scenery, characters, and story in FO3.  For other games, you might get 3 new multiplayer maps for the same amount.  You might also get an entire downloadable game like Castle Crashers or Braid, that provide hours of fun.  That same 10 dollars will get you roughly 5 songs to play in Rock Band.  My issue is how much content you get compared to the initial purchase price.  In RB, you get roughly 50 songs to start for your $60 purchase price.  You also are getting the game itself including all the characters, venues, story, etc.  Why does a song cost 2 dollars when downloading?  That’s more than it is to purchase from itunes or other services, and the only thing you can do with it is play a game.  Seems a bit ridiculous to me.  So does charging $10 for 3 new multiplayer maps for a game who’s multiplayer is essentially broken for many people.  I’ll chalk it up to this being the first generation of consoles that provide DLC, and hope that they’ve figured things out a little better the next time around. 

I’m not entirely sure what my next purchase will be, as the release list looks a little barren this year.  Possibly UFC Undisputed, as long as they get the controls right.

Share on Facebook