CO-OP 0209 -- The Jason Show -- HALO 3: ODST Multiplayer Maps, Harbor Master, Facebook Gaming

It takes a lot of brainstorming to come up with our weekly narratives and some ideas are better than others. Well, just about every idea is better than any Jason seems to have. I guess he finally got fed up with the rejection. More after the show:

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The new multiplayer maps coming in HALO 3: ODST was the topic of a Bungie-hosted multiplayer event to which our beloved JayFresh and our slightly-less-beloved Rob got to attend; much to the jealous chagrin of the rest of the Area 5 team. They returned, however, with exclusive footage (‘cause it’s actually of Rob playing, not that other people don’t have footage) of them having a pretty damned good time.

It’s crazy to think of the iPhone is generating new genres in gaming, but that’s exactly what’s happening thanks to the nature of the device. “Line Drawing” games are now a “thing” and Harbor Master is that genre’s latest and greatest incarnation. Rob, Jason, and Cesar each fret over the intricate strategies of getting their little virtual boats to and from port safely.

And perhaps not quite an emerging genre so much as a force of nature, Facebook’s gaming scene is rapidly approaching mythical status if one looks at the numbers alone. We give a quick rundown of the biggest and best of Facebook’s gaming offerings, and while we know we’ve barely scratched the surface of what there is to offer, we luckily had Gareth Davis, Facebook’s Platform Manager on hand to chat with Matt about what makes Facebook such an attractive platform for game developers and publishers.

CO-OP 0208 -- The Typewriter -- Fat Princess, Gears of War 2, Wipeout HD Fury

Digg this blog post so that more people find out about CO-OP. It’s how we get paid, yo!

Just so you know, the narrative for this episode was created and filmed days before we found out about the death of a notable figure who’s work is referenced in this week’s show. It was a little eerie, but we went with it all the same. More after the show:

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Fat Princess, as an affordable, downloadable, multiplayer-focused title has a lot of parallels with Battlefield 1943. Unfortunately those parallels continue with similar network and matchmaking problems that are simply not conducive to the most positive of play experiences. Fortunately, though, Fat Princess has many a charm which will continue to keep Kat Bailey, Matt, and Ryan coming back in spite of said issues.

No such problems (well, other than the usual) with the latest Gears of War 2 DLC; the All Fronts Collection pulls in some amazing new multiplayer maps and offers a “deleted scene” to play through in the single-player/co-op campaign. David Ellis, Ryan, and, of course, Jason all agree that there’s very little not to love!

Those of you familiar with Ryan’s video game critic career will be long aware of his deep and abiding love for the Wipeout series in all its iterations and on all its platforms. The new expansion for Wipeout HD, entited: Fury is but the latest in the line of ever-broadening improvements for the storied franchise and I can do very little but agree with Ryan as to its sublime qualities.

CO-OP 0207 -- Mother Mission's Desserts -- Ghostbusters, Monkey Island(s), Space Invaders Infinity Gene

The Mission District in San Francisco is a holy place to its residents. Not merely due to the ready availability of cheap booze and burritos, but also in large part thanks to its delectible delights of deliciousness! Jason, never one to pace himself, insists on visiting each and every one in a single day. More after the show:

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Ask, and ye shall receive. While we have not the power to grant boons and favors of the supernatural, we can, indeed, cover the games you wish us to cover. Ghostbusters has been a request directed at us ever since it’s release, and we’ve finally found the power-house guests necessary to give it proper due: Phil Theobald from PlayerOne Podcast along with GameSpy’s Will Tuttle and Arthur Gies of Eat. Sleep. Game. fame.

Every show seems to have a theme, whether or not we consciously intend one and with the classics being reborn around every corner, this week’s show is perhaps better themed than most. The Secret of Monkey Island Special Edition is double-featured with Tales of Monkey Island Chapter 1 One: Launch of the Screaming Narwhal in a blast-from-the-past especiál. Insidiously long names aside, we’re always grateful to Tiff Chow for dropping by and we’re especiál-ly glad for 1UP’s Justin Haywald making his CO-OP debut!

The final, classic-resurfaced game in this week’s show is a testament to one of the most venerable genres of software-gaming: the shooter. Yes, Space Invaders is back, in the iPhone, with an intensely aural and action-ridden experience best seen (and heard) to be believed. Space Invaders Infinity Gene may be a classic reborn, but it’s thoroughly modern in its execution and should not be overlooked!

CO-OP 0206 -- Battlefield 1943, Wii Sports Resort -- The City Always Wins

Ever met that person so dedicated to their car that there was nothing, at all, ever that would get them to give it up? A situation wherein it is nearly unbelievably as to the circumstances and lengths they will go to in order to maintain that personal “freedom” in spite of all evidences and personal habits to the contrary? Yeah, that’s Rob. More after the show:

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With a franchise as storied as the Battlefield games, it’s only natural to believe that rehash, even at a discounted price, would seem little more than a nostalgic cash-in. But, if it works on us for every classic Nintendo property ever, why not one of the lauded and favored of the Double-You-Double-You-Eye-Eye era of multiplayer mayhem du yester-year? We figured this was a title/franchise worth bringing out the big guns for and thus we went for a round-table discussion featuring a number of guests greater than the usual. While BitMob’s Dan “Shoe” Hsu finds Battlefield 1943 to be less-than, the greater-than team of Kat Bailey, Tyler Barber from RebelFM and Eat. Sleep. Game., GameSpy’s Will Tuttle and Anthony Gallegos (Anthony, of course, also of RebelFM fame), and our own Jason Bertrand form-up a squad to storm the beaches of awesometown.

Yes, I know Wii Sports Resort was a recent feature on CO-OP, but now that we’ve had a chance to really dig into the final, retail version it’s clear which events are successful and which lack imagination. Shoe stays on to talk with JayFresh and I about the could-have-beens.

CO-OP 0205 -- Trine, 'Splosion Man, Critter Crunch -- 1337 h4x0r

True story: my World of Warcraft account got hacked, my shit stolen/sold and my character transferred off my account. The rest of this narrative is fiction (mostly). Still, it’s a sort-of-followup to last week’s “Little Brother, Big Brother” which is something we don’t do all that often. More after the show:

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Oh, indie games, why must you impress us so? With your endless surprises and incredible inventiveness, ne’er shall you fail to impress! Trine is but the latest-and-greatest example in this regard, as Giant Bomb’s Brad Shoemaker arrives to attest to. An intensely creative game and extremely well-done, the critiques are few and far between, but meaningful (we hope). Currently only available on the PC, you consolites should be aware of the game’s eventual arrival on your platform of choice and you’d do well to make purchase of it! Not sure why my language is so, em, antiquated today, but whatevs (there, that’s better). Due to an equipment error, Brad’s audio is kinda shitty in this week’s episode. First off: sorry Brad! Second off: sorry, audience! We waved around our best Wand of Audio Clarity +2 (the +5 was out being cleaned) and he’s at least audible if not exactly clean and reverb-free. Still, Trine is awesome.

A while a go, we intended to cover ‘Splosion man. In fact one of our earlier episodes even has it in the title. *ahem* Oops! That was actually my fault. I put together the final show-file that week and simply didn’t cut n’ paste properly. It feels kinda like Michael Bolton’s mistake in Office Space; just another one of those “mundane details.” The developer was extremely kind, however, and not only worked to get us an actual build of the game, but gave us a never-before-seen level to capture footage of! Jason and JayFresh have been loving their brief interludes into the ‘Splosion man universe and we think you’ll be as into the game as we are once you’ve watched this segment.

It’s an oldie, but since it came out wa-hay before we launched CO-OP, it made sense to us to give Critter Crunch for the iPhone some love. It’s been in the modern gaming news recently thanks to the announcement of an PSN version and I wanted to give it a showing since it’s still on my iPhone nearly a year later and is still a regular diversion for me due it’s most-excellent gameplay. As one of the iPhone’s first, big games, it still holds up extremely well and is something you’ll probably want in your library.

CO-OP 0204 -- Bit.Trip Core, Cellfactor, Rolando 2 -- Big Brother, Little Brother

My little brother was in town for a while and, as you’ll see, the family conflicts that occur in a gamer household can be, ahh, different than those in other, more traditional family-reunion settings. More after the show:

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There still seems to be some doubt out there as to the legitimacy of the iPhone as a “proper” gaming platform. It supports indie developers and full-fleged, iPhone exclusive development houses like NGMoco, however, and the distinction between the iPhone and its seemingly-more-legitimate cousins from Sony and Nintendo is increasingly thin. Rolando 2 is the latest expression of this factoid and it’s a big enough experience to merit its own, full-length feature spot in this week’s episode. Tiff Chow drops by to share her thoughts with Ryan.

Can the classics come back? Cellfactor: Psychokinetic Wars seems to think so in its unabashed homage to the FPS, multiplayer experiences of yesteryear. An amazing feat as a full-on multiplayer experience via XBox Live, it throws in a lot of new ideas, but how well-executed are they? BitMob’s Dan “Shoe” Hsu talks it up with Ryan and Jason on how the experience measures up.

Lastly but perhaps most-awesomely, we got some sit-down time with Gaijin Games founder Alex Neuse to talk at length about the 100th WiiWare title, the excellent second-part in the ongoing Bit.Trip series, Bit.Trip Core. It’s out now, so go download it already!

CO-OP 0203 -- Wii Sports Resort, Overlord 2, Real Racing -- Gamer Cribs: Cesar Quintero

Occasionally we have an episode that features one person over all others. This show is ALL CESAR ALL THE TIME BABY, WOOOOOooo! His smiling countenance appears in each segment and in our first-ever Gamer Cribs. We’d like to thank MTV for all the lame cross-fades, ridiculous camera angles and for setting a standard of reusing the same footage over and over again; saved us a lot of time and brainpower. More after the show:

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So, here’s something that was kind of a shocker for some of us (well, for me): Wii Sports Resort is genuinely awesome. Cesar and JayFresh knew it would be, but I couldn’t be convinced until I’d participated in the heretofore-disdained, Motion Plus “waggle.” I’m a convert; mostly because you don’t waggle the Motion Plus, you perform actions analogous to their real-world counterparts. Very considerate of my primate senses, Nintendo.

Overlord 2 is a sequel people have been frothing at the bit over ever since its announcement. The much-beloved premiere of the series is a paragon of evil pastimes for many a gamer and thus this latest incarnation comes with some heavy hype-baggage. Cesar and I are both new to the series and while I remains less-than-impressed (at least partially due to my frustrating experience with the PC controls), Cesar’s evil genes were tickled pink thanks to the baby seal clubbing and mayhem exercises. Our good friend from GameSpy, RebelFM host and Eat. Sleep. Game magnate Anthony Gallegos, was our sole guest on the show this week during this segment and held up his end as an ardent supporter of the franchise.

I think it’s pretty common to expect that the iPhone, as a cell phone platform, lacks the power of a “true” gaming system. Real Racing should change that perception. Ryan was so impressed with the experience that he had to share it with Cesar. See if you agree.

CO-OP 0202 -- Call of Juarez: Bound in Blood, Uncharted 2 MP Beta, Star Defense -- Jason's Day Off

Inspired by Ryan and Cesar’s return from France—they were out on a contract gig—carrying a modern incarnation of the plague (I’m trying to stave it off, currently, via OJ and Zinc), Jason decides to take a day off to do that which he does best. It defies description, really, so you’ll just have to watch—not much of a come-on, to be sure, but I’m trying not to be sick and thus written creativity escapes me at the moment. More after the show:

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Most action movie genres have seen more than their fair share of gaming allusions. The western, historically, has been sadly underreprented. The powers that be (also known as “game developers”) seem to be rectifying that this year and the first of the breed to make its way into our yearning grip is Call of Juarez: Bound in Blood. Boasting beauty as well as grit, it’s a trek that JayFresh and I loved while Cesar held up as an example of a direction to go in gaming if not really a paragon example.

It’s small wonder that in anticipation of the full game’s release, Greg Ford, Tyler Barber, and JayFresh were eager to jump into the multiplayer beta for Uncharted 2. It seemed a pleasant surprise all around.

As mentioned above, Ryan was one of the unfortunate ones to contract the Plague while in France and is still down for the count. Still, at least he has his iPhone and the opportunities it affords, not the least of which is the most-excellent Star Defense. It may seem a small wonder that there’s yet another tower defense game on the iPhone, but this one offers unique twists that make it more than worth your while.

CO-OP 0201 -- Red Faction, Infamous, Prototype -- The Only Way to Fly

We’re back with fully-fledged CO-OP episodes (which happens when you have a season premiere, or so I’m told). We’re not usually into theme shows, but thanks to the crazy random happenstance of the game-release schedule, we bring you the unintentional comparison of three games that all take very different approaches to the term “sandbox.” What would happen if someone tried to play all of these at once, I wonder? More after the show:

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First, Prototype. Will Tuttle (GameSpy) and Anthony Gallegos (GameSpy and Eat-Sleep-Game) join JayFresh in a rather candid discussion of the game’s successes and, unfortunately, it’s several faults. It seems this one may be the weakest sandbox on display this week, though it still has it’s own causes for being sought after.

Infamous, on the other hand, seems more universally loved in spite of it being a bit rough around the edges. Anthony jumps in on this one, again, joined by his RebelFM cohort, Tyler Barber, to chat with Matt about what makes this urban shocker (har har) such a delight.

Finally, in what may be one of the biggest surprises of the year (so far), Red Faction: Guerrilla adds two parts jammazing to one heaping gallon of explosion-sauce to create what Matt, John Davison (What They Play), and (rounding out the RebelFM/Eat-Sleep-Game cast) Arthur Geis agree to be a recipe for a game so fun it’s difficult to do it justice in one, brief segment. Yes, I’m biased since this one is my personal favorite, but I’d say that if you can only get one of these games, this is the one to choose.

CO-OP SPECIAL -- E309 Live - HALO ODST & Splinter Cell: Conviction

For those fans that may have missed our joint CO-OP/Totally Rad Show live shows at E3, we bring you the two biggest highlights: live demos of HALO ODST and Splinter Cell: Conviction. Yes, we’re taking a week off and this is a clip show. We’re plugging in some play n’ charge kits (you don’t want to know where the inputs are) and we’ll be back next week with a proper show premiering our season 02! More after the show:

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Together with our friends at The Totally Rad Show, we pulled together some live shows at this last E3. Those of you subscribing just to our RSS/iTunes feed might have missed some of the highlights, so while we’re taking our mid-season break, we thought we’d bring you the two live demos we had on-set: HALO ODST and Splinter Cell: Conviction. The Bungie guys even took a few extra moments to show off some of the ODST multiplayer for us!

Big thanks to everyone that made all of our E3 coverage such a success! In case you missed any of it and would like to check it out (including the full, archived versions of the live shows), go to http://revision3com/e3/ and partake!

We’ll be back next week our with premiere of Season 02!