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2003 Videogame Holiday Gift Guide
Tim Grube writes "Gaming Horizon is currently
hosting a feature that informs gamers on what to buy this holiday season. The
2003 Holiday Gift
Guide presents twenty-five titles per console including the Microsoft Xbox,
Sony Playstation 2, Nintendo GameCube, PC, and HandHelds."
Also, same thing for Tony Hawk: Underground. Does anyone know if anything has changed other than the small bits mentioned in the blurb?
I've done a little research into Silent Hill 3 and I have to say that it looks like it's going to be a great game. It actually looks like it might have some of the best game-mode graphics I've seen on the PS2 yet.
The guitars sound good, now give me about 10db more on the cow bell.
In the spirit of the season you should send links to Jesus Dressup out to your loved ones. It's free[1] and really makes one appreciate the holiday spirit.. or something like that.
[1] Nails not included
Trolling is a art,
Thanks Santa!
The bigotry of the nonbeliever is for me nearly as funny as the bigotry of the believer. - Albert Einstein
Wow - two comments and the website is already getting slashdotted...
Please let valve release Half-Life 2 soon. I'm dying here. A man can only play so much Counter-Strike.
I think I think, therefore I think I am.
Half-Life 2 won't happen. Or Halo 2 for that matter.
Damon,
http://actionPlant.com
I work for one for the larger electronics distributor in Georgia, and we greatly depend on the profits generated during the holiday season.
One thing we have noticed, is that a lot of young professionals seem to own and purchase video games on a regular basis. These are probably the same children who in the 80s were purchasing Atari's 1300, Intellivision, Coleco, and Amtrads.
We find that there is a great shift to more mature titles such as Final Fantasy 13, Gotham Racing 4, and Super Smash brothers.
I'll probably return next January to post our sales statistics in this forum, since it may be of interest to some folks around here.
... not giving the gift of MMORPG to your kids, because not only will you be laden heavy monthly fees, but you'll probably never see them again.
Unless you, like... hate them or something. At least they won't pester you for a car anymore. Excelt way to remove them from your life without giving 'em away. And you can feed them with just cheap chips!
1. Call of Duty
2. Jedi Knight 3: Jedi Academy
3. Need for Speed Underground
4. Counter-Strike Condition Zero
CS:CZ is already 1.5 years late... maybe it'll make the Dec. 18 release date though.
The 3 I'm really waiting for don't come out till march- Doom ]|[, HL2, and UT2k4.
Best PC/Xbox RPG this year, easily. Awesome story (better than most of the movies), fun play and lightsaber battle action! Yeah!
How about consulting the wish list your kids wrote to Santa? Or asking?
Finding God in a Dog
Metacritic
They should have picked five, or ten at the most (allowing for different genres).
These games are great and everything, but before you get any of them for me based on this advice, I would like to call your attention to the fact that I lost my job on Monday.
Therefore, here is my list:
A manual labor job at the North Pole, which probably has better weather and better working conditions than my last workplace
And one XBox so I can play Fable.
Thank you Santa!
Gaming Horizon is currently hosting a feature that informs gamers on what to buy this holiday season. The 2003 Holiday Gift Guide presents twenty-five titles per console including the Microsoft Xbox, Sony Playstation 2, Nintendo GameCube, PC, and HandHelds.
When anger rises, think of the consequences.
Confucius (551 BC - 479 BC)
... in Christmas 2056.
I hear it comes with bundled Arthritis cream, for we'll all have old-man joints by the time it finally comes out.
...presents twenty-five titles per console including the Microsoft Xbox, Sony Playstation 2, Nintendo GameCube, PC, and HandHelds.
Uh, I hate to break it to you, but a PC isn't a console. Would it behove you editors to actually correct sentences like this one before you hit the "publish" button?
Can't you correct other people's mistakes? Is that it? Well, let me help you out then:
"...presents twenty-five titles per platform, including the Microsoft Xbox, Sony Playstation 2, Nintendo GameCube, PC and HandHelds."
There you go. Drop the italics from the above, and you're good to go. I've even tidied up some of the punctuation for you. No charge.
"Accept that some days you are the pigeon, and some days you are the statue." - David Brent, Wernham Hogg
Ok, the site has already felt the effect, but I noticed that Dino Crisis 3 and Enter the Matrix were on the XBox list.
Well, their credability went down the toilet for me, and this is the first time I've heard of these people. That might be a record!
Until Slashdot fixes the funny modifier, use insightful or interesting. The poster knows your intentions.
Wal-Mart?
Heh Heh. Nice try.
CMDRTACO CHECK YOUR EMAIL!
Umm, any suggestions for us Mac users? (HHOS)
Alex Bischoff
HTML/CSS coder for hire
hosting a feature that informs gamers on what to buy this holiday season
rent before you buy, so much sod out there these days. never ceases how much time and money and eyesight (on behalf of programmers) goes towards creating utter sh*te.
on my list is simpson's hit & run, keeping it simple.
### http://www.gunfinger.com ### greed / tec
I often ask for older games, on my Christmas list. At least, I seldom ask for games that are brand-spanking new. Jak 2 and the transportation expansion for Sim City 4 are fairly new, but established. Diablo 2 is old news. Not only are the products usually a little bit less expensive, but I have had plenty of time to read reviews and check out the game in advance.
Virtue finds and chooses the mean.
Aristotle, Ethica Nichomachea
Boy, when I saw Enter the Matrix on the first page of their XBox recommendations, I thought maybe Scrooge was running this list.
Yeah. Buy one of the systems listed and shut the hell up about games on the Mac. Nobody cares. It's not gonna happen.
You whiny little iBitches irritate me.
Unfortunately, the two big titles that were promised did not materialise (Doom 3 and Half-Life 2) but these should be with us in the new year.
I personally, have had difficulty trying to get enough time to play all of the quality stuff that has been put out this year i.e. titles like GTA Vice City and Star Wars - Knights of the Old Republic.
I could use a Palm Thumb.
The google cache didn't index the 2nd page, so here's the first 12 of 25 for all the systems:
XBox:
Soul Calibur II
Freedom Fighters
Tao Feng: Fist of the Lotus
Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six 3
Capcom vs. SNK 2: EO
Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon: Island Thunder
Burnout 2: Point of Impact
Counter-Strike
Dino Crisis 3
Enter the Matrix
Midnight Club II
Mortal Kombat: Deadly Alliance
PS2:
Final Fantasy X-2
SOCOM 2: US Navy Seals
Ratchet and Clank: Going Commando
Silent Hill 3
Tenchu: Wrath of Heaven
Soul Calibur II
Madden NFL 2004
Jak II
Manhunt
Lord of the Rings: Return of the King
Everquest Online Adventures: Frontiers
Primal
PC:
Halo: Combat Evolved
Microsoft Flight Simulator 2004
Battlefield 1942: Secret Weapons of World War II
Homeworld 2
Command & Conquer Generals: Zero Hour
Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic
Deus Ex: Invisible War
Jedi Knight: Jedi Academy
Counter Strike: Condition Zero
Call of Duty
Midnight Club II
Rainbow Six 3: Raven Shield
Gamecube:
Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker
Mario Kart: Double Dash!!
Viewtiful Joe
Soul Calibur II
Medal of Honor: Rising Sun
NBA Live 2004
Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time
I-Ninja
F-Zero GX
Need For Speed Underground
Metal Arms: Glitch in the System
Freedom Fighters
Handhelds:
Final Fantasy Tactics Advance
Medal of Honor: Infiltrator
Boktai
Banjo-Kaozzie: Grunty's Revenge
Mortal Kombat: Tournament Edition
Madden NFL 2004
Monster Truck Madness
Stuntman
Mega Man Battle Network 3 Blue
Mega Man Battle Network 3 White
The Simpson's Road Rage
Advance Wars 2: Black Hole Rising
This sequel was supposed to be an improvement over the incredible first game, but instead it became a straight X-Box console port.
The AI sucks, it takes 5 shots to the head to kill a guy, the ragdoll physics are ridiculous, the interface is notoriously console-oriented (you even have to use the keyboard to exit a menu screen), the graphics are bad, and as far as gameplay goes, they removed:
- Skills system
- Conversation logger
- Size-based inventory screen (12 slots...candy bar takes the same slot as a rocket launcher)
- Seperate ammo types (that's right, all guns use the same ammo)
- Weapon reloading
- About half of Deus Ex 1's length of gameplay...Invisible War is only 10-15 hours long, and you can just sneak through airvents for most of the levels
I'm fuming at Ion Storm. Warren Spector promised so many things, but he let Harvey Smith oversee Deus Ex 2 this time around, and it became a dumbed-down X-Box console game. We PC users suffered for it.
Check out the www.ionstorm.com forums which are packed with pissed-off PC gamers.
"Sufferin' succotash."
Gaming Horizon was hosting a feature :)
They took out locational damage as well. Suck!
"Sufferin' succotash."
Would it behove you editors to actually correct sentences like this one before you hit the "publish" button?
Wouldn't it behoove you to check your spelling before correcting someone's semantics?
This comment was generated by a squadron of trained super elite albino ninja chickens for you.
I don't know about all that gibberish, but I do believe it would behooveyou to spell check your own post before attempting to be a grammer nazi.
All I have to ask is, where is Worms 3D on this list? True, so far it has only been released in Europe and Australia, but it has for more playability value, and overall "fun" factor than some of the other games on this list.
And so we go, on with our lives
We know the truth, but prefer lies
Lies are simple, simple is bliss
real google cache
To my parents, Ayn Rand and God.
picpix image polls. create - share - vote. fun!
It would behoove YOU to check your own post before attempting to be a spelling nazi. Unless they spell grammar "grammer" on your planet.
As an avid gamer and owner of several different video game systems and a PC used extensively for gaming, I gotta say the holiday guide is an absolute joke.
The games on the list are dated, and there are several newer, much better games available for nearly every single game they list. For example, nobody in their right mind would choose NFL Fever 2004 instead of Madden 2004 or ESPN NFL on XBox.
If you're using that guide to buy games for your kids, friends or relatives, please expect them to hate you after Christmas.
In Soviet Russia, I ruled you
Arthritis cream?
More like "Well ya see grandson, back in my day we had a handheld controller to play video games, some even had foot pedals. And you had a big screen in front of you."
*scratches back of head*
"Not that these sensory-interactive implants aren't bad mind you, they're a bit itchy and sometimes they give an old man seizures... but at least they let me frag your noob a** every now and then!"
Seriously though, who knows what to expect from games in 2056 (barring post-nuclear destruction of everyone). I wonder if some of us can expect to still be playing then (in my case, at age 79).
Games I've played over the past few weeks...working 40+ hours a week for this comment ;)
STAR WARS GALAXIES (PC)
The big MMORPG is promising and I have invested 200+ hours in it. However it's full of as much frustration as promise--vaporware gone horribly. Would NOT recommend to anyone even without the $15/mo fee.
MADDEN 2004 (GAMECUBE)
This cash cow for EA Sports is better than last year's. I've seen so many bad sequels (coughMatrix) that I'm impressed. I like the well-done execution as well as the fact that it's a party game that people can get into fairly quickly. In addition, there is added depth in the mini-camp and owner modes. Is it worth $50? Maybe, maybe not. But it IS unequivocally a better game than last year's, which is more than I can say for...
MARIO KART: DOUBLE DASH (GAMECUBE)
Welcome to Mario Kart, rehashed. I've seen companies get fried for "tinkering with the original formula" and Nintendo took this one to heart by producing...well...the same game. You'll see "clever" re-releases of each track (read: the same thing, rehashed a little and with new names to boot) along with the somewhat-gimmicky two-person-in-one-kart feature. THERE IS NO QUESTION IN MY MIND THAT THIS IS A GOOD GAME--just like its predecessor--but I feel like I'm playing the exact same game as before. Having said that, it's still a great party game and the learning curve is low, low, low. That makes this game still a "safe" buy for anyone who has a GameCube.
CHAMPIONSHIP MANAGER 2003/2004 (PC UK)
Good luck finding this one in the US. The best selling game in the UK last year, CM4, was a good game with horrible execution. Bugs, crashes, everything. This feels like the finished product of Championship Manager. However this game is relatively time-intensive and some people just don't like the idea of not controlling Ronaldo running down the field. Having said that, this game has rabid fans (including me) and the execution is relatively flawless. I'd rate this a strong buy towards folks into management games--the soccer knowledge can come later.
CIVILIZATION 3: CONQUESTS (PC)
Welcome to Crack, redone. I played the original Civ, Civ2, Col, CTP2, SMAC, SMACX and limited doses of Civ3, so I'm a Civ fanatic at heart. Having said that, I realize this game is not for everyone. It's an expansion pack for CIV3 so prior purchase may be necessary (but inexpensive). Yet while a safe gift for Civ3 enthusiasts, how much value this game adds is questionable. Perhaps I'm spoiled from Half-Life and its endless string of free MODS. This pack honestly feels like a MOD--decent-looking campaigns added on that DO drag on for me (I'm talking about 20+ hours). I wouldn't buy this game for myself if I were worried about money. Yet as much as it doesn't do much good, it does no bad.
SIMCITY 4: RUSH HOUR
Disclaimer: I love public transportation. I couldn't wait for this expansion pack to SC4. I bought it from EBGames the first day it came out. Last week, I saw it FAR (free after rebate) on Black Friday. Perhaps free is too low of a valuation (SC4 required, but you can buy the deluxe version at Costco which includes both) but the added value is questionable after a few hours/days of play. One-way streets are cool, and I love watching the variation of traffic patterns, but I fear that it's too nerdy for the rest of you. Plus, the U-Drive-It feature is kind of lame IMHO. If you really want to drive around a city, go check out GTA3 for a much more fun implementation. This is a risky bet IMHO.
MADDEN 2004 (GAMECUBE)
:)
This cash cow for EA Sports is better than last year's. I've seen so many bad sequels (coughMatrix) that I'm impressed. I like the well-done execution as well as the fact that it's a party game that people can get into fairly quickly. In addition, there is added depth in the mini-camp and owner modes. Is it worth $50? Maybe, maybe not. But it IS unequivocally a better game than last year's, which is more than I can say for...
It is unequivocally a better game than last year's. It's also a terrible game in comparison to ESPN NFL Football.
Madden only wins in additional aspects (Madden Cards), while ESPN football destroys Madden in gameplay.
I'm a fan of gameplay.
Oh, and any CIV3 rules. If you ever see me online, I'll whoop ya.
http://use.perl.org
. . . Going Commando.
I don't know if that counts as a mature title.
Too bad you can't pay your rent in bolts.
And I remember using quarters to play Pong, Space Invaders, and Asteroids.
"We can't solve problems by using the same kind of thinking we used when we created them." -- Albert Einstein
You talk about FFX-2 in the future tense, "is going to be like." You talk about Silent Hill 3 in the future tense, "looks like it's going to be a great game."
These games are both released. In fact, Silent Hill 3 was released 4 months ago in North America, and even earlier in the UK!
SH3 is the best graphics you'll ever see on a PS2, which is to say not as good as GCN or Xbox graphics. It's still a great game. X-2 is also good, and much better at hiding its load times than SH3.
--
Internet Explorer (n): Another bug -- that is, a feature that can't be turned off -- in Windows.
What about Linux?
Nathan's blog
Buy Steampunk Clothing Online!
NOT! As an EB employee (and as the guy who humps your dad) I resent your comment. Please retract it. Thank you in advance.
Half-Life 2 will not be out this year, will not go gold this year, and would not have been out this year if Valve hadn't been hacked.
Check out the halflife2.net message board under the offical Valve thread.
Actually the punctuation was much better in the original. The comma before "including" is not required (some would argue just wrong) and the comma you removed before "and" is required.
Sorry for being pedantic, but hey, you started it.
---- Den ene knappen er powerknapp, den andre er Bender voice knapp "Bite My Shiny Metal Ass"
Where the hell is my Half-Life 2?
You see? You see? Your stupid minds! Stupid! Stupid!
Locational damage is in -- TRUST ME, I KNOW. I've downed enemies with two headshots. True, it doesn't take just one headshot for instant kill, but you DEFINITELY get more damage from a headshot. I've done it.
.72 ammo, tons of pistol ammo, boxes upon boxes of darts... was that realistic? FUCK NO. Does having just one type of ammo, by nanotech remodulation, seem slightly better? HELL YES.
If you want headshot lethality, take a look into the Ion forums again -- they ARE responding to user feedback, and they ARE looking into making some of those changes.
If you're just one of those idiots who thinks it's fashionable to bitch about this or that game -- and I'm betting you've only played the demo -- then bite me.
As for the rest:
-Skills system
WHO THE FUCK CARES? The skills system was pointless, had only four levels of granularity anyways, and had tons of overlap. They rolled it into Biomods and actually made your choices tougher in that sense, but now you whine like a little bitch? Yeesh.
-Conversation logger.
Meh. I can live without it. It's not as if I used it for anything other than looking up all those goddamn passwords in the last game anyways.
-Size-based inventory screen.
No thank you. Size-based is all fine and good till you realize that EVERY TIME YOU PICK UP AN ITEM YOU HAVE TO PLAY TETRIS TO FIT IT TO INVENTORY. No thanks. This is a great improvement over the last game.
-Separate ammo types -- THEY EXPLAIN THIS ONE. I much prefer managing just one type of ammo, rather than going halfway through the game and running out of shots for my favorite gun. Plus, it makes more sense in other ways too. In the last game, JC walked around with a bunch of RPG rounds, 20 HE 20MM clips, tons of
-Weapon Reloading.
Again, if you've got the nanotech to remod the ammo, feeding it isn't exactly a big deal. But if you're so worried about it, GO PLAY SOMETHING ELSE instead of whining like a spoiled little bitch that they didn't just remake your old game's flaws.
-length of game
Yeah, sure. It's shorter. Except you can play through and join any one of a dozen factions, and STICK WITH THEM through the game for multiple endings. So the replay value is way up there, instead of playing through the old one just once and being able to take whichever ending you chose and being forced into certain factions at certain points.
Give it up. Deus Ex: Invisible War rules, it gives you the freedom to make your character whatever you want him to be, it makes you have the tough choices without the ridiculous ones, and it's great gameplay. The only valid complaint is the graphical setup, but now that the Xbox version has shipped I've no doubt that performance will be cleared up within the first patch.
After further thought, the man bitches about the game without reason -- it's obvious he has not played it.
MOD PARENT DOWN, PLEASE
Neverwinter Nights: Hordes of the Underdark
Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic
What more could one ask for?
"You spoony bard!" -Tellah
PS2: ...
Ratchet and Clank: Going Commando
Inna entirely bizarre fashion this PS2 title didn't get the catchy subtitle of Going Commando for its release in New Zealand (I think it's Locked and Loaded, instead). This is presumably because what going commando actually says to a lot of people is Not Wearing Any Underpants.
And why is this bizarre?
Well, if you were going to market a new game in New Zealand, you could probably do better than calling it something that sounds like Rat Shit in the first place, since this is one of those friendly kiwi terms suggesting that something, you know, sucks the big kumara.
Since when is a PC considered to be a 'console'?
That rant was completely pointless and made him look a little silly in the process.
Wouldn't it behoove both of you not to use archaic phrases?
They use the Windows logo to represent PC games. Effectively true in most cases but it's not pretty.
actually the comma before the "and" (known as a serial comma) isn't required. . . personally i prefer it to be there but it's actually a personal-preference thing. . .
Seriously, though, why are we, as a civilization so obsessed with war and violence? Aren't we teaching our kids the wrong things if we let them play games like this? I am always a bit freaked out when I realize how prevalent war and violence is in this country's kids' rooms. Maybe a country has to have a war on its own turf once in a while, lest it forgets how cruel the reality of war really is...
I played the demo last week and bought the game yesterday evening.
"Sufferin' succotash."
Hey, check this out: http://www.google.com/search?q=behove.
My spelling was fine and dandy, thank you very much. It would behove you to remember the following:
1. Not everyone on Slashdot is American; and
2. It's called English for a reason.
QED.
"Accept that some days you are the pigeon, and some days you are the statue." - David Brent, Wernham Hogg
In other words, you proved my point for me.
You're a lamer who flamed a game he hadn't spent any decent amount of time playing.
Go home now and whine to mommy about the fact that they actually improved the game instead of just making a glorified expansion pack.
Check it out.
Tao Feng? Get with the times.
Dolemite
___________________
Save the World! Use a Quote!
As soon as I saw FFX-2 on that PS2 list, I knew it was going to be stupid.
Then I saw a horrible game on there as well: Manhunt.
Their credibility = nonexistent now.
Manhunt is complete crap; I rented it.
And I mean it is garbage as a game, not because it is violent. The violence was actually pretty dissafuckinpointing.
Prince of Persia should have been near the top of that list.
Seriously, how did that link make it to a slashdot headline? Was someone at Slashdot paid off, or just sleepy. I expect more from this site.
I am Jack's Savage Beats.
Where would that be?
There is nothing in a PC to distinguish it from a console, when it is used for games and especially now that people are connecting it to their TV. I have one set up for "classic gaming" that has controllers connected to it uses my TV as a monitor and has limited functionality to make it more user friendly. It's a console and it's a PC.
If you're going to get picky though, I wouldn't consider a handheld like GBA to be a console, I would consider it a portable.
My wife got me an XBOX and DX:IW. I think that the game is great! Yes, I played the PC demo on a friend's computer (my computer didn't have a good enough vid card), and the PC demo had issues from not being able to save your config to a laggy mouse to poor framerates.
However, the XBOX version is great! It performs good framerate wise, I have seen no bugs so far, and the story is extremely interesting and the game is a lot of fun! I was a big fan of the original, and still have it installed on my Linux computer (winex runs it perfectly).
Let me just put it this way: If you liked the original, then you are missing out if you don't get DX:IW. I suggest getting the XBOX version, but if you can't do that, then wait for the PC verison to get patched and get the PC version. This game has many improvements over the original. YOU ARE MISSING OUT!
There is nothing dumbed down about DX:IW. The game is different in some aspets, but not dumbed down. Of course, you are probably just one of those idiot gamers that, for some reason, hates other gaming platforms than whatever your platform of choice is (I guess it is Windows PC, right?).
A portable what? A portable console that's what. Duh.