cuál es más homefront? MW3 or BF3

In the race to the bottom of the well of dimishing returns, two competitors run neck and neck this fall: Modern Warfare 3 and Battlefield 3. While the MW franchise stems from a decade long tradition of Call of Duty games that initially featured robust and thrilling single player campaigns, BF has arguable never had a compelling single player experience outside of the Bad Company spin-offs. With the annualization of the COD series, MW3 follows the formula laid out by its's predecessor's and dials everything to 11. Set-pieces, sound design, and narrative are more incomprehensible and bombastic than ever and all within a bite-sized shell. BF3 clamps onto that formula like a lamprey, without ever understanding what originally made it interesting but again serves it up in a bite-sized format.

Lovers to the end: Gears of War 3 (360)--Spoilers

The end of the world is horrible to contemplate, and even more so if one were to do it alone. Marcus Fenix has been the center of the Gears trilogy, a gruff, hard man who began this battle in a jail cell in the original Gears. His constant companion and jail breaker, Dominic Santiago, is also often his protector, moving to Marcus’ side as he falls from enemy fire. Together, they have travelled across and below the surface of planet Sera, watching as their leadership make harder and harder decisions, resulting in the destruction of most of the human population through multiple events.

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 (360)

I have no idea what MW3 is about.

I know what the plot is, such as it is, and who the characters are, such as they are, but I have no idea what it is about.

Following the tremendously successful Modern Warfare and its sequel Modern Warfare 2, MW3 picks up directly where the plot threads of those games have left off. The world is at war, a war created by the machinations of a single man who has manipulated tensions to drive Russia and the United States into open conflict.

That belongs in a museum: Uncharted 3 (PS3)

Drake stumbled through the sand, dehydrated and exhausted from two days of travel across an endless desert. Cresting a dune, he nearly fell as he slid down its face and into an ancient village. Force of will alone drove him to find something, anything to drink and to keep moving, somehow, because to stop would be to die.

Wherever shall I go; whatever shall I do: Gaming on a budget

Due to the money-sucking leeches I call my wife and kids, the slight distractions a single man takes for granted become gluttonous self-involvements. When Blockbuster Canada introduced a monthly flat fee that allowed 2 rentals out at a time, I immediately became a “try everything” kind of guy. Games would be sampled and returned the next day and for $39.95 a month, I was trying dozens of games. I was also able to hang onto deeper games longer with no penalty of late fees.

I wept openly when the bad business practices of Blockbuster US destroyed the very profitable Blockbuster Canada. In my part of the world, there is literally no alternative.

I will let you in on a secret: $60 to purchase a game is INSANE.

The Importance of discovery: Why my kid ruins games for me

Infamous 2 looks like a great game. It looks like an improved version of Infamous, with beautiful graphics, a spectacular particle and smoke engine (borrowed from Killzone 3, I suspect) and better, more subtle voice acting. I experience these things in snippets and glances as I move through the living room. I know when the game is being played because it has impressive and responsive bass rumbling through my sub-woofer.

I have no interest in playing Infamous 2 but that is no fault of the game. It is because of my step-son.

A 15 year old with no interest in anything but yapping on Skype, online gaming in steam, and gaming on the PS3/360, he dives deep into new games. Genetically unable to not find the most efficient path to maximize return in an upgrade path he grinds games relentlessly. RELENTLESSLY.

He will ignore critical path and story missions until he has leveled up enough to breeze through. He returns to Oblivion constantly in search of exploits to allow his character to grow and change but has never beaten the game.

Like the first game, Infamous 2 has both a morality system and upgrades that are discovered during missions. I know this from watching him play.

I feel like I have come to know everything from the short moments I have watched him play. I have wandered in during pivotal story-moments, I have seen morality choices play out, and I have stumbled across both endings.

I do not begrudge my stepson doing what he digs but I have started enforcing rules about when he gets to play. As a teen with virtually unlimited time, he can tear through a game in a couple of days, and as an adult, I can’t, which is not a bad thing.

It seems petty, but I forbade him from playing Arkham City until I had beaten the story. I will do the same with Uncharted 3.

Infamous has taught me that a game experienced second hand is a game often not worth playing.

Return to Darkness: Arkham City (360)

Arkham City feels like a greatest hits collection of not only everything great about Batman, but everything great ever. The Catwoman free opening (more on that later) reveals itself like Dead Space 2; an unexpected dash through enemy territory that serves not only as a tutorial but as exposition and exploration of character.

Comfortable yet fresh, the melee combat and grappling gun traversal mechanics return from Arkham Asylum. Subtly refined, they serve as the foundation for ever more gadgets to unlock through the story and side mission progression.