I was under the impression that my appetite for World War II era inhumanities was coming to a close when Infinity Ward sent Call of Duty bobbing out into the sea, but the skill and enthusiasm they brought to their task urged me forward. I have heard people say that CoD2, or at any rate the demo they showed in the theater there in the Activision booth, was the finest thing they saw at the show - this is not a sentiment I can echo. When I heard the initial rumblings of a German campaign, I thought, yes, that is something I have not previously done in a lower resolution. The notion didn't actually go anywhere, and I don't know if I can do all the rest of that stuff again.
I'm just not ready for another first-person shooter in that context. Brothers In Arms is the last one I'll play, I'm serious. it's over. I feel as though I have learned the lessons therein and no longer need to see a good man die with my own eyes simply because it is the most expeditious route to true drama. So while there is certainly an element of what a fancier person than I would call ennui with retail products of this kind, it is dulled somewhat when experiencing the events through other genres. I'm not sure if I just don't want to buy the same thing again, or if I'm starting to desire a bit of psychic separation from the events depicted.
"The Outfit" was in a mock bunker directly across the way from Call of Duty's mock bunker, and I've only seen non-interactive video of it because I could never swing that line they had out front, but it's a next-gen cooperative action/adventure game that could become something I'd enjoy quite a bit. It's by Relic, which I'm predisposed to like, but they're delivering another game set in World War II called "Company Of Heroes." I thought there might have been a rule about pulling this kind of shit, but I can't find it. It looks sharp, though - a custom engine and Havok physics produce the visual quality you expect from a top-flight shooter, with your awareness drawn away from the character. There was no user interface to speak of, so I couldn't get an idea what genre advancements were en-route or how a player could actually direct the set-pieces I was observing, but Gamespot went fairly in-depth with them if you'd like to know more. I guess I'd have to see the stuff they talk about in there. The person giving the demo made it clear that they really wanted the player to feel for the soldiers under their command, but then over the course of the demo they killed like two hundred of them. So, who knows.
There's a new Blitzkrieg as well as a new Codename: Panzers, and though I didn't get a chance to see them in person I enjoyed their predecessors enough to consume all media on them upon my return. Blazing Angels attends the "Crimson Skies" school of approachable, arcade flight and goes for a co-operative dogfighting game with a grimy cinematic filter that drew the eye. There's even a new Indiana Jones game coming, which is, you know... It has Nazis in there. So, please - air combat, strategy games, adventure, dancing, puzzle, racing, whatever. I'm not buying a straight-up shooter in the genre again.
(CW)TB out.
like a new emotion
