2011 Holiday Buyer's Guide: Julian Edition
A simple guide for some serious fun.
Whether you want a game for father-and-son time, or a game for the inner-detective, this guide has you covered. Who knows, maybe you'll even see something to give yourself as a gift for a job well done this holiday season...
For the gamer with a sense of humor
You simply can’t go wrong with Portal 2. Picking up (not quite) where the first game left off, this first person puzzle game does deadpan humor like no other. From the moment you take control of Chell, your silent avatar, the laughs start coming and rarely let up, thanks to a sparse but excellent cast of characters. Wheatly, the first, um, entity you meet, is simply charming and is sure to go down in history as one of the most memorable characters in video games. GLaDOS, the passive-aggressive computer you love to hate, returns and brings the pain with her rapier wit and eviscerating insults. And you’ll get an interesting lesson on the history of Aperture Science with the recordings of Cave Johnson, founder of the company.
When you’re not doubled over from the hilarious script and spot-on timing, you’ll be working out your brain with some mind-bending environmental puzzles. Using your trusty portal gun to get from place to place is only the beginning; you’ll have to position items just so to open doors, navigate around devious traps and killer robotic turrets, and generally try not to die. The game opens up even more when the different gels are added, making for some of the trickiest but most satisfying levels in the series to date. There’s also an excellent co-op mode that you can play split-screen or online, and even though two heads are usually better than one, you may get into some…heated discussions about how to proceed. Portal 2 is a delight in every aspect, making a wonderful gift.
Available on Mac, PC, PS3, and 360
For the gamer with a poetic soul
Are games art? It’s a question asked more and more often these days, and you can thank the two games in this collection for starting the debate. Ico and Shadow of the Colossus were two of the most well-respected games on the PlayStation 2, and they have been lovingly restored in full HD for the PlayStation 3. These games are a treat for the eyes, and now they are displayed in full 1080p and with a smooth framerate, something that hindered the original release of Shadow of the Colossus in particular.
Ico tells a simple story about a boy who’s been locked away in a castle because he was born with horns. He gets free of his cell and happens across a young girl that he cannot understand, but possesses strange magical powers. She is powerless against the denizens of the castle, however, and plentiful shadow-wraiths seem to want nothing more than to take her back into their clutches. Ico is the only one who can fight them off. Trusty stick in hand, he can beat back the shadows as the unlikely duo try to escape from the confines of the castle. You’ll have to use your brain to figure out the various mechanisms and puzzles that are laid out in the castle, and keep Yorda safe from the wraiths. Ico is a beautiful game with a minimalistic aesthetic and a haunting musical score. It is proof-positive that games can be much more than guns and explosions.
Shadow of the Colossus shares certain stylistic and thematic elements with Ico, but is a very different game at its core. You’ll play as Wander, a horse-riding warrior tasked with finding and slaying 16 colossi in order to resurrect his love. There are no other enemies besides the colossi, and in truth the environment, though beautiful and expansive, holds little to see besides the titular boss creatures. Even so, each and every colossus battle is epic in scope and scale, making Wander feel absolutely miniscule by comparison. Figuring out how to climb each colossus and attack their weak points is the challenge and reward in this game, but there’s a deeper message here that will only be revealed by slaying the final titan. Shadow of the Colossus pushed the PS2 beyond its abilities, and this version is the best way to experience the unique adventure, thanks to the smooth framerate and enhanced visuals.
Available on the Playstation 3
For the armchair detective in the family
Every family has one. The person who DVRs every police procedural on TV and reads every Sue Grafton novel. The person who simply has to find out “whodunit”. The person who always has “just one more question”. For that person, let me suggest L.A. Noire, the video game that lets you step into the shoes of a detective in early 1950s Los Angeles. You’ll play as Cole Phelps, an honest-to-goodness white knight wearing a badge. You’ll have to drive to the scene of the crime, search for evidence, track down leads, and interrogate suspects before you can put the bad guys behind bars. On your way, you’ll get into hectic car chases, shootouts, and fistfights with suspects that don’t want to come quietly. Even though L.A. Noire is a one-player game, having someone with you to help puzzle through the evidence and interpret the suspects’ tells helps, and is a lot of fun as well.
L.A. Noire is one of the best-looking games of this console generation, and the re-creation of Los Angeles is a sight to see. This is a fully-realized look at the City of Angels, and driving around listening to the radio hits of the day or talking with your partner are fun and immersive touches. The interrogation elements of the game are unlike anything that has come before, and the detail in the facial animations makes it possible to read the personal quirks and ticks of each person you talk to. But having the intuition to know when someone is shooting you straight or lying to your face is where the true challenge of this game comes from. It will take some super sleuthing to get to the bottom of each case, and if you collar the wrong perp, you’ll catch hell from your superior officer.
Also Available: L.A. Noire: The Complete Edition on PC, PS3, and 360
For father and son
Wrestling is big with kids again, thanks to the push from the WWE (World Wrestling Entertainment) to keep their content PG-friendly. Gone are the shocking shenanigans of the 90s, replaced with fun and light-hearted wrestling shows that hearken back to the WWF of the 80s. It’s fitting, then, that WWE All-Stars brings the Superstars of today together with the Legends of the 80s and 90s. If the kids like wrestling, and dad has fond memories of watching guys like Hulk Hogan and Randy Savage grapple, this is a great multiplayer game for both.
All-Stars has an exaggerated art style that makes these iconic wrestlers look larger than life. This isn’t a serious wrestling sim by any means, and it shares more in common with NFL Blitz or NBA Jam than it does with, say, WWE Smackdown. The control scheme is simple to learn, but there’s enough depth in the fighting mechanics for hours and hours of playtime. Besides your normal punching, grappling, and high-flying antics, you’ll be able to unleash combo moves that can juggle your opponents in the air. You can even snatch them out of the air as they come down for a big slam, and the special and finishing moves are taken to the nth degree, with flashy special effects. Dad and son can fight it out in various modes, or try to team up and take out D-X, one of the biggest tag teams in history. You can also take your game online, and create new wrestlers in the create-a-superstar mode. WWE All-Stars is a fun romp for anyone looking for a a competitive game that's easy to pick up and play.
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