New Games 2007

Well, new to me, anyway. I long ago fell off whatever wagon drives you past the game store on release days. Here's a quick rundown of what I picked up over the holiday season. "Holiday season" being defined as the last 4 months, for convenience's sake.

Company of Heroes

PC: Picked up over the summer, a highly detailed WWII real-time strategy game. Gloriously rendered to the point of murdering my computer. I really don't know when I'll have time to play it. Never even done multiplayer yet, because I like to live.

Dynasty Warriors Vol. 2

PSP: A near perennial favorite from Koei's rich garden of franchise delights, adapted for portability. Graphically, it stands up to the standards of past installments, although lacking the resources to render huge armies on massive battlefields, this new format breaks the terrain down into bite-sized chunks on a larger grid. You clear and claim areas of the map a bite at a time, jumping back to the grid to navigate between strategic goals. Interesting, and an excellent waste of time.

Guitar Hero II

PS2: You've seen it, and if you haven't, get your ass to a Best Buy right fracking now. This one hurts. If your rock-fu is strong, and you think you have mastered Guitar Crane style, play Medium. You will enjoy the marginal challenge of getting 5 stars on every song. However, should you climb the mountain of Hard Mode, the zen master that resides there shall break your will before agreeing to train you in the higher arts. Only ascended beings should attempt Expert. Still... Trogdor.

Valkyrie Profile 2: Silmeria

PS2: This one slipped under the radar of a lot of die hard RPG fans. Not sure why. Gorgeously rendered, well voiced, detailed in the extreme, excellent story. Unfortunately, it's also a massive time sink. And I still haven't finished VP:Lenneth for the PSP, because... well, because it's HARD.

Dynasty Tactics 2

PS2: Thank God for gift cards and discount bins, or I would have forgotten about this. Basically an update of the last one, with more tactics, more storylines, more hidden content, and you can play as Lu Bu. Also a massive time sink.

MGS3: Snake Eater

PS2: You know, I just don't know. Seemed like a good idea at the time. You eat frogs in this one. No really.

Carcassonne

Big-ass table: In my heart of hearts I really didn't want to do it. Courtney and I, I fear, have taken that first faltering step into the abyss of couples entertainment with the acquisition of this classic tile-building game. I don't want a games closet, I really don't. I'm much happier mooching off the entertainment of my couple-friends, since that's who I play with most of the time anyway. Sure, we dabble in Scrabble, but now where do I find myself? Placing a meeple on a potentially valuable farm and angling to link it up with a vast tract of already claimed territory. And currently in the pipeline from Amazon? The River 2 and Inns and Cathedrals expansions. I fear that the grace of God has failed me, and there, as they say, go I.

I'm also still playing EVE Online (4 significant characters now), and City of Heroes (ungodly number of insignificant characters). What the hell is wrong with me?