Alright, so through the month of August I played through TimeShift. I mentioned this before, but simply, if you enjoy FPS’s then TimeShift is a game you need to play. It has great graphics, great controls, and the time mechanic works well. You will love the explosive crossbow.

Explosive crossbow.

I also got Mercenaries 2 and have really been enjoying it. It is totally fun, but here are a few issues: The game looks like ass. Just Cause is a game that came out much earlier, and pretty much looks a lot better and also plays better. That doesn’t mean Mercs2 is bad, it means JC is just fucking awesome. That was the first game that I got all 1k achievement points. I loved it. Sequel should be hitting sometime soon…right? Anyway, Mercs2 adds in co-op which works exceptionally well and is the first time I’ve actually enjoyed co-op since Syphon Filter: Omega Strain. I usually play co-op because everyone else wants to, but it never really pulls me. Mercs2 is a light version of what SF offered for co-op; each player takes on their own tasks to complete the mission as a whole. Like I said, Mercs 2 is a light version of that, but it’s there.

Other than that, Mercs 2 does have its bugs. A few times I’ve been stuck; wedged between a couple rocks. After a few moments of frantically nailing every button on my gamepad, I’ll eventually get out. Oh, and apparently you never die. I’ll fall out of an exploding helicopter, fall off a mountain, get pummeled by artillery, and run over by a car. Yet, my health will still be at 2-6%, and gradually work its way up. But honestly it works well in this game. When you play it you’ll understand. Definitely worth $60.

The Force Unleashed just came out earlier this week, and I am enjoying myself. First of all, it’s a poorer version of God of War. It even makes Conan, a game I love but recognize its flaws, look really good. The thing that TFU has going for it is Star Wars. It has the music, characters, environments, and force-resistant stormtroopers – what? Yeah, but I guess it being a game, they have to add in some challenge for the player. Yeah, and I’m playing on the hardest difficulty – it’s hard as hell.

Things I like about TFU:

-Physics
-Darth Vader
-That pilot chick (why would I need to know her name?)
-Force grip
-Throwing a jawa with said force grip
-Can I force remove that pilot chick’s clothing? Eh…that might be rape. Oh, “You want to remove your clothes”. *waves hand* That would work.

Things I don’t like about TFU:

-Loading into menus. Yes. When I go into my upgrade screen, it has to load. Same with getting out. Lame.
-Non-Star Wars stuff. Imperial Guards with lightsabers? Was this explained in some expanded-universe story that I missed? Giant stormtroopers. Did they recruit tall aliens? Use Wookies? And just the enemy weapons in general. They were all equipped to fight the sith apparently.
-In-game cutscenes. You know, when you die and have to replay the small part where the camera zooms in ahead of you showing enemies walk into the foreground. One: yeah, I know. Two: I just want to fucking play.
-Lightsabers take multiple hits to actually kill someone.
-The whole upgrade system is just wacky. I like the ability to do this stuff, but it’s as if these developers have never
played GoW or Conan…or any other game that allows stat upgrades.

And that’s about it. The game is great, not sure if it’s worth $60 for all, but it was to me. Just one final thing: This is the Star Wars I.P., and Lucasarts should have done a better job with it.

My mailman didn’t pick up my Gamefly disc for THREE days. He finally did today. WTF!