God of War III makes me want a PS3…kinda.

After reading Game Informer’s feature on God of War III (from the magazine, not the Internet), I’m re-thinking my decisions to stay away from the Playstation 3.  LittleBigPlanet didn’t impress me (it’s called a level editor, and it’s been around for years), Resistance 2 is fun but I like Gears of Wars 2 better (getting in multiplayer games much better now), and Home is a big fat joke.  Sure, the PS3 has a web-browser and it plays Blu-rays and it cooks delicious hamburgers with less fat, but I want games.

God of War 3 could be the saving grace of the Playstation 3.  It looks to bring back the visceral action and innovative thinking that made the first God of War such an amazing experience.  God of War II was God of War all over again (except for the Colossus level, and the extended fight on the gryphons–that was awesome), and the only reason I played through Chains of Olympus was because I needed something for which to use my PSP.  That’s the challenge of sequels, really: how do we innovate?  Sure, narrative is great but if I want narrative I’ll read a book.  Give me game play and let me look up how the previous game ended on Wikipedia.

God of War III looks to satisfy that request, with what sounds like some incredible level design and invigorating presentation.  One boss battle had Kratos taking on Zeus while Gaia rips up the colosseum-like structure on which they are fighting.  Also discussed was watching lay the final beat-down on a boss from the boss’ point-of-view.  With high-def graphics and the series trademark of making cut scenes interactive, those things could be the very definition of jaw-dropping.

We’ll wait and see when my tax return comes in.  Maybe I’ll pick up a PS3.  Maybe I’ll wait and see if any of those awesome arcade sticks are available first.  Maybe somebody who enjoys this blog (I know you’re out there!) can just buy me an extra-early birthday present.

Little Big Planet: What’s the Little Big Deal?

I don’t own a PS3 (yet), so I will not be playing Little Big Planet any time soon.  That doesn’t mean, however, that I have not been following the game’s development with any less interest, and I have to ask: why is everybody chomping at the bits to get a hold of this title?

From what I know of the game, it’s essentially a highly advanced level editor, yet so many gamers (and critics, and journalists) are acting like they have never seen a level editor before.  PC games have had level editors since the days of the original Doom, and they are not exactly new to consoles either.  Even more so, to take full advantage of the tools available in the level editor one has to play through the game proper: a platformer that is not without its shortcomings.  Indeed, the editor itself doesn’t seem to be what it’s cracked up to be.

Like most overhyped games, I’m sure that Little Big Planet is great fun despite its faults and allows players to fully explore their creativity–as far as level design goes.  I wish, however, that gamers would stop talking about how this is something exciting and new:  it’s a level editor.  You can’t create your own characters, storylines, and original fictional worlds–this isn’t a game editor.  You can make new levels for an exisiting game, and that’s not a new thing.

Plus, Sackboy is just plain annoying.