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Roundtable #5:

Things of the Year 2004

At the dawn of any new year, it's become a habit that everyone looks back at the year that was -- lamenting what went wrong, smiling about what went right. For most, the reminiscing begins even before the official end of the year. At the Armchair Empire we give it a month to really let the dust settle on the previous year before we pass judgment on things that happened in the gaming industry. On January 29, 2005, most of the staff jumped online to gab about the Things of the Year 2004 -- from Game of the Year to Headlines of the Year, we ran the usual gamut and for once stayed on topic 90% of the time. We now present an abridged transcript of that exciting night.

Omni: I'll start things off with my Game of the Year pick for 2004. My Game of the Year choice is Half-Life 2. It was a real toss up between Half-Life 2 and City of Heroes – my son called it in the air. I really liked City of Heroes experience – it’s the first MMORPG that I really stuck with – but Half-Life 2, as linear as it is, also featured some of the coolest gaming moments in 2004 and sets the bar again in terms of what I want out of a game.

City of Heroes (left); Half-Life 2 (right)

Tolen: My game of the year choice is also Half-Life 2. It is the sequel to my favorite game of all time, and it met every expectation I had.

Tazman: Easy enough for me - Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas (PS2). Sure it's a rehash, but it is the largest game that I've ever played. Good graphics, highly addictive, over-hyped but damn fun.

Kurt: I still don't really having a gaming PC, so I'm more into console land. I'd put in my vote in for Metal Gear Solid 3. Especially for the last part of the game, which tosses climax after insane climax. Also one of the best scripts for a video game, ever.

Omni: I'll wait for San Adreas to come to the PC. Rockstar always puts a little more "oomph" into the PC port.

Tolen: I agree that GTA was an awesome game, but I have not had a chance to play MGS3 yet. I actually enjoyed Katamari Damacy and La Pucelle Tactics as much as anything else on a console this year.

Kurt: I'm sure they'll find some way to stuff some crpytic glitches into the Xbox version, but I'm holding out for that as well.

Tazman: You think about the PC port? I tried GTA on PC but found it near unplayable

Kurt: Console, otherwise I'd pick out Metroid Prime 2, Gradius 5, Alien Homind

and Burnout 3.

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Tazman: Good call on Burnout 3.

Sidd: Unfortunately I never had the chance to play many, if any PC games this year, so my choice would be Halo 2. Halo 2 lived up to my expectations by delivering a better and more intriguing single player mode (although the ending was disappointing to say the least) and an awesome online component that never ceases to amaze. Yeah, Burnout 3 was one of the best games of the year for sure.

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Omni: I also had a blast with Viewtiful Joe 2, Alien Hominid, and Spider-Man 2. Racing Game of the Year goes to Burnout 3: Takedown. I feel like a sheep picking that one, but it’s a good racer.

Kurt: I like Halo 2, but I still found some of the level design to be somewhat lacking. The Arbiter was a cool idea but it didn't seem to pulled off very well.

Tazman: Damn, I forgot about Spiderman 2 - that was pretty cool for about the first 2 hours.

Kurt: Also, I could never understand what the aliens were saying

Tazman: Agreed on Burnout 3.

Tolen: I've been enjoying Burnout 3 a bit myself. I've heard great things about Outrun 2 also, but I haven't had the opportunity to play it yet.

Kurt: Outrun 2 is a lot of fun, but it's like good in five or ten minutes doses.

Omni: OutRun 2 was a great follow-up to the original.

Kurt: It depends on how much of a weakness you have you Sega racing games.

Sidd: Full Spectrum Warrior, Sly 2, Splinter Cell 2 were games which I found to my liking as well.

Kurt: Shin Megami Tensei Nocturne is really, REALLY hard, but it's easily one of the best games of the generation.

Tazman: Geez, was I the only one who got really into Transformers?

Tolen: After Half-life, my next two games would be La Pucelle:Tactics and Katamari Damacy.

Kurt: it keeps getting passed over in favor of like Paper Mario 2 and Shadow Hearts 2 - both awesome, if somewhat lesser games.

Kurt: Tolen, you played Phantom Brave? Nippon Ichi.

Tolen: Nope, haven't played Phantom Brave yet. Don't know if I like the idea of removing the battlefield grid.

Kurt: It sorta works like Breath of Fire Dragon Quarter, it's actually pretty well done

Tolen: Better than Dragon Quarter I hope.

Kurt: I love Dragon Quarter drastically though - fave PS2 RPG next to SMT3 and FFX.

Alien Hominid (left); Fable (right)

Omni: Anyone have a Role-Playing Game of the Year?

Kurt: Oh! best RPG, again, Shin Megami Tensei Nocturne. Amazingly cool battle system, incredible character designs, best soundtrack of the year or possibly of any RPG ever, and one of those plots that actually forces you to think a little.

Tolen: I'll go with La Pucelle, since it is the one I put the most time in on. As long as we aren't excluding strategy RPG's.

Omni: Best music of the year I'd say came outta Alien Hominid.

Eric: Come on now, lets not forget the brilliant musical score Danny Elfman brought to Fable (By the way, Hello everyone).

Kurt: I can't say I remember much outside of the PDA game theme, it seemed overshadowed by the sound effects.

Omni: I guess the sounds effects were kind of overbearing, but I adjusted the audio levels.

Tazman: Sorry guys. GTA: San Andreas had the best music... you can change the radio station if the song sucks.

Sidd: The musical score for Halo 2 was pretty good. Marty O'Donnel did an awesome job.

Tolen: I'd go with the Halo 2 score.

Kurt: Fable is definitely one of the best orchestral scores a video game has ever gotten, but my Burnourt 3 playlist is all Iron Maiden and Judas Priest, so I'm going to have go for SMT's 80s flavored hard rock.

Eric: Yeah, but bring Incubus and Hoobastank into the mix was a bad decision.

Sidd: I was a little disappointed with San Andreas audio (music wise). I thought Vice City had a much better selection of songs.

Omni: What about best licensed soundtrack?

Eric: GTA: San Adreas for sure.

Tolen: Definitely GTA: San Andreas.

Omni: I've listened to the soundtrack a few times and I'm mostly impressed but I still wound up giving it to my wife's cousin.

Eric: The only gripe I had with the GTA soundtrack was the lack of good old-school rock. Where was the Metallica, Nirvana, and Sublime?

Kurt: Halo 2 by default. One of the Incubus songs was listenable, at least. I skipped out on GTA .And Burnout 3....ugh.

Omni: I always like Rockstar's in-game commercials though.

Eric: And Andy Dick was a nice touch.

Tolen: My filter won't allow you to say “touch” and “dick” in the same sentence, Omni.

Tazman: Probably spent too much money on music rights on what they already got

Eric: True.

Sidd: Burnout 3 may have 2 or 3 decent songs out of the 42 licensed tracks in the game. It's pretty sad.

Eric: Don't get me started on Burnout 3's soundtrack...if I hear that Saharas Hotnights song one more time...someone will die.

Sidd: LOL.

Omni: Burnout 3 flamed on the soundtrack. Awful. And the announcer didn't help matters. But still it's getting big awards.

Sidd: At least you can select which songs can be played during races

Eric: Striker was the announcer. He's down here on KROQ, LA's rock station - very annoying man.

Kurt: At least you can turn that jerk off. And put your own music on there.

Sidd: Ugh, I hate Stryker. He isn't bad on Spike TV, but is annoying in Burnout 3.

Kurt: He's on television? oh no.

Eric: Just for the Halo ultimate Gamer thing.

Omni: They -- meaning the gaming elite -- say that audio is half the experience so why aren't the scores lower?

Mark: I always like the Soundtracks for Silent Hill games; SH4 had a pretty goood sound track.

Kurt: Silent Hill 4 had some great vocal songs that I don't think they used in the game.

Eric: As much of an overrated experience Fable was, the soundtrack was hands down the best of 2004.

Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas (left); Burnout 3: Takedown (right)

Omni: What was the best looking game of the year?

Eric: Chronicles of Riddick (XB)

Kurt: Metal Gear Solid 3. I mean, the framerate in the cutscenes suffers, but lord does it look amazing.

Tazman: Burnout 3... I was hypnotized by the demo at EBGames

Omni: Otogi 2 and Half-Life 2.

Tolen: On the PC, Half-Life 2. On consoles, I'm not sure...

Sidd: Doom 3.

Eric: Ahhh yes, Half-Life 2. It looks amazing, but didn't have the polish of Riddick.

Mark: I still like Far cry better than Half Life 2 for the overall organic feel of the look.

Omni: Doom 3 did look good, but I think that the physics that were incorporated into the look of Half-Life 2 makes it stand-out. Plus, I need a computer from three years in the future to play Doom 3 properly.

Kurt: I watched my roommate play Half- Life 2 in some prison level...and it didn't look too impressive to me. Although those spidery things you command looked really cool

Tolen: Well, I gave my copy of Doom 3 to a friend...no one's getting my HL2.

Eric: I don't think anyone will argue that the physics engine of Half-Life 2 was teh best thing to happen since Cup-o-Noddles

Kurt: No one CAN get your Half Life 2, yay Steam. LOL

Tolen: Good point. And Steam must be discussed...

Eric: No, not steam!

Omni: Steam -- worst thing ever!

Mark: Steam = frustration.

Kurt: I'm all for anti piracy measures and having developers getting more share of the profits, but Steam is one of the biggest loads of shite that the industry has ever conceived.

Eric: It's just another way for a large company to make more money.

Tolen: I'm torn. The idea of cutting out the middle man and getting more of the profits in the developer's hands is in line with my personal politics, but I didn't like how clunky and restraining steam was.

Mark: I remember it being about a week and a half since Half-Life 2 was released. I had to wait 2 hours to be allowed to play a game that I had bought as it was authenticated.

Omni: And it is restricting. Why should I need to get authorization for a single-player game? A MMORPG I can understand...

Eric: And the command system in-game was a bit weak

Mark: To have a developer be able to dictate how I spend my personal time with their product was not cool.

Kurt: I don't mind retailers getting money though, even if they insist on stocking their stores with $6 an hour teenagers who would rather flirt with each other than help me buy stuff. I like owning games and packaging and everything, I have no interest in download games AND paying full price for it.

Eric: Hopefully EA's global domination plan will fit into this somehow...

Tolen: Once it was authenticated the first time, it wasn't necessary to be online, so I didn't think that aspect was too annoying. Yeah, the EA NFL purchase must also be discussed. I'd like to see anyone find a positive in that deal.

Eric: At least Take-Two countered by buying the MLB license.

Tazman: We won't have to play as many bad knock-offs for Madden?

Eric: Which in part took away Sega Sports

Omni: Oh man, I wish Mr. Nash were here for this one!

Sidd: I can find a positive for EA, but for us the consumers, nothing. Yeah I am glad that Take Two isn't sitting in the corner. At least they are doing something to compete with EA after purchasing Visual Concepts.

Doom 3 (left); Chronicles of Riddick: Escape from Butcher Bay (right)

Omni: The positive is that we'll have the same NFL game for the next 6 years. No learning curve! And it'll make writing reviews a snap.

Eric: EA opened Pandoras Box. Nothing good will ever come out of monopolizing the video game industry. It's built on innovation and creativity, but now it's starting to fuel from profit and moneymaking.

Mark: Less options is always worse especially when the alternative is ONE option.

Kurt: You heard about [EA's] layoffs, right? Their profits are up, and 60 employees were given pink slips

Tolen: Of course, that's bad for gamers too (the Take Two purchase) since EA's Baseball title was getting better and better each year.

Kurt: It's pretty fun that gaming has a new heartless corporation to lambaste, we haven't had a really good one for awhile now.

Omni: I thought EA was always a heartless corporation.

Mark: I've met many an ex-employee that was might peeved at EA.

Tazman: We still like kicking Sierra

Kurt: Don't get me started on Vivendi Universal either.

Omni: Sierra is just a sad brand name now.

Lee: I really, really liked playing ESPN NFL 2k5 as part of my Xbox Live subscription...now I'll have to pay EXTRA to play online foe Madden..that's not exactly enamoring EA-the-owner-of-all-things-NFL-in-the-gaming-industry to me in the least!!!!!

Eric: In the future we will only see three or four publishers in stores. There is no more room for the Lionheads, Blizzards, or any other independent companies.

Mark: I definitely hope not.

Kurt: Lionhead is pretty much part of Microsoft Game Studios now, isn't it? Blizzard is part of Vivendi now, right?

Eric: Yeah, they are slowly being eaten up.

Omni: New topic? Best Gaming Headline of the Year?

Kurt: Guy Game Pulled From Store Shelves! Even though I still see it for sale 'round these parts

Eric: Half-Life 2 in stores now!

Omni: Yet further evidence that there is a God.

Tolen: Killzone is Sony's Halo Killer.

Tazman: [H]OCP getting sued for bashing the "Phantom" system.

Eric: LOL, that was a hilarious story.

Omni: Oh that was a good one, Taz. Best headline of the Year: "SCEA alerts public that playing the Viewtiful Joe 2 demo will erase memory cards" Why? I just love the thought of some unsuspecting gamer lose hours and hours of progress on San Andreas. Many controllers must have been smashed.

Sidd: Yeah I'd imagine.

Kurt: I keep wondering how that must have happened. There’s no reason for a demo to be accessing memory card at all, it must have been some disgruntled programmer.

Eric: Yeah, most likely

Lee: But at least Sony is ponying up a free ($20 budget title) game as a "whoops, sorry-about that!" sort of apology for all those lost hours of gameplay

Omni: I'm sure it's one of those stories that'll be looked at in book sometime in the future.

Eric: Yay, I can choose from a list of games I already have! Yipppeeee!

Omni: But does $20 make up for hours and hours of lost game time?

Lee: No, but it's better than "it's not our problem!"

Tazman: Depends upon the life of the affected person.

Kurt: Last time my memory card got fried, I lost my FFX-2 save. I didn't shed a tear.

Mark: I also like the headline that the next Nintendo will "revolutionize the gaming industry."

Omni: They cut and paste that from one of 3DO's old ads.

Tolen: An Atari Jaguar ad, I think.

Mark: Considering that it will likely be interesting but nothing earth shattering; gotta love overzealous PR.

Omni: I'm waiting for the day someone issues a release with the title "More of the Same!"

Tolen: Well, I'm sure that'll be the rallying cry of the next six or so Madden's.

Mark: I wish they would; then at least I could look forward to an excellent standard that has been set.

Tazman: I always love games that reference other games - you know it's going to be a long day.

Viewtiful Joe 2 (left); The Guy Game (right)

Omni: Best Action game?

Tazman: Are we separating Action and FPS?

Omni: Yep.

Tolen: Katamari Damacy.

Kurt: 3D? Ratchet and Clank Up Your Arsenal. 2D, Alien Hominid.

Tazman: Ok then, GTA: San Andreas.

Mark: I don't even remember what was released this year.

Eric: Resident Evil 4.

Omni: Resident Evil 4 doesn't count for 2004.

Eric: Damn!

Mark: And I haven't had a chance to play Prince of Persian: Warrior Within or Resident Evil 4.

Omni: I'd pick BloodRayne 2.

Eric: Don't get me started on Prince of Persia: Warrior Within... damn developers, ruining a good game!

Mark: Haven't tried it yet so can't comment.

Eric: They butchered the game just so they can appeal to "casual gamers."

Kurt: See, other than the crappy voice acting, I didn't think the presentation really ruined the game.

Omni: What was wrong with Warrior Within?

Tazman: The last Prince of Persia was awesome, haven't tried Warrior Within.

Kurt: I think it was more the backtracking and confusing time traveling stuff that hurt the game more.

Eric: If you liked Sands of Time, you'll dislike Warrior Within. The great music, great characters, great story - all gone for Warrior Within.

Tolen: I have Prince of Persia sitting on my desk right now. Haven't tried Warrior Within yet though.

Kurt: I would have to disagree with that. WARRIOR WITHIN is for the most part, just as good as Sands of Time. They just tried to make it badass, and...it comes off as a little desperate.

Omni: Maybe I didn't play Sands of Time enough then. I thought WARRIOR WITHIN was pretty good.

Kurt: The story in Warrior Within isn't as good either, but the gameplay is definitely just as excellent.

Mark: Does the Suffering count?

Omni: Yep.

Mark: I give it that.

Eric: Now, back on topic, best action game is Splinter Cell: Pandora Tomorrow (XB) Oh the hours I spent on Xbox Live...

Tolen: I loved Pandora Tomorrow. I've had more fun online with Halo 2, however.

Kurt: They need to split screen Spinter Cell Chaos Theory, somehow. I still dislike playing on Xbox Live.

Eric: The only times I played Pandora Tomorrow was with friends. I'm just tired of 10-year-old pimple-faced nerds telling me "U goT owNEd!!!!"

Sidd: Halo 2 was better online than Pandora Tomorrow. Yeah I have to agree though, I dislike Xbox Live setup.

Tolen: I've found Xbox Live to be excellent. I still would rather have a free alternative, but..I'm a cheapskate.

Sidd: I guess I am so used to playing online with my PS2 that I am so used to the setup of the PS2 online games.

Leisure Suit Larry: Magna Cum Laude (left); Bad Boys: Miami Takedown (right)

Omni: What was the worst game this year?

Kurt: The Guy Game!!!

Sidd: Destruction Derby Arena's was a pretty bad game.

Eric: Bad Boys: Miami Takedown.

Mark: Any of the Marine series; Marine Heavy Gunner, Marine Sharp shooter, etc.

Omni: Leisure Suit Larry: Magna Cum Laude. Not just the worst game this year -- it's so bad I'm calling it for worst game of 2005.

Sidd: Ouch.

Tazman: Hey.. just on PC.

Omni: But did you see DD's Xbox review? 2 / 10.

Eric: Quite low indeed...

Kurt: I kinda felt Leisure Suit Larry was 1/2 of a good game

Eric: Some of the jokes weren't half bad either

Tazman: I thought it wasn't a good game, but I certainly didn't think it was as God awful as you 2 thought

Omni: What about the quote of the year? My favorite was Doug Lowenstein backtracking on the matter of sequels at E3. "They ain't so bad! Honest!"

Mark: There has to be something quotable in reference to Bill Gates trying to pull off a demo at CES and getting a BSOD.

Eric: "Earth will never be the same" I don't even think that quote needs an introduction

Omni: Did you see that clip with Conan O'brien? Hilarious!

Eric: Which clip?

Mark: I haven't seen it yet.

Omni: I'll have to email the link.

Eric: Ok great. I never miss a Conan show.

Tazman: "I heard Timothy Roberts, CEO of Infinium Labs, can't have an orgasm unless he kills a dog" - Tycho, Penny Arcade.

Eric: LOL. Penny Arcade is king for good gaming quotes

Tazman: Easily. They really don't care who they piss off.

Omni: It's that whole "Freedom of Speech" thing, I guess.

Eric: Hmmm...Disappointment of the year?

Mark: That's a good one. I'd call it a tie for Doom 3 and Half Life 2 for me.

Tazman: The Nintendo DS?

Sidd: The PS2 Hard Drive.

Tazman: Maybe the N-Gage?

Eric: I think Halo 2's single-player campaign was a travesty

Tazman: First-Person Shooter of The Year?

Eric: Half-Life 2, simply unforgettable.

Mark: Far Cry.

Tazman: Unreal Tournament 2004.

Eric: I have a feeling this will be filled with PC titles.

Tolen: Yay. Half-Life 2.

Omni: Half-Life 2. Gotta be.

Eric: The last levels of Half-Life 2 are the best in gaming - period.

Tolen: I loved UT 2004 as well, but not nearly as much as Half-Life 2.

Eric: The gravity gun...my baby

Mark: Mmmm, I didn't think the level designs were that great.

Tolen: I think the first level of HL2 is the best ever.

Omni: Yeah the early levels were better. And I really like Ravenholm.

Eric: Ravenholm scared the hell out of me. Never speak of it again!

Mark: Gravity gun was awesome though.

Tolen: GG plus saw blades = gaming nirvana.

Omni: Gravity Gun is the best weapon of the year.

Mark: I would vote for that.

Eric: Haha, early gravity gun or last level gravity gun?

Mark: Either one kicks the crap out of anything else for innovation and fun

Eric: Oh yeah.

Omni: News item of the Year -- all the recent studio closures. I was just thinking of Acclaim. Just before they bit it, they had some decent games in the pipe.

Eric: I loved their All-Star Baseball series - it will be missed

Tolen: Yeah, but they deserved to die because of all the bad licensed games during the 80,s (Acclaim).

Omni: Incidentally, you gotta check out some of the stuff they had on auction. http://maltzauctions.com/acclaimhome.htm

Eric: Did they really need all of that high-quality stuff?

Tolen: Omni, how do you find out about stuff like that?

Omni: I'm a voracious reader, mostly. If the Armchair Empire were just a little bigger, I would have bid on Acclaim's building.

Tolen: Just a little.

Omni: By "just a little" I mean grossing $30 million in revenues yearly. At the current rate, AE would hit that point sometime in the next millennium.

Eric: I call dibs on the fax machine!

Tazman: I need the stand-up machines

Tolen: Dude, my Fax machine was so in the Acclaim offices.

Eric: Next topic?

Sidd: Biggest surprise of the year?

Omni: Biggest surprise was Alien Hominid. That title seems to be coming up a lot lately.

Eric: Katamari Damacy.

Tolen: Nintendo, despite the handheld success is becoming less and less relevant.

Omni: Tolen, how are they becoming less relevant?

Tolen: I'm just thinking on the console front that no matter how great or hyped their titles are (Metroid, Resident Evil), they fall further behind Sony and Microsoft in sales.

Tazman: In North America.

Tolen: Yeah. I've know Resident Evil sold boatloads in Japan, but Nintendo still needs to worry about the U.S. and Europe as more and more of the big hits are coming from the West.

Omni: It strikes me that the GameCube is becoming more and more like an artistic, off-Broadway console -- lots of artistic stuff with a rabid following of slowly decreasing numbers.

Eric: GameCube has been that for the past couple years now

Omni: I think if the GameCube launched with the mature Zelda game in development now it would be a different story.

Tolen: I've only hooked mine up lately to play review games. If I can, I get the multi-console titles for the PS2 or Xbox.

Omni: I'm almost the opposite. If a multiplatform title comes out, I'll grab the GC version -- mostly because I like my Wavebird.

Eric: What about the controller? I think the layout is a bit overdone.

Omni: Then you have games like Resident Evil 4, which is keeping me glued to my chair! Course, that's really an exception, I suppose. (In terms of Mature games.)

Eric: For feasibility reasons, I take my Xbox controller anyday.

Tolen: I really miss the online play...not that I play that much. And the controller is awful for sports games. Yeah, I'm waiting to get time to play Resident Evil 4. My brother says it is only slightly below Half-Life 2 as his favorite recent title.

Eric: I saw a friend of mine beat it yesterday. Besides the voice actor for Leon, everything is spot-on perfect

Tolen: Is the Leon actor too good or something.

Eric: Think Keanu Reeves...acting poorly.

Tazman: That's like staring into the sun.

Tolen: If you try to think of Keanu Reeves acting well you can start a fire with your mind.

Resident Evil 4 (left); Metroid Prime 2: Echoes (right)

Omni: Which console has the best exclusive titles? Currently or in the last year.

Tazman: Sony. Most of the exclusive games come out for them.

Tolen: PS2 has the best overall, though Xbox has some heavy hitters.

Omni: Maybe I like my Wavebird too much or the fact Nintendo pays me to say this, but I think GameCube has the best exclusive titles.

Eric: I think that dump truck of money has something to do with this

Tazman: After MonkeyBall, Zelda, and Metroid what else do they have?

Eric: Xbox has the best exclusives in my opinion

Tolen: Really, with Metroid and Zelda and RE and the Mario titles, I can't argue with that. If I liked the 3D Metroid titles I might agree with you.

Tazman: Sony baby! Woooo!

Omni: Well, at least I know which company is paying Tazman's rent!

Tazman: It's ADV not Sony

Omni: Tolen, didn't like the Metroid Prime 1 or 2?

Tolen: Liked Prime 1 okay. Couldn't get into 2. I'm going to keep it and give it a try later though.

Eric: Come on, Xbox has Halo and.... uhhh... Xbox has halo!

Sidd: Don't forget Halo.

Eric: Ahhh, yes... Halo.

Tazman: You forgot the Final Fantasy games and Xenosaga.

Omni: At one point, by my calculations, there were more copies of Halo sold than Xboxes.

Tolen: Halo, +...Dead or Alive -

Omni: DOA as a series, including Xtreme Beach Volleyball, has always been a great graphical series.

Tolen: But the gameplay...blech.

Omni: Like the old ads said, "She kicks high."

Eric: I don't think anyone bought DOA Volleyball with the expectation of great gameplay and story. I think they had other things on their mind

Omni: But you still needed two hands to play it.

Kurt: You can play it with one

Eric: Well, one hand rested elsewhere...

Omni: Too much information, man!

Kurt: Did we talk about Rumble Roses yet? cuz that's even dirtier. Some amazing plotlines in there though

Jade Empire (left); TimeSplitters 3: Future Perfect (right)

Omni: I think this can be the last topic: What does everyone have their eyes on in 2005?

Kurt: New Castlevanias.

Tolen: Gran Turismo 4.

Tazman: Tekken 5 and Xenosaga 2 (which I really want).

Eric: Jade Empire.

Tolen: Tekken 5.

Sidd: Brothers in Arms, First to Fight, Time Splitters 3.

Tazman: Castlevania? Really?

Kurt: I run a Castlevania site, so....

Tolen: Yeah, Time Splitters 3 is high on my list.

Omni: The new Zelda game and a Half-Life 2 expansion. I'm officially starting that rumor right now.

Sidd: Maybe SOCOM 3 if all the rumors are true.

Eric: Time Splitters 3 better have awesome multiplayer like the last game. So much fun there.

Tolen: And now...online.

Tazman: Time Splitters 2 had heart, I'll look forward to 3.

Sidd: Yeah I know, I can't wait for Timesplitters 3.

Tolen: We played the heck out of TS2 multiplayer last semester.

Omni: TimeSplitters 3? That's it? That comes out in a couple of months, what'll you do after that?

Tazman: And the 2 games I want come out next month.

Sidd: After that brothers in arms will keep me occupied.

Eric: Gran Turismo 4, Jade Empire, ESPN Baseball, then comes the PS3 material.

Omni: I was hoping we'd get through without anyone mentioning PS3 or anything next-gen.

Tolen: I better start saving now.

Omni: I suppose they'll show tech demos at E3 this year, but aren't we looking at 2006 for that stuff to actually hit the shelves?

Eric: They say it'll be playable at E3 and is set to launch at the end of this year

Omni: I think they said the same thing about the PSP last year.

And with that, the Roundtable pretty much came to an end, although some of the hangers on gabbed for a bit about E3 2005. One of the writers, who shall remain nameless to protect the innocent, really scored with the quotable line of the evening.

"I drank 6 red-bulls and vodkas and ended up going back with one of the [PR] girls."

(February 3, 2005)