5. Resident Evil 5

This one should probably rank a little higher, except for the fact that it hasn’t been released yet. But still, the idea of a co-op Resident Evil game is enough to justify a spot on this list, even though we have yet to play it. It won’t be long though, and once March 13 finally hits we’ll all be able to spend some quality shooting zombies with our friends.

4. Guitar Hero: World Tour/Rock Band 2

Music games are always a good bet, and they have the added benefit of being able to be played by up to four players at a time. The only real problem is deciding between Guitar Hero and Rock Band. My opinion: Guitar Hero has much better instruments, while Rock Band has a larger and better selection of songs.

3. Bionic Commando: Rearmed

Old school games like Bionic Commando are tough as nails, so it’s always a good thing to have a buddy along for the ride. In the PSN remake Rearmed, this is an option, as players can choose to go through the entire game playing cooperatively with a buddy. But things aren’t all easier, as the enemies and bosses are adjusted when you bring another player along.

2. Warhawk

This over the top, multiplayer shooter is great, especially if you’re willing to put the time in to learn it properly. The level design is incredible, and there all sorts of cool weapons and vehicles to play around with. The only downside is that the game has garnered somewhat of a dedicated following, so playing with people you don’t know will almost definitely result in some frustrating times.

1. LittleBigPlanet

It may just be a simple platformer, but LBP is an absolute blast to play with friends. Players can either help out one another, or mess around creating all kinds of chaos. There are even a number of levels that have areas that can only be accessed by two or more players, creating even more incentive to bring along a pal.

Post from: EveryJoe

The Top 5 Multiplayer Games On PS3

It’s a slow news day today, but hey, look on the bright side. That’s more time to play games! And with all of the great games flooding store shelves lately, time is something we can all use.

• Capcom will be getting their very own digital storefront on the PlayStation Store, where you can pick up the likes of Bionic Commando: Rearmed, 1942: Joint Strike, and the upcoming Super Street Fighter II Turbo HD Remix
• Speaking of Street Fighter, rumors are swirling that Street Fighter IV will have a total of 26 playable characters. Weird, considering that thegame was supposed to bring the series back to its roots.
• If you were looking forward to the upcoming Sonic Unleashed you may be disappointed to here that the PS3 version is being pushed back until December. But hey, if means we actually get a good Sonic game, I’ll be happy.
• Sure the PSp and the PS3 have lots of cool cross-functionality, but who really knows about it? Apparently, not enough people as Sony has expressed a desire to better promote the interconnectivity between the two.

Post from: EveryJoe

Today in PlayStation: November 11, 2008

I love Yahtzee and his wild-talking ways, but once in a very rare while I come away from an episode of Zero Punctuation feeling like he missed the point entirely. Such is the sad case with the latest episode, which looks at Bionic Commando Rearmed and the reason we love retro gameplay so much.

Hint: we’re all a bunch of (wo)man-children who are disenchanted with life and desire the things we loved before we went from smelling like innocence and flowers to baboons in rut.

Yahtzee’s partially right, but he’s also very wrong.

This era of retro love is a tricky thing to analyse. We can apply a lot of psychology to it; it’s true that some gamers are annoyingly stuck on the games of their youth. Worse, some game reviewers are as well, which means every time Nintendo comes out with something as brilliantly fun as Super Mario Galaxy, I have to brace myself for a barrage of, “It’s not as good as Super Mario Bros Threeeee.”

Of course it’s not. Super Mario Bros 3 was a one-time experience, and I’d like to keep it that way (although if I choose to give Nintendo my shiny rocks in exchange for yet another remake of the game, that’s my business). Super Mario Bros 3 remains one of gaming’s highest achievements, but I haven’t forgotten that I used to play it on carefree summer days, when there was nothing ahead or behind me except more time to waste.

But notice what I said there: Super Mario Bros 3 remains one of gaming’s greatest achievements. I played the original on the Virtual Console just the other week and still found secrets and hidden passages I’ve never known about all these years. It’s a perfectly balanced game. There’s very little criticism I can level against it.

I have gone back to games I thought I loved and said “Ew” after replaying them. Still, not every game was a mindless session of button-mashing designed to raise blood pressure, no more than every game today is about war and guns (yes, retconning my previous post, here).

I never played much of the original Bionic Commando, at least not until my husband showed me how it was done. I tried it out, and I’m not ashamed to say that I sucked lemons. But I felt compelled to try again, because the arm mechanics were neat. They’re still neat.

True, they can be more intuitive, something that didn’t carry over so well into Bionic Commando Rearmed. Regardless, I got the hang (huh huh) of everything with some practise. Bionic Commando Rearmed is far more forgiving than its sire, especially when Easy Mode is turned on.

Hearing Yahtzee complain about the lack of a jump button in Bionic Commando is saddening. It’s such a basic, easy complaint, the kind of thing that’s scrawled in half-leet on forums by 13-year-old trolls. Yeah, using the grappling hook to get over knee-high objects is “doing things in a roundabout way,” but…that’s also the point of the game.

It was a unique mechanic back in the platform-saturated NES years, and it’s still a fun way to add challenge in a 2D game. You’re challenged to think beyond springing over obstacles. I find little wrong with that. But then again, I’m Canadian and was born with my umbilical cord around my neck. If the second circumstance didn’t damage my brain, the first one likely did.

Post from: EveryJoe

Yahtzee Loves Hitler, Doesn’t Like Bionic Commando Rearmed

Hey, Bill. Look at Capcom’s sleeve. Look closer. That’s it…lean in…

*Kathunk!* You just fell for the ol’ Bionic-Arm-Up-The-Nose trick! Ha ha ha!…Pretty good, eh Bill?

Bill? Bill…?

Uh oh. Can someone call an ambulance?

In all seriousness, producer Ben Judd promises that more is in store for Bionic Commando. It’s a curious promise because it’s peppered with swears.

From Kotaku:

“We still have a f**king ace up our sleeve. It’s an ace, a f**king ace… At TGS (Tokyo Game Show), the Capcom booth stage is going to make people’s b*lls pucker up. It’s going to be big.”

Well! He’s certainly happy about this. So what is it? We don’t know at this point, but the good news is that Bionic Commando Rearmed is racking up some great numbers. No one can resist the retro-charged pull of Rad Spencer.

Ha! Pull!

(Image copyright Capcom and Grin)

Post from: EveryJoe

Capcom Still Has An “Ace Up Its Sleeve” For Bionic Commando

Wondering what the game’s atmosphere is going to be like? Thinking Bionic Commando Rearmed is going to usher yet another re-invention of a retro franchise for a more “grown-up” crowd?

This trailer should put things in perspective.

American kids need to be encouraged to sing about heroes more.

Post from: EveryJoe

Sing Along With Bionic Commando Rearmed

I’m suffering from a DCOP communications error that I can’t make hide nor hair of. All I know is that it’s forbidding me to save content to the hard drive. Ergo, you’ll have to do without pretty pictures until I resolve this. Tell your eyeballs I’m very sorry.

Buck up, though. It looks like Capcom has revealed information about exclusive PSN content for Bionic Commando Rearmed.

Dualshock 3 support is a given, but there’s also a mysterious something called “Remote Play” and an even mysterious-er something that producer Ben Judd is keeping under his hat.

…Or maybe under his Hard Hat.

The Playstation Blog has some great new info up and offers you the chance to harass Judd with questions. He has already promised to keep swinger jokes at a minimum, so please respect his restraint by doing the same.

(…So if Radd wanted to trade wives with Super Joe, would that make him a Super-Swinger or a Swinger DX or…damn it, just give me some pleasure, I’m working on a busted computer.)

Post from: EveryJoe

Exclusive PSN Content for Bionic Commando Rearmed