Recently played:
Fallout 3
This one starts in a very peculiar way, and it took quite a while to get myself established so I didn't fear common raiders. I think that was due in part to how I set up my character early on, anticipating how I
thought I might play the game based on how I played
Oblivion. Needless to say, that didn't happen. Lots of nice moments, surprises, locations, etc. My only complaint is that the main quest really only takes you through a tiny selection of the map. If you want to see most of downtown D.C., you've gotta get off the beaten path. Not that it was ever my intention otherwise, but you know...
The only other thing I'll say is about the economy in the game. I have a love-hate relationship with it. On the one hand, I like the fact that it feels like a dystopic, fragile economy where you constantly have to keep merchant capital up, but on the other, it makes it bloody difficult on the front end of the game to make any cash. I do, however, like that I can take a companion with me and use him as my traveling packhorse for all the swag I pick up to sell off.
Left 4 Dead
Awesome game, love playing it with my friends. I also like how certain elements of the game are variable, so that you never get the same experience twice in a row. That said, however, I'm not sure it retains the replay value as much as it wants to. That's not to say that I'm getting bored with the game; running through those campaigns are just loads of fun as it is. But anymore, I find myself almost craving a nonstop horde. The "defense" bits are the best in the game, bar none. Actually, strike that: becoming a Hunter and pouncing a helpless survivor whose friends have all but left him to die is, I think, the best in the game.
Mass Effect
I beat this ages ago, but Bioware added some extra playable content last summer, and I just got around to playing through it. Those guys are magicians, and the add-on did nothing more than make me crave more new
Mass Effect. Thanks, guys.
Dead Space
Downloaded the "Dismemberment" demo, played it for two minutes, and turned it off. I love survival horror, and given the right amount of time spent, I'd probably love this game too. It's got all the makings of a favorite. The demo just made a terrible impression. It ought to ease you into the gameplay instead of going for the suspense and throwing you smack into combat. I found myself hobbling around a strange room with an empty gun and two Thing-looking motherfathers chasing me, with no idea where to find ammo, what it looks like, or why the room sounds like it's about to explode. Give me a shotgun, game!