Okay, so a few weeks back we recorded this podcast (episode 10) and well… I’d like to have a big dramatic story as to why it’s taken this long to edit and post, but I don’t. So anyway I can only apologize for my laziness and say “here, enjoy!”

This episode features the usual bunch, with Andy “Milo molester” Corrigan, Joe “can I just tell one joke?” Staley, and Trent “Records on a Dictaphone” Pyro being lead by myself Andrew “Can’t stop swearing” Knight, as we waffle our way through some not so latest gaming news. Still there is plenty to be enjoyed as we discuss…

• Valentines Day losers
• Games we’ve played
• We rant about aspects of gaming that annoy us
• Try and come up with some news to discuss
• How to abuse a virtual child (only joking, Feds)
• We also have usual features Gamer’s Dic, and Getting To Know You

Music featured at the end of the show is called “NueroFunk Experiment” by DJ Bjra and can be found here.

The episode should be appearing on iTunes shortly as soon as the RSS feeds refresh, or you can stream it or download it below. iTunes users, please drop us a review and help spread the word of the site. If you have any questions or talking points please feel free to email us on podcast@thisismyjoystick.com.

 

 This Is My Joystick! Episode 10 [83:55m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

When I first started gaming I played lots of different games, some of them on my own and a few with some mates. It dawned on me the other day that I have been playing more co-op games of late and not because I’m afraid of gaming on my own, but more because I find it a much better experience when you’re sat with your partner/friend in the same room or across the internet working together.

Multiplayer gaming is what people look to more often than not these days, but for me, I like to take into consideration games that my partner (Kirsty) can play with me. The amount of co-op games is on the rise, some good and some bad, but the shift is obvious; co-op is the new single player!

So, what’s the attraction of co-op gaming? For me it’s because I can hold a conversation with Kirsty that doesn’t involve any over- explanation because she doesn’t have a clue what I’m on about. Co-op is also something that we can do together and work as a team which beats playing with yourself (no pun intended… well maybe a little). You can discuss tactics and have a laugh, and you can also explore the story together. The main problem when it comes to co-op gaming is finding a decent game to play, so I have decided to do you a list with my recommendations in no particular order.

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Quantic Dream earned an instant fan in me with the release of Fahrenheit back in 2005. It wasn’t your usual video game affair. Playing almost as if an evolution of the classic point and click genre, using context based analogue stick movements for logical actions in the game, this supernatural thriller followed the story of unwilling murderer Lucas Kane, and the two cops tasked with tracking him down. This story heavy experience was absolutely captivating, at least until the final third when the story unexpectedly disappeared right up its own backside. As someone who loves a good story with his interactive entertainment, I could see that this new control scheme definitely had potential, only it would take nearly five years for Quantic Dream to return with their much-hyped ‘whodunit’, Heavy Rain. This game has seemingly become a title that Sony is banking a great deal on for 2010 considering the financial clout that they’ve backed it with, and for a game that could hold limited mass market appeal, that decision could seem to be a bit of a gamble. So how has it turned out? Well, it’s quite hard to say.

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I’m back once again, providing you with the latest news digest of the gaming world every week. This spread will cover all the major formats; Xbox 360, Playstation 3, Nintendo Wii, DS, PSP, iPhone, PC and more. We explore the big news, the major announcements and even some that sneak under the radar. So sit back, enjoy and prepare to fill your head with the biggest stories of the week.

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One of the biggest surprises when me and Neil attended last years prestigious Golden Joystick awards was bumping into and chatting to comedian, writer, and all round nice guy Danny Wallace. Both being huge fans of his work it was a pleasure getting to spend some time with the man in question on the night, and while it’s been a long time coming, we finally got our interview with the writer of Yes Man. Who has more recently, and more importantly to gamers, had a starring role in Ubisoft’s Assassins Creed 2.

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There is a lot of money to be had in gaming donchya know? While there are occasions when critically acclaimed games from smaller studios get the commercial success they deserve, nothing will ship copies like a finely tuned morally bankrupt marketing department. Hype is an integral part of a game’s success and publishers are continuously dreaming up more innovative ways to convince us their game is worth shelling out for. The only reason that every generic movie tie-in, copy and paste sports sim or uninspiring FPS is able to get past the design stage is because advertising departments are getting frighteningly good at convincing people that their lives would be a slightly gloomier place without their product sitting proudly in their bedroom. It’s pretty obvious that the larger companies are stretching the boundaries of acceptable marketing more and more, but just what does it take to get the hype machine rolling, and how far are they willing to go?

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Gamers have been living the dream in 2010 thanks to a flurry of fantastic games released in the first two months already, although this is a nice problem to have, it’s our wallets that have taken somewhat of a hammering.

As usual our motto is simply “Make sure you never pay £39.99 for a game ever again” so I have been scouring the interweb for gaming bargains so you don’t have to, and once again there are more than a few tempting offers out there for all console owners and thrifty gamers.

Enough of my ramblings, it’s time for my weekly roundup of the best gaming bargains, so let’s get started.

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I’m back once again, providing you with the latest news digest of the gaming world every week. This spread will cover all the major formats; Xbox 360, Playstation 3, Nintendo Wii, DS, PSP, iPhone, PC and more. We explore the big news, the major announcements and even some that sneak under the radar. So sit back, enjoy and prepare to fill your head with the biggest stories of the week.

Read the rest of this entry »

When attempting to create a sequel to one of gaming’s great masterpieces there is surely a great sense of trepidation amidst those set out with the treacherous task. The very announcement of a sequel to Bioshock scared me. Petrified me, in fact. Bioshock stands alone very well and is not only one of my all-time favourite gaming experiences, but ranks fairly consistently as one of the best video games of all time. Bioshock was a very complete, well thought out and detailed story and is a franchise that certainly doesn’t need whoring out and milking dry. It has a compelling narrative with shocking twists and turns, stunning visuals, powerful sound effects and clever gameplay mechanics that hook you until the very end. Certainly, Rapture is a very full and realised World with plenty of opportunities for stories, but that doesn’t necessarily mean that they have to be created as that can ultimately result in being a detriment to a franchise, rather than a benefit.

That being said, I decided to take a second dive into the World of Rapture to make a fair assessment, one way or another.

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Back in 1994, Rebellion released their third game; Alien vs. Predator. It would prove to be one of their most fondly remembered titles. How could it fail? Two of the coolest, most violent, extra-terrestrial movie franchises brought together with tantalising execution. With the license for this glorious union having changed hands with varying degrees of success since, I don’t think anyone could have foreseen that sixteen years and two awful movies later, Rebellion would return to the series once more. The new game (which has gained an ‘s’ to its name since the original) has been receiving a lot of positive attention right up until its release, including getting a favourable hands-on from us at the Eurogamer Expo. A bit of a lacklustre online demo dented many people’s hopes, but how does the final product fare?

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