61 Frames Per Second

Browse by Tags

• Breaking Out of Your Gaming Comfort Zone

  Longtime readers of 61FPS should be aware of my love-hate relationship with Japanese RPGs; for as much as I hate the genre's crippling flaws, I find myself crawling back to them time and time again, because they've sort of become a "comfort food" for me. As much as I hate being strangled by the slimy tentacles of nostalgia, I have to admit that my continuing fascination with all things JRPG has to do with the fact that I was practically raised on the things--though, to give myself some credit, I can at least say that I've managed to avoid quite a few of this generations biggest disappointments, like Star Ocean: The Last Hope. This does not explain why I played through all of Blue Dragon, though. Since becoming a member of the enthusiast press, I've been trying to break away from my old tendencies to try new and otherwise scary experiences. It's safe to say that I'm most comfortable with organized, linear, Japanese game design; as a former Nintendo and Playstation (once the JRPG Mecca) fanboy, this was once the only world I ever knew. And to this day, the non-linearity of open-world games is still a bit anxiety-inducing to me. So I thought, "What better way to break me out of this rut than by playing a free-roaming game where just about everything wants to murder you?" And this is where Fallout 3 came in. Read More... Posted Mar 31 2009, 12:00 PM by Bob Mackey with | with no comments Filed under: fallout 3, bob mackey, gaming habits, blue dragon, jrpgs, rpgs

• Your Kingdom Hearts Cosplay is Not Helping Your Cause

  Every single time I get into a conversation with friends and work peers about the never-ending debate over videogame censorship in the United States, I have to stand back and remember how much worse it is for gamers elsewhere. Sure, we have ill-informed nobodies like Kevin McCullough gaining national attention with their rants over Bioware’s corrupting lasciviousness, but that’s nothing compared to the strict ratings policies that plague our gaming brethren in places like Germany and Australia. It may be a crap game, but at least Manhunt 2 can actually get released in this country. Speaking of Australia, the strongest rating for videogames allowed by Australia’s Office of Film and Literature is “M” which, unlike the equivalent ESRB rating in America, defines games as appropriate for players age 15 and up. To clarify, this means that no game deemed inappropriate for a fifteen year-old can be released for a major console. Mighty young, don’t you think? It’s that definition that keeps games like Fallout 3 and Grand Theft Auto IV from releasing in Australia uncensored. Aussie retail chain Gametraders and their faithful community have had enough with their lack of access to all the gaming wares the world has to offer and organized a protest in favor of the R18+ rating. South Australian Attorney General Michael Atkinson is the literal last-man-standing in keeping Australia from an R18+ classification for games, and Gametraders are hosting their protest on the steps of the Adelaide Parliament House to sway his opinion. They are, however, not putting the best face on the gaming community by using cosplay to express their *ahem* adult passion for the medium. Read More... Posted Feb 20 2009, 09:00 PM by John Constantine with | with no comments Filed under: john constantine, grand theft auto iv, final fantasy, fallout 3, kingdom hearts, Vincent valentine, pokeball, riku, sora

• Games I Probably Should Have Played in 2008

  Since we've reached the point in January where last-year retrospectives have become completely lazy and tiresome, I figured I'd squeeze at least one more out because, hey, I've still got some 2008 baggage left. It was a super-busy year for me, full of new assignments, responsibilities, and that maelstrom of neverending crap known to most of you as "fall."  Since my free time was so limited, I had to make some serious decisions about what to play; and some choices, like spending over 60 hours on Grand Theft Auto IV, were clearly wrong. This poor planning left many games I wanted to play untouched and unloved in a GameFly distribution center as they sat in their paper sleeves and desperately waited for me to add them to my queue. Why must inanimate objects make me feel so guilty? Maybe you can tell me if I made the right decisions by looking at--and judging me by--the games I had no time to play. It's the only way I'll learn. Read More... Posted Jan 15 2009, 04:30 PM by Bob Mackey with | with 1 comment(s) Filed under: fallout 3, tales of vesperia, bob mackey, mirror’s edge, persona 4, 2008, tomb raider underworld

• Facepalm: Crispy Gamer

  Crispy Gamer's Scott Jones didn't really like Fallout 3. I tried very hard to convince myself that I was having fun, that I was intrigued, that I was moved in some profound way. I wasn't.  So how did he rate it? Weak fool that I am, I voted for Fallout 3 as GotY, wondering as I did so whether or not I'd be able to look myself in the mirror the next morning. Make no mistake: Fallout 3 is a remarkable game. Yet the question is, do I crown it with laurels and start up the "Chariots of Fire" theme simply because I admire it? Or, do I vote for what might be perceived as a less ambitious game; a game that, regardless of its limitations, sucked me in, and held my attention for weeks on end, at the risk of tarnishing my reputation? The latter, you spineless hack. That's what criticism is. Everyone knows Fallout is a revered series and everyone knows that Bethesda is one of the most acclaimed studios. Your job as a critic is to cut through the marketing morass and tell readers whether or not the game is fun. That's it. Read More... Posted Jan 13 2009, 04:00 PM by Cole Stryker with | with 3 comment(s) Filed under: fallout 3, cole stryker, journalism, reviews, crispy gamer

• Whatcha Playing: Persona, Fallout, and the Trans-Pacific RPG Ideal

  Somewhere, probably not too far from Hawaii, the perfect role-playing game is waiting to be discovered. A volatile, volcanic outcropping boiling over with an expert blend of relatable, colorful characters, deep, directed narrative, and open, exploration-rich adventuring, alongside intimidatingly deep avatar customization. Its game world is both fantastic and hyper-real, vast yet structured enough to inexplicitly guide the player along scaling challenges. Alright, I’m kidding. I know this game isn’t real. Of course it isn’t. But after the past couple of weeks, I sincerely wish it was. Read More... Posted Jan 05 2009, 07:00 PM by John Constantine with | with 3 comment(s) Filed under: john constantine, whatcha playing, star wars, fallout 3, bioware, peter molyneux, mass effect, fable, jrpg, quest for glory ii, persona 4, wrpg, knights of the old republic, fable ii, quest for glory III

• Joe’s Top Ten Games of 2008 – Part Two

  The official mandate has come down from the top—that it is December, and we all write about games, so we all have to pick some arbitrary number of them that we enjoyed above all others this year. I am taking on this task in the way of our forefathers, using their traditional number (10) and order (from great to most greatest). Games were chosen for this list using a highly scientific list of criteria, including but not limited to dopamine levels, blood alcohol content, dice rolls, and the likelihood that the game contains secret spreadsheets full of crime. Today is #7-#5.   7. Mirror’s Edge Mirror’s Edge isn’t perfect by any stretch of the imagination, but in terms of adding to the language of the medium it’s probably the most important of the year. Prior to Mirror’s Edge, first-person platforming pretty much didn’t work (Jumping Flash aside); now it does, and it does in a gripping way that ensures it will be badly copied by many first-person shooters to come. But the way the platforming was handled also, perhaps more than any other game ever, made the player feel like they were truly inhabiting the body of the protagonist. Mirror’s Edge has a moment, and only one, where the camera leaves the point of view of Faith. It’s the most powerful gaming moment of 2008. Read More... Posted Dec 12 2008, 01:00 PM by Joe Keiser with | with 1 comment(s) Filed under: shin megami tensei, mirror's edge, fallout 3, fallout, persona 3, joe keiser, top 10, top 10 of 2008

• Too Soon? No Nukes for Japanese Fallout 3

  In a move that's somehow less surprising than Fallout 3 actually coming out in Japan, some sensitive content has been removed from Bethesda's FPS/RPG hybrid for the sake of our Eastern friends. Kotaku reports: Developer Bethesda has made changes to the Japanese Fallout 3. The side-quest The Power of the Atom has been changed. Non-playable-character Mr. Burke has been taken out of this side-quest, removing the option of detonating the nuclear bomb. That's not all, the name of a weapon was changed as it was deemed "inappropriate" for Japan. Smart money says the weapon is mini-nuke launcher "Fat Man" for obvious reasons. The online reaction from the Japanese users seems to be largely disappointment to these edits. Fallout 3 goes on sale in Japan this December. It's easy to get up in arms about censorship, but there's some significant historical baggage that's a good justification for this cut content. While it's a bit odd that the very premise of the game--a nuclear war-torn future--would fly in light of certain events in Japanese history, people generally find it easier to get hung up on the more specific, immediate things.  The overall reduction of violence in the Japanese version of Fallout 3 (mentioned in this news story) also makes me believe that Japan's days as a haven for fucked-up media have long since passed.  There was once a time, in a decade not long before our own, when you could stumble into a dorm room, see something completely wicked on TV, and ask your marijuana-addled peer "What the hell are you watching?" One answer would suffice: "It's from Japan." Read More... Posted Nov 12 2008, 08:30 PM by Bob Mackey with | with 1 comment(s) Filed under: xbox 360, fallout 3, japan, bethesda, censorship, bob mackey, nuclear war

• Editors, Where Are Your Manners?

  Not long ago, I ruffled my feathers over the Internet's collective, though inevitable, lack of manners. Just yesterday, I posted some rambling thing about how the ESRB is largely irrelevant, mostly through no fault of its own. Today, I'm combining the two subjects! You lucky people! I'm a bit late to the fury party, but it seems that GameTrailers is upset at the ESRB because the organisation made them yank an exclusive Fallout 3 trailer. The ESRB, which does have a say in game advertisements for television, deemed the trailer too violent and ordered it taken down. (Of course, you can see it on YouTube thanks to special Internet magic.) Some people, myself included, think the ESRB has overstepped its boundaries. The trailer was meant for GameTrailers, not television. GameTrailers has every reason to be upset, and they don't even have to be wholly polite about their displeasure. But it would have been really boss if GameTrailers' editors had consulted someone aside from their thirteen-year-old nephews for their angry words. Read More... Posted Nov 12 2008, 06:02 PM by Nadia Oxford with | with 2 comment(s) Filed under: halo 3, fallout 3, censorship, controversy, nadia oxford, game violence, esrb

• The Contrarion: Games Critics Awards are a Pointless Waste of Time

  Each year, journalists form 36 media outlets aggregate their views on E3's best games -- "games that will shape the future of interactive entertainment". What a stupid, worthless accolade. The journalists are basically judging on trailers and brief "hands-on" time. Why would any self-respecting journalist bother participating in such a masturbatory contest? Cripe, Kotaku managed to squeeze five posts out of it. Spore has secured a place for the last three years. Past winners include classics like Def Jam: Fight for New York, Majestic, Oni, Um Jammer Lammy, and Sentinel Returns. Real paradigm shifters, those. Shaping the future of online entertainment. The full breakdown....AFTER THE JUMP!!!1 Read More... Posted Aug 06 2008, 12:00 PM by Cole Stryker with | with 4 comment(s) Filed under: kotaku, fallout 3, cole stryker, spore, game critics awards, stupid

• Just How Far Behind Is Australia?

  To say that PAL regions like Australia receive their games later than the rest of the world is a passé understatement. Now, from the land down under, comes this roundtable discussion on violent games being banned due to the lack of a video game rating system: Read More... Posted Aug 04 2008, 03:30 PM by Derrick Sanskrit with | with 1 comment(s) Filed under: derrick sanskrit, yahtzee, fallout 3, grand theft auto, porn, australia, ratings, censorship

• Screen Test: Fallout 3

  When the Ink Spots' "Maybe" was used as the opening theme to Fallout, players knew they in for something interesting (Pro Tip: They had originally wanted to use "I Don't Want to Set the World on Fire", but couldn't due to copyright issues). There are lots of things to like about Fallout, but my personal go-to accolade is its sense of place. From the moment we load the game, Fallout's post-apocalyptic world greets us a totally unexpected soundtrack, insane characters, all leadened with a peculiar deadness. Sure, there were post-apocalypic touchstones before, but Fallout stood (and stands) above the rest due to its retro-futurist aesthetic and gallows humor. Those who think Bioshock did it first better recognize. More after the jump. Read More... Posted Jun 26 2008, 12:00 PM by Cole Stryker with | with 1 comment(s) Filed under: screen test, fallout 3, cole stryker, bethesda, oblivion

• Whatcha Playing: Another Slice of Cake

  Having never been much of a PC or Mac gamer, I’ve come into Valve’s games far later than most. I experienced the original Half-Life second hand through my college roommate and only played through it myself last summer, on the PS2 of all things, in anticipation of the Orange Box’s fall release on consoles. When I finally did play through Half-Life 2 and its subsequent episodes, I was more than impressed. Valve’s reputation as peerless storytellers is more than deserved and despite being four years-old at this point, Half-Life 2 remains a high-water mark for game making free of the language and tools of film narrative. Writer Eric Wolpaw’s most impressive work in the Orange Box, however, is the widely lauded Portal, a perfect mix of Half-Life’s menace with the humor of his work on Psychonauts. Up until last Sunday, I’d been waiting for a chance to race through Portal a second time for months. This wasn’t possible since my copy of the Orange Box had ended up in Korea. Damn roommates. Portal is a strange experience when you return to it. Read More... Posted May 16 2008, 10:00 AM by John Constantine with | with no comments Filed under: john constantine, whatcha playing, valve, portal, PC, fallout 3, orange box, half-life, mac, still alive