Time to Start Over

Hello faithful readers.  I know the wait has been long, but worry not, Super Dope Gaming is back.  Holidays have a way to crush ambition and leave you feeling more alone than ever.  Video games on the other hand always give you something to strive for.  A goal.  So thank you, video games, for giving all of us gamers an alternative to the soul-devouring holidays.  On a brighter note, we now have a whole new year to look forward to, with many hopefully fantastic games on the horizon.  Nintendo may have another great year ahead it, what with the 3DS likely to come out sooner or later, and the next iteration of the Zelda series, Skyward Sword, set to hit shelves.  Of course, Sony has the next Uncharted, which looks fantastic, and Little Big Planet 2 which has a score of 93 on Metacritic.  That's already impressive.  Then, for Microsoft, Kinect should really be taken advantage of this year and we should see some really exciting ideas for how to implement the peripheral.  Outside of the hack videos, that is.

So you see, the new year comes with much promise for you gamers out there.  We should all be excited about the future.  I know I am, but I'm in love with video games.  What with all the new gadgets and games that make my heart race.  Oh, so dreamy.  If only I was a millionaire, I would pay off my school loans and then blow the rest on more games than I could ever hope to play.  Maybe something's wrong with me, but I like it.  The point being that if you were, for some reason, disappointed with 2010, then look forward to 2011.  It's a wondrous time for gaming, so ignore all those troubles out there in the real world.  No one wants to hear about such downers.  Forget about all your strife and grief over lost relationships, going broke, or losing your house, it's time to appreciate what you do have instead of everything you don't.  Did you lose some (most) of your money in Las Vegas last month?  Play some Resident Evil to make it seem like you're striking back at the soulless husks of casinos.  Girlfriend or boyfriend dump you? Play some Pokemon to have that special bond between you and something that can NEVER, EVER LEAVE YOU.

You'll never leave me, will you Bulbasaur?  Not like that b**ch Karen.

Gaming has a way to make your life better.  Just plug in the latest game you're obsessed with and go at it.  Soon enough you'll forget all about giant oil spills and not getting exactly what you wanted for Christmas.  Look forward to the new frontier and ignore the fact you're going to have to drop out of school and become a McDonald's drone.  Maybe you even have to move back in with your parents, in that small town you hated, get that job you swore you'd never do and reconnect with your old friends who piqued in high school.  That's alright; there are princesses to save.  Surely there's going to be something amazing in the following year that will make everything wrong seem all better.  If that something won't come out until the next holiday season, then you can throw yourself into all the previews and speculations.  What else is better than creating an idea of something in your head that cannot possibly happen?

People celebrate the new year in order to forget old acquaintance and never bring them to mind.  You must also forget the sins of gaming past and look towards the future of gaming.  Sure, there are still games made seemingly just to take your money, but you have to look at the brighter side of gaming.  Pay attention to games that are coming from some big franchise, like Mass Effect 3, to predict which games will be worth the time and money.  Also, don't forget to read all the reviews you can.  People like me, who happily spend time playing games so that people can learn from my mistakes, write for your needs.  Here at Super Dope Gaming, we rely on the people who rely on us.  We play through some shovelware, but mostly we like to tell you about the games that are Super Dope and can offer a great experience.  By the way, look forward to new things coming to this site in the new year.  There are always things turning in the minds behind Super Dope Gaming.

 Mostly kittens.

Just remember, Dope Gamers, there is a silver lining of Uncharted or Zelda for every dark cloud of Lost in Shadow (which had such potential).  Don't give up hope for the next big gaming development that's sure to wow you in ways you've never thought of.  Keep watch over Blizzard for Diablo 3 and Eidos for Arkham City.  Personally this is what works for me when I want to forget about things too horrible to think about.  So right now, I'm mostly excited for those upcoming games, even though I spent most of the break going through the "Humble Indie Bundles," which were good, but only about four out of ten were really great experiences.  In other words, don't worry about life, just play some video games.

Thoughts of Gaming in my Head

Christmas so soon?  That hardly seems fair.  Having just finished finals and now being forced to rush away from what I now consider home, I long for time to relax.  But then Christmas.  Family. Presents. Shopping.  Is there any other holiday that wears so many people down so quickly?  My friends, I am a simple man.  I don't need a lot to be happy and I never know what to ask for when others want to buy me gifts.  I have what I need.  If I found something I wanted, I'm sure there's some way I can get it.  I've never been a big fan of Christmas.  I do not look forward to watching Spike TV's 24 hour marathon of James Bond movies nor TBS' 24 hour marathon of A Christmas Story.  Even the games that come out at this time of year seem to lack luster.  Maybe that's just me.  Maybe one of the authors at Super Dope Gaming is a Grinch or Scrooge.  Well, Bah Humbug I say; let's talk about the great titles over the years that came out during the non-holiday season.

This won't be another holiday list like below.  I've passed that milestone.  What this is, is more like, "hey, don't worry about Christmas or New Years Eve, just think about gaming's greatest feats and take a well-deserved break from all the hustle and bustle."  Now, to start, how about we go back to when gaming was segregated from the world -- a time when people could only play games in a darkly lit building, throwing away money earned from mowing the lawn, a time when the arcade was the place to be a gamer.  Besides, I think it's appropriate with the recent release of X-Men Arcade.  If you haven't played that masterful multiplayer, then now is the time.  The game, on your own, is nothing special.  It can be completed in less than an hour and you can grow bored with the button mashing that is the side-scrolling fighter.  If you've played the game on it's original cabinet, with six or four players, then do what you can to find that cabinet again because that's where it shines.  The arcade was the era of Donkey Kong and Pac Man, but soon enough came the ability to get more and more people in on the action.  I can't think of any other game that let more than one to three other people join in, but I can definitely tell you that everybody wants to be Wolverine and no one wants to be Dazzler.

Nothing says F**k You Christmas like a tornado.

For those of you a little younger -- or just not lucky enough to have a Penny or Nickel Arcade nearby -- we can skip ahead a few years to one of the monumental strides gaming has made.  Ok, that may be pushing it.  It's just Sonic the Hedgehog.  Sonic, Sonic, Sonic.  We want so badly to like you now.  Sonic Colors is admirable.  It got good scores, seemed like a new and interesting take on a game built on running fast.  But everything else, everything else that came out recently... why would you do that to people who love you?  I don't understand?  Turning into a werewolf?  Getting a sword?  Racing in cars?  You don't need a car, Sonic, you need better games.  We love you because we remember looking for the codes in gaming magazines to enter in the sound test to skip through levels or become Super Sonic -- even though we would always fall into that pit in "Mystic Cave Zone," that had no way of getting out, because we were going too fast.  We love you because of Sonic 3 and Sonic 3 and Knuckles, which only when put together do they make a complete game.  We love you because you had the evil Dr. Robotnik as a nemesis who tried to conquer the world and turn people into robot slaves rather than just steal a princess.  I love you still, Sonic.  I will never play any of your new games, but I'm glad you were released in the summer so I don't have to relate you to Christmas.

We're gonna jump ahead here and miss a generation of consoles, but I think that's for the best.  I'm going to make the statement, and probably ruffle some feathers, when I say Ninja Gaiden (2004) was the best game to come out on the original Xbox.  Sure, there wasn't any multiplayer and it can never reach the success of Halo. But the level of difficulty, variety of weapons, non-linear story telling, crazy/bloody action, amazing boss battles and several other aspects put that game at the forefront of what to own for the Xbox.  Plus, it makes you feel like a badass every single time you get the "Master Ninja" rank.  The game calls you a Master Ninja.   That should be all the advertising it needs.  Of course, if you don't do well enough, it also calls you a "Ninja Dog," but that just makes you want to do better.  There's nothing holiday-related to remind you of Christmas in this game, other than the demons from Hell, which I guess can be seen as your extended family.  You know the ones I'm talking about.  The ones that bring fruit cakes and can't remember your name, but still refuse to leave you alone.

You are worth exactly this much to your relatives.

Now, even after mentioning these few games that game out in the summer or a couple months after the holiday season, you still may think that just because games come out for Christmas doesn't make them horrible.  Well, let me tell you something.  Every Mario Party game, except for the latest one (Mario Party 8), came out just in time to be picked up as a present.  I mean, I like board games, I like Mario, but that doesn't mean the two should be brought together as an excuse to shove crap into stockings.  Even the Winter Olympics are worse than the real Olympics.  Does anyone watch the winter Olympics?  Is it just snowboarding and skiing?  Maybe curling?  I have no idea, but Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games didn't win anyone over.  That game, in case you wondering, also came out a couple months before Christmas.