1 game a month…

Time to cut back.

I’ve set a new goal for 2009.  One I think is doable, however one which is probably going to push my power of control to breaking point.

For the remainder of 2009, I am only allowed to purchase 1 game for either my DS, PSP, XBox 360, PS3 or Wii each month.  So in total 12 games for the year accross all platforms.

I know this is going to be a tough call as I have struggled to get it down to 1 game a fortnight over the past few years.

My last 2 purchases for 2008 were Fallout 3 for the Playstation 3 and The Last Remnant for the Xbox 360.  I’m hoping my preference for Role Playing Games may help me out a little due to the length of most of the games in this genre.

I have no idea what my January purchase will be as yet, time to start thinking I suppose.

Let the games game begin.

 

Best of 2008 Game Lists

It’s that time of the year again when gaming sites the world over start releasing their year end ‘best of’ lists for 2008.  As I was reading through a few of them I thought to myself why not compile a list of these links in the one place…and so this post was born.

As I’m a big fan of handheld gaming I’ve started with a few lists from a couple of portable gaming sites I frequent.

Pocketgamer

• The 10 best iPhone games of 2008
• The 10 best Mobile games of 2008
• The 10 worst DS games of 2008
• The 10 worst PSP games of 2008

touchArcade

• “Best of” iPod touch and iPhone Games – A 2008 Holiday Guide
• Voting Closes 7th January 2009 touchArcade Forums’ Best of 2008

PALGN

• PALGN Game of the Year Awards 2008 (the 2007 list here)

Eurogamer

• Eurogamer’s Top 50 Games of 2008: 50-41
• Eurogamer’s Top 50 Games of 2008: 40-31
• Eurogamer’s Top 50 Games of 2008: 30-21
• More will be added as the site updates…
• Eurogamer Reader’s Top 50 Games of 2008

Metacritic

• Best of 2008

VideoGamer

• Top 10 Nintendo platform exclusives of 2008
• Top 10 Playstation platform exclusives of 2008
• VideoGamer.com’s Top 10 Games of 2008 (HD Video)
• Best Games of 2008: 50-41
• Best Games of 2008: 40-31
• Best Games of 2008: 31-21
• Best Games of 2008: 20-11

GamePro

• OMGNintendo’s Top 10 DS Games of ’08
• The Best Games of 2008: YOU NEVER PLAYED!
• The Best (and Worst) of 08: The GamePro Awards
• Top 10 Wii Games of 2008

Gamasutra

• Gamasutra’s Best of 2008 (Massive article)

I’ll be adding more sites to the list as they are released.  Feel free to notify me of any you may come across yourself.

 

Top 5, December 2007

With the close of 2007 marking the end of the first full month of the ‘cultnation’,  I thought it would be a good exercise to review the 5 most viewed entries during the period.

#1  100 Books…

While a page more than a blog entry, the ‘100 Books…‘ list drew by far the largest number of page views during the month.  I have big plans for this entry (and it’s associated project) so I’m glad fellow bloggers and general surfers have found it interesting to date.

#2  New Music, 12th December 2007

Maybe I didn’t realise just how popular searching for ‘new music’ was on the net, as this entry also drew a large number of page views.  It was pointed out to me by one of my readers that a little more information regarding each of the releases (and maybe the album covers) would be a good inclusion…I’ve taken note and my next entry which I should be posting this evening will be a little more detailed.

#3  The ‘Baroque Cycle’, Neal Stephenson (100 Books…)

Of all the title specific entries made in December regarding books, it was Neal Stephenson’s epic ‘Baroque Cycle that proved the most popular.  Hopefully, I interested a few readers enough that they will pick up this series.

#4  New Album…Burial – Untrue

A brief entry, but a popular one.  In short, if you like electronic music I don’t think you can go wrong with either of Burial’s albums.

#5  cultnation’s – Top 5 Portable Games for 2007

I couldn’t resist this one.  Every gaming site in the world releases at least one (usually more) top games lists each year, so I thought why not me on my little blog.  By getting in early – releasing the list mid-december (just on my b’day) – I was thinking I might get a little more interest from fellow bloggers.  What do you know, it worked!!!

I hope you enjoyed my first month.

 

Syphon Filter: Logan’s Shadow

I must have been busy yesterday, because I plain forgot to list the 3rd title I was lucky to score Christmas morning…Syphon Filter: Logan’s Shadow.

While I’m not so much a fan of FPS or Tactical Shooters I was glad to see this title appear in my hands as I was ripping away the wrapping paper. My collection was starting to get a little RPG heavy and playing in another genre for a while should bring a little more variety to my gaming day.

Trouble is with so many games sitting on my desk it may be a while before the plastic wrap comes off this title. At least I’m guaranteed some decent gaming over the coming weeks.

 

cultnation’s – Top 5 Portable Games for 2007

As it seems to be that time of the year for all of the ‘Best of ‘ lists to clog the blogosphere, who am I to buck this end of year tradition.

After much consideration, here’s my list of Top 5 Portable Games for 2007…

#5 Jeanne D’Arc (PSP)

#4 The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass (DS)

#3 Monster Hunter Freedom 2 (PSP)

#2 Pokemon Pearl (DS)

#1 Puzzle Quest: Challenge of the Warlords (DS)

You will no doubt note that there is a bias towards RPG games in this list and to me thats only fair as it is my Top 5 list and my favorite gaming genre after all.

The rankings have for the most part been based on the amount of time I have spent actively playing each title throughout the year.

You may ask why I’ve listed this on my blog at all. Well, the reason is that I place more stock in user recommendations of games than I do in most gaming site reviews. This is because users nearly always purchase their own games (read: are not provided free by game publishers) and are more likely to tell you a game sucks, for whatever reason, than a gaming site who have advertisers they need to worry about keeping on-side.

You can check out my games list and other portable gaming details by clicking on the ‘Portable gaming…’ tab at the top right of the page or by following this link.

Why not tell me about your favorite portable games for the year 2007…

 

Jeanne D’Arc

I’ve been looking forward to this game for some time and it finally arrived today. This game is loosely based on the French historical figure of Joan of Arc (as she is known in most English speaking countries) and is a strategic RPG.

Everyone I’ve chatted with who has played this game has enjoyed it, recommending it themselves, so I can’t wait to get into it.

To all Australian gamers, don’t get ripped off by local retailers…we have some great friends in Asia who can ship us most all portable titles on the day of release, cheaper than Aussie retailers, even after you factor the cost of shipping in.

Time to while a few hours away with my PSP.

A few screen shots, taken from ign.com.