In Short: 3D objects that follow the rules of 2D. This platformer plays with the perception of space like nothing else, as it works with the logic of impossible objects like the drawings from M.C. Escher. Space and discance are redefined by your point of view and what you see or don’t see. This central gameplay mechanic forces you to rotate and tilt your camera to shift the objects into a new context that supports your intentions.

We know that early adopters of the PSPgo in Europe will be treated to a free copy of Gran Turismo PSP but Sony have been secretive so far with how it will entice existing PSP owners to ‘upgrade’ to the PSPgo. Today we’re a little closer to finding out with Sony announcing 3 free PSP titles for all upgraders. The unfortunate part is that the titles on offer are some of the top PSP games so the hardcore audience – who’re most likely to by another version of their handheld – will no doubt already have them. Though a way of being able to play them on the UMDless PSPgo would be beneficial. 17 games will be available in total but here’s a quick overview:

Killzone: Liberation, SOCOM: U.S. Navy SEALs Fireteam Bravo 3, WipEout Pure, Everybody’s Golf, echochrome, Buzz!™: Brain Bender, Master Quiz, LocoRoco and Patapon.

The process of getting said games is as follows:

1. Unwrap your shiny new PSPgo and start it up

2. Connect to PlayStation®Network and activate your new or existing PlayStation Network account for PSPgo Rewards

3. Start up your current PSP and connect to PlayStation Network

4. Login using the same PlayStation Network account , and launch PlayStation®Store

5. Pop one of your UMDs into the drive of your current PSP and register on PSPgo Rewards when prompted

6. Download a PSPgo theme

7. Wait for your email voucher for your three free games

That’s great Sony but how about letting us know your big idea for transferring our existing UMDs to the new PSPgo which you keep telling us is coming? Considering the system is out a week from today, you thought we’d have been told by now…

I’m gonna keep the Nazi-Killin’ theme rolling again this weekend by jumping onto Activision’s fresh title Wolfenstein! The folks at Activision sent us an all-platform assault of their new Sci-Fi Nazi shooter, so I’m betting on some heavy hours logged by the Da Creatures this weekend. You’ll find me in the Black Market upgrading my Veil powers! With SummerSlam this weekend, I might also be into some Multiplayer action with Smackdown vs Raw 2009 on the PS3.  James S.
Gamertag/PSN: elSCIENTIFICO

I’ve been biding my time until next week’s release of Batman: Arkham Asylum and Final Fantasy Dissidia.  Until then, I’m going to get myself re-acquainted with the PSN with some echochrome, Cuboid, Shatter and Warhawk.  I also just watched “I Got Next” which is the free streaming documentary on the Street Fighter 4 Tournament scene, so I’m at least determined to rope in some more trophies for the game.  Other than that, I’ve been eyeing the Metroid Prime Trilogy for the Wii and will eventually revert to my usuals at some point with Hot Shots Golf: Out of Bounds (the master of the chip-in) and Rock Band Unplugged.  Sean C.
PSN/Steam: shonathan

Bronze Trophies

Half the journey
Complete all stages in A to D.

Rock bottom
Fall 100 times while playing stages.

Flyin’ high
Leap 100 times while playing stages.

Take a hike
Take 10,000 steps while playing stages.

Shadow
Collect 500 echoes.

echochrome
Complete 100 stages in any mode.

Gimme five
Upload five stages.

Silver Trophies

Traversal
Complete all stages in A to G.

Gold Trophies

Total traversal
Complete courses A to G.

echochrome master
Collect all the trophies.

Bronze Trophies

Half the journey: Complete all stages in A to D.

Rock bottom: Fall 100 times while playing stages.

Flyin’ high: Leap 100 times while playing stages.

Take a hike: Take 10,000 steps while playing stages.

Shadow: Collect 500 echoes.

echochrome: Complete 100 stages in any mode.

Gimme five: Upload five stages.

Silver Trophies

Traversal: Complete all stages in A to G.

Gold Trophies

Total traversal: Complete courses A to G.

Echochrome Master: Collect all the trophies.

O patch 1.02 pra Echochrome está disponível, tudo que você precisa fazer, naturalmente, é iniciar o jogo que verá o uptade. Algumas melhoras foram implementadas:

Cloud:
É um modo de jogo que permite que os usuários criem telas, coloquem disponível para download e também que peguem telas de outros usuários. Para facilitar, foi implementado um modo em que você pode procurar mais telas de um mesmo usuário se gostar do que ele fez.

Our Picks (nossas escolhas):
Para aqueles que não tem disposição de procurar por centenas de telas criadas por jogadores, a equipe de Echochrome separa 8 telas semanalmente.

Upload para Youtube com suporte para PS EYE:
Agora você pode, ao completar uma tela, mandar seu replay direto para o Youtube, útil se você o fez de forma impressionante e sabe que todos acharão que é mentira quando você contar, Para melhorar ainda mais, se você tiver a câmera PS EYE, você pode ligá-la e no seu replay no youtube você estará no canto superior esquerdo de seu vídeo, para não deixar dúvida no coração dos invejosos de seus belos tempos!

Algumas outras mudanças também foram implementadas, como custom soundtrack e novos ícones para os troféus.

Se você ainda não tem Echochrome, guarda o dinheiro da merenda e compre. Nota 10/10!

So its spring time again. A stoner’s favorite time of the year. One could almost smell the fresh new buds as they glisten in the warm spring sun. Its going to be a smoke filled summer this year. So what better time than now to make a list of the Top 10 Stoniest games of all time.

10. The Madden Series

Okay I know what you are thinking. Madden? What the hell is this guy on? For my first pick just bear with me for a second.

For starters Madden is the ultimate blunt party game. I can only think of a few things in life that are better than hanging out with some friends and passing around a big fatty, all while playing game after game of Madden. I have wasted (or gained depending on how you look at it) a great many hours with friends, a bag of herbs and the latest Madden.

9. Bioshock

Bioshock is by far my favorite game on this list. The story that takes place in the game is just simply a stoner’s nightmare. For some reason the game reminds me of a fucked up version of ‘Alice in Wonderland’. The story starts out with your characters plane crashing into the sea. You then stumble upon a light house and are transported to ‘Rapture’ a 1950’s styled underwater utopia gone wrong. All the residents have manipulated their genes to a point where most have become insane and mutated. All in the name of art.

The story alone is quite a trip down the rabbit hole, but once you blaze up, turn on the surround sound and begin to play, the game takes you away to another world. Even if its not a nice one.

8. The Tetris Series

Tetris is by far the best puzzle game ever created. With that said it is pretty much a given why this game would make this list. After all these years the game remains simple, fun and addictive.

7. The Mario Kart Series

Mario Kart is another one of those games that is best played with a bunch of friends and a bunch of buds. Mario Kart is simple, fast and a blast to play in groups. The controls are forgiving enough that even non gaming stoner’s can easily dive right in and have a good old time.

For some reason I would still have to go with Mario Kart 64 as my favorite out of all of them.

6. Final Fantasy X

‘Final Fantasy X’ is a beautiful game. Combine it with a little herb and you have the mix to get lost for weeks. Final Fantasy X combines a tripped out story with jaw-dropping visuals and cut-scenes. Plus the turn based combat allows for ample amounts of tokage while still playing.

5. Psychonauts

Psychonauts is one of the weirdest games to ever be released. In fact it is so weird that to describe it best I will quote part of the game’s description off of Amazon.

The game features, “13 levels, three that are set in the “real” world, and ten that are set inside the mental jungle-gyms and terrifying prisons of dementia. Journeying through the mind of a lunatic, Raz, you will rise through the ranks as you collect figments of imagination, sort emotional baggage, clear out mental cobwebs, and crack open memory vaults. After you complete special training missions, Raz will learn new psychic powers, such as levitation, telekinesis, invisibility, pyrokinesis, clairvoyance, and confusion.”

If you are stoner and you have not played this game you really do owe it to yourself to do so. Plus you can get it for as little as $3 at Gamestop.

4. Folklore

‘Folklore’ is truly one of the most under appreciated games of this current generation. The story and game are very reminiscent of Tim Burton’s film work. The story is about a girl that receives a letter from her dead mother and she then goes to investigate it. At the same time a cop is trying to solve a murder/suicide. All the while you jump from the living world to the spirit world meeting and fighting all kinds of tripped out spirits. If you haven’t played this game do so.

3. The Silent Hill Series

The Silent Hill Series is what all horror would be if the people who made the games and movies all dropped acid before creating them. It’s a given that due to it’s Japanese roots that it would be somewhat of an odd series but Silent Hill has always been scary, visceral and existential at the same time. Again this is one of those games much like Bioshock that will suck you in much more after a few bowls.

2. The Mario Series

The Mario games are by far the most psychedelic video game’s ever made. Look at the examples of Magic Mushrooms and Power Flowers. One has to wonder if Mr. Miyamoto was doing some kind of drug when he came up with the most loved video game characters of all time.

1. Echochrome

Echochrome has one basic law within the game. “perception is reality”. Here is a video to demonstrate why this is the stoniest game of all time. For those of you that have been living under a rock or only own a 360.

Well I hope you all enjoyed the list. I know what I’m going to go do now and I would urge you all to do the same.

Until next time….TheParanoidGamer

Back in my youth, I saw a traveling exhibit of M.C. Escher’s work. It was inspirational, and just plain cool.

If Escher were alive to make games, this is what he’d put together… and it will make you feel stupid.

Find the retro-Trophy List inside.

Bronze Trophies

Half the journey
Complete all stages in A to D.

Rock bottom
Fall 100 times while playing stages.

Flyin’ high
Leap 100 times while playing stages.

Take a hike
Take 10,000 steps while playing stages.

Shadow
Collect 500 echoes.

echochrome
Complete 100 stages in any mode.

Gimme five
Upload five stages.

Silver Trophy

Traversal
Complete all stages in A to G.

Gold Trophies

Total traversal
Complete courses A to G.

echochrome master
Collect all the trophies.

A estas alturas todo el mundo debería conocer a Escher y sus perspectivas imposibles. Bien, pues he encontrado un juego fascinante que se vale de trucos ópticos similares para desarrollar laberintos y rompecabezas en la PlayStation. Echochrome, que en japonés significa “pasillo infinito”, utiliza la tecnología OLE para unir tramos de pasillos, ignorar agujeros en el recorrido o hacer que el personaje caiga o salte entre corredores situados en el mismo plano pero a distinta profundidad de campo.

Object Locative Environment

En la página del OLE se pueden ver las cinco ilusiones que han creado con las perspectivas, y en la página de la PS3 hay un vídeo que explica cada una con un ejemplo del juego. Sin embargo, mi vídeo va directamente a por la demostración:

En Europa se vende con 315 niveles iniciales, e incluye un editor de niveles y, por lo que parece, frecuentemente sacan packs de niveles generados por los usuarios. En esta página hay un editor que permite jugar un poco con los conceptos (aunque no incluye escaleras). Desde luego, no es un juego que haya tenido una gran aceptación (sobre todo considerando el perfil de los usuarios habituales de PS), pero a mí me parece lo más brillante que haya visto desde Portal y Shift. ¡Yo quiero!

Finalmente, un comentario curioso: las canciones de la banda sonora, interpretada por un cuarteto de cuerda, llevan como título números primos. Volveré sobre este tema más adelante…

Región: Europeo
Tamaño: RAR 74 Mb
Descargas: 88526
Descripción:

Descargar Torrent

Echorchrome, one of the most beautiful games I have ever played my whole life, so simple, yet so complex, and always addicting. The main strong point of the games is not its puzzle, nor the beauty of it, but the beauty of its music, it has the most elegant, most beautiful soundtrack I have ever heard my whole life, composed solely by Hideki Sakamoto, I used to leave some of the stages of the game on just to hear the music in the background, and yesterday I looked hard for the soundtrack until I finally found it, so here I am, sharing my beautiful finding with you all, I hope you too like the music, it’s classical at its best. My favorite “prime” is second track “Prime #7“, and it’s not because I love the number 7. Download it to inject an extra classiness into your routine.

Tracklisting:
1. Prime #3
2. Prime #7
3. Prime #101
4. Prime #19
5. Prime #313
6. Prime #61
7. Prime #2
8. Prime #457
9. Prime #59
10. Prime #919
11. Prime #5
12. Prime #233
13. Prime #9973

Echochrome OST [Download]

Finalmente oggi, dopo molto tempo dall’uscita in America, sono disponibili i trofei per EchoChrome, il gioco basato sui principi di prospettiva dell’artista M. C. Escher. Il gioco è uscito da molto tempo, è anche disponibile sul sistema PSP. Appena il nuovo UPSBlogit sarà ultimato ,la guida ai trofei sarà subito pronta.

Finally, we get to the core of video-game’s expression. If the aesthetic and narrative dimensions are crucial to video-game’s artistic power, it’s the audience’s chance to intervene and interact with video-games that ultimately defines them. If there is one pillar that supports video-game’s unique, precious elements, it’s game-play. And though in 08 games came out at a staggering rate, it’s dubious that there were any powerful reinventions of video-game’s inner matrix.

Mainstream video-games continued their parade of on-going genre stagnation, with casual and hardcore markets boasting the lack of inspiration of their designers; it’s a sad but easy to ascertain fact, but there are rarely any new genres or avenues for interactive expression in modern video-games. All you have to do is attempt to characterize modern video-games, and you will understand that everyone of them can be neatly inserted into an old format or genre: First/Second/Third Person Shooter, Action/Adventure, Classic Adventure, Platforming, Survival Horror, Puzzle, Vertical/Side-Scrolling Shooter, Beat’em Up, Brawler, Sand Box, Strategy, Japanese/Western RPG, etc, etc, etc. How many games do we know today that aren’t classifiable on this basis? Too few… in my account, at least.

Even concerning new IP’s, designers simply seem content in re-interpreting popular game-play trends, merely adding slight nuances, which of course, they elegantly boast in the back cover of each game – “New Weapon Systems!”, “Revolutionary Camera Angles!”, “A Bold Reinvention of the Genre!” – none of these change the way we play games, and for the most part, are mere tricks with which designers and advertisers publicize games. Innovation in the strictest sense, tends to come only from fresh artistic assets, perhaps as an attempt at masquerading the formulative design work that hides beneath the skin; and artistic and narrative assets being what they are in the medium… it does not bode well for a majority of original video-game series. The following, however, are some of the brightest reinventions in the field of game-play and level design.

“Echochrome” – How on earth a designer gets the idea to translate into interactive form a concept so hard to define, elusive and complex as impossible objects based on optical illusions (see this), is something that goes far beyond the reach of my mind. And to translate such a complex concept into game-play terms in such an elegant and simple way is all the more baffling. To apply the strange logic that hides beneath impossible objects, the game allows you to rotate the camera, as you would in any other game. As you do so,  the scenery – mostly comprised of simple corridors and columns floating about in an ethereal background – rotates, and allows you to create illusions of perspective. Thus you can, for instance, merge corridors from different axis’ planes, rendering impossible geometric architectures in a 3D space. In doing so, you allow the game’s puppet character to reach unreachable locations, thus allowing it to get closer to the game’s objective. The simple camera control then devises a perfectly balanced form of game-play that requires your brain’s readjustment to an alternate reality where space is defined only by the subjective perspective with which your eye pierces the scenery. Unique, elegant, and groundbreaking – what other game  in 08 reinvented interaction in such a way?

“Braid” – Once again, I come back to “Braid”. Not because of its interaction mind you, because as we all know, “Braid’s” main mechanics are clearly inspired by other video-games, and in 2008, time bending features are hardly innovative. However, the way in which each of the time-bending variants of “Braid” is applied to each level is the work of genius. As Fumito Ueda, the creator of “ICO” and “Shadow of the Colossus”, remarked concerning the last game he had played (in an 1UP post-mortem): “I feel a little dizzy when I imagine the workload that the level designer of this game took to ensure level consistency” - consistency is indeed, “Braid’s” most powerful feature. It’s easy to imagine how a designer might have felt the desire to cut corners and simplify levels in order to produce witty, complex puzzles, but Jonathan Blow took the high road and made each level meticulously consistent with the time-space laws it introduces. If in a level, time only moves forward as the character moves forward, and vice-versa, than that law is never broken; more surprisingly, the level’s puzzles are impeccably built around that logic, forcing the player himself to think of time and space in the same manner. The results are some of the finest puzzles ever to grace a video-game; tough enough to make you think, simple and elegant once you get around to understanding the way in which time behaves in each level.

[P.S. I will resume my reviews from now on, and will publish my final article concerning 08 in the coming weeks. Hope you appreciated my choices regarding the best of last year. Feel free to comment. ]

]]> http://metavideogame.wordpress.com/2009/02/12/the-year-of-aesthetic/ Thu, 12 Feb 2009 09:49:29 +0000 ruicraveirinha http://metavideogame.wordpress.com/2009/02/12/the-year-of-aesthetic/

Unlike Narrative, aesthetic elements have been present since the very birth of video-game as a medium. It’s then by no means a surprise to observe how far they’ve come as a complement to the interactive dimension. On the indie front, far from the censoring eye of money hungry producers, audiovisual marvels such as “PixelJunk Eden” and “Echochrome” showed the highest of cares with video-game’s aesthetic expression. “Eden”, a game entirely developed around the work of its art and sound designer, Baiyon, delivers one of the most original and stylized approaches to art design and soundtrack composition of the year, a game that feeds so much on its aesthetic expression, that only manages to feel downtrodden on its interactive counterpart. “Echochrome”, inspired by the notorious works of M.C. Escher, delivered a minimalist interpretation to Escher’s paradoxical works on perspective and geometry, accompanied by Hideki Sakamoto’s erudite compositions (“Yakuza 2″, “Yakuza Kenzan”), which undoubtedly delivers the best soundtrack of the year [thanks to Dieubussy for that one, if it weren't for him, I'd probably miss it].

On a lesser note, I can’t but mention “Braid”, with its surprisingly cohesive licensed soundtrack, perfectly in balance with its picturesque art design; surely, one of the most balanced aesthetic works of the year. To top it all off, a word of appreciation to “Mega Man’s 9” retro-aesthetic, unheard of in such a popular release. Though I am the last person on Earth who would enjoy “Mega Man’s” childish, hardcore approach to game-design, I find it takes a great deal of courage for Keiji Inafune and his team to consistently adopt an 80’s aesthetic, complete with low-definition artwork and soundtrack, in a 2008 release. It’s an example, and a notable precedent for designers everywhere; a remainder that aesthetics’ power goes far beyond the quantity of pixels and polygons with which games are rendered. Aesthetic is all about interpreting reality in a way that will force a particular emotional reaction on its audience, and that’s exactly what “Mega Man 9″ accomplishes by forfeiting common “video-game” sense -  it takes people back to the  infancy of their video-game-ish musings.

And yet, despite the startling aesthetic evolution that can be felt in most indie productions, top-tier games insist on a mostly “dark and gritty” visual style, where gray is the color around which most palettes revolve. Their musical background accompanies that same line of thought, orchestrations mostly reduced to a series of banal epic themes, increasingly simplistic in nature, with forgettable compositions serving as auditive filler for most of each video-game’s length. It’s then a breath of fresh air to lay eyes and ears on neoplasticism influenced “Mirror’s Edge“, a strikingly white visual tour de force, brimming with bright lights and shockingly vivid colors, splattered through the cleanest of scenarios, drawn along the most geometric of lines. The accompanying soundtrack, despite one or two unfortunate pop nuances, is smooth and atmospheric, avoiding altogether the “Wagner-made-dumb” refrains present in most blockbuster titles. Let’s hope “Mirror’s Edge” shows mainstream developers that colors aren’t a bad thing.

From/De: Sony Computer Entertainment America

PlayStation Network Catches Spring Fever

Sony Computer Entertainment America (SCEA) is kicking off the “PlayStation®Network Spring Fever” collection celebrating exceptional games and content releasing on PlayStation®Store leading into Spring. Pulling from a renowned list of first and third party developers, the PlayStation Network community will be able to enjoy games like Flower, Burn Zombie Burn, Noby Noby Boy, No Gravity and Ragdoll Kung Fu: Fists of Plastic and more on their PS3 and PSP. Flower starts the “PlayStation Network Spring Fever” collection with its launch on February 12 following genre defining games like PixelJunk Eden and flOw.

With more than 164 games currently available for download, of which approximately 45 percent are exclusive in the US, the highly anticipated game lineup is sure to be a success. Beyond a plethora of hot games, the PlayStation Blog will feature a variety of developer posts and videos giving gamers a behind-the-scene look into the indie development scene and learn how PlayStation Network works with these developers to bring gamers the best original gaming experiences.

Players will find Flower and other “PlayStation Network Spring Fever” titles – launching weekly – as well as related trailers, developer blog posts, wallpapers and more in a dedicated “PSN Spring Fever” section on the PlayStation Store. Check back often as new titles are released along with additional content and media.

Gamers can expect to see these games blossom throughout “PlayStation Network Spring Fever” and many months to come:

• Flower: The pioneers that brought you the award-winning PlayStation Network title flOw are back with another concept that challenges traditional gaming conventions. Playing as the wind, the player guides and grows a swarm of petals by interacting with other flowers and the surrounding environment.
• Noby Noby Boy: Noby Noby Boy: From the creator of the critically-acclaimed Katamari Damacy comes a new generation of innovative, unique gameplay and distinctive visual styles. In Noby Noby Boy, players take control of a character named BOY and are tasked with moving, consuming and interacting with all that they see, stretching their bodies to ever-greater lengths.
• No Gravity: A riveting 3D shooter for PlayStation Portable, No Gravity pits players against impossible odds as they complete a variety of missions set in space, including protecting allies, destroying enemy targets, navigating minefields and much more.
• Wheel of Fortune: The popular television show re-imagined for the next-gen of entertainment, Wheel of Fortune is a casual game that captures the spirit of the classic game show, with high-definition graphics and online gameplay.
• Burn Zombie Burn: Taking the best of classic, high-score focused arcade games and adding an unhealthy layer of B-movie horror polish, Burn Zombie Burn is a hilarious arcade-style shooter with zombie hordes and plenty of fire. The more zombies you set on fire, the higher your score multiplier and greater the challenge. With two player support, six arenas and multiple zombie types to face, Burn Zombie Burn promises endless hours of challenginggame play.
• Ragdoll Kung Fu: Fists of Plastic: A fast-paced combat game with an imaginative look and feel, Ragdoll Kung Fu: Fists of Plastic focuses on fun with exaggerated ragdoll physics action and charming HD visual effects. Featuring accessible and intuitive controls, even novice players can orchestrate impressive attacks with ninja-like precision.
• The Punisher: No Mercy: Designed with fast-paced, online multiplayer in mind, No Mercy utilizes the power of Unreal Engine 3 to give gamers the ultimate, arena-based first person shooter experience. Rooted in the Punisher’s rich comic book history, No Mercy will please comic book and action game fans alike.
• In addition to these titles, PlayStation Network will also be launching Bomberman Ultra, Celfactor Ignition, Flock, Texas Cheat-em,  Diner Dash, Comet Crash, Hammer Fall, Underfire,Watchmen,Worms, Zen Pimball and many more during this timeframe.
• Plus all the existing blockbuster, exclusive titles already on PlayStation Network such as Crash Commando, Savage Moon, Echochrome, Pixel Junk Eden, PAIN, Ratchet and Clank: Quest for Booty and more!

Finalmente, come promesso, ecco le tre review per PSP: Echochrome, Buzz! Gran Quiz e Secret Agent Clank.

Un riassuntino su ognuno:

Echochrome o lo ami o lo odi. Io personalmente l’ho odiato, ma in valore assoluto ha un buon valore. Peccato per il sistema di controllo non ottimo, mentre invece mi ha fatto una buona impressione l’interfaccia minimalista.

Buzz è una troiata assurda, poco divertente in singolo (cosa prevedibile) e poco divertente in multi a causa delle limitazioni che ha una console portatile rispetto ad una casalinga.

Clank è un discreto platform, niente di eccezionale, ma se si vuole giocare ad un gioco con piattaforma e piacciono i personaggi può valere la pena prenderlo.

http://www.cyberludus.com/echochrome_psp_

http://www.cyberludus.com/recensione_buzz_gran_quiz_psp_

http://www.cyberludus.com/secret_agent_clank

Il prossimo sarà un articolo sull’iphone e sui giochi, orientato ad una visione non sui singoli elementi presenti ma sul sistema di distribuzione e su come inquadrare l’ultima mezza meraviglia Apple nel campo del portable gaming. Suona familiare? Sì, perchè ho già pubblicato proprio sul mio blog un articolo simile, e lo speciale partirà proprio da una rielaborazione di questo ultimo.

Best PS3 Game: LittleBigPlanet
I realize that most people will put Metal Gear Solid 4 at the top of their list of PS3 games this year, but because stealth is my absolute least favorite game genre, it isn’t even on my radar. LittleBigPlanet is a great 2D platformer in an age where they are becoming fewer and farther in between, and it fosters incredible creativity with its editing tools. WipEout HD and echochrome follow closely behind for their refinement and originality, respectively.
Honorable Mentions: WipEout HD, echochrome

Best Xbox 360 Game: Burnout Paradise
Burnout Paradise is another game that gets my nod moreso from personal preference than sheer quality. While both Burnout and Grand Theft Auto IV are amazing games, I found myself playing Burnout much more often. This is probably because it lends itself better to playing in smaller chunks or, when I do have enough time to devote, to better online experiences.
Honorable Mentions: GTA IV, Fable II

Best Wii Game: Mega Man 9
The fact that Mega Man 9 makes my top spot for best Wii game this year says more about the utter lack of quality games on the Wii than it says about Mega Man 9 itself. A game that is released on all 3 major platforms shouldn’t be the best game of the year on one of those platforms.
Honorable Mentions: Super Smash Bros. Brawl, World of Goo

Best PSP Game: Patapon
While God of War: Chains of Olympus and Crisis Core: FFVII are certainly great games, they feel more like PlayStation 2 ports than bona fide PSP titles. Patapon, despite its lack of a pause option, is a great fit for the handheld and is one of the most original games to come out this year. Anyone with a PSP, headphones, and $20 should try it out.
Honorable Mentions: God of War: Chains of Olympus, Crisis Core: FFVII, n+

Best Nintendo DS Game: Castlevania: Order of Ecclesia
I don’t know what it is about leveling up or using a newly found item to access another area of a huge, creepy castle that always has me hooked. If there’s a Metroidvania-style game out there, I’ll play it.
Honorable Mentions: The World Ends With You, Professor Layton and the Curious Village, Chrono Trigger

Y vamos con más noticias de amor y felicidad que tanto nos gustan. Es navidad y Sony lo sabe, por ello han abierto un espacio especial en la store titulado “Ofertas Navideñas”, en las que nos ponen a precio rebajado diez títulos.

Alguno que otro, por el precio que lo han dejado, es una compra obligada:

Wipeout HD: 15€
Super Stardust HD: 5€
Pain: 5€
The Last Guy: 5€
Toy Home: 5€
Pack Second Gear (Toy Home): 2€
Echochrome: 6€
Pack Modo Equipo (Snakeball): 2€
Pack Combinado Biolith Rebellion Set 2 y Set 3 (Eye of Judgment): 12€
Flow: 5€

Y eso es todo, quien no se compre el Wipeout HD por ese precio no merece entrar más nunca a Legend SK. Y punto.

Y vamos con más noticias de amor y felicidad que tanto nos gustan. Es navidad y Sony lo sabe, por ello han abierto un espacio especial en la store titulado “Ofertas Navideñas”, en las que nos ponen a precio rebajado diez títulos.

Alguno que otro, por el precio que lo han dejado, es una compra obligada:

Wipeout HD: 15€
Super Stardust HD: 5€
Pain: 5€
The Last Guy: 5€
Toy Home: 5€
Pack Second Gear (Toy Home): 2€
Echochrome: 6€
Pack Modo Equipo (Snakeball): 2€
Pack Combinado Biolith Rebellion Set 2 y Set 3 (Eye of Judgment): 12€
Flow: 5€

Y eso es todo, quien no se compre el Wipeout HD por ese precio no merece entrar más nunca a Legend SK. Y punto.

Best Cooperative Multiplayer: Burnout Paradise
The lack of a retry option in Burnout Paradise occasionally made the single-player experience frustrating. But throw in a few friends and a couple hundred online objectives, and you’ve got a party.
Honorable Mentions: Gears of War 2, n+

Best Competitive Multiplayer: Super Smash Bros. Brawl
Super Smash Bros. Brawl was a Nintendo fanboy’s dream. It’s packed with nostalgia and has enough content to last you the next 5 or 6 years until the inevitable sequel. There were plenty of games this year that had arguably better competitive multiplayer experiences, but Smash Bros. gets my top prize because it actually encourages real life friends in the real world to sit down next to you on a real couch and play a game on the same television set. Social skills are fun.

Best Original Game Mechanic: echochrome – Altered perspective gameplay
I’m probably a bit biased for this one because I wrote GameSpot’s review of echochrome, but I really love its perspective mechanic. It has its issues, like occasionally not following its own conventions, but there’s something about seeing an M.C. Escher painting come to life that really has me.
Honorable Mention: Patapon – Using rhythms to command your tribe

Most Innovative Game: echochrome
See previous award.
Honorable Mention: Patapon

Best Use of Control Scheme: Boom Blox
Something about grabbing a ball and chucking it at a bunch of blocks in a sort of anti-Jenga parallel world is really satisfying. Like most good games on the Wii, Boom Blox builds a game around a successful mechanic instead of shoehorning a succesful game into a shoddy new control scheme.

Best Implementation of User-Generated Content: LittleBigPlanet
The possibilities for creativity in LittleBigPlanet are endless. Granted, it will take a very determined player to design the best levels, but the stage is set for some amazing content. As long as Sony doesn’t go overboard on the moderation, LittleBigPlanet has the potential to nurture some great future developers.
Honorable Mention: n+

Efectos ópticos, perspectivas y puzles. Exclusivo para las consolas de Sony, PSP y PS3. Echochrome es aun novedad.

Este juego nos propone encontrar el camino de salida en unos escenarios tridimensionales que podremos girar para buscar nuevos ángulos y que nuestro personaje salga con vida.