2011 Gaming Predictions

I did it for 2008, 2009, and 2010 so why not do it again. Below you will see five predictions I have made for the gaming world in 2011.

1) Wii 2 will not be shown until 2012

E3 will come and leave us this year with only a mention of a new Wii system. Iwata, or Reggie, will likely make mention of it at E3 but nothing will be shown or talked about. This is the year of the 3DS.

2) Legend of Zelda: Sky Sword won't release until holiday 2011

Even though it was initially thought, and hinted at, to be a 2010 title, it was pushed back. Then it was assumed to be a March release. But with the 3DS set to release in March, there's no way they would double up with a major 3D Zelda title too. There's not much to look forward to for the Wii currently, so this will be pushed to November.

3) LA Noire will make it into the top 10 all-time list on GameRankings

Rockstar knows how to take it's time with a game. They also know how to make some really well designed and massive adventures. LA Noire will be no different. It will be incredible...that is if it makes it out in 2011.

4) PSP 2 and new iPod devices will both have 3D (glasses free) screens, but with no depth slider

3D is all the rage right now, and the 3DS has begun a major shift: no need to wear glasses. Well this year both Sony and Apple will release devices with screens similar to the Nintendo 3DS, the only difference will be there won't be a 3D slider to alter the strength of the effect.

5) Vitality Sensor will be a 3DS add-on, not Wii

This 5th prediction is always reserved for my most outlandish and less likely to happen. Well, this is it. Nintendo will have something quite a bit different for the new Wii to announce. And besides, the only example they've really given for this device, aside from more enemies the more scared you get, is helping you calm down before bed. And I think we all know that falling asleep watching TV does no good because you always wake back up again on the walk to bed. Why not do your relaxation games right in your bed with the 3DS.

2010 Games Played

I managed to fully complete 16 games this year (same as last year) plus a lot of games I didn't get to finish. I was very surprised to see that I spent more time playing a downloadable DSi game more than any other game this year. And even though I didn't "complete" it, I definitely played it more than Super Mario Galaxy 2. Odd.

Completed Game Played Most: Super Mario Galaxy 2

Not Completed Game Played Most: AlphaBounce

Games Completed:

1. NyxQuest: Kindred Spirits (WiiWare)
2. Contra: ReBirth (WiiWare)
3. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 (Xbox 360)
4. New Super Mario Bros (Wii) - 5 Sparkling Stars
5. GTA: Chinatown Wars (DS)
6. Oregon Trail (DSiWare)
7. Super Metroid (SNES Virtual Console)
8. Dark Void Zero (DSiWare)
9. Touch Solitaire (DSiWare) – Beat each mode on each difficulty
10. Photo Dojo (DSiWare) – Beat 100 enemies
11. Super Mario Galaxy 2 (Wii)
12. Splinter Cell: Conviction (Xbox 360)
13. GoldenEye 007 (Wii)
14. Super Scribblenauts (DS)
15. Metroid Other M (Wii)
16. Shantae: Risky’s Revenge (DSiWare)

Games Played (Not Completed):

17. Mass Effect (Xbox 360)
18. Boy and His Blob (Wii)
19. Scribblenauts (DS)
20. Resident Evil 5 (Xbox 360)
21. Battlefield: Bad Company 2 (Xbox 360)
22. DroidFart (Android)
23. Wii Sports Resort (Wii)
24. Bit Trip: Beat (WiiWare)
25. FFCC: My Life as Darkloard (WiiWare)
26. Aliens vs Predator (Xbox 360)
27. Mario and Sonic: Winter Olympics (Wii)
28. Halo 3 ODST (Xbox 360)
29. Monster Hunter Tri (Wii)
30. Halo 3 (Xbox 360)
31. Gears of War 2 (Xbox 360)
32. Batman: Arkham Asylum (Xbox 360)
33. Halo Reach Beta (Xbox 360)
34. AlphaBounce (DSiWare)
35. Mario Kart DS (DS)
36. Mighty Flip Champs (DSiWare)
37. Dead Space (Xbox 360)
38. Sin and Punishment (Wii)
39. Picross 3D (DS)
40. Angry Birds (Android)
41. Ultimate Spider Man (iPhone)
42. Abduction! (Android)
43. Angry Birds Holiday (Android)
44. Vanquish (Xbox 360)
45. Castlevania: Lords of Shadow (Xbox 360)
46. Enslaved (Xbox 360)
47. Red Steel 2 (Wii)
48. Tecmo Super Bowl (NES)
49. Newton (Android)
50. Fluidity (WiiWare)
51. Thruspace (WiiWare)
52. Picross 3D (DS)

Games Played at E3:

1. Killzone 3 3D (PS3)
2. MotorStorm 3D (PS3)
3. Playstation Home E3 Edition (PS3)
4. Dead Nation (PS3)
5. Gran Turismo (PS3)
6. Marvel vs Capcom (PS3)
7. EA Sports Active 2.0 (PS3)
8. Tiger Woods 2011 - Move (PS3)
9. Sports Champions - Move (PS3)
10. Medal of Honor (PS3)
11. The Conduit 2 (Wii)
12. Sonic Colors (Wii)
13. Mario Sports Mix (Wii)
14. Wii Party (Wii)
15. Donkey Kong Returns (Wii)
16. Kirby Epic Yarn (Wii)
17. NBA Jam (Wii)
18. GoldenEye 007 (Wii)
19. Metroid: Other M (Wii)
20. Zelda: Skyward Swords (Wii)
21. Epic Mickey (Wii)
22. Professor Layton 4 (DS)
23. Super Scribblenauts (DS)
24. Okamiden (DS)
25. The Grinder (Xbox 360)
26. Vanquish (Xbox 360)
27. Castlevania: Lord of Shadow (Xbox 360)
28. Dead Rising 2 (Xbox 360)
29. Dance Central - Kinect (Xbox 360)
30. Game Party: In Motion - Kinect (Xbox 360)
31. Driver: San Francisco (Xbox 360)
32. Assassin’s Creed: Brotherhood (Xbox 360)
33. Pilotwings Resort (3DS)
34. StarFox 64 (3DS)
35. 3D Target – Augmented Reality (3DS)
36. Ridge Racer (3DS)
37. DJ Hero (3DS)
38. Dynasty Warriors (3DS)
39. Metal Gear Solid: Naked Sample (3DS)
40. Nintendogs + Cats (3DS)
41. Sims 3 (3DS)
42. Steel Diver (3DS)
43. Animal Crossing (3DS Video)
44. Dead or Alive (3DS Video)
45. Kid Icarus: Uprising (3DS Video)
46. Kingdom Hearts 3D (3DS Video)
47. Paper Mario 3DS (3DS Video)
48. Resident Evil: Revelations (3DS Video)
49. Mario Kart (3DS Video)
50. 3D Camera (3DS)
51. Xevious (3DS)
52. NES Tennis (3DS)
53. Tournament of Legends (Wii)

Conduit 2: Things to Change

After playing through The Conduit extensively I have come to the realization that this game’s sequel needs a few things to change for the game to be “truly awesome” instead of just “very good.” Below are the features The Conduit 2 needs to have:

Single Player

• Online co-op with at least 2 players, using Wii Speak, through the whole campaign.
• Make the difficulties more than just harder enemies with better aim and more health. Look to GoldenEye and Perfect Dark to know what I’m talking about. This greatly adds to the replay value of a game because there’s a reason to play the campaign more than once.
• Let us buy upgrades for weapons (ala Resident Evil 4) so we can customize our arsenal to fit our tastes.
• Make achievements unlock something gameplay related (i.e. artwork doesn’t count)
• Example: if you unlock the Shotgun Achievement you should have the option to start any level with the Shotgun and have unlimited ammo.
• Example: if you unlock the Scarab Achievement (the invisible Space Pirate looking enemy) you should be able to play any level invisible.
• Also, let me compare/share my Achievements with friends. It would really add to the incentive if others could see what I accomplished.
• Design the levels in single-player to be more open and less guided. See the Frigate and Library levels in GoldenEye as good examples.
• Let us destroy parts of environments. I don’t need walls or ceilings I just want to shoot a TV or light bulb and have them show damage.
• Add a little stealth to the levels. Let me equip a silencer and take out a few enemies before they even know I’m there.
• Let us transfer our customized control scheme from The Conduit to The Conduit 2 through the save file on the Wii.

Multiplayer

• Make the game more like Guitar Hero World Tour where you are always online (or at least have the option). So if you’re playing single player and a friend wants to join you in co-op or invite you to join their multiplayer match you will be able to.
• Let me unlock skills with my higher rank.
• Let us buy upgrades for weapons (ala Resident Evil 4) so we can customize our arsenal to fit our tastes.
• Allow us to save our custom control configurations to the Wiimote’s internal memory. So when I go to a friend’s house for some split-screen I can just bring my Wiimote rather than configure all my controls again.
• Let us see who fragged us and where they did it from. See Call of Duty: Modern Warfare to know what I’m talking about.
• Make grenades more powerful in multiplayer. A direct shot should get you a frag.

Luigi's Mansion Trademark Renewed (Vitality Sensor Related)

AND



It appears one of my predictions, the most far-fetched in fact, has already got some potential weight behind it. If you'll recall I predicted this year the Wii Vitality Sensor would be used in a new Luigi's Mansion game on the Wii. Well look who just renewed their trademark for Luigi's Mansion... Nintendo.

That's right, let the Vitality Sensor mansion hunting commence.

2010 Gaming Predictions

I did it for 2008 and 2009 and figured I had to do it for 2010 as well. Below you will see five predictions I have made for the gaming world in 2010.

The fourth year of each generation is usually when you start hearing about the "next gen." This year, with the boom of motion controls, you will see more of a re-branding than any truly new systems. Either way, it should be a pretty good year for gaming, assuming you don't mind a little movement in your games.

1) Gears of War 3 will release in Holiday 2010 but as a prequel to explain Marcus' history

From the first fifteen minutes of the first Gears of War I have thought this to be true. There would be two Gears games in the typical fashion with the third being a prequel to explain what Marcus has done in his past battles.

2) A new Pilot Wings will be released by the end of 2010

Boy oh boy I hope this prediction is right. Ever since playing the airplane demo on the Wii at E3 2006 I have been reminded of this sweet series. My only real hope is that the game has some form of online leaderboards with friends. I think that would really add to this game.

3) Nintendo will release a Virtual Console for the DSi with Gameboy-type games

This is an idea that really should have been acted on at the launch of the DSi but, again, Nintendo is a weird bunch. They innovate in so many ways and are so stubborn in others. I fear this feature is being held for the true successor for the DS but I hope I'm wrong there. This feature needs to be released now, or at least by the end of 2010.

4) This will be the last year for the PS2, ie major retailers will stop supporting it by the end

This little beast has been selling like mad for years but I am thinking that the PS3's success in 2010 will push Sony, and mostly retailers like Best Buy, Walmart, etc., to move away from the PS2 system. This is mainly because customer's will finally start seeing the PS3 as the obvious choice for their gaming buck over the 9-10 year old console.

5) Wii Vitality Sensor will be used in a new Luigi's Mansion Wii game

My fifth prediction is always the most outlandish, it doesn't help my prediction score that's for sure, and this one is no exception. Hate all you want about Luigi's Mansion (or don't if you actually enjoyed it) but someone at Nintendo loved the first game and is currently making the sequel for the Wii. It will use the Wii Vitality Sensor, announced at E3 2009, in some pretty cool ways to alter the environments that Luigi explores. If you like the Vitality Sensor I hope you like Luigi's Mansion because I don't foresee too many "core" games using it this year.

Now let's see if I can do a little better than 2009's predictions. It shouldn't be hard considering I only got one right.