Top Five Game Sounds #4

In at number 4, is a sound that comes from a series of games with a bit of a sports theme. Whenever I play one of these games (although not the latest one), for the next few days I find myself walking down the street wanting to press Y+direction whenever I see a low wall/park bench/picket fence...

Game: Tony Hawk series
Sound created by: Skateboard on hard surface
Sound: Griiiiiind

Final 3 coming soon...

Little Sister visits Sydney Aquarium

Or, more accurately, 2K Games hire a model to dress up in a Little Sister costume and do a promotional photoshoot for the release of Bioshock 2...

I now know what I'm wearing to my next fancy dress party... I do like the photos, but somehow they don't really seem to capture the surreal creepiness of Rapture. Maybe it's because I can practically see the Sydney Aquarium gift shop reflected in the tank.

There are more pics on the 2K site here - http://www.2kgamesinternational.com/au/news/2010/02/18/little-sister-photoshoot

Top Five Game Sounds #5

Game soundtracks get a fair bit of attention. Not as much attention as female samurais in bikinis, granted, but they get their fair share of the limelight. The humble sound effect, on the other hand, rarely gets a mention. Which is why I've decided to dedicate some of my blogging space to my top five game sounds - sounds that have stuck in my head for days, sounds that freak me out and iconic sounds that remind me how great gaming is. Here's number 5...

Game: Gears of War
Sound created by: The Ticker
Sound: More of a click, click, click, than a tick, tick, tick.

Whenever I hear that click, click, click, my anxiety levels go through the roof. In fact, just the thought of the sound of the click, click, click, makes me freak out substantially. Which is weird, because I actually find tickers quite cute. Right before they run at me with a ticking bomb.

So, what would you have in your top five game sounds? Feel free to comment... I'll be posting the rest of the countdown over the next few days...

Who shot Marvin Gaye?

That was the crucial question when I was playing 1 vs 100 back in January. I was in the Mob, and with a sneaky feeling that I knew the answer, my avatar was poised (see below) to break into a victory dance.

As luck would have it, the One got the answer wrong, and so did a large proportion of the Mob. A small handful of people, myself  included, got it right (Marvin Gaye's dad shot Marvin Gaye) and won a copy of Lode Runner - details to be emailed etc etc. I was very excited. My avatar did every dance known to avatars. It was a good day.

But that was six weeks ago. Now there's a new question - where's my prize?! I assumed I'd have to wait a little while, but close to two months? Wow. I'm a huge fan of 1 vs 100, partly because I love any kind of quiz, but also because it's so fast-paced and immediate. Having to wait forever for a prize seems to defeat the object a bit.

For the love of pie!

Like pie? Like 1920’s silent movies? Liked Braid, but found it a bit pretentious? Then chances are you’ll love The Misadventures of P.B Winterbottom. It’s a puzzle/platforming affair available for download on Xbox Live, and it's the most charming game I’ve played in a long time.

With so many big game sequels out there saturating the market, it’s really refreshing to play a game that’s trying to be a bit different. While it’s quite similar to Braid in gameplay terms (you get to mess with time and create clones of yourself to progress through levels), it has a completely unique feel that draws you into a surreal Victorian pie-chasing world.    

The Misadventures also gets a thumbs up for having achievable achievements. It’s nice to finish a level and get an achievement, instead of having to finish the level fifty times over while standing on your head and eating a pie with a teaspoon.

What do you buy the gamer who has everything?

I stumbled across something amazing in GameStation the other day. And it wasn’t a game. Or another girl gamer. It was this…

A cartoonified figurine of 'Gears of War' Marcus. Amazing because most of the time the only game-related merchandise I’ve been able to find on the high street is a Sonic the Hedgehog soft toy or a Space Invaders t-shirt (size XXXL).

I have no idea why it’s so hard to find cool gaming memorabilia in shops. The rest of the retail world seems to have cottoned onto the fact that people will buy all kinds of tat related to their hobby/interest. I would buy a LOT of gaming-related bits and bobs if they were staring me in the face when I got to the checkout. Marcus (above) was staring at me very angrily, but I still bought him. Predictably, Marcus was the last of his kind at my local GameStation, and they didn't know if they were getting more in.

If game shops stocked more than just games, it would also make it so much easier to buy gifts for gamers. Especially for this poor woman I overheard in Game the other day as she desperately tried to buy a game for her son:

Shop Assistant: Are you looking for PS3 or 360 games?

Shopper: Erm... the ones with the green boxes. Yes, the ones for the xbox three hundred and sixty.

So, what do you buy the gamer who has everything? The answer should be - a representation of their favourite game character. If only game stores would start stocking them...