Zero Punctuation (Hilarious) Game Reviews

[sephfire]

This is a few months old, but I never saw a thread about it here and Yahtzee's reviews are just too great to miss.

A british-born, Australia-based guy by the name of Ben "Yahtzee" Croshaw has been releasing short, hilarious game reviews for the last few months. The Escapist picked him up a while back and he's been making a new video every week. I'd try describing the videos to you, but you really have to see them for yourself.


Zero Punctuation Reviews by "Yahtzee" (in chronological order)


Fable: The Lost Chapters (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jYQLR7dE5k4)

The Darkness (PS3 demo) (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eWS9_nrKOPA)

Heavenly Sword (demo) and Resident Evil 5 (teaser) (http://www.escapistmagazine.com/articles/view/editorials/zeropunctuation/1350-Zero-Punctuation-Heavenly-Sword-and-Other-Stuff)

Psychonauts (http://www.escapistmagazine.com/articles/view/editorials/zeropunctuation/1368-Zero-Punctuation-Psychonauts)

Next-Gen Console Rundown (http://www.escapistmagazine.com/articles/view/editorials/zeropunctuation/1383-Zero-Punctuation-Console-Rundown)

BioShock (http://www.escapistmagazine.com/articles/view/editorials/zeropunctuation/1394-Zero-Punctuation-BioShock)

Tomb Raider Anniversary (http://www.escapistmagazine.com/articles/view/editorials/zeropunctuation/1490-Zero-Punctuation-Tomb-Raider-Anniversary)

Manhunt (http://www.escapistmagazine.com/articles/view/editorials/zeropunctuation/2048-Zero-Punctuation-Manhunt)

Peggle (http://www.escapistmagazine.com/articles/view/editorials/zeropunctuation/2280-Zero-Punctuation-Peggle)

Halo 3 (http://www.escapistmagazine.com/articles/view/editorials/zeropunctuation/2304-Zero-Punctuation-Halo-3)

Tabula Rasa (beta) (http://www.escapistmagazine.com/articles/view/editorials/zeropunctuation/2326-Zero-Punctuation-Tabula-Rasa)

The Orange Box (http://www.escapistmagazine.com/articles/view/editorials/zeropunctuation/2541-Zero-Punctuation-The-Orange-Box)

Super Paper Mario (http://www.escapistmagazine.com/articles/view/editorials/zeropunctuation/2563-Zero-Punctuation-Super-Paper-Mario)

Medal of Honor: Airborne (http://www.escapistmagazine.com/articles/view/editorials/zeropunctuation/2582-Zero-Punctuation-MOH-Airborne)

Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass (http://www.escapistmagazine.com/articles/view/editorials/zeropunctuation/2608-Zero-Punctuation-Zelda-Phantom-Hourglass)

Clive Barker's Jericho (http://www.escapistmagazine.com/articles/view/editorials/zeropunctuation/2633-Zero-Punctuation-Clive-Barker-s-Jericho)

F.E.A.R. Perseus Mandate (http://www.escapistmagazine.com/articles/view/editorials/zeropunctuation/2675-Zero-Punctuation-F-E-A-R-Perseus-Mandate)

Assassin's Creed (http://www.escapistmagazine.com/articles/view/editorials/zeropunctuation/2694-Zero-Punctuation-Assassin-s-Creed)

Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock (http://www.escapistmagazine.com/articles/view/editorials/zeropunctuation/2716-Zero-Punctuation-Guitar-Hero-III)

Mass Effect (http://www.escapistmagazine.com/articles/view/editorials/zeropunctuation/2738-Zero-Punctuation-Mass-Effect)

Super Mario Galaxy (http://www.escapistmagazine.com/articles/view/editorials/zeropunctuation/2768-Zero-Punctuation-Super-Mario-Galaxy)

Silent Hill: Origins (http://www.escapistmagazine.com/articles/view/editorials/zeropunctuation/2791-Zero-Punctuation-Silent-Hill-Origins)

Crysis (http://www.escapistmagazine.com/articles/view/editorials/zeropunctuation/2808-Zero-Punctuation-Crysis)

The Witcher (http://www.escapistmagazine.com/articles/view/editorials/zeropunctuation/2831-Zero-Punctuation-The-Witcher)

Resident Evil: Umbrella Chronicles (http://www.escapistmagazine.com/articles/view/editorials/zeropunctuation/2883-Zero-Punctuation-Resident-Evil-Umbrella-Chronicles)

Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare (http://www.escapistmagazine.com/articles/view/editorials/zeropunctuation/2901-Zero-Punctuation-Call-of-Duty-4)

Sim City Societies (http://www.escapistmagazine.com/articles/view/editorials/zeropunctuation/2928-Zero-Punctuation-Sim-City-Societies)

Yahtzee Goes to GDC (http://www.escapistmagazine.com/articles/view/editorials/zeropunctuation/2949-Zero-Punctuation-Yahtzee-Goes-to-GDC)

Uncharted: Drake's Fortune (http://www.escapistmagazine.com/articles/view/editorials/zeropunctuation/2980-Zero-Punctuation-Uncharted-Drake-s-Fortune)

Devil May Cry 4 (http://www.escapistmagazine.com/articles/view/editorials/zeropunctuation/3001-Zero-Punctuation-Devil-May-Cry-4)

Burnout: Paradise (http://www.escapistmagazine.com/articles/view/editorials/zeropunctuation/3016-Zero-Punctuation-Burnout-Paradise)

Turok (http://www.escapistmagazine.com/articles/view/editorials/zeropunctuation/3040-Zero-Punctuation-Turok)

Zack & Wiki (http://www.escapistmagazine.com/articles/view/editorials/zeropunctuation/3059-Zero-Punctuation-Zack-Wiki)

Army of Two (http://www.escapistmagazine.com/articles/view/editorials/zeropunctuation/3083-Zero-Punctuation-Army-of-Two)

No More Heroes (http://www.escapistmagazine.com/articles/view/editorials/zeropunctuation/3554-Zero-Punctuation-No-More-Heroes)

Condemned 2: Bloodshot (http://www.escapistmagazine.com/articles/view/editorials/zeropunctuation/4742-Zero-Punctuation-Condemned-2-Bloodshot)

Super Smash Bros. Brawl (http://www.escapistmagazine.com/articles/view/editorials/zeropunctuation/4845-Zero-Punctuation-Super-Smash-Bros-Brawl)

God of War: Chains of Olympus (http://www.escapistmagazine.com/articles/view/editorials/zeropunctuation/4862-Zero-Punctuation-God-of-War-Chains-of-Olympus)

Mailbag Showdown (http://www.escapistmagazine.com/articles/view/editorials/zeropunctuation/4878-Zero-Punctuation-Mailbag-Showdown)

Grand Theft Auto IV (http://www.escapistmagazine.com/articles/view/editorials/zeropunctuation/4902-Zero-Punctuation-Grand-Theft-Auto-IV)

Painkiller (http://www.escapistmagazine.com/videos/view/zero-punctuation/57-Painkiller)

The World Ends With You (http://www.escapistmagazine.com/videos/view/zero-punctuation/67-The-World-Ends-With-You)

I eagerly await every wednesday now. Enjoy. :<

[Arek the Absolute]

Portal is great and if you disagree he is totally right about you being stupid.

[Jarvi]

Amazing guy, I found his stuff when someone linked his Bioshock review, I was laughing so hard I cried.

[Skrypnyk]

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOLLLLLLLLLLLLLLDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDD DDDDDDDDDDDDD

soc actually showed me his youtube videos first, then I found out about zero punctuation via his trailer. I believe I was there when there was manhunt.

Either way, this guy is my fucking hero, and he needs to put more 'twing-twang' in his videos.

[Shining Mirage]

Wow.
His Halo 3 review.
My lungs...
No more. I'm done.

[NZman]

This guy's also made some pretty decent adventure games (http://www.fullyramblomatic.com/games.htm).

The 5 Days a Stranger series is particularly good.

[RedFusion]

This guy's also made some pretty decent adventure games.

The 5 Days a Stranger series is particularly good.

O. M. G. THE ZERO PUNCTUATION REVIEWER DUDE IS THE GUY WHO MADE THE John DeFoe '5 Days A Stranger' SERIES!?!?#?!$?!@%$!#@^@#?&$#@*&?@!!

http://www.fullyramblomatic.com/5days/
Yeah, pimping up the thread with this cool game (the first in the series), but, I think that link is a pretty good summary for a great game that the guy made. I can't believe that it's the same person...
And it's also very much worth checking out, along with his ZERO PUNCT. reviews.

WOW. This is like realising that two internet celebrities are actually the same person. Except that one internet celebrity isn't as popular as the other one.
Which is still cool.

And, agreed. His Adventure freeware games are amazing. Not to mention scary, as crazy as that sounds.

[Neo Samus]

OMG I'm laughing so hard I fell off my chair! I'm actually having truoble typing this. I can't stop laughing....oh man....phew. How have I not heard about this guy before? Great stuff.

[Shadow Wolf]

That Bioshock review is made of fucking win. Pure awesome.

[eternal Zero]

I've been watching this guy for a looong time and I must say he's quite funny. Stupid at times, but it happens.

[Yoshi3gg]

I absolutely LOVE Zero Punctuation; Yahtzee's absolutely mind-blowingly hilarious, and he manages to do it while giving really fair reviews.

And yes, as mentioned earlier, he makes some ridiculously great adventure games. I'm playing through the x Days series right now (currently on 7 Days a Skeptic, the second of four).

Also, for fans of 5 Days, there's actually a Source mod (http://www.fivedaysastranger.com/) adaptation of it currently under development (and Yahtzee's involved with it, so it probably won't be totally bastardized). According to their FAQ, they're hoping to have it out before the end of 2008 (and for the artistically inclined, they're currently looking for a concept artist, character modeller/animator, item modeller, and texture artist)

[RedFusion]

Also, for fans of 5 Days, there's actually a Source mod (http://www.fivedaysastranger.com/) adaptation of it currently under development (and Yahtzee's involved with it, so it probably won't be totally bastardized). According to their FAQ, they're hoping to have it out before the end of 2008 (and for the artistically inclined, they're currently looking for a concept artist, character modeller/animator, item modeller, and texture artist)

Wow, that front page is more exciting that Fallout 3's ever was. And that game is a cult classic.

What's so cool is that Yahtzee's so popular now that he could pimp his own projects -- and they'd be very well worth the pimpage. I mean, if they managed to convert the game's to 3D, then oh ho ho. That'd be mindblowing.

Lol, the Bioshock review was brilliantly accurate in a twisted kind of way. I loved it, although I had to quit it when he started talking about the endings. Spoilers or not, I don't want to know anything about them.

[Raziellink]

I can't watch the video's. Do you need to register first? Sounds like i'm missing out here....

[supremespleen]

This guy's also made some pretty decent adventure games (http://www.fullyramblomatic.com/games.htm).

The 5 Days a Stranger series is particularly good.Holy crap. I didn't realize he made those.

Damn.

[sephfire]

I can't watch the video's. Do you need to register first? Sounds like i'm missing out here....

Try a different browser maybe? At the very least, these videos should be all over youtube. Just try keywords like "zero punctuation" and "fully ramblomatic"

[jmr]

I love the disclaimer at the end of the BioShock review:
http://img147.imageshack.us/img147/3481/bishdisczpyh5.jpg

[BlueMage]

Shit!

I had to stop the Heavenly Sword vid so I could get my breath back after a laughing fit.

[The Dennis]

I've watched about half of 'em. It's excellent writing and usually spot-on, but I haven't found it laugh-out-loud funny except for once or twice.

He endorses Portal, too. So there you go. He's a man's man.


EDIT: Okay, the side-by-side screenshots of the RE4 and RE5 gun-pointing got a hearty laugh.

[Geoffrey Taucer]

You know, aside from being fucking hilarious, these are among the best and most accurate reviews I've ever heard. They're all dead-on.

Bookmarked. How often does he post new ones?

[zircon]

You know, aside from being fucking hilarious, these are among the best and most accurate reviews I've ever heard. They're all dead-on.

Bookmarked. How often does he post new ones?

Weekly, I believe.

[supremespleen]

Yeah, it's like, every Wednesday or Thursday I think. Cos the day Escapist updates, he's got a new one a day or two later.

[sephfire]

Every wednesday.

[SynthesizedStampede]

Haha, those reviews are hellaaa funny. But I'm not sure whether this guy is truly a pessimist or just being that way cuz it's in his character to do so. Almost all those reviews have barely any positive things in them, then again, I didn't watch the Psychonauts one which he refers to in another one, and says that because of his review of that game he's not allowed to post anything good about games (yes that was a run-on sentence). Hope there was more!

[Citris]

You know, aside from being fucking hilarious, these are among the best and most accurate reviews I've ever heard. They're all dead-on.

Bookmarked. How often does he post new ones?

Ditto. He had me at his review of Bioshock. That is one of my favorite games ever. Seeing as how System Shock 2 is also one of my favorite games ever, this isn't a surprise. That was one of my main problems with Bioshock though.

[sephfire]

He usually slips in some positive side-notes if he really does like a game, but I think he knows the pessimism is where the funny is.

[Raziellink]

I've tried watching them in the evil IE. Damn you Sephfire...


I watched the first couple, but i could not find myself laughing out loud like you guys. Maybe once or twice. Or maybe i just lost my sense of humor.

[Fishy]

Its rare to come across someone genuinely funny on the internet, especially in the context of video-games. This guy is brilliant, thanks for show :).

[Dhsu]

I've tried watching them in the evil IE. Damn you Sephfire...


I watched the first couple, but i could not find myself laughing out loud like you guys. Maybe once or twice. Or maybe i just lost my sense of humor.
Yeah, the "guy with an accent and chip on his shoulder talking quickly over bad animation" thing has kinda been done before (http://www.endofworld.net).

[Wipomatic]

Yeah, the "guy with an accent and chip on his shoulder talking quickly over bad animation" thing has kinda been done before (http://www.endofworld.net).

That's totally different.

[supremespleen]

Yeah, the "guy with an accent and chip on his shoulder talking quickly over bad animation" thing has kinda been done before (http://www.endofworld.net).What the hell are you talking about?

[NZman]

Yeah, the "guy with an accent and chip on his shoulder talking quickly over bad animation" thing has kinda been done before (http://www.endofworld.net).

You're joking, right? Besides the presence of a foreign accent, there is no similarity between that and Zero Punctuation.

The thing I like about this guy, is that while his reviews do tend to have a dark slant to them, virtually all of his comments actually have some merit to them,
and unlike some other "angry reviewers" the reviews don't use outbursts of rage as filler for actual content.

[Raziellink]

Yeah, the "guy with an accent and chip on his shoulder talking quickly over bad animation" thing has kinda been done before (http://www.endofworld.net).

The fuck is that?!

[sephfire]

New review! Hilarious as always.

Medal of Honor: Airborne (http://www.escapistmagazine.com/articles/view/editorials/zeropunctuation/2582-Zero-Punctuation-MOH-Airborne)

[Dhsu]

You're joking, right? Besides the presence of a foreign accent, there is no similarity between that and Zero Punctuation.
You forgot the bad animation and pointless rambling. The difference is he's combined this with angry video game rants. Which have also been done before.

That said, I do like a lot of the visual gags. It's easy to be cynical, but his presentation and delivery is better than most.

[Jaybell]

The new review is so greatness!

This guy is awesome, and the new review may be my favorite ever. But I say that every week.

[zircon]

You forgot the bad animation and pointless rambling. The difference is he's combined this with angry video game rants. Which have also been done before.

That said, I do like a lot of the visual gags. It's easy to be cynical, but his presentation and delivery is better than most.

Yahtzee doesn't seem to go on "pointless" rants, as whatever he's talking about is always at least closely related to the game in question. I know it's cool to dislike things that other people like, but you're not giving him enough credit. ;)

[Dhsu]

Perhaps. I mean, I like the guy, and his games are great, but even so, he's not the second coming of sliced bread like most of this thread would have you believe.

[Citris]

I just think he's funny, and his opinions about games almost exactly match mine.

[NZman]

You forgot the bad animation and pointless rambling. The difference is he's combined this with angry video game rants. Which have also been done before.

That said, I do like a lot of the visual gags. It's easy to be cynical, but his presentation and delivery is better than most.

I consider the animation style different enough to not warrant direct comparison. In fact I wouldn't really qualify most of the ZP visuals as animation, more like a rapid fire slide show.
And yes, the concept has been done before, but he's doing the old shtick fairly well and it may not be revolutionary but it's worth watching.

[Alpine Flame]

Yathzee fo Prez '08. He isteh greatest.

No Really, the guy is just very witty. And about my favorite thing. Video Games. That equals a win for me. Not epic. Just everyday, ordinary win.

[Freddie_Phoenix]

I've been a big fan of the Angry Videogame Nerd for quite some time, and since this guy takes the whole "hating on games" thing to a totally different level he is now also bookmarked. :)

Seriously, I was close to tears from laughing so much after the Medal of Honor: Airborne review. What I love about the ZP videos is that they are extremely well written and his delivery is really fantastic. Then again, I'm a very cynical person myself, which probably means that I find even more humour in what he's doing.

Oh, and this has nothing to do with Zero Punctuation, but... *waves to Dhsu* What's up? :D

[SomeCrazyGuy]

How did I NOT hear about Zero Punctuation?!

Pure awesome.

[sephfire]

Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass (http://www.escapistmagazine.com/articles/view/editorials/zeropunctuation/2608-Zero-Punctuation-Zelda-Phantom-Hourglass)

It's new and it's funny. Yay!

[Alpine Flame]

Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass (http://www.escapistmagazine.com/articles/view/editorials/zeropunctuation/2608-Zero-Punctuation-Zelda-Phantom-Hourglass)

It's new and it's funny. Yay!

Hey, nintendo. Next time, no princess... and a dog... and a magical paintbrush.... and magic spells...

Classic. I guess he likes Okami more?

[Knives]

I like his choice of opening and ending songs. The reviews themselves are good too, as everyone else has mentioned.

[The Mutericator]

I agree with more or less the whole thing except for the sailing - especially after Wind Waker's sailing, I felt the sailing in this game was not only acceptable, but... wait for it... fun. They actually manage to keep you entertained while going from point A to point B.

But I totally agree with the Temple of the Ocean King part. Repeating the same levels + undefeatable enemies + time limit = mega fail.

Actually, I think this is really only the second time I've disagreed with ZP, the other time being in his Orange Box review about Episode 2 - it really felt to me like Valve managed to make Episode 2 much, much more dynamic and interesting than E1 (which really did feel like more of the same) or HL2.

[Effef]

He has excellent taste in music and I usually agree with what he says. I think this review and the Halo 3 review were the only ones I had a problem with (and it wasn't a huge problem).

I mean you can't change Zelda or it won't be Zelda anymore. Thats part of it's magic.

[Yoshi3gg]

Bad news: No new Zero Punctuation this week.

Good news: New game by Yahtzee! Starring Trilby (but unrelated to the Chzo Mythos)!

Information here: http://www.fullyramblomatic.com/

More colons: Yes.

[Raziellink]

I've never really found his previous reviews funny, but the latter ones, Super Paper Mario, Zelda, and Medal of Honour made me laugh out loud. Srsly.

[DragonFireKai]

I watched the MOH:A review while eating a bowl of cereal. Bad idea.

[Angelus Laminarum]

Although I usually get more of a kick out of the reviews of games I've played before, most are at least relatively funny on some level. I'm currently in the middle of a full computer lab and watching the Heavenly Sword(s) one...

I've come so close to making an ass out of myself here. I think they're having a class, too.

[Wipomatic]

Bad news: No new Zero Punctuation this week.

Good news: New game by Yahtzee! Starring Trilby (but unrelated to the Chzo Mythos)!

Information here: http://www.fullyramblomatic.com/

More colons: Yes.

OH GOD THAT'S AWESOME

I was replaying 5 days a stranger a couple of days ago thinking it would be awesome to have another game with Trilby in it. And as I'm very easily scared I'm kind of glad it isn't another horror game.

[Aninymouse]

That was still a quality content post you made there, Dhsu. I lol'd.

However, I'd say that the Zero Punctuation guy is infinitely more whitty and charming.

[Yoshi3gg]

Okay, so apparently there is a new Zero Punctuation (http://www.escapistmagazine.com/articles/view/editorials/zeropunctuation/2633-Zero-Punctuation-Clive-Barker-s-Jericho) this week.

It's pretty good!

[Wipomatic]

His new game is pretty awesome. There's an amazing bonus game if you complete a certain mission with a certain outfit

[Geoffrey Taucer]

Are these videos hosted anywhere else: they keep getting stuck for me.

[The Damned]

Are these videos hosted anywhere else: they keep getting stuck for me.

I think youtube has them all.

[Shining Mirage]

I'm curious to see what he might say about Kane & Lynch.

[Hy Bound]

You are now my hero seph... right behind this guy. I don't think I have ever actually laughed-out-loud at anything from the internet so far in my life. Not only have I laughed out loud, but I've woken up my fiance with my laughing and now need to go to bed... Bye bye.

[DragonFireKai]

www.joystiq.com/2007/11/26/some-punctuation-riffs-on-yahtzees-art-of-theft

Some doesn't like Yahtzee.

[sephfire]

Almost forgot. New one this week!

F.E.A.R. Perseus Mandate (http://www.escapistmagazine.com/articles/view/editorials/zeropunctuation/2675-Zero-Punctuation-F-E-A-R-Perseus-Mandate)

[sephfire]

Another fine review to be had. Chuckles for everyone!

Assassin's Creed (http://www.escapistmagazine.com/articles/view/editorials/zeropunctuation/2694-Zero-Punctuation-Assassin-s-Creed)

[Antipode]

Thanks for continuing to post these - I keep almost forgetting about ZP till I see them here. They're always excellent and hilarious - the guy does a really good job.

[DragonFireKai]

Any bets on what tommarow may bring? I'm hoping for CoD4.

[Rambo]

Any bets on what tomorrow may bring? I'm hoping for CoD4.

I'm kinda hoping for Mario galaxy. Given that it's sitting in #2 spot at game rankings, he'd probably have a bit to say about it. :-P But I could certainly settle for CoD4.

[zircon]

Any bets on what tommarow may bring? I'm hoping for CoD4.

He did just do Medal of Honor, and I never really saw a major different between those two franchises, as a layperson... also, he did a bunch of Nintendo reviews lately (Zelda:PH, Super Paper Mario) so maybe SMGalaxy wouldn't be realistic. I'm hoping for something like Mass Effect.

[DragonFireKai]

He did just do Medal of Honor, and I never really saw a major different between those two franchises, as a layperson... also, he did a bunch of Nintendo reviews lately (Zelda:PH, Super Paper Mario) so maybe SMGalaxy wouldn't be realistic. I'm hoping for something like Mass Effect.

Call of Duty 4 was a giant departure from the CoD MoH WWII FPS formula. Granted, CoD 1-3 were essentially indistinguishable from the MoH series, but CoD 4 is a whole different story.

but mass effect would be interesting, as would kane and lynch, i'd like to see if he puts that to the same burner that's got gs up in arms.

[NeoForte]

GHIII....fucking gay and hilarious lol

[Fishy]

"its just not as good as tongue-ing another mans balls.... I mean as it used to be.... I'm NOT GAY!"

[sephfire]

Obviously some have seen it already, but here's a link to this week's review.

Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock (http://www.escapistmagazine.com/articles/view/editorials/zeropunctuation/2716-Zero-Punctuation-Guitar-Hero-III)

I am a 3-armed freak.

[Dhsu]

Haha, he only got 4 stars on Freebird.

[DragonFireKai]

What's next? My loins quiver in anticipation.

[SoloGamer]

Mass Effect (http://www.escapistmagazine.com/articles/view/editorials/zeropunctuation/2738-Sero-Punctuation-Mass-Effect)

[Unstable Hamster]

I find this guy really funny. His reviews are almost always on the mark for the bigger games, for the suck games, I wouldn't know, I avoid those. I had the exact same thoughts when it came to guitar hero III. So yea, I wait every week for him to make a new review.

[sephfire]

No review this week, it seems. I suppose we can allow our beloved Yahtzee a week off for holiday festivities.

[sephfire]

Review!

Super Mario Galaxy (http://www.escapistmagazine.com/articles/view/editorials/zeropunctuation/2768-Zero-Punctuation-Super-Mario-Galaxy)

Strict but fair.

[Manic Cinq]

Indeed. .

[JCvgluvr]

You know, after me and my friend watched that SMG video, my friend raised a good point.

What are Nintendo 5 most recent IPs? It does seem like all that Nintendo makes nowadays is Mario/Metroid/Zelda games...All I can think of is Pikmin.

Its a good thing I love those games series'.;-)

[atmuh]

thats one review i know id be a heck of a lot meaner than yahtzee
after 50 stars i pretty much dont even wanna bother with galaxy anymore

[sephfire]

You know, after me and my friend watched that SMG video, my friend raised a good point.

What are Nintendo 5 most recent IPs? It does seem like all that Nintendo makes nowadays is Mario/Metroid/Zelda games...All I can think of is Pikmin.

Its a good thing I love those games series'.;-)

True. I don't feel like digging out the magazine now, but a recent issue of Game Developer listed the number of original IPs published in the last 4 years. Nintendo had very few compared to the rest. Fewer than EA, even. I want to say Ubisoft had the most, but they might have come in second to someone else. I'll have to find the magazine.

[RobotNinjaHornets]

"I could go on listing the stupid design decisions...so I will"
Brilliant.

[Dexie]

You know, after me and my friend watched that SMG video, my friend raised a good point.

What are Nintendo 5 most recent IPs? It does seem like all that Nintendo makes nowadays is Mario/Metroid/Zelda games...All I can think of is Pikmin.

Its a good thing I love those games series'.;-)

Brain Age.
Big Brain Academy.
Chibi-Robo.
Geist.
Wario Ware.
Nintendogs.

[eternal Zero]

I love Silent Hill's two friends.

[sephfire]

Silent Hill: Origins (http://www.escapistmagazine.com/articles/view/editorials/zeropunctuation/2791-Zero-Punctuation-Silent-Hill-Origins)

New and funny!

[JCvgluvr]

Brain Age.
Big Brain Academy.
Chibi-Robo.
Geist.
Wario Ware.
Nintendogs.

Ah yes. Thank you. I shall continue to do battle with my 360 humping friend!

[The Pezman]

Anyone played the games this guy has designed? Frickin awesome.

[Dunnowhathuh]

Hahaha, this stuff is gold.

[Mr. Bottle Rocket]

Quite frankly one of the best reviews he's done is the one for MOH airborne.

[JCvgluvr]

Yahtzee just put up a review for Crysis.

Normal hilarity + Shadow of the Colossus quip = WIN.

[sephfire]

And here be the link:

Crysis (http://www.escapistmagazine.com/articles/view/editorials/zeropunctuation/2808-Zero-Punctuation-Crysis)

[sephfire]

New review. Stick around after the credits for Intro Cinematic Theatre.

The Witcher (http://www.escapistmagazine.com/articles/view/editorials/zeropunctuation/2831-Zero-Punctuation-The-Witcher)

[JCvgluvr]

Eh, not up to his usual standards, IMO...

That last cinematic seemed wildly out of place for him.

[sephfire]

He posted at Something Awful saying it was just a way to break up the grind for his own sake. I think the weekly reviews were starting to drive him nuts. I'm guessing he'll do this sort of thing from time to time.

For some side news, Yahtzee will be at the Game Developer Choice Awards with new videos. So will the Mega64 guys. Fun will be had, no doubt.

[SotSS]

Personally I thought the ending was hilarious.

[DragonFireKai]

Personally I thought the ending was hilarious.

Meet me out back for the most mind blowing 30 seconds of your life... 20 minutes... blowfish...

[JCvgluvr]

He posted at Something Awful saying it was just a way to break up the grind for his own sake. I think the weekly reviews were starting to drive him nuts. I'm guessing he'll do this sort of thing from time to time.

For some side news, Yahtzee will be at the Game Developer Choice Awards with new videos. So will the Mega64 guys. Fun will be had, no doubt.

Hmm, that makes sense, I guess. How do I see all of that greatness (I love Mega 64)?

[sephfire]

Yahtzee's videos will show up on the Escapist soon after the event. They confirmed that, but I imagine someone is bound to film the actual presentation. I'm sure the Mega64 vids will pop up right after too.

[DragonFireKai]

The Umbrella Chronicles. (http://www.escapistmagazine.com/articles/view/editorials/zeropunctuation/2883-Zero-Punctuation-Resident-Evil-Umbrella-Chronicles)

[JCvgluvr]

Awesome. Just as good as the others.

[DragonFireKai]

He's gonna do CoD4! YES!

[Kureejii Lea]

Best use of "Jill Sandwich" since Dead Rising.

Or something. I'm amused and haven't slept in a good while.

[sephfire]

I don't think he could possibly have come up with a better analyzation of Umbrella Corp. Awesome.

[big giant circles]

"your last milimeter of health taken away by a zombie-kitten's corrosive piddle..."

rofl

[Unstable Hamster]

I don't think he could possibly have come up with a better analyzation of Umbrella Corp. Awesome.

Agreed.

10 char

[JCvgluvr]

10 char

Um, what's that mean?

[DragonFireKai]

Um, what's that mean?

Try typing just "agreed" in response to this post, and you will know.

[Neo Samus]

"Staring: Johnny Bravo, A Prosatute, An Idiot, A Mullet, A Nine year old boy(LOL!!), A Brick Shithouse, and Carlos."

I laughed so hard at that part.

[JCvgluvr]

agreed--

"The page at oc remix says:

Your post is too short. There is a 10 character limit.

Me: Oooohhhhh!

[FR]

Call of duty 4 (http://www.escapistmagazine.com/articles/view/editorials/zeropunctuation/2901-Zero-Punctuation-Call-of-Duty-4)

[JCvgluvr]

Hmm. I liked it. Pretty funny. Lol at the end!

BTW, do you guys bother to read the little comments and such hidden in the fast-moving credits? He does them in every video, and they're usually hilarious!

[Kiyosuki]

Even if sometimes I don't agree with his points completely his reviews are just enormously funny and entertaining to watch.

[sephfire]

Sim City Societies (http://www.escapistmagazine.com/articles/view/editorials/zeropunctuation/2928-Zero-Punctuation-Sim-City-Societies)

Delicious.

[Dunnowhathuh]

Heh, enjoyed the TF2 cameo at the end of the Sim City Societies one.

[BardicKnowledge]

Man, he really hates on Societies -- makes me want to see it in person. His reviews are always harsh, but usually fair...is it really as bad as he says, anyone?

[FR]

Man, he really hates on Societies -- makes me want to see it in person. His reviews are always harsh, but usually fair...is it really as bad as he says, anyone?

Haven't played most of the games he has reviewed but I'm inclined to believe him.

[sephfire]

It seems to me he's criticizing issues that pervade Sim games in general. Not that the problem keeps them from being fun. Perhaps the problem is much more obvious in Societies than in the others.

[q-pa]

It seems to me he's criticizing issues that pervade Sim games in general. Not that the problem keeps them from being fun. Perhaps the problem is much more obvious in Societies than in the others.
Well, he says that he hasn't played a SimCity game since the 1st one on the Amiga.

[sephfire]

Good point.

[Rad McRadderson]

seems as though the game isn't horrible so much as it is completely uninspiring

[Arek the Absolute]

seems as though the game isn't horrible so much as it is completely uninspiring

after seeing spore the other sim games seem kind of bland

[JCvgluvr]

If I played any sim games, this probably would have been a lot funnier for me.

Still, I actually liked the end movie this time!

[sephfire]

Yahtzee appeared at GDC last night with some clips for the Game Developer's Choice Awards. Rather than a review this week, we get to see what he showed.

Yahtzee Goes to GDC (http://www.escapistmagazine.com/articles/view/editorials/zeropunctuation/2949-Zero-Punctuation-Yahtzee-Goes-to-GDC)

I do hope someone filmed the actual presentation at GDC.

[Amayirot Akago]

This week's = best one yet. I LOL'd so hard.

[kupernikus]

Man, he really hates on Societies -- makes me want to see it in person. His reviews are always harsh, but usually fair...is it really as bad as he says, anyone?

His reviews are rarely fair, or all that true. Here's the problem, he's paid to be an ass. He's paid to rip on big names and be funny, no there are no perfect games, but the fact is, Ive never played a game and sat there and bitched the entire way through it and then wanted to rant about how awful it is. Simcity societies.... Well, its fun, I enjoy it every now and again, but it is a little simple. The funny thing is all the love he has for half life, which if portal wasn't in the orange box, the box wouldn't have been worth purchasing. As a console gamer half life2 does nothing I havent seen before. Im not saying it didnt have those ideas first, but its just not the second coming of christ in game form that everyone claims it to be. And yet yahtzee says its a lil repetitive, and then continues, where if any other game had had as stale and repetitive a sequel he would have torn it a new one.

That said I do find him funny, but I don't think I'd ever watch one of his reviews to decide what to rent/buy

[FR]

His reviews are rarely fair, or all that true. Here's the problem, he's paid to be an ass. He's paid to rip on big names and be funny, no there are no perfect games, but the fact is, Ive never played a game and sat there and bitched the entire way through it and then wanted to rant about how awful it is. Simcity societies.... Well, its fun, I enjoy it every now and again, but it is a little simple. The funny thing is all the love he has for half life, which if portal wasn't in the orange box, the box wouldn't have been worth purchasing. As a console gamer half life2 does nothing I havent seen before. Im not saying it didnt have those ideas first, but its just not the second coming of christ in game form that everyone claims it to be. And yet yahtzee says its a lil repetitive, and then continues, where if any other game had had as stale and repetitive a sequel he would have torn it a new one.

That said I do find him funny, but I don't think I'd ever watch one of his reviews to decide what to rent/buy

I find his reviews funny and mostly true but you are entitled to you opinion and so is yahtzee...(No flame wars plz).

Review was LOL's like always.:razz:

[kupernikus]

I find his reviews funny and mostly true but you are entitled to you opinion and so is yahtzee...(No flame wars plz).

Review was LOL's like always.:razz:

Im just saying, when your paid to be an ass, your going to focus on that. That and Im trying to go back to enjoying games rather then judging every little aspect, If Im having fun and not throwing my controller at the screen, Im ok with it. :-) He is funny though.

[FR]

I'm just saying, when your paid to be an ass, your going to focus on that. That and I'm trying to go back to enjoying games rather then judging every little aspect, If I'm having fun and not throwing my controller at the screen, I'm OK with it. :-) He is funny though.

I thinks it's more like he's an ass that just happens to be paid to review games, No offense the man of course.:smile:

[kupernikus]

I thinks it's more like he's an ass that just happens to be paid to review games, No offense the man of course.:smile:

this could be very very true.

[JCvgluvr]

Ah yes. This one was pretty funny. Can't wait to show my friends when they come up in a couple days.

About Yahtzee being soft on Half-Life, He's personally admitted to being infatuated with Valve and its employees. He shows it well, yes?

[Kiyosuki]

Thing is, is that many of his points are sensible and even true to a point, but massively exaggerated. It's basically hyperbole, but that's part of what makes it amusing.

A lot of Yahtzee's points I think are also tongue in cheek, like a lot of Brit humor. Critically a lot of his critisisms arn't based on the individual merit or faults of a game but rather broad critisisms of how the game figures into ALL of gaming. Most of the reviews are half comprised of massive rants about the state of video games as a whole, so it's obvious he's just simply one of the many gamers out there that's just looking for too much. I highly respect his stance on welcoming variety and mixing things up in concept and story but I would hardly call him a balanced critic. But like I said before, that's not why I really watch his reviews.

Remember "The Critic"? Make Jay Sherman British and make the subject matter video games instead of movies and that's basically somewhat along the lines of the charm of Yahtzees' reviews. He's just rarely satisfied, and hearing why is very entertaining.

[cobaltstarfire]

Critically a lot of his critisisms arn't based on the individual merit or faults of a game but rather broad critisisms of how the game figures into ALL of gaming. Most of the reviews are half comprised of massive rants about the state of video games as a whole, so it's obvious he's just simply one of the many gamers out there that's just looking for too much.

Well he DID work on some games of his own (I think, maybe I'm remembering someone else). It seems like it would be normal for a game designer dude thing to be a bit pedantic about how games in general are designed.

[q-pa]

Remember "The Critic"? Make Jay Sherman British and make the subject matter video games instead of movies and that's basically somewhat along the lines of the charm of Yahtzees' reviews. He's just rarely satisfied, and hearing why is very entertaining.
"It's Bollocks!"

But in all seriousness, reading/watching a review of any kind is kind of a translation process. You decide whether you'll like it or not based on the reviewer's review, but also his/her tastes and personality.
Growing up, my local paper had like the worst movie reviewer in the world. I would literally take anything she said and turn it 180 degrees to see if i would like it or not.
(mind you i was still in high school then and still semi-into juvenile humor, but still...)

[Shadowe]

When you have a hammer everything looks like a nail, when you have an ass everything feels like shit.

[Dhsu]

Well he DID work on some games of his own (I think, maybe I'm remembering someone else). It seems like it would be normal for a game designer dude thing to be a bit pedantic about how games in general are designed.
He did the Trilby games.

[JCvgluvr]

When you have a hammer everything looks like a nail, when you have an ass everything feels like shit.

Please explain. I'm intrigued!

[herograw]

This guy really isn't that funny.

[Antipode]

That's a matter of opinion. I find him pretty funny. While it isn't like something I'd watch for comedic value it's much more entertaining and light-hearted than the average review, so I love it for that.

[RiftDoggy]

I laughed so hard during the Societies and SMG reviews that my face hurt. This guy falls into the "complete ass" subsection of game reviewers--like some of the old Seanbaby stuff from when I was a kid--but that's probably a good thing.

[Kiyosuki]

Only thing about his reviews is I can only watch a couple at a time. If I watch and listen to too much fast talking back to back I start to get a bit of a headache.

[Audity]

I loved the big computer with the mean face at the end of Crysis. Probably the funniest thing out of all of them, for some reason.

[NeoForte]

Hehe yea saw the GDC clips @ the awards show. God so hilarious. What made it even more awesome was I met the guy on Thursday unexpectedly. Was playing Rock Band at some audion booth in the "no name" parts of GDC's expo floor and he was there watching. So I says hi and ask if he wanted to play and he took the guitar and we played Black Hole Sun and was awesome. Took a pic of him afterward (couldn't get me in the shot cause he was in a hurry).

[FR]

You lucky bastard.

[q-pa]

Hehe yea saw the GDC clips @ the awards show. God so hilarious. What made it even more awesome was I met the guy on Thursday unexpectedly. Was playing Rock Band at some audion booth in the "no name" parts of GDC's expo floor and he was there watching. So I says hi and ask if he wanted to play and he took the guitar and we played Black Hole Sun and was awesome. Took a pic of him afterward (couldn't get me in the shot cause he was in a hurry).
Where are said pictures?
Some of the comments on YouTube (http://www.youtube.com/comment_servlet?all_comments&v=FA_5lJOrVVY&fromurl=/watch%3Fv%3DFA_5lJOrVVY) regarding the premiere there say that he wasn't in attendance...

Also, while browsing YouTube I found a wtf?
Be warned...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bcunKPjjjCk&feature=related

[FR]

It's his French evil twin eezthay.

[q-pa]

This week, Yahtzee presents...

Uncharted: Drake's Fortune (http://www.escapistmagazine.com/articles/view/editorials/zeropunctuation/2980-Zero-Punctuation-Uncharted-Drake-s-Fortune)!


Edit: Nice mustache ;-)

[JCvgluvr]

Wow. Didn't expect to see the man in person! On the other hand, I didn't find this one too funny. Oh well, Yahtzee's face is enough for me.

[FR]

This review made me sad.

[sephfire]

Devil May Cry 4 (http://www.escapistmagazine.com/articles/view/editorials/zeropunctuation/3001-Zero-Punctuation-Devil-May-Cry-4)

Even for Yahtzee, this is pretty darn good.

[Sindra]

He is true. I is a fangirl and I liked the pretty pretty androgyny.


However that dice game bullshit can suck a fat one. So can the repetitive revisiting. Oh, and as much as I like cut-scenes, this was fucking ridiculous.

[Antipode]

I laughed pretty hard at "awkward fanfiction-writing girls that smell like old meat".

[FR]

The review is pretty much what I said (or tried to say) in the PS3 thread.

A little lacking on the lol in this one IMO 8/10 :)

[Moseph]

"It's just pointless delays, like a hallway full of balloons."

I found this statement quite funny, largely owing to the disgusted way he says "balloons."

[JCvgluvr]

He hasn't been able to tickle my funny bone lately...Is that his fault or mine? Regardless, the last line is almost always funny!

[Manic Cinq]

Having witnessed DMC4 not too long ago, I found this one particularly hilarious. There's a lot of déjà vu in this game.

[q-pa]

This week it's...
Burnout Paradise (http://www.escapistmagazine.com/articles/view/editorials/zeropunctuation/3016-Zero-Punctuation-Burnout-Paradise)

Not the best, but I lol'd at the opening song ;-)

[Dafydd]

His voice could be funnier but he brings up some good points. I'd prefer to see Lev deliver the speech :)!!

Too bad he hasn't played any of that games I have. I'll be watching some more of these though. I hope he'll play Medieval 2 Total War... that game really deserves to be bashed to bits.

EDIT: Haha, excellent work ripping bioshock to pieces. I like this stuff so much more than positive reviews. Nothing will ever improve without critisism. I'll go play Mega Man 3 now.

[Hy Bound]

His reviews are still awesome-tastic. I haven't played Burnout Paradise, but I agree that having races based on trying to read a tiny little pixel-map while flying down and around curves at 150 mph is a tad on the retarded side. I don't really see why hes bashing the game for all the crashes though... thats kind of the whole point of the game. However, I'm only too familiar with the crash-ten-feet-before-the-finish-line-to-watch-your-first-place-go-to-5th-place poopcannon that mires Burnout 3. "Catch-up" in racing games is quite shitty.

Anywho... Awesome review as always. I've re-watched all of his reviews probably more than is healthy while I'm at work and I still can't find them to get old.

[Triad Orion]

His voice could be funnier but he brings up some good points. I'd prefer to see Lev deliver the speech :)!!

Too bad he hasn't played any of that games I have. I'll be watching some more of these though. I hope he'll play Medieval 2 Total War... that game really deserves to be bashed to bits.

EDIT: Haha, excellent work ripping bioshock to pieces. I like this stuff so much more than positive reviews. Nothing will ever improve without critisism. I'll go play Mega Man 3 now.

Well, he didn't completely rip BioShock to pieces, but he really went after the hype engine surrounding it. He had a lot of good things to say about it in the opening, but as he also said, being nice to a game doesn't get him laughs/views/whatever. He was just quick to point out BioShock's shortcomings which were advertised as advantages. I love the game, personally, but I agree that the morality in the game ends up coming up a bit shallow. I wish the ending segments to the game changed based on the stuff you do; that would've deepened the experience considerably. But part of his review comes that he was probably expecting something more than System Shock 2, which... well, is hard to do.

On a side note, I love his version of the Big Daddy. It makes me laugh.

[JCvgluvr]

This one was a little funnier then his recent reviews have been. I liked the apocalyptic DJ.

[Dafydd]

He was just quick to point out BioShock's shortcomings which were advertised as advantages.

Well, he turned the game's big selling points against it. This review would make the designers cry in their mother's lap. It's like reviewing this song (http://www.ocremix.org/remix/OCR01642/) and saying "yeah, great song, but your drum programming really really sucks" in a funny and sarcastic way and be more or less serious about it. Bring up the stuff that the creator spent the most time making and likely the most proud of, rip it apart, and the shreds will tear down whatever's still left with it as it falls. You know how magazines usually have a few pages of pictures of celebrities in their new outfits and then they rate them, like "this week's worst/best outfit", and you usually can't tell the difference between how they dress? If someone gets a really expensive outfit and is proud of it, you're expected to say "my, what a lovely dress!" even if you think it's horrible just because you know how much it means to that person that everyone thinks her dress is nice, and if you speak your mind and say it's horrible, then that person is going to cry, regardless of whether she deserved it or not.

[The Pezman]

I just watched all his videos (which I hadn't previously seen) one after another.

Not recommended.

[JCvgluvr]

Lol, yeah, that wouldn't be good. After watching more than 3, the speed of his ramblings begins to drown out the humor contained within. Too much to handle in large doses.

[The Pezman]

The worst part of it is that I'm smart enough to have realized that in advance.

I'm just really fucking bored right now.

[Solid Krono]

I just watched all his videos (which I hadn't previously seen) one after another.

Not recommended.

Really? Soon after I first found the videos, I watched all the remaining ones I hadn't seen (probably amounted to about 7 in a row,) and while I'll admit I was getting a bit tired by the end, I still found them all to be funny and entertaining. But maybe that's because I think they're ridiculously funny. Who knows.

[Raziellink]

Loved it. His last ones where not so funny, but this one breaks the spiral. :)

[mattoco]

The topic of discussion this week is Turok (http://www.escapistmagazine.com/articles/view/editorials/zeropunctuation/3040-Zero-Punctuation-Turok). Once again, the opening music is brilliant.

[q-pa]

Once again, the opening music is brilliant.
I KNEW IT!! :)!! I knew it would be that tune!

This review was above average. Especially liked his, *ahem* inspired ranting at the end.

[JCvgluvr]

Yeah, this one was good. I didn't LOL until the message at the very end (about SSBB), unfortunately.

[Triad Orion]

This week's wasn't entirely meant to be a lulz-fest, as it were. I really get the impression that Yahtzee is trying nail home these points in that they're becoming cliche. Though he inserted plenty of humor, it's pretty obvious he's serious about a good many of these points. And yeah, I agree that a lot of modern FPSes follow a little too closely in the footsteps of Halo. Sometimes it's not a bad thing, but... it's not the panecea for the genre. An example is the "take cover and wait to heal" thing works wonderfully in games like Gears of War and Call of Duty 4 where you're expected to fight from cover. For other run and gun games, I don't think the system is all that intuitive because it does remove some element of risk. BioShock, for example, is more of a run-and-gun experience and I find the game is largely enhanced by the health bar. It makes you weigh your combat situations a little more carefully before rushing headlong into things.

Interestingly of note, I was bemused when BioShock was shown in the hands of the group making the "good" game. Also, the shoutout to Metroid Prime was much appreciated. Though I was disappointed that he didn't go more into detail about the Turok game itself, save that it features a bunch of tropes he's growing to dislike rapidly. A highlight of many of his reviews is when he goes deeper into depth about a game and what he hates or likes about it. Though I suppose it doesn't matter considering it's a damn dinosaur hunting game and not something like Beyond Good and Evil.

[Bigfoot]

I so regret buying Turok. It makes watching that video more enjoyable.

[Amayirot Akago]

Thumbs up for him mentioning Exhumed and Redneck Rampage. Amusing review as always, tho I myself (luckily?) have yet to experience shitty console FPS's on account of me not owning a console (other than Wii) or a halfway decent PC.

[Moseph]

Thumbs up for him mentioning Exhumed and Redneck Rampage. Amusing review as always, tho I myself (luckily?) have yet to experience shitty console FPS's on account of me not owning a console (other than Wii) or a halfway decent PC.

No wonder you gave me a Jill of the Jungle tune for FBRC. :-D

[FR]

Ha, pugs are retarded.

This man has too much truth in him. :smile:

[Amayirot Akago]

No wonder you gave me a Jill of the Jungle tune for FBRC. :-DWell, I was obsessed with that song at the time I made that request. Nice remix by the way.

[Moseph]

Well, I was obsessed with that song at the time I made that request. Nice remix by the way.

Thanks. I may clean up the mix a little and sub it for OCR consideration.

[Dunnowhathuh]

I laughed much after he mentioned just how fucked up Australian release dates are. I forgot No More Heroes even existed until I watched this weeks review.

I know Gamespot's reputation has hit the shitter but they've interviewed Yahtzee (http://au.gamespot.com/pages/news/show_blog_entry.php?topic_id=26300119&sid=6188212&action=convert&om_clk=latestnews&tag=latestnews;title;2)

[Overflow]

Is there a new one for today? Could someone post the link?
I hope he reviews brawl...!

[FR]

Zack & Wiki (http://www.escapistmagazine.com/articles/view/editorials/zeropunctuation/3059-Zero-Punctuation-Zack-Wiki)

[Hy Bound]

I was actually kinda 'meh' on this one, which is something I never thought I'd say about one of his reviews. I'm sorry to say my interest is waning in his reviews and it makes me quite sad.

[Triad Orion]

Is there a new one for today? Could someone post the link?
I hope he reviews brawl...!

Don't bet on it for awhile. According to one of his jokes at the end credits recently, Brawl doesn't even have a confirmed Australian release date yet. Going right along with the "arbitrarily tacking months onto release dates."

Anyway, the Zack and Wiki review was a little ho-hum, though it did get me to smile a bit. Though I dunno what problems he was having. A friend of mine owns Zack and Wiki and had no trouble with the motion controls. *Shrugs*

[Bigfoot]

I was actually kinda 'meh' on this one, which is something I never thought I'd say about one of his reviews. I'm sorry to say my interest is waning in his reviews and it makes me quite sad.

It's just more funny when he rips apart a game that's very popular.

[RedFusion]

Don't bet on it for awhile. According to one of his jokes at the end credits recently, Brawl doesn't even have a confirmed Australian release date yet. Going right along with the "arbitrarily tacking months onto release dates."

Anyway, the Zack and Wiki review was a little ho-hum, though it did get me to smile a bit. Though I dunno what problems he was having. A friend of mine owns Zack and Wiki and had no trouble with the motion controls. *Shrugs*

To be honest, I hope he DOES review SSBB when it ACTUALLY comes out down here in Australia.

Then everyone in the rest of the world can go "WTF!?" at how ridiculously long it's taking for it to get released over here.

Aww, don't hate me. Heck, at least you guys CAN play the game.

[Triad Orion]

I don't understand why it takes so long to get games out there. I mean, it's not like they have to translate it much from Standard or American English. -_-

Unless your ratings board takes forever and a day to get anything done. Which I doubt, otherwise that'd be the subject of why release dates are a pain there.

[mattoco]

Having grown up on the King's Quest series...a lot of that review struck a chord with me, and I found it hilarious. I've lost count how many times I've killed Alexander in KQVI because I rubbed the wrong object out of dozen or more in my backpack against the wrong seemingly harmless, but actually quite deadly, object.

Underworld ticket-boss: "Next..."

[JCvgluvr]

His final rant in every review nearly always has me rofling!

Sand paper condom...XD

[Aninymouse]

This thread gave me something more to look forward to in my life.

Sadly.

Nice Work, Yahtzee.

[JCvgluvr]

You mean I get to update this thread with the latest video first? As a great futuristic lobster once said (I mean, will say), "What an honah!"

Here's Army of Two, as experienced by Yahtzee!:

http://www.escapistmagazine.com/articles/view/editorials/zeropunctuation/3083-Zero-Punctuation-Army-of-Two

[Hy Bound]

This review actually made me completely rethink my waning interest in ZP. Thank you Yahtzee, thank you.


...hehehe, gay jokes...

[FR]

I was gonna buy this game yesterday, and now I don't know if I should.

THANKS YAHTZEE

[sephfire]

After renting the game, I really don't think it's worth purchasing. The gameplay is nothing special, every character is obnoxious and the whole thing just feels a bit juvenile. There are dozens of better shooters you could spend your money on.

[Unstable Hamster]

Yea, this new one is funny like the first ones he had that made me start watching him. Good to see he can still pull it out and make me laugh.

I wasn't that interested in army of two to begin with, so good thing Yahtzee is there to reinforce my view on the game.

Heh, bullets as candy, what a silly idea...

[BardicKnowledge]

"Next week, more stuff you foreign bastards have probably been playing for months". Brawl, anyone?

[Hy Bound]

"Next week, more stuff you foreign bastards have probably been playing for months". Brawl, anyone?

I don't think Brawl even has a release date there yet.

[eternal Zero]

Take his last bit seriously. If any of you can play those two games one handed at the same time you better boast about it.

[q-pa]

Take his last bit seriously. If any of you can play those two games one handed at the same time you better boast about it.
You mean like this?http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-2509794034861880408

(it's a tool-assisted speedrun through 2 games at once, but still...) :-P

[Triad Orion]

...That is at the same time totally awesome and totally creepy. Tool assisted or not, it's still nuts.

[The Pezman]

Perhaps this person had their corpus collosum severed. I've been told that those who have can draw two shapes with both their hands at the same time. Left brain/right brain disconnect and all that.

[eternal Zero]

You mean like this?http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-2509794034861880408

(it's a tool-assisted speedrun through 2 games at once, but still...) :-P

That's close.

[JCvgluvr]

What...the...heck...?

I'm amazed at this person's skill, and lack of attention span. How hyper does a guy have to be to play 2 games at once just to stay entertained?! (Lol, I'm just joking, sort of.)

[friendlyHunter]

Perhaps this person had their corpus collosum severed. I've been told that those who have can draw two shapes with both their hands at the same time. Left brain/right brain disconnect and all that.

Tool assisted. You'll notice the inputs into both games are identical - like doing a tool-assisted speed-run for two games at the same time, but with one shared controller. If anything this guy has a ton of patience and a LONG attention span.

What...the...heck...?

I'm amazed at this person's skill, and lack of attention span. How hyper does a guy have to be to play 2 games at once just to stay entertained?! (Lol, I'm just joking, sort of.)

Tool assisted. You'll notice the inputs into both games are identical - like doing a tool-assisted speed-run for two games at the same time, but with one shared controller. If anything this guy has a ton of patience and a LONG attention span.


It's awesome how Sigma appears at the same time in both of them [ZOMFG SPOILERS!!!]

[eternal Zero]

Wait wait. Once more. With feeling.

Tool assisted.

[Azul v2]

But still.

[eternal Zero]

I wasn't trying to demean it. I was just making sure people won't make baseless comments when the answer they seek has been so blatantly posted.

[I-n-j-i-n]

For some reason, Army of Two has gotten a lot of funny press. EA making a game about tagteam skullfaced killers who fistpump and ride on eachothers' backs flying in parachutes. I don't think there needs to be a punchline.

[sephfire]

It would seem that No More Heroes (http://www.escapistmagazine.com/articles/view/editorials/zeropunctuation/3554-Zero-Punctuation-No-More-Heroes) has finally made it across the pond. Yahtzee has opinions.

[FR]

Now I wish I had a Wii so I could play No More Heros.

[Unstable Hamster]

I would have to say I agree that you have to grind yourself stupid at almost every turn. Yet I didn't find the mini games of picking up trash as fun though. Man, he really hates Travis Touchdown though, I didn't really hate him, I found him pretty funny sometimes. and yes, you do get the super ability's with the last guys, it turned into a law for me right around 1 hour in.
Yea, get the game, worth the story, and the sword fighting just feels right.

[Dunnowhathuh]

70% of the times I rolled a special ability, it was with the last guy on the damn screen. Yeh, gameplay in No More Heroes was pretty repetitive though for some strange reason, I didn't mind it too much.

[Effef]

He pretty much mirrors my views on this one.

[ifirit]

It would seem that No More Heroes (http://www.escapistmagazine.com/articles/view/editorials/zeropunctuation/3554-Zero-Punctuation-No-More-Heroes) has finally made it across the pond. Yahtzee has opinions.
Since the usage of the phrase "across the pond" (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Across_the_pond#Trivia) refers to mostly transatlantic travel, I'm going to assume that you meant this is a clever pun meaning "arrived in the British-born son's hands" in light of the satirical nature of the review. (And not that you forgot that he lives "down under." By the way, I've managed to consume quite a bit of liquid pretenousness today.)

[JCvgluvr]

He pretty much mirrors my views on this one.

^This, which, for me, is strange. The only think I don't quite agree with Yahtzee on is the Travis hatred. I rather like the guy, when he isn't a cussing, anime-wannabe.

His scottish impression is unexpected and full of lols.

[mattoco]

This week on Zero Punctuation, Condemned 2: Bloodshot (http://www.escapistmagazine.com/articles/view/editorials/zeropunctuation/4742-Zero-Punctuation-Condemned-2-Bloodshot) and the phrase "errant turds."

[FR]

I'm still gonna buy Condemned 2, I don't care if they fucked it up or not :(

[Bigfoot]

How is the first one?

[FR]

How is the first one?

Yahtzee is right on all accounts.

[sephfire]

I need to play the first one through all the way. I forget why I stopped, but now that I know the cop from Heroes voiced the main character, I'm double-excited to pick it up again.

Shame they replaced the actor for the sequel. :(

[JCvgluvr]

Yahtzee had some clever quips this week. I enjoyed this one.

[Hy Bound]

This one was absolutely awesome, best yet! All of his little quips were pretty flippin' hilarious.

[FR]

Super Smash Bros. Brawl (http://www.escapistmagazine.com/articles/view/editorials/zeropunctuation/4845-Zero-Punctuation-Super-Smash-Bros-Brawl) :)

[Dhsu]

Haha, Yahtzee sucks at Brawl.

Honestly I think it's even *more* fun when you can't tell what's going on. :D

[cobaltstarfire]

I guess he didn't know that you could play co-op in the story mode.

I'm a little sad that he didn't seem to really do much for this game but spew random hate with no real reason or whit, but that's probably because he didn't want to play the game in the first place. :P

[Neonlare]

I loved how he completely missed out anything actually note-worthy to talk about in that review /sarcasm.

I don't know about others, but to me it seemed like he didn't actually "play" the game, character roster and other usual stuff that comes from SSBB playthroughs and what not weren't even mentioned. Oh well :o.

[Triad Orion]

I predicted this one. Yahtzee's not exactly the type of gamer who would like this sort of game. It's painfully obvious from his No More Heroes review that he hates random things in games (in that case the random chance for a superpower when you mangle someone's face off), and considering Brawl, and Smash in general, in fact, is all about random stuff and chaos, it only stands to reason that he'd dislike that element. Also as he stated in his review, he hates basing games off their multiplayer, hence another reason why he'd hate Brawl. The game is at its strongest with four people angrily wailing the everloving snot out of each other. Moreover, other reviews shows he carries a bit of a bias against the Wii, which is perfectly fine, it's just something you have to take into account when watching his reviews for games on the consoles.

I have to be honest, this review wasn't so much a review of the game as it is a primer in Yahtzee's taste in games. Which is all fine and dandy because we get a good laugh out of it, but it's not really a reliable review for the material or qualities of the game. The only comments we get are briefly about Subspace Emissary and they're not all that deep or helpful.

Now, to be fair, he has a point about Snake and Sonic not being available from the get-go, considering how much of the hype machine they made up. Though, to bring up a counterpoint, he neglected to do his damn research to find that you can unlock Sonic, his example, in three or four different ways. Beating Classic Mode with 10 characters takes like, an hour, maybe two if you're new to the game, instead of brawling for 10 hours.

That said, his smartass remarks were still on course, so the review was still funny, if nothing else. It just wasn't one of his better ones in terms of any sort of depth.

[Skrypnyk]

uhh, his review is perfect in that he said something along the lines of:

if you like smash before, you'll like it now.

if you haven't heard of smash/never liked it, this isn't really going to change your opinion.

What more can you say to that? The people interested in the game already own it, and the people uninterested don't really care what you have to say.

[Effef]

Gametraders Robina

[Mr. Bottle Rocket]

uhh, his review is perfect in that he said something along the lines of:

if you like smash before, you'll like it now.

if you haven't heard of smash/never liked it, this isn't really going to change your opinion.

What more can you say to that? The people interested in the game already own it, and the people uninterested don't really care what you have to say.

QFT & QFE
Seriously.

[Unstable Hamster]

I'm not going to spat out hate for Yahtzee, I love him too much. I do love that game though, but I can see where he's coming from.

He's right on the unlocking characters thing.

He's right on the single player being way too much of the same levels.

And my hatred for Nintendo is par with his on them not bringing over mother 3 (those cocksuckers, They keep the good games for themselves...)

[cobaltstarfire]

I don't particularly mind the review. I had however, been looking forward to him reviewing brawl because oddly enough I like hearing games I enjoy get hit by a scathing overly sarcastic/witty review. I'm disapointed because he put out scathing without really much wit/sarcasm, or even reason beyound "I hate this sort of game".

At the same time I realize it's not his fault cause it's just not his sort of game to play, most of the stuff he hates about it are (as he admitted himself) are the things most fans of the game love about it.

So mostly a "meh" review as he gets it out of his way so the fans will stop harassing him.

[yangfeili]

if you like smash before, you'll like it now.

I guess I'm in the odd position of being someone who liked the series before but has unexpectedly grown bored with Brawl very quickly. Whereas we used to do all-day Melee-fests, with Brawl I often find myself doing just a few rounds, and then listlessly dragging my cursor across the character select screen thinking "Who do I want to play as now? Ehhhhh... nobody, really."

It might help if we turn off Final Smashes. We've all agreed that with each passing round they are inching closer and closer to being permanently disabled. Likewise, more and more of the stages are getting turned off in the stage select, almost always by unanimous agreement...

[PlastikBag]

While I understand that he's not really into games like SSBB, this weeks review generally wasn't very funny =/

[JCvgluvr]

Eh, this isn't up to his usual quality of reviews.

Humorwise, it was "eh". No clever quips, and one semi-funny running gag with Gametraders Robina.

Serious criticism-wise, he didn't really have many validated points with which to unload his hatred against. Was he serious when he groaned about hidden characters in the roster? Replay value is a central mechanic to any game, and there's nothing more enticing than hidden characters.

Furthermore, he played it with the completely wrong crowd. They all had never played a Smash game before? How could they properly appreciate the game, when they had no nostalgia nor past love for the characters and settings? That's SSB's prime point of interest! That's like me going to the Superbowl, and I've never played a game of football in my life! What good is that?

He just created a pit of negativity between him and the other guys at Guy's house. It probably went something like this between the four of them.

"Oh bloody hell, look at all the kiddy s**t in this game. Where's that blue wanker, Sonic! I want to beat his speedy arse with that whimsical plumber! Wait, why the f*** am I flying away?! This game is bollucks!"

With no proper way to enjoy the characters, stages, or fighting mechanics, none of them had fun, so none of them could honestly recommend the game. Games like these depend of the fun they let you and your friends have together. The memories you create between the 2, 3, 4, or more of you. Yatzee's particular environment didn't promote any of this. Its a major flaw. I'm not saying its his fault, or that he should have found a Nintendo fanboy's house and played it there. I'm just saying I can understand where he's getting all the petty negativity.

On the other hand, his annoyance with the Subspace Emissary is more spot on. Still, I think its far more enjoyable then he gives it credit for.

This was probably the only review he did that left me unsatisfied, and even a little angry. Maybe I'm one of those fanboys who he referred to?

*Pushes up glasses from the tip of his nose*

[I-n-j-i-n]

No, he's right on some points especially with the audience. It's either the hardcore crowd that knows the material or the idiots who jumps in for the shits and giggles who never played half the games referenced.

[zircon]

Humorwise, it was "eh". No clever quips, and one semi-funny running gag with Gametraders Robina.

This gag made me laugh out loud IRL. Awesome.

[Bigfoot]

No, he's right on some points especially with the audience. It's either the hardcore crowd that knows the material or the idiots who jumps in for the shits and giggles who never played half the games referenced.

Shall we post this image again? :P

http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t14/lorenith/which.png

[friendlyHunter]

Add a third cloud for "this game is eating shit waffles".

His review/rant was kind of... meh...... "You made me waste time playing and reviewing this game and now I'm bitter and I'm wasted your time by making you watch this not-very-funny review, and I know that if you love the game and have already played it then this isn't going to change your opinion one bit and so the only bit of new information you're going to get out of this review is Gametraders Robina."

[Wipomatic]

The people interested in the game already own it

Not if you live in europe and don't import :(

[Brushfire]

Gametraders Robina!!

[StandingInMotion]

A bunch of stuff

I'm going to have to politely disagree with this point. I feel that playing the actual games in which these characters star is what gives you the sense of nostalgia and all that. I've not played a SSB until this one, and I enjoyed it, only because I was already familiar with most of the characters and their backstories... You can't get all of the characters' histories from a game like this, and I feel the true nostalgia and appreciation lies with the games featuring these characters in their own worlds.

But that may just be a point where we see things differently

[Hy Bound]

I don't hate the review; its not his best, and is certainly a hard act to follow after his awesome condemned review. However, I would have to agree that he really didn't play it, dare i say... correctly. SSB on all platforms has been a party-oriented, multi-player game. Playing it on single player is probably one of the least fun games I've played. At least in the past versions; it steps it up in this iteration though. And going over to a friend's house who doesn't seem to enjoy that kind of thing anyway is basically shooting yourself in your uninterested foot.

On the other hand, I can very honestly say that I am by no means privy to Nintendo games of old, being as the Wii is the first Nintendo console I've owned and I really can't get into either Zelda or Metroid Prime. That being said, I've always loved the SSB games and have had some of the best multi-player experiences with a group of friends that enjoy SSB as much as I do. I don't go into it for the nostalgia, and I still enjoy it quite a bit. The simple, yet deep 'two button' scheme SSB uses makes the game so accessible, yet still so fun after such a long time.

Basically, I think if he would have gone into it not knowing what to think, instead of knowing he would hate it he would have given it a higher recommendation. It kinda seems like he's one of those guys who condemns his favorite band after it sells half a million albums for "selling out" and becoming popular.

[FR]

Reason why this review made me ROFL: Seeing a fellow hater(SSB hater...Well more like non-understander of why people enjoy this game(s) so much) hate on shit people like and their reaction to said hate makes me lol :)

[Effef]

Shall we post this image again? :P

http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t14/lorenith/which.png

Can I be both of these?

[Dunnowhathuh]

I would've been surprised if he didn't bash SSBB actually, he just seems like the type to do so haha. In the meantime, I'll wait for the Australian release of the game on the.....oh wait, AUSTRALIA HASN'T GOT A FUCKING RELEASE DATE FOR THE DAMN GAME YET (other than a vague "June 2008" that is). Though I'd guess it'd be after the European June 27 date. I'm surprised I haven't Freeloader'd the bitch yet.

[Jaybell]

Yahtzee, too, is filled with rage at Nintendo for not releasing Mother 3 here. I am thus okay with him not liking brawl.

[FuriousFure]

yeah, i think one of the reasons why the humor just didn't connect like usual would be that he just wasn't into it.
like if he has a drive to destroy a game because he hates it the jokes will be more effective.

he didn't hate it nor did he love it, he just didn't care about that game...

[Vivi22]

Furthermore, he played it with the completely wrong crowd. They all had never played a Smash game before? How could they properly appreciate the game, when they had no nostalgia nor past love for the characters and settings? That's SSB's prime point of interest! That's like me going to the Superbowl, and I've never played a game of football in my life! What good is that?

I personally think his criticism of the game was dead on, particularly when he complained about the gameplay. I'm convinced to this day that people only care about playing Smash Bros. because they want to live out a fanboy wet dream to see Mario beat down Link and Sonic at the same time. The gameplay isn't that deep, or entertaining for me, and I have trouble getting past that to enjoy the gimmick of characters that should never meet, fight each other.

That out of the way, I find your comment here puzzling. Not being able to properly enjoy SSBB because they hadn't played a Smash game before? If anything, the nostalgia would come from having played the Mario, Zelda, Sonic, etc. games of yore, not playing a prior Smash game. If the game required you to have nostalgic feelings about prior Smash games to enjoy it then something is very wrong with it.

[friendlyHunter]

I honestly think that although Brawl might be easier to pick up than Melee, it's still a LOT harder to pick up than the original SSB64. I can see how someone who's never grown up with SSB64 would dislike Brawl - heck, I didn't ENJOY playing Brawl for the first couple hours, but after I finally got the hang of it and stopped missing 90% of my attacks, it was pretty fun.

Most "party games" are easy to just pick up and play for complete newbs. While SSB64 might fall into this category of games that can be picked up with no prior experience, I think Melee and Brawl certainly do not. To enjoy Brawl, you need at least SOME prior Smash Bros. experience - which means it might be inaccurate to call it a "party game". 4 experienced Goldeneye players can have a ton of fun playing multiplayer Goldeneye together, but does that make it a party game??

One thing that Brawl, and Smash Bros. in general certainly is NOT is a button-mashing fighter - which is why I particularly disagree with his view of the game. Yeah, I'm being a whiner and looking waaaay too deep into this but... it's not a button-mashing fighter!!! :puppyeyes: Which may be exactly WHY it's tough to pick up for complete newbies, and exactly WHY you need to be one of "them" to truly enjoy it. I'd argue that it only takes a few days to "become" one of "them" (either a few multiplayer outings, or a couple days of owning the game), but... whatever, if Yahtzee doesn't want to give some amazing games a chance, that's his problem. Although, if he doesn't have any Smash-playing friends or relatives, I can't blame him.


Nostalgia?? Bah- the gameplay has nothing to do with nostalgia or retro Nintendo characters... at least for me.

[PuRe-eViL]

Gametraders Robina!!

My girlfriend and I were like "WTF?!" when that was mentioned in the video.

Why, you ask?

Because we live right down the bloody road from Robina where we do our groceries (and I insist on checking every game shop for bargains). That being said, Gametraders is a rip-off >_> but they're the only place here that'll import games.

It was just freaky to here a place that we go to regularly get mentioned in something in(ternet)famous.

[JCvgluvr]

I personally think his criticism of the game was dead on, particularly when he complained about the gameplay. I'm convinced to this day that people only care about playing Smash Bros. because they want to live out a fanboy wet dream to see Mario beat down Link and Sonic at the same time. The gameplay isn't that deep, or entertaining for me, and I have trouble getting past that to enjoy the gimmick of characters that should never meet, fight each other.

That out of the way, I find your comment here puzzling. Not being able to properly enjoy SSBB because they hadn't played a Smash game before? If anything, the nostalgia would come from having played the Mario, Zelda, Sonic, etc. games of yore, not playing a prior Smash game. If the game required you to have nostalgic feelings about prior Smash games to enjoy it then something is very wrong with it.

Vivi, perhaps this can clear up what I was trying to say:

I honestly think that although Brawl might be easier to pick up than Melee, it's still a LOT harder to pick up than the original SSB64. I can see how someone who's never grown up with SSB64 would dislike Brawl - heck, I didn't ENJOY playing Brawl for the first couple hours, but after I finally got the hang of it and stopped missing 90% of my attacks, it was pretty fun.

Most "party games" are easy to just pick up and play for complete newbs. While SSB64 might fall into this category of games that can be picked up with no prior experience, I think Melee and Brawl certainly do not. To enjoy Brawl, you need at least SOME prior Smash Bros. experience - which means it might be inaccurate to call it a "party game". 4 experienced Goldeneye players can have a ton of fun playing multiplayer Goldeneye together, but does that make it a party game??

One thing that Brawl, and Smash Bros. in general certainly is NOT is a button-mashing fighter - which is why I particularly disagree with his view of the game. Yeah, I'm being a whiner and looking waaaay too deep into this but... it's not a button-mashing fighter!!! :puppyeyes: Which may be exactly WHY it's tough to pick up for complete newbies, and exactly WHY you need to be one of "them" to truly enjoy it. I'd argue that it only takes a few days to "become" one of "them" (either a few multiplayer outings, or a couple days of owning the game), but... whatever, if Yahtzee doesn't want to give some amazing games a chance, that's his problem. Although, if he doesn't have any Smash-playing friends or relatives, I can't blame him.

I'm quite relieved to see that one poster (friendlyHunter) understands where I'm coming from.

[PhiJayy]

Most "party games" are easy to just pick up and play for complete newbs. While SSB64 might fall into this category of games that can be picked up with no prior experience, I think Melee and Brawl certainly do not.

Very true. Super Smash Bros. Brawl definitely requires more experience than the previous two, even for me and I play the older versions religously.

Brawl is more strategy-type which kills the idea of "button-mashers"

[Dhsu]

My girlfriend and I were like "WTF?!" when that was mentioned in the video.

Why, you ask?

Because we live right down the bloody road from Robina where we do our groceries (and I insist on checking every game shop for bargains). That being said, Gametraders is a rip-off >_> but they're the only place here that'll import games.

It was just freaky to here a place that we go to regularly get mentioned in something in(ternet)famous.
You should invite Yahtzee to the next Aussie OCR meetup. :D