There's less than 3 months left, folks! How're we doing?!?

[Glockstar]

Only 88 days until 2004! How's your "shopping list" look?!?
We getting it whittled down any? Or we have not yet even begun to buy?!?

I for one... am starting to feel "the stress", already!
I kow that that 3 months/88 days translates into 12.5 weeks...
but my list is not getting any shorter! AAARRGHHH!!!

I mean, just look at this... LOOK AT THIS... !

Oct. 8... Viewtiful Joe (Yes, VJ is back on the list. I just played the demo at the GameCrazy again tonite... and well... the game is too good to take a chance/wait for it to come to XBox!)

Oct. 15... Jak II (Damned Joe! The folks over at GameCrazy just gave me a playable demo of Jak II to take home and play... but now I'm actually (almost) hoping that the game will suck! Forget about the funds... I've got no time for both Jak and Joe! Especially not with the next two games coming out the following week!) [1]

Oct. 22 (a)... Crimson Skies ('Nuff said!) [2]
Oct. 22 (b)... Music Mixer (No... not for karaoke! For Custom Soundtracks, man! Well... and maybe for parties too. ;) ) [3]

The next two have just, officially, been scratched off... but they are still noteworthy:

Oct. 28 (a)... Gladius (Damn... I just can not shake that feeling... the feeling that I am really going to be missing out on something here.)
Oct. 28 (b)... Grabbed By The Ghoulies (!!! Finally, the game that everyone's been waiting... to bash!!! Can I reserve a copy to rent?)

Nov. 4... Project Gotham Racing 2 (I'd say that this is another no brainer, eh?!? But one thing... how did it get ahead of SegaGT Online - as far as release dates??? If this is right, then the game better be finished right... and not rushed... that's all I have to say!) [4]

See...

Nov. 11 (a)... Ratchet & Clank: Going Commando (I haven't seen much on this game to tell the truth... because I don't need too!) [5]
Nov. 11 (b)... Links 2004 (Hoping. Hoping. Hoping. *fingers crossed* Hoping...) [6]

...this is #@$%ing BS, man!

Nov. 18... Metal Arms: Glitch In The System (Like VJ, this is on here because of a playable demo. This game is... sa-hah-weeet! But, I'm starting to hate playable demos!) [7]

Ahhhh. A couple of weeks off! (?)

Dec. 2... Deus Ex 2: Invisible War (I want it... I consider it to be just about a must have... but... if it comes down to it, between this game and the following... then... sorry, but...)

Dec. 5... Ninja Gaiden (!!! :D !!! Just as long as it's finished (and by that I mean, completed proper!)... !!! :D ) [8]

8 games in 88 days!

I need a vacation.

---
P.S. You see why I'm not upset about Halo2, Fable, Sudeki, Starcraft Ghost, or DOA Online being pushed back, now!?!

[Renzatic Gear]

Dayum! 88 days til 2004. It seems just like yesterday that I was celebrating New Years 2003....this year has flown by quicker than 10 of em.

Anyway, my big list is still in waiting in the wings and most of the games I'm really looking forward to aren't coming out for a couple of months at least.

Sword of Mana-Woot! December 2nd.

Deus Ex 2-Ohhh! December.

Half-Life 2: WAHT TEH HELL! It was supposed to be out 5 days ago! Where is it?

Thief 3: So close, yet so far away.

STALKER: Vague Q2 release date. I want it now DAMNIT!

Ninja Gaiden: lol, I'm almost hoping it doesn't make it's December release date. That way I won't feel rushed to get an Xbox.

Fable: It's gonna be cool when it comes out..but when it comes out is the big question.

Resident Evil 4: Hey, I still like the RE games. They might be a little old and overdone but they're still fun.

Metroid Prime 2: Gimme a freelook option and I'll consider it one of the best games ever. Another vague release.

2004 is gonna be epic for my gametime. I'm gonna be waiting awhile for some of these titles though, but I think they'll be worth it.

Edit: Oh yeah! Forgot about Viewtiful Joe. If there is any one game that screams sleeper hit it's this one. I played the demo a few days back and was floored by how cool it was. The main character might look like a Kid Kornbizkit but I won't hold it against the game. Cool stuff.

[slade]

My list:

Gamecube
Viewtiful Joe: This was always the game I wanted most of the Capcom five because it was 2d. After the demo, I knew I had to have this game. Currently, my preorder for this game is prepaid in full and I'll have it either October 7 or October 8.

Gotcha Force: Powerstone with robots, that best describes this game. I hope it's as fun as Powerstone 2 was as a party game. Apparently, you can combine two or more robots together to make a new robot.

The next few games are rentals which might become worthy of buying once I evaluate them.

Prince of Persia: I've read a lot of good things about this game and well, the videos convinced me. Hopefully, it won't fall into the pitfalls Shinobi and other action/adventure games have fallen into in the past.

Metal Arms: Halo mixed in with Ratchet and Clank. The only reservation I have so far about this game are the controls as I never liked Halo's controls and adjusting them to the GC is going to be a bit hard.

Sphinx and the Cursed Mummy: Not really sure about this title anymore. I haven't seen anything on it for a while but its still got my eye.

Playstation 2
Jak 2: Definite buy, although with VJ coming out before, I might get to it a bit late.

Castlevania: This game keeps jumping off and on my list of must buy titles. At this point, I'm just gonna wait for the reviews to roll in.

R&C2: Read above about Castlevania. With so many other platformers coming out, I'm not sure about this anymore.

Maximo and the Army of Zin: Definite buy.

Bloody Roar 4: Definite buy although I'll wait a bit for the price to drop.

SNK vs. Capcom SVC Chaos: Definite buy although I'm looking forward to Guilty Gear Isuka and Sammy vs. Capcom more.

[E.T.]

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Half-Life 2: WAHT TEH HELL! It was supposed to be out 5 days ago! Where is it?
</div>

re: HL2 official push pack on ETA:
http://www.shacknews.com/onearticle.x/28497

I doubt you'll be surprised RG ;)

[Glockstar]

Well my list needs amending already.

Mainly because I left off a couple of things...
but also because I'm scratching a game off and putting it on my "to rent list" (and won't you be surprised to find out which one?).

First off, I forgot to put on Super Mario Advance 4 (Super Mario Bros. 3)! (Maybe because it's another game that's scheduled to come out on Oct. 22 - and I'm already frustrated about that?!?) The multi-player aspects of this game are the kicker. Particularly the fact that 4 people/GBAs can play off of one cartridge!

Though not games, I must mention...
The Matrix Reloaded DVD (in stores Oct. 14)
and The Matrix Revolutions (in theatres Nov. 5)
...!!! :D

Now for the good news... :confused:
After playing the demo... I'm scratching Jak II of off my must buy list.
Don't get me wrong the game looked quite good... it's just that I didn't care for some of the changes that they implemented. Though most of it has stayed the same. I'll try to explain:
The demo comes with two playable levels - both quite different from one another - and the full trailer. If any of you are interested in this game I strongly reccomend that you get off your duff today and head over to your favorite vg retailer to see if they don't have one more of these demos to give to you!

It seems to me that the Jak and Daxter franchise is "growing up", or being aimed at more "mature" audiences. And it also seems to be heading away from the platformer genre into action/adventure. There is a heavy emphasis on guns in this game! Yes, guns! They are now Jaks primary method of attack. Yet despite the added firepower (and I should add that the aiming mechanism/controls are very good)... this game is hard as a MFer!!!

None of this translates into anything reallybad, by themselves... it's just that... it's not what I'm looking for, in the middle of October, 2004 - if you catch my drift.

[Renzatic Gear]

re: HL2 official push pack on ETA:
http://www.shacknews.com/onearticle.x/28497

I doubt you'll be surprised RG ;)

I already knew about it...but it doesn't give me any comfort when I think that the original release date was scheduled for Sept. 30th. According to other sources I've read the game is all but finished, but was delayed due to Valve wanting to get STEAM off the ground beforehand.

And I can't believe I forgot about Prince of Persia! There's another game I'm really looking forward to, I loved the original game (played it first on the SNES) and this one looks to be taking a similar approach.

[slade]

I've got to just amend my list and add in one more title: I-Ninja. It's another game I'm looking forward to but in the end, it's going to come down to either I-Ninja, R&C2 or Metal Arms, I think, when I'm considering getting another platformer after Jak 2.

["The Game"Evolution]

<div class=\"smallfont\"><div class=\"smallfont\"></div>

re: HL2 official push pack on ETA:
http://www.shacknews.com/onearticle.x/28497

I doubt you'll be surprised RG ;)</div>

Half-Life 2 is definately in the top 10 must have list for 2004 for me.I hope this is the last delay on it.

[Rogue Bounty Hunter]

My list has changed quite a bit with all of the delays. Fortunately, I will still have a good Holiday 2003 Gaming season.

My List:

PS2

Jak II - Glockstar's mention of how the demo plays makes me want the game even more.

Castlevania: Lament of Innocence- I saw a 5 minute demo of this game at Gamestop. It looks like it will play better than I thought. I hope they get a good amount of polish on the game before it is released, and isn't a rushed game overall.

Xbox

Ninja Gaiden- Unless this one is delayed again, I will be picking this one up.

True Crime: Streets of LA - The only problems I have read about this game was the gun aiming and the driving controls. Hopefully they will iron out these problems with the September-to-November release delay. If not, I should be able to return it if it is crap, unless the store changes its policy.

Maybe/Maybe not, depending on final reviews

Legacy of Kain: Defiance - Enjoyed both Blood Omen and Soul Reaver series, but want to see how this one turns out.

Spawn: Armageddon(I think that's the name) - Spawn's games have been a crapfest. Even with Namco developing this one, I'm still not 100% sold.

Prince of Persia - More than likely, I will wait on this one. It hasn't hit the interest level as much, probably because the Dreamcast's Prince Of Persia sucked.

My 2004 list so far:

Cy Girls
Halo 2
MGS3
Fable
B.C.
Starcraft: Ghost
Splinter Cell: Pandora Tomorrow
Black 9
MGS: Twin Snakes
FF: Crystal Chronicles

[Glockstar]

<div class=\"smallfont\">[My List:

PS2

Jak II - Glockstar's mention of how the demo plays makes me want the game even more.
</div>

You will let us know what you think of it, won't you, RBH?!?

[Rogue Bounty Hunter]

<div class=\"smallfont\"><div class=\"smallfont\"></div>

You will let us know what you think of it, won't you, RBH?!?</div>

Definitely. If not tomorrow, then the day after, so I can get enough gametime to give a decent impression of the game.