quite awhile. I really don't think that FFXIII is going to be the game to reignite that flame, and it is kinda bumming me out that I would rather sit down and plug in my PS2 than even toy with the thought of getting something new.

Don't get me wrong, I like a lot fo what Western companies have been doing recently. I loved Mass Effect 2 even if the ending was kind of a bust, and with some polish the new Fallout series could change gaming in big way.

But still, I'm a sucker for Japanese "gamey" game design. I really *crag*ing love Bayonetta even if it isn't as engauging as a lot of other games. Bayonetta's problem lies entirely in the non-game aspects. When ti comes to gameplay, it just cannot be *crag*ing beat.

The last time I remember enjoying a game completely and in all aspects was Persona 4. That was just a bitchin' ass mother *crag*ing game.

I'm really starting to think that the industry is suffering as a whole from the shooter obssession. Every *crag*ing studio is making a shooter, no one is triyng anything new outside of small stage venues like XBLA and Steam.

I can understand why of course, but no progress is going to be made if we keep making the same *crag*ing games over and over. Sure there is the aspects of scale and characterization that a first person perspective can bring, but I think games like Persona and Mass Effect have proven you can have those same experiences without zooming in.

Sure you'll always have your odd Batman or Dragon Age, but it's a far cry from resestablishing the genres.

Let's look at what the, arguably, the best games of the last two years were.For most people, those were Metal Gear Solid 4, Grand Theft Auto 4, Uncharted 2, Modern Warfare 2, and some less frequent praise towards Batman Arkham Asylum. One of the five is not a shooter (Batman), and the only other one that couldn't technically be categorized into the Shooter genre (MGS4) focused on the shooting aspects above all else in terms of gameplay.

Come to think of it, MGS4 was probably the last time people really ralleyed around a Japaense game.

Look, my point is that this shit is just getting stale.

I'm sure I'm the only one who shares this view though, so whatever I don't really care.