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Gaming with Gil - Ep. 7
Video gaming news from Bakotopialand's resident expert - BIGGER AND DEFFER EDITION!

By Gamestor Gil, Bakotopia.com contributor

In March of 2003, as the United States were wrestling with war plans to invade Iraq, to dispose of Saddam Hussein and his regime, EA (Electronic Arts) Video Games was getting ready to attack urban America with a unique fighting underground wrestling game of their own — it was called Def Jam: Vendetta.

Many of you “guys” remember this game. It was a professional wrestling video game that combined hip hop with pro wrestling. It was released for the PlayStation 2 and GameCube on March 3, 2003. It featured Rap artists like: DMX, Ludacris, Method Man, Funkmaster Flex, for example. It was a sensational hit!

In the fall of 2004, EA Scored again with its sequel Def Jam: Fight for N.Y.  This time they made a hip hop-influenced 3D fighting game, featuring Snoop Dogg, Busta Rhymes and Ice T (to name a few). This again set sales records for this genre.

In 2006, they repeated this successful phenomenon on the PSP ( Playstation Portable) with: “ Def Jam Fight for N.Y: The Take Over. It was another hit! IGN was quoted saying “impressive,” giving it an 8.1 out of 10. In March of 2007, the “gravy train” finally stopped, with its third edition release Def Jam: Icon ( PS3-Xbox 360).

The gaming public has shown general disdain for this game, especially from fans of the previous two titles. Sales were lackluster, and given the high development budget, it was a great monetary loss for EA. There is speculation that the game’s poor sales were almost directly responsible for the closing of the EA Chicago studio.

In the fall of 2005, 50 Cent threw in his hat and tried to cash in on the hip-hop video game “cash-cow” craze created by the earlier Def Jam series.

His game was called 50 Cent: Bullet Proof. It fizzled out quickly. Gamespot rated a 4.8/10 and IGN gave it a 6.5/10. But it has sold millions of copies world-wide, as of 2008.

Come November, 50 Cent roars back with his self titled 50 Cent: Blood On The Sand.

As you can imagine, the hip-hop culture has — and will continue to have — its say on the video game scene.
Notice the upcoming PSP game coming on Aug. 26 (see below) — yes, another hip-hop influenced video game. I believe they are here to stay!

WHAT'S COMING UP!

• Release date Aug. 25: Mario Super Sluggers (Wii).
• Release date Aug. 26: B-Boy (PSP). This hip-hop themed dancing game will let you battle against real-life superstar b-boys such as Crazy Legs, Kamel, and Mouse; Tales of Vesperia (X360); Vampire Rain: Altered Species (PS3); Disgaea 3: Absence of Justice (PS3); Tiger Woods PGA TOUR 09 X360; Harvest Moon: Island of Happiness (DS); Digimon World Championship (DS).

Week of Aug. 31

• Release date Aug. 31: Mercenaries 2: World in Flames X360
• Release date Sept. 1: Infinite Undiscovery X360
• Release date Sept. 2: Viva Pinata: Trouble in Paradise X360
• Release date Sept. 3: NFL Head Coach ’09 X360

• Gamestor Gil can also be heard live Tuesday mornings on KRAB 106.1 FM with Meathead, Rocky Nash and Francis at 9 a.m.

E-mail feedback, questions and comments to: gil@gamestor.com with“Bakotopia” in the subject line.

Gamestor (East Hills Mall) - 661-871-7900

Story also printed in Bakotopia magazine, issue 35, 8-21-08