Digital Video Producer, YouTube/Twitch Personality, Web Journalist, Sports Fan & Lover of Many Things
EA Sports and EA Vancouver finally, at long last, have shown the masses what their next-gen hockey experience will be like with two gameplay videos for NHL 15. They’ve left little to the imagination, as the videos display the game’s new presentation, authentic arenas, crowds, graphics, commentary, collision physics, equipment layers, puck physics and more.
Being a huge proponent of both hockey and video games — and having watched the videos several times over — I decided to analyze all the changes that will be coming in NHL 15. If you haven’t seen the videos, I’ve embedded them at the bottom of this post.
It’s been a good long while since I’ve delved into my blog here to post my own musings, so I’ve decided to keep my writing skills sharp this weekend by providing another entry. Whereas most of my discussions and articles talk about wrestling and games, here I’m going to delve into a subject that falls into the “many things” category of the headline on the top of this blog’s page.
Just four hours ago, I emerged from a movie theater having watched Amazing Spider-Man 2. Going in, I was full of worry and doubt despite my appreciation and satisfaction with the first installment of this rebooted wall crawler film saga. Critics were trashing it for issues such as villain clutter and the dichotomy between Spider-Man and Peter Parker. What I should have realized then, and do now having watched the film firsthand, is that these complaints were mostly either unfounded or the critics just don’t seem to fully grasp the history and essence of Spider-Man.
Quite contrary to these critics, I found the film to be a perfect representation of both Peter Parker himself and the world in which he lives and has lived in throughout his long comic book run. I’ll break down exactly what I enjoyed about it and why below. But be warned, you are entering spoiler territory from here on out.
As those of you may or may not have noticed, I’ve recently been less active on both GamerNode and my own Twitter account in regards to videogame content. There’s a specific reason for that, and I’ve waited until today to let you all know why.
I’m not going to lie when it comes to my historical feelings towards the VGAs. Like many on the Internet, I’ve felt that the show has slowly degraded itself into a preview-fest littered with celebrity guests that have nothing to do with the medium aside from playing games on their couches. I even used GamerNode as an outlet back in 2010 to vent my frustrations on the event’s constant failure to meet its potential.
This year it seems that Spike, Geoff Keighley, and the rest of the gang behind the VGAs are starting to get the message. In a radical change of course, the awards show has now been relabeled VGX (For what reasons the X needed to replace the A, I’m befuddled over.) and went from a large, Oscars-like stage event to a no-audience set presentation. Though of course gamers on the Web and throughout the Twittershpere have still lobbed complaints at the way the show was run – some of it valid, some of it not – I’ll say that this was actually a stride in the right direction for the show. Far from perfect, but on the right track.
Today I have officially embarked upon a new venture as a video game journalist and fan. Spawned from the fun times I’ve been having with friends online during my Co-Op Node livestream sessions, I’ve started up a brand new YouTube channel and created a new video series!
As of today, I’ve officially joined up with my fellow GamerNode pals to take part in Extra Life, a charity event and organization intended to raise money for Children’s Miracle Network hospitals through gaming marathons. The main event is November 2nd, but I’ll be doing mine a week early on October 26th.
On that day, I’ll be playing games for 25 hours straight, from 8 a.m. Saturday to 9 a.m. Sunday. I’ll be streaming the marathon on my Twitch channel as well to help raise support and awareness for the event. My gaming will likely have a broad range and I’ll be actively engaging with anyone in the chat and taking suggestions, so be sure to tune in and be a part of it!
My goal is to hit $350 personally on the way to GamerNode’s $1,500 goal. All of my proceeds are going to the Marie Fareri Children’s Hospital at Westchester Medical Center in Valhalla, NY. To lend me a hand through a one-time or monthly donation, just follow the link below to my Extra Life page and find out how in my description.
Thanks for the support everyone! Let’s raise some money and help out some kids in need!
This week I was able to get my hands on the NHL 14 demo, which didn’t offer a ton of content but gave a brief glimpse at some of the new features coming to this year’s installment of the long-running franchise. Of these features, one surprised me and fixed what I found to be one of the most boring and unauthentic parts of the entire game: Fighting.
As many of you lovely gamers are aware, there’s this little game by Naughty Dog called The Last of Us that’s been out for a while and causing one heck of a discussion. The title’s being considered by many for Game of the Year, and the ending is something of a shocker to most — if not all — who’ve completed it. The following are my thoughts on the game and the ending specifically, so obviously here is a spoiler warning in case you haven’t witnessed it yourself. I’ll even put it in bold words after this paragraph to show I mean business.
*SPOILER WARNING! The plot of The Last of Us — specifically the ending — is broken down and analyzed here. Don’t read further if you intend to finish the game and haven’t yet!*
This year will be the fourth-straight E3 that I will be attending. All of them with GamerNode; all of them a ton of fun. However, this one has left me more excited than perhaps even my first.
In 2010, I got to enjoy my first E3 ever: experiencing Los Angeles, the convention center, booths, games, pressers, parties, and everything in-between. I was so overwhelmed with joy that it was like being a kid in a candy store, to steal that overused cliché.
When I returned in 2011, it was my first trip as a veteran — even one that had admittedly at the time become a bit jaded — and 2012 was my first E3 where I was on camera. Granted it was smartphone cameras and done via livestream for an attempt to give viewers a true all-access experience, but it was a first for me, GamerNode, and — as far as I know — game journalism as a whole.
That said, all of these firsts don’t fully compare to the one that will be occurring at E3 2013: A new console generation in full swing. This is not intended to slight the Wii U, but at E3 2012 it was just one system, one console maker, focused on next-gen. Now we have the Wii U gearing up for its first full year with the new hardware released, while Sony and Microsoft rev up the hype machines for the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One. Each company will be kicking it into high gear and bringing its A-game in an attempt to control the beginning of this new cycle.
Mike Murphy 
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