Another good year for games has come to an end. Some people would say that this one was even better than the last, but i am not one of them. Still, in a year that saw the release of GTA IV, LittleBigPlanet, Fallout 3, Metal Gear Solid 4, Left 4 Dead, Fable II, Far Cry 2, Lost Odyssey, Valkyria Chronicles and so many, many more excellent games how can one complain.

There I was, minding my own business determined to devote gaming time to FIFA09, BIA:HH and Hotel Dusk. "No more games until one of them is finished (that excludes FIFA of course). That’s my decision and I am sticking to it."

That is what i said.

But there is only so much a man like me, a respectable professional,  can endure. Eurogamer’s reviewer gave it and 9 and in his final paragraph says

When a game incorporates a physics engine to a game should it go all the way and apply it in the entirety of the game? If it cannot do so should it add at all?

These are two questions I have been asking myself this past week as I am making headway in Gearbox's Brothers In Arms: Hell's Highway. The game introduces destructible cover for the first time in the series. This destructibility varies depending on whether it is sandbags, brick or wood. You and your squad mates can only stay behind soft cover lying around in the battlefield for only a short time before it is completely destroyed. It adds an element of realism which also increases the factors to consider when making tactical decisions in the battlefield. That’s a good thing.

I wake up every morning with one thing in mind. To beat that Deadline score. I have to beat that score. I dream of pixels of all colours and of techno music. It's at the top of my daily to do list. It's been there for 2 weeks now but still not crossed out as "DONE!". I curse my slow reflexes for not avoiding those small pink ones. I am disgusted with my poor execution of tactics during the 3 minute session. I am disappointed at how i cave in to pressure when i am so close to beating it and making history. Something always makes me steer away from my pre-game plan i formed inside my head the previous night. A gate most likely. Yeah, a gate. My oasis in that Sahara desert. That late winning goal in the 90th minute. I just got to go through that gate. With dire consequences....And those black holes..... I can see my demise right through them and that of my controller as i want to throw it up against the wall in frustration.

That is how my life has changed. Frustrated and feeling inadequate. Nothing else matters. Just one thing.

To beat that score.....

Nintendo fans, and in particular Super Smash Bros Brawl fans, have been making war on Yahtzee after his review of the game. This is his response to all the "constructive" criticism he has been receiving.