On Monday I finished my last exam. This has been a long time coming and now I finally have time to do the things I want to do. Like play Minecraft guilt free and till 3AM.
Also I don't know if some of you have noticed but Bethesda has released the newest game in the Elder Scrolls series, Skyrim. While sounding more like an uncomfortable sexual position rather than a highly anticipated video game I decided it was about time I started playing Oblivion. Then I remembered I gave it to a friend of mine for safekeeping while I did my exams. What was I to do? Instead of giving it too much thought I just went back to playing Minecraft.
Yes folks, about a week or so ago Minecraft went into full release. Or went 'gold' so to speak. To be honest I'm just glad they brought back creative mode. So now I can build my giant fortresses without being bothered by trivial things like gravity and exploding green penises.
Anyway I'm going to keep this one short this week because I'm too busy discovering things to do with my new found freedom. Like watch re-runs of Stargate Atlantis.
Till next week when I have something better prepared. Like that Splinter cell review I said I'd do ages ago.
Showing posts with label gamefreak431. Show all posts
Showing posts with label gamefreak431. Show all posts
Wednesday, November 23, 2011
Wednesday, November 16, 2011
OPINION: Developers Aren't Punching Bags.
As exams are still eating my life this weeks post is from Elizabeth Danger. She is a freelance journalist who writes for Level 3 and Save Game Online. Thanks for stepping in Liz. I owe you one.
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I was looking at the BioWare Social Network forums yesterday, and among the shame-filled ocean of creepy topics about Tali and what her sweat would smell like (and the accompanying fan-made chemical formulas,) I noticed how much criticism the direction of the third game is getting from its own fans.
While I tend to avoid the BSN forums like a plague unless something awesome goes down (such as David Gaider standing up for gay romance options in Dragon Age 2), I found myself thinking about the fandom circles I do participate in. While small and more of a social circle than anything else, I can't help but again notice how damned harsh we are on a game that isn't even completed yet.
I've done a little bit of reflection on this matter and I have to admit I'm guilty as charged. But why? Why is it that I'm so passionate about this game being a success? Why am I so obsessed with it being the perfect game?
Probably because I'm so emotionally attached to it.
Say what you will about BioWare, but they know how to pull you in and not let go of you. BioWare is one of those developers that writes characters so well-rounded and interesting that you find yourself tempted to delve into the world of fanfiction just to fill the void once you've finished the game. DA2 may have been extremely flawed in its gameplay and even execution -- for the record, I didn't think it was awful, but I tend to roll mage, and not much has changed in that class -- but it still caused me to cry during its more tender moments.
Some complain that Mass Effect 2 shoved off their favourite characters and feel ripped off, which in itself is testament to how well those characters were written in the first place, but I found the story and characters so enthralling that I actually didn't leave my apartment for two days to play it. Okay, that might be lack of responsibility. Maybe.
When a series causes people to become so emotionally attached to the characters and the story itself, you can't really be surprised when the fans get very protective of something they love. It's not new, either. We all remember how the Star Wars community reacted to the changes that were made to the Blu-Ray release; a few more alterations and I'm sure they would have been ready to storm Lucas Ranch with torches and pitchforks. On a smaller scale, there was outrage that 'Bananas in Pyjamas,' a show most of us haven't actively watched in about a decade, had made the change to 3D animation. So of course, you can imagine the reaction the Mass Effect community has every time there's a whisper of change.
Again, though, I think I may have been too harsh on BioWare. Sometimes we forget that behind all the poorly thought out marketing moves and morally questionable forum moderation, there's still a developer with heart that gives us some really good games. Fans, I think, sometimes forget that BioWare is the developer who gave them the games they love so much in the first place. BioWare developers take chances and experiment, and if they hadn't, you wouldn't have had the game you so desperately defend at every corner now as though it's your child and the 'mainstream' AAA game market is some kind of enraged bear.
Surely, if these guys gave us a game that we take so much joy from playing, we can at least give them the respect they deserve and trust them with the third installment. I can remember fans being almost as sceptical about the second installment and look what we wound up getting! Sure, Dragon Age 2 wasn't the best game it could be, but comparing any Dragon Age games to any games in the Mass Effect series is like comparing apples to oranges.
My parents like to tell me this joke, which I think is more wise than funny. A man is driving in a rural area, and one of his tires goes flat. He pulls over and realises that he's left his tyre-jack in his garage at home. He remembers seeing a house a few miles back, so he sets off on foot to ask if they have one he can borrow. He walks for a few minutes and thinks to himself 'lucky thing that house is in walking distance at all! This will be easy, I'll just ask him for a jack, change my tyre, drive back and return it.'
A few minutes pass. 'I hope he doesn't think I'm going to steal it,' he thinks to himself. 'It shouldn't take long, hopefully he's okay with it.' He continues walking, and he keeps envisioning the situation. 'Oh man, what if he's in the middle of dinner with his family or he's fixing his own car? He's gonna be really angry with me if he is.' He can see the house in the distance now. 'Shit. He's going to be really rude to me and probably ask me for money or something. I can see it now.'
He gets closer and closer to the house, only a few minutes away. 'He's gonna shout at me!' He thinks to himself. 'No, he's gonna full on abuse me for asking a stranger for a favor! What an asshole! I can't believe it! I'm only asking to borrow something and he's not going to help me out for no reason at all, and be rude to boot!'
Eventually, the man arrives at the house and knocks on the door. An elderly man comes to the door, and before he can even say hello, the first man shouts "Stick that jack up your ass!" and storms off.
This is what fans, including myself, seem to do. We spend so much time convincing ourselves that games are going to be terrible that by the time they're released, we already genuinely believe they're just awful when in fact we should be excited about these releases.
I guess what I'm trying to ask fans to do here is to essentially cool their jets and take a step back. I know it's a big ask and it's probably like politely asking a fire to not engulf one's home, but I really don't like seeing people be so harsh and sometimes borderline abusive about something that isn't really up to them in the end. Maybe knowing that BioWare does take community feedback into account like it does has gone to a few heads and given a false sense of privilege. Maybe it's just a case of the most vocal being the most crazy. But I've actually never seen a community get almost offended by the concept of change like this. We need to start giving developers credit where it's due, I think, and this goes for any game series.
So, BioWare, I'm sorry. I'm sorry for every time I flipped my shit at you over the concept of multiplayer (which I'm pretty excited about right now, to be honest). I'm sorry for nitpicking over changes to the squad lineup; I'm sure you've got it written in a way that will leave me just as pleased as I would be if Thane were a part of it. I'm especially sorry for losing my cool over things that haven't even been confirmed to be true. I'm going to try and save my outrage mode for after I've gotten my hands on the game.
It's BioWare's game just as much as it's the fan's experience. Mass Effect 2 was a great game, and I think the best thanks we can give them is to let them finish the series as according to their own vision.
Unless they kill off Garrus.
Then they can go to hell.
Wednesday, November 9, 2011
Free speech - the dilemma
I origionally posted this on my personal blog (where I just talk about non-gaming stuff, yes it does happen) and I thought it was relavent to post here.
I can't remember who said it (some french bloke I think around the time of the first revolution) but the saying is 'I disagree with what you say but I'll die for your right to say it.' I take that saying very seriously and as annoying as it has been sometimes, I've stuck to it.
Recently a very good friend of mine has come under fire for putting forth her opinion on an ad she found offensive. She stated her reasons and put forth logical and convincing arguments. To which in return she gets called a fat hairy lesbian among other horrible things. Oh and death threats, can't forget about the death threats. Now this is the kind of stuff I'd expect on 4Chan (A.K.A the arsehole of the internet) but not in the civilized parts of the world wide web.
I like to think that gamers are rather tolerant people. With games like Mass Effect where you work with (and if you are so inclined get freaky with) aliens how could you not. I still like to think that gamers as a whole are, but of course there are idiots in every bunch. It's these people that are making me question my belief in free speech. On one hand these people should not be allowed to say this kind of stuff, let alone be allowed to breed, but on the other hand they are well within their rights to say it. I'm feeling really conflicted on this issue and it is something that weighs heavily on my mind.
I feel like I should do something but what? I suppose all I can do is say 'hey... stop that, not cool dude.'
Actually I think I can.
There's nothing wrong with debate. Matter of fact it's great. Its how ideas are formed and forged and allow for people to think on a subject in a deep and significant way. But how are you making any kind of intellectual contribution by simply calling someone a fat hairy lesbian? If you disagree, fine but put forth an argument and make your reasons tangible. If you can read, spell and you are familiar with how to use a computer then it would stand to reason that you can make a counter-point. Because by just name calling you just make yourself look stupid. Like you're too stupid to enunciate how you feel about the subject.
There's nothing wrong with debate. Matter of fact it's great. Its how ideas are formed and forged and allow for people to think on a subject in a deep and significant way. But how are you making any kind of intellectual contribution by simply calling someone a fat hairy lesbian? If you disagree, fine but put forth an argument and make your reasons tangible. If you can read, spell and you are familiar with how to use a computer then it would stand to reason that you can make a counter-point. Because by just name calling you just make yourself look stupid. Like you're too stupid to enunciate how you feel about the subject.
Think before you type.
Till next week, peace.
Till next week, peace.
Wednesday, October 5, 2011
From the vault: What I Think of Modern Warfare 2
While in the Call of duty swing I thought I'd share with you all my thoughts of Modern Warfare 2. Also it was the first review I ever wrote so it has sentimental value. That and this is the only article left that OzBoxLive has decided to credit me for.
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 (or just modern warfare 2) was the most hotly anticipated game of 2009. Its creators Infinity Ward and Activision said it was to deliver us the best first-person action game since Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare. But it wasn’t.
I don’t hate the game, but it could have been better. The story was a disappointment. The plot itself is good but it’s a major anti-climax. Very little actually happened. The story asks tons of questions and answers very little. It’s that I’m annoyed about. I was ticked off when I finished the campaign. Without going into detail, Modern Warfare 2 takes place five years after Call Of Duty 4 and it’s up to Soap and Task force 141 to fight a new bad guy called Makarov. If you can’t remember what happened in Call Of Duty 4 the first cut scene gives you a quick recap.
Game play is awesome! It’s classic Call of Duty 4 game play with a few additions. Modern Warfare 2 has new weapons like the ACR and the AUG HBAR. Attachments make a comeback and show up on all the weapons in a variety of combinations. Some of the new ones include a thermal sight and a heartbeat sensor.
The Vehicles are not just cover in Modern Warfare 2, in some missions you get to drive or be driven about the map. The rest of the missions are fun and are set in locations throughout the world including a shantytown in Brazil, the deserts of Afghanistan and Washington D.C.
The attention to detail in Modern Warfare 2 is insane. Modern Warfare 2 spares nothing, right down to the paintings in the White house. It’s that kind of detail that just makes the game so beautiful to play. The guns look good and the small shockwave that is made after firing a round is a nice touch.
The sound is now more realistic than any game made before it. The AK’s sound like AK’s and the voice acting is fantastic. The Russians sound like Russians and the British are British. Normally in American games the accents let them down because Americans can’t tell them apart but in Modern Warfare 2 they’ve nailed it. The whole game is given a musical score that rivals any Hollywood production. It’s amazing; I wish I could get it on my iPod.
The game is given a longer playtime by adding a total game completion bar. This means to get 100% completion you must finish the game on all difficulties, find all pieces of enemy intelligence that look like laptops, finish the Special ops challenges and achieve the highest rank in multiplayer which is a new feature for Modern Warfare 2.
It should be noted that there is a level where it asks if you want to skip the level due to the “disturbing content.” You are not penalized in achievements or game completion for skipping the mission but you do miss out on a part of the story. What you do in this level is shoot innocent civilians in a Russian airport.
Modern Warfare 2 has fantastic graphics and sound along with the classic Call of Duty game play we all love. It’s the story that lets the whole game down but if you take it with a pinch of salt you’ll have fun. Modern Warfare 2 is a game best played with friends over Xbox Live or in split screen.
6 out of 10
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 (or just modern warfare 2) was the most hotly anticipated game of 2009. Its creators Infinity Ward and Activision said it was to deliver us the best first-person action game since Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare. But it wasn’t.
I don’t hate the game, but it could have been better. The story was a disappointment. The plot itself is good but it’s a major anti-climax. Very little actually happened. The story asks tons of questions and answers very little. It’s that I’m annoyed about. I was ticked off when I finished the campaign. Without going into detail, Modern Warfare 2 takes place five years after Call Of Duty 4 and it’s up to Soap and Task force 141 to fight a new bad guy called Makarov. If you can’t remember what happened in Call Of Duty 4 the first cut scene gives you a quick recap.
Game play is awesome! It’s classic Call of Duty 4 game play with a few additions. Modern Warfare 2 has new weapons like the ACR and the AUG HBAR. Attachments make a comeback and show up on all the weapons in a variety of combinations. Some of the new ones include a thermal sight and a heartbeat sensor.
The Vehicles are not just cover in Modern Warfare 2, in some missions you get to drive or be driven about the map. The rest of the missions are fun and are set in locations throughout the world including a shantytown in Brazil, the deserts of Afghanistan and Washington D.C.
The attention to detail in Modern Warfare 2 is insane. Modern Warfare 2 spares nothing, right down to the paintings in the White house. It’s that kind of detail that just makes the game so beautiful to play. The guns look good and the small shockwave that is made after firing a round is a nice touch.
The sound is now more realistic than any game made before it. The AK’s sound like AK’s and the voice acting is fantastic. The Russians sound like Russians and the British are British. Normally in American games the accents let them down because Americans can’t tell them apart but in Modern Warfare 2 they’ve nailed it. The whole game is given a musical score that rivals any Hollywood production. It’s amazing; I wish I could get it on my iPod.
The game is given a longer playtime by adding a total game completion bar. This means to get 100% completion you must finish the game on all difficulties, find all pieces of enemy intelligence that look like laptops, finish the Special ops challenges and achieve the highest rank in multiplayer which is a new feature for Modern Warfare 2.
It should be noted that there is a level where it asks if you want to skip the level due to the “disturbing content.” You are not penalized in achievements or game completion for skipping the mission but you do miss out on a part of the story. What you do in this level is shoot innocent civilians in a Russian airport.
Modern Warfare 2 has fantastic graphics and sound along with the classic Call of Duty game play we all love. It’s the story that lets the whole game down but if you take it with a pinch of salt you’ll have fun. Modern Warfare 2 is a game best played with friends over Xbox Live or in split screen.
6 out of 10
Wednesday, September 28, 2011
Modern Warfare 3 achievement list revealed.
Modern Warfare 3 is out November 8 and for those of you itching to see what you need to do to get that gamerscore below is the complete list of achievements. Reading through the list there are achievements for both the single player campaign and Spec Ops mode but no multiplayer ones. Maybe Infinity ward are confident that players need no further encouragement to play online and I don't blame them.
*WARNING: SPOILER ALERT* The single player achievements go into quite a bit of detail about the games story line so if you want a spoiler free experience then just skip past the first 20 odd achievements on the list and read the rest.
- Back in the Fight - 5G: Start the Single Player Campaign on any difficulty.
- Too Big to Fail - 10G: Destroy the Jamming Tower. Complete "Black Tuesday" on any difficulty.
- Wet Work - 10G: Take back New York Harbor. Complete "Hunter Killer" on any difficulty.
- Carpe Diem- 10G: Escape the mountain safe house. Complete "Persona Non Grata" on any difficulty.
- Frequent Flyer - 10G: Defend the Russian President. Complete "Turbulence" on any difficulty.
- Up to No Good - 10G: Infiltrate the village. Complete "Back on the Grid" on any difficulty.
- One Way Ticket - 10G: Make it to Westminster. Complete "Mind the Gap" on any difficulty.
- Welcome to WW3 - 10G: Save the US Vice President. Complete "Goalpost" on any difficulty.
- Sandstorm! - 10G: Assault the shipping company. Complete "Return to Sender" on any difficulty.
- Back Seat Driver - 10G: Track down Volk. Complete "Bag and Drag" on any difficulty.
- We'll Always Have Paris - 10G: Escape Paris with Volk. Complete "Iron Lady" on any difficulty.
- Vive la Révolution! - 10G: Reach the church. Complete "Eye of the Storm" on any difficulty.
- Requiem - 10G: Escape the city. Complete "Blood Brothers" on any difficulty.
- Storm the Castle - 10G: Discover Makarov's next move. Complete "Stronghold" on any difficulty.
- Bad First Date - 10G: Find the girl. Complete "Scorched Earth" on any difficulty.
- Diamond in the Rough - 10G: Rescue the Russian President. Complete "Down the Rabbit Hole" on any difficulty.
- The Big Apple - 25G: Complete "Black Tuesday" and "Hunter Killer" on Veteran difficulty.
- Out of the Frying Pan... - 25G: Complete "Persona Non Grata", "Turbulence", and "Back on the Grid" on Veteran difficulty.
- Payback - 25G: Complete "Mind the Gap", "Goalpost", and "Return to Sender" on Veteran difficulty.
- City of Lights - 25G: Complete "Bag and Drag" and "Iron Lady" on Veteran difficulty.
- The Darkest Hour - 25G: Complete "Eye of the Storm", "Blood Brothers", and "Stronghold" on Veteran difficulty.
- This is the End - 25G: Complete "Scorched Earth", "Down the Rabbit Hole", and "Dust to Dust" on Veteran difficulty.
- Who Dares Wins - 40G: Complete the campaign on any difficulty.
- The Best of the Best - 100G: Complete the campaign on Hardened or Veteran difficulty.
- Strike! - 20G: Kill 5 enemies with a single grenade in Single Player or Special Ops.
- Jack the Ripper - 20G: Melee 5 enemies in a row in Single Player or Special Ops.
- Informant - 20G: Collect 22 Intel Items.
- Scout Leader - 35G: Collect 46 Intel Items.
- This Is My Boomstick - 20G: Kill 30 enemies with the XM25 in "Black Tuesday."
- What Goes Up... - 20G: Destroy all the choppers with only the UGV's grenade launcher in "Persona Non Grata."
- For Whom the Shell Tolls - 20G: Destroy all targets during the mortar sequence with only 4 shells in "Back on the Grid."
- Kill Box - 20G: Kill 20 enemies with the Chopper Gunner in a single run in "Return to Sender."
- Danger Close - 20G: Take down a chopper with an AC-130 smoke grenade in "Bag and Drag."
- Ménage à Trois - 20G: Destroy 3 tanks with a single 105mm shot in "Iron Lady.")
- Nein - 20G: Kill 9 enemies with A-10 strafing runs in "Scorched Earth."
- 50/50 - 20G: Complete a Special Ops Mission Mode game with the same number of kills as your partner.
- Birdie - 20G: Kill 2 enemy helicopters without getting hit in a Special Ops Survival game.
- Serrated Edge - 15: Finish a Juggernaut with a knife in Special Ops.
- Arms Dealer - 20G: Buy all items from the Survival Weapon Armory.
- Danger Zone - 20G: Buy all items from the Survival Air Support Armory.
- Defense Spending - 20G: Buy all items from the Survival Equipment Armory.
- Get Rich or Die Trying - 25G: Have $50,000 current balance in a Special Ops Survival game.
- I Live - 10G: Survive 1 wave in a Special Ops Survival game.
- Survivor - 20G: Reach Wave 10 in each mission of Special Ops Survival mode.
- Unstoppable - 40G: Reach Wave 15 in each mission of Special Ops Survival mode.
- No Assistance Required - 20G: Complete a Special Ops Mission Mode game on Hardened or Veteran with no player getting downed.
- Brag Rags - 10G: Earn 1 star in Special Ops Mission Mode.
- Tactician - 20G: Earn 1 star in each mission of Special Ops Mission Mode.
- Overachiever - 40G: Earn 48 stars in Special Ops Mission Mode.
- Secret Achievement - 20G: Continue playing to unlock this secret achievement.
The modern warfare games (as much as I have bitched about them in the past ) I reckon are the best in the Call of Duty series. Then again the Modern Warfare games have had to compete with World at War and Black Ops. Which are good in the same way you praise a toddler for using the potty. So I'm really looking forward to MW3.
Wednesday, September 14, 2011
Retro review: Bushido Blade
For those of you who follow me on twitter you will have noticed this week lots of my tweets have had the hashtag #BushidoBlade in them. In that case you will know that I LOVE THIS GAME! Bushido Blade is a PS1 title brought out by Squaresoft. Yes, you read correctly, Bushido blade is one of the few titles Squaresoft made that didn't include the words Final Fantasy anywhere.
That being said I was quite surprised that I was able to finish the story modes of all 6 characters, on hard difficulty, in less than an hour. Then again Bushido Blade is a fighting game and not an RPG. Each characters story follows the same path with minor variations here and there. They all belong to a secret group of assassins that want to escape their life of doing assassin stuff for something that never really gets explained. Probably a quiet and peaceful existence or something like that. Only after reading the Wikipedia entry on the game did I realize that Bushido Blade is set in contemporary Japan. Then again that does explain the fight on a helipad up on a skyscraper.
Bushido Blade is very unforgiving, one slip up and you're gone. This would usually put me off a fighting game but for some reason as of the last few months I've been getting into them. Bushido Blade just struck a chord with me. Unlike most fighters there is no health bar and it's one hit kills, provided you hit the chest or neck. If you hit the legs or arms you can wound your opponent. Limiting how they move and the speed at which they attack. The controls are very simple to learn and you can start playing rather quickly. I had the controls worked out in 45 minutes and was fighting against my mates within an hour. From the basic controls which are very powerful and various in their own right one can expand ones fighting capabilities by performing combos. These combos not only differ from character to character but also change depending on what weapon you use as well. There are a variety of weapons from the traditional katana to a sledge hammer. The same weapon will be handled differently by two characters because some weapons are heaver than others and certain characters are better equipped to use heavier weapons. The trade off being that heaver weapons do more damage and their chance to hit ratio is high but at the cost of speed and agility. I don't know if it's because by PS2 controllers are old but the reaction time between imputing a combo and it happening on the screen is visible. Meaning that you really need to think one or two moves ahead to do well in this game.
Aside from a story mode there is one called slash mode where you basically have to carve your way through a hundred sword wielding maniacs. Unless you can do so without dying there is no reward for doing so. I spent many an afternoon trying and at about 30 kills or so I'd just miss or my timing would be slightly off and I'd get killed. Another mode is called POV mode. Instead of playing the game at the traditional side on view the game is played from a first person perspective. At first this is really confusing because the movement controls are mostly the same as normal. After a few minutes you get used to it and it makes the game more challenging. While on the subject of challenging this game is super easy. Even on hard difficulty the games A.I will not have you working a sweat to win. So anything that makes the game more challenging is a plus.
There is really no user interface to speak of. Then again you don't really need it. Without it the whole game looks very cinematic and makes the graphics seem better than they are. It's a PS1 title meaning the graphics are not great to begin with. Squaresoft working their 'we make games look pretty' magic on them has made it slightly better but it was never going to win any awards for them. Still reckon for that generation the Nintendo 64 had better graphics by a mile.
Although I have been playing the English version of the game all the voices are in Japanese with subtitles. Except for each characters opening cutscene which is in English. As well as the voice acting being Japanese the opening video for the game has all the credits (at least I think they're credits) in Japanese. Thankfully the menus are in English making menu navigation possible. The whole point of the game is to fight in the way of the Bushido but the music just makes you want to hack and slash like its God of War. But this issue with the music is only the western release of the game. My mate has the Japanese version and the music in that is much more fitting. It's all traditional Japanese music that is reminiscent of feudal Japan with samurai running about.
Multiplayer mode is why you play the rest of the game. So that you are good enough to fight your mates. This is a good game to have at a party with all your retro gaming mates. Fights here can last as little as 2 seconds or as much as 30 minutes. If you have a mate with a PS1, a copy of the game and a way to link two PS1 consoles together you can actually LAN Bushido Blade. This is so that people can fight each other in POV mode. Haven't tried the LAN feature out so I don't know how good it is but I'm really looking forward to finding out. That is when I can find another western copy of the game.
This game is hard to find in shops so you're better off looking for it on eBay. The copy i have was only $5 AUD. Or if you have a PS3 you can get it on PSN really cheap. I had a lot of fun playing Bushido Blade and it is going to do so well into the future. This is a game that has so far stood the test of time and I think will last far into the future.
9 out of 10
Wednesday, September 7, 2011
Retro review: Duke Nukem - Manhattan Project
These past few weeks I've been laid up in bed with the flu. Because of this I haven't been able to get any new (or old games) games to play and review. So I've been going through my collection and I stumbled across this. One of the last games made before the decade long development of Duke Nukem Forever.
The story is quite basic but that's expected when playing a Duke Nukem game. New York City is under threat by some cyborg nut-bag professor that has pig cops and kung-fu rats running amok and its up to Duke to save the world...again. To achieve this Duke has to travel across the big apple kicking arse and chewing bubble gum. Sersiously simple.
Duke Nukem - Manhattan Project brings back the classic side-scrolling platform gameplay were used to and brought it into the 21st century. With 3D (as in not 8-bit, none of this jumping out of the screen crap) graphics that really bring the arse kicking to life. However this does make navagating a bit tricky at times. DN-MP isn't as straight forward as press right arrow key, hold down fire key, win game. While much of the game will involve holding down either the left or right arrow keys, occasionally jumping to get to higher areas, at least once throughout a level you will have to move along the Z-axis to access the next part of the level. An in game prompt will inform you when you've reached a place that requires this, when exploring the map these are not always obvious. I remember passing several of these from time to time and getting stuck in a level for ages while I retraced my steps. To reach the end of a level you'll need to find a keycard hidden somewhere in that level. Its worth going to the exit without a one to hear the Duke talk about his hatred for motherfu*#%ng keycards. The game gets a little repetitive as much of it is just looking around for the keycard then exiting the level. While to try and distract you from this apparent truth DN-MP has you searching for scantly clad women strapped to nuclear devices
There are a variety of weapons to be picked up throughout the game. But because most of them use the same type of ammo (how shotguns can fire the same type of ammunition as a light machine gun I'll never know) you'll end up sticking with the shotgun as it wastes the least ammo. Only once in the game did I need to change weapons to the RPG and that was to blast down a door I couldn't reach with pipe bombs.
As far as platform games go, even by today's standards, the graphics still hold up. It's really smooth up close but as soon as you catch a glimpse of the background you can really see how old the game is. Its the classic stretched out image tiled with an obvious cut line. Remembering this game came out in 2002, draw distances were still a really fancy piece of technology that nobody could afford and just made games look like they were set in places that were really foggy.
Music was very standard for a Duke Nukem title. Heavy metal music interspersed with Heavy metal. Not that this is a complaint. It gets you in the mood for arse kicking. The music does what it needs to do. Not a distraction but just blends in and when it needs to will make itself apparent. But most of the time there will be too much gun fire to hear it anyway.
At the end of the day I finished the game in an afternoon and if Duke Nukem forever pissed you off too much and you can't find your copy of Duke Nukem 3D this one is good for a few hours of entertainment. But as fun as DN-MP is it is quite apparant this was the beginning of the end for the Duke. For us console fans (A.K.A real gamers) it is available on Xbox Live arcade.
6 out of 10
The story is quite basic but that's expected when playing a Duke Nukem game. New York City is under threat by some cyborg nut-bag professor that has pig cops and kung-fu rats running amok and its up to Duke to save the world...again. To achieve this Duke has to travel across the big apple kicking arse and chewing bubble gum. Sersiously simple.
Duke Nukem - Manhattan Project brings back the classic side-scrolling platform gameplay were used to and brought it into the 21st century. With 3D (as in not 8-bit, none of this jumping out of the screen crap) graphics that really bring the arse kicking to life. However this does make navagating a bit tricky at times. DN-MP isn't as straight forward as press right arrow key, hold down fire key, win game. While much of the game will involve holding down either the left or right arrow keys, occasionally jumping to get to higher areas, at least once throughout a level you will have to move along the Z-axis to access the next part of the level. An in game prompt will inform you when you've reached a place that requires this, when exploring the map these are not always obvious. I remember passing several of these from time to time and getting stuck in a level for ages while I retraced my steps. To reach the end of a level you'll need to find a keycard hidden somewhere in that level. Its worth going to the exit without a one to hear the Duke talk about his hatred for motherfu*#%ng keycards. The game gets a little repetitive as much of it is just looking around for the keycard then exiting the level. While to try and distract you from this apparent truth DN-MP has you searching for scantly clad women strapped to nuclear devices
There are a variety of weapons to be picked up throughout the game. But because most of them use the same type of ammo (how shotguns can fire the same type of ammunition as a light machine gun I'll never know) you'll end up sticking with the shotgun as it wastes the least ammo. Only once in the game did I need to change weapons to the RPG and that was to blast down a door I couldn't reach with pipe bombs.
As far as platform games go, even by today's standards, the graphics still hold up. It's really smooth up close but as soon as you catch a glimpse of the background you can really see how old the game is. Its the classic stretched out image tiled with an obvious cut line. Remembering this game came out in 2002, draw distances were still a really fancy piece of technology that nobody could afford and just made games look like they were set in places that were really foggy.
Music was very standard for a Duke Nukem title. Heavy metal music interspersed with Heavy metal. Not that this is a complaint. It gets you in the mood for arse kicking. The music does what it needs to do. Not a distraction but just blends in and when it needs to will make itself apparent. But most of the time there will be too much gun fire to hear it anyway.
At the end of the day I finished the game in an afternoon and if Duke Nukem forever pissed you off too much and you can't find your copy of Duke Nukem 3D this one is good for a few hours of entertainment. But as fun as DN-MP is it is quite apparant this was the beginning of the end for the Duke. For us console fans (A.K.A real gamers) it is available on Xbox Live arcade.
6 out of 10
Wednesday, August 24, 2011
Details about Battlefield 3 released
This week EA has released a fact sheet containing what is going to appear within the game. Below is the fact sheet highlighting some of the details about what weapons, vehicles and maps will appear in the game. I'd speculate more on it but I have the flu and reading is giving me a headache at the moment. But comment below and tell me how excited are you for Battlefield 3 and what features are you looking forward to appearing in game?
KEY FEATURES
Play Your Way In the Biggest Battlefield Ever! From city streets to open rural landscapes, Battlefield 3 offers unparalleled depth and gameplay variety. Classic ‘Rush’ and ‘Conquest’ modes are complemented by newly introduced ‘Team Death Match’ for an instant action fix.
Extensive Co-op Campaign: Unique maps and missions are available for players to tackle online with a friend, using co-op specific gameplay features. Co-op missions tie into the single player story.
Powerful Social Features in Battlelog: Players will never go into battle alone thanks to the powerful new community features of Battlelog. Players can build their platoon, communicate with other gamers, and compare their multiplayer prowess with friends and foes alike. Battlelog is free on all platforms.
Frostbite 2-Enabled Destruction: Frostbite 2 creates a whole new level of life-like destruction. Enhanced large and small scale destruction now has a tactical purpose. Chip away at cover, blow holes in walls, deform the terrain, and bring down entire building façades on enemies.
Keep reading to see the rest of the Battlefield 3 multiplayer fact sheet.
Ultimate Vehicle Warfare: The signature Battlefield vehicle warfare experience is even richer and more rewarding. Damaged vehicles can now retreat or be defended until they automatically regain armor, while disabled vehicles become static gun platforms to cover players doing repairs.
Accessible Team-Play: Battlefield 3 offers fine-tuned team-play possibilities and accessibility for newcomers. Team-play is key for players to reach dominance on the battlefield.
Personalized Dog Tags: Players can express their individuality with their own dog tag that gets displayed to defeated enemies. Players choose a design with a dynamically tracked in-game stat that expresses their personality and play-style.
The Physical Battlefield: Use the environment to your advantage. Deploy your machine gun bipods on any mountable surface for greater accuracy. Claim the dog tag of enemies via skillful knife takedowns. Lay down suppressive fire to limit the combat capabilities of enemies.
Enhanced Persistence: There is always a new rank or reward to unlock in Battlefield 3. The depth and vast range of unlockable weapons, vehicles, upgrades, and tools will keep Battlefield 3 players occupied for years to come.
THE CLASSES
Assault
Recon
Support
Engineer
THE MULTIPLAYER MAPS
9 total including:
Caspian Border
Operation Métro
THE GAME MODES
Conquest
Conquest 64 (PC only)
Rush
Team Deathmatch
Squad Deathmatch
Squad Rush
THE RIBBONS AND MEDALS
There will be close to 100 ribbons and medals in BF3
THE DOG TAG CUSTOMIZATIONS
More than 350 personalized dogtags including:
Rush Ribbon
Recon Service Star
40mm Master
BF2 Veteran
Battlefield 3 will be released on October 25, 2011.
KEY FEATURES
Play Your Way In the Biggest Battlefield Ever! From city streets to open rural landscapes, Battlefield 3 offers unparalleled depth and gameplay variety. Classic ‘Rush’ and ‘Conquest’ modes are complemented by newly introduced ‘Team Death Match’ for an instant action fix.
Extensive Co-op Campaign: Unique maps and missions are available for players to tackle online with a friend, using co-op specific gameplay features. Co-op missions tie into the single player story.
Powerful Social Features in Battlelog: Players will never go into battle alone thanks to the powerful new community features of Battlelog. Players can build their platoon, communicate with other gamers, and compare their multiplayer prowess with friends and foes alike. Battlelog is free on all platforms.
Frostbite 2-Enabled Destruction: Frostbite 2 creates a whole new level of life-like destruction. Enhanced large and small scale destruction now has a tactical purpose. Chip away at cover, blow holes in walls, deform the terrain, and bring down entire building façades on enemies.
Keep reading to see the rest of the Battlefield 3 multiplayer fact sheet.
Ultimate Vehicle Warfare: The signature Battlefield vehicle warfare experience is even richer and more rewarding. Damaged vehicles can now retreat or be defended until they automatically regain armor, while disabled vehicles become static gun platforms to cover players doing repairs.
Accessible Team-Play: Battlefield 3 offers fine-tuned team-play possibilities and accessibility for newcomers. Team-play is key for players to reach dominance on the battlefield.
Personalized Dog Tags: Players can express their individuality with their own dog tag that gets displayed to defeated enemies. Players choose a design with a dynamically tracked in-game stat that expresses their personality and play-style.
The Physical Battlefield: Use the environment to your advantage. Deploy your machine gun bipods on any mountable surface for greater accuracy. Claim the dog tag of enemies via skillful knife takedowns. Lay down suppressive fire to limit the combat capabilities of enemies.
Enhanced Persistence: There is always a new rank or reward to unlock in Battlefield 3. The depth and vast range of unlockable weapons, vehicles, upgrades, and tools will keep Battlefield 3 players occupied for years to come.
THE CLASSES
Assault
Recon
Support
Engineer
THE MULTIPLAYER MAPS
9 total including:
Caspian Border
Operation Métro
THE GAME MODES
Conquest
Conquest 64 (PC only)
Rush
Team Deathmatch
Squad Deathmatch
Squad Rush
THE RIBBONS AND MEDALS
There will be close to 100 ribbons and medals in BF3
THE DOG TAG CUSTOMIZATIONS
More than 350 personalized dogtags including:
Rush Ribbon
Recon Service Star
40mm Master
BF2 Veteran
Battlefield 3 will be released on October 25, 2011.
Wednesday, August 17, 2011
Has Team Fortress 2 changed since becoming free to play?
Recently the popular FPS from Valve Team Fortress 2 has been made free to play on Steam. This of course has increased the number of players on its servers and made it easier to find a game but is the game better off for it?
For Valve making the game free means that their revenue source for TF2 will be from people making in game purchases of weapon sets or clothing. While many of these items are cheap (some as low as 50 cents) the large increase of people will mean that Valve's profit margins will not take a hit. The game before going free had been in a steady decline in terms of its player base. more or less because players who had bought the game were growing tired of it and had moved onto other games.
Team Fortress 2 will be four years old in october, its had a good run and for any game to last this long and still be popular is quite an achievement. Usually at about this time in a games life the developer would be well into making the next game in the series or will slowly stop supporting the game on their servers. So to see it go free to play tells us that Valve love the game but given that there have been no announcements as to a Team Fortress 3 it seems that the company are trying to milk TF2 for all its got. But to extend the life of a game does not make it better.
Over the past week (as many of you know) I've been asking you readers what you think of TF2 going free and if it has made the game better or worse. The responce I got was massive. I was so surprised at how many people had messaged me on facebook and Google+, sent me a Dm on twitter or emailed me with your thoughts on this game. Before even reading them this told me a lot. Team Fortress is popular and while its player base was shrinking the amount of people still playing is massive. After reading every single message, DM and email it seems the community are divided in their feelings.
Some people hate it because it means more servers are full and that while having one new player on the team was okay, having an entire team of them is just plain annoying. Also one reader pointed out that hackers can create accounts at no cost and make the game unenjoyable for other players.
On the other hand not every person with a free account is terrible at the game or wishes to disrupt it. It has increased the player base significantly meaning that there are little or no empty servers at any time of the day or night. Many seasoned players are just playing on servers that don't have any new players in them so the game becoming free has made no difference at all. One reader who goes by the name Amyler on steam had decided that not helping noobs was counter productive and was teaching them how to play:
"There is fun to be had in teaching people how to be better at the game. I've taught plenty of Pyro's to airblast burning allies, incoming rockets and planted stickybombs. I've taught medic's when to ubercharge and what loadout to use for matchtypes. I've taught Snipers to stop running into the front lines with the fucking uzi. Seeing people learn from what you tell them and get better is more entertaining then simply dominating a clueless opponent."
So it seems that if you're a hardcore player, you wont notice the influx of free players because odds are they play with other hardcores on their own servers or you help the noobs and create a community that has people help each other.
In my opinion making TF2 going free has given life to a dying game. It has allowed people who weren't sure if they wanted it or not a risk free chance to find out if they like it or not. Plus because of how balanced the class system is (provided you don't use community built weapons) this game could be used in e-sports tournaments as an entry level game.
Once again I'd like to thank my readers for sending me your opinions. Still if you want to weigh in on this debate feel free to comment below and tell me. Do you think that making Team Fortress 2 free has made it better or worse?
For Valve making the game free means that their revenue source for TF2 will be from people making in game purchases of weapon sets or clothing. While many of these items are cheap (some as low as 50 cents) the large increase of people will mean that Valve's profit margins will not take a hit. The game before going free had been in a steady decline in terms of its player base. more or less because players who had bought the game were growing tired of it and had moved onto other games.
Team Fortress 2 will be four years old in october, its had a good run and for any game to last this long and still be popular is quite an achievement. Usually at about this time in a games life the developer would be well into making the next game in the series or will slowly stop supporting the game on their servers. So to see it go free to play tells us that Valve love the game but given that there have been no announcements as to a Team Fortress 3 it seems that the company are trying to milk TF2 for all its got. But to extend the life of a game does not make it better.
Over the past week (as many of you know) I've been asking you readers what you think of TF2 going free and if it has made the game better or worse. The responce I got was massive. I was so surprised at how many people had messaged me on facebook and Google+, sent me a Dm on twitter or emailed me with your thoughts on this game. Before even reading them this told me a lot. Team Fortress is popular and while its player base was shrinking the amount of people still playing is massive. After reading every single message, DM and email it seems the community are divided in their feelings.
Some people hate it because it means more servers are full and that while having one new player on the team was okay, having an entire team of them is just plain annoying. Also one reader pointed out that hackers can create accounts at no cost and make the game unenjoyable for other players.
On the other hand not every person with a free account is terrible at the game or wishes to disrupt it. It has increased the player base significantly meaning that there are little or no empty servers at any time of the day or night. Many seasoned players are just playing on servers that don't have any new players in them so the game becoming free has made no difference at all. One reader who goes by the name Amyler on steam had decided that not helping noobs was counter productive and was teaching them how to play:
"There is fun to be had in teaching people how to be better at the game. I've taught plenty of Pyro's to airblast burning allies, incoming rockets and planted stickybombs. I've taught medic's when to ubercharge and what loadout to use for matchtypes. I've taught Snipers to stop running into the front lines with the fucking uzi. Seeing people learn from what you tell them and get better is more entertaining then simply dominating a clueless opponent."
So it seems that if you're a hardcore player, you wont notice the influx of free players because odds are they play with other hardcores on their own servers or you help the noobs and create a community that has people help each other.
In my opinion making TF2 going free has given life to a dying game. It has allowed people who weren't sure if they wanted it or not a risk free chance to find out if they like it or not. Plus because of how balanced the class system is (provided you don't use community built weapons) this game could be used in e-sports tournaments as an entry level game.
Once again I'd like to thank my readers for sending me your opinions. Still if you want to weigh in on this debate feel free to comment below and tell me. Do you think that making Team Fortress 2 free has made it better or worse?
Wednesday, August 3, 2011
San Andreas goes HD
I don't normally talk about mods for games mostly because there are so many and most either make the game look better or add silly stuff into the game. But this one peaked my interest.
A group of fans have ported the Rockstar classic Grand Theft Auto San Andreas into the GTA 4 engine. It's a total conversion bringing everything including missions, vehicles, collectibles and all the radio stations into the latest rendition of the series.
These guys have put a lot of work into making San Andreas HD. All the graphics have been brought to the cutting edge for the latest generation of computers. While the walking and running controls in GTA 4 are terrible I'm really exicted at seeing Los Santos with brushed up graphics.
People who loved the game back in the day will enjoy it and new players will love it. If you are new I recommend getting the original game and playing that to truly experience the game in all its glory. You can pick up a copy for as little as $20 on Steam.
The mod is only available for the PC version of the game. Hopefully Rockstar see it and re-make San Andreas for modern consoles *HINT HINT!*
The original is my all time favorite GTA game and its good to see modders really putting themselves out there. So far the Mod is in beta and you can download it for free from their website.
Comment below and tell me, What's your favorite mod and why?
A group of fans have ported the Rockstar classic Grand Theft Auto San Andreas into the GTA 4 engine. It's a total conversion bringing everything including missions, vehicles, collectibles and all the radio stations into the latest rendition of the series.
These guys have put a lot of work into making San Andreas HD. All the graphics have been brought to the cutting edge for the latest generation of computers. While the walking and running controls in GTA 4 are terrible I'm really exicted at seeing Los Santos with brushed up graphics.
People who loved the game back in the day will enjoy it and new players will love it. If you are new I recommend getting the original game and playing that to truly experience the game in all its glory. You can pick up a copy for as little as $20 on Steam.
The mod is only available for the PC version of the game. Hopefully Rockstar see it and re-make San Andreas for modern consoles *HINT HINT!*
The original is my all time favorite GTA game and its good to see modders really putting themselves out there. So far the Mod is in beta and you can download it for free from their website.
Comment below and tell me, What's your favorite mod and why?
Wednesday, July 6, 2011
CGBC is back
The Computer Games Boot Camp is on again. I'm really looking forward to attending this epic event. Those who don't know about it CGBC is a week long event running July 9-15 for high-school students over 15. It's held at Monash universities Clayton campus in Melbourne. The space is huge and has had to expand every year because of how popular it is. Not quite as big as E3 but almost. Close to 2000 people are booked to be there this year. I personally have attended this event since the first one back in 2009 and it has grown and really become the biggest gaming event in Australia.
The week consists of speeches from some of Australia's big biggest names in gaming, tournaments for a wide variety of games, workshops, competitions and more prizes get given away then there are people to accept them. Thermaltake, IAH Games, Autodesk, Sony and Adobe just to name a few will be there to give talks and give away some prizes.
Exclusive to CGBC will be the Australian leg of the Call of Duty tournament. The winning team will qualify to go on to LA to play in the finals for a chance at one million dollars USD. The tournament is open to any team of four with all its members over the age of 18. Details are still being announced regarding the tournament so stay tuned for more information as it comes to hand.
Registrations are still open so feel free to register your interest now Here but the event starts this Friday so do it fast. Keep up with all of the latest news from the event you can join the conversation on facebook. If you can't attend but you still want to see whats going on Level 3 are doing an all day live stream of the event from start to finish. So you wont miss a thing. Read more about the live stream here.
I hope to see you there and if you see me (which wont be hard my face is the logo for this site) feel free to come up and say hello.
Till next week, peace.
Wednesday, June 29, 2011
What I think of Brink (Hey that rhymes)
Brink is one of those games I had my doubts about. Because of its unique seamless blend of singleplayer and multiplayer. I wasn't sure if it would work. But it does and it works so very well. All the doubts I had before I played Brink are now gone.
Brink at first appears to have a rather straight forward storyline. A civil war on a floating city called the Ark built as a way to save humanity from extinction due to global warming and rising sea waters. There are two sides to this fight. Ark security who are fighting to maintain control of the Ark. And there's the Resistance who are trying to get off the Ark and contact what's left of the outside world. Each side has its own storyline that will crossover with the other. Each campaign comes to its own different end and afterwards there are some bonus 'what-if' spin off missions you can do. These missions are usually levels in the campaign that you play from the opposing side. Usually in games that allow you to choose sides by the end of it you have a good idea which side you should be on. Even after playing through both campaigns I still don't know which side to be on. This isn't a bad thing. Brink just gives you all the facts and allows you to make up your own mind on what you think is right.
While I have ranted on a bit about the story don't let that scare you. Every cutscene can be skipped and while it does set up the gameplay it doesn't get in the way of it. The major parts of the story are told in the campaigns but if you want the whole picture you're going to have to unlock all the audio tapes. Similar to the holotapes in Fallout 3 audio tapes give you an insight into what the major players on the Ark are thinking. So if you're like me and love a game with a good storyline this gives Brink a lot of replay value.
The whole focus of the game is how it plays. I've heard people say it's Mirrors edge with guns. This isn't entirely true. Mirrors edge focused on movement and discouraged you from using guns whereas Brink puts its focus on combat. It doesn't matter what kind of gun you have movement is still the same. Character customization however does have an effect on movement but there's a fair trade off. When you customize your character you have the choice of three body types: light, medium or heavy. The light body type can move the fastest and jump higher than the other two but it also has the least health making them easy to take down. In contrast the heavy body type is the slowest and least agile but has the most health and is the only body type that can carry heavy weapons. The medium body type has a good mix of health and finesse and is a perfect starting point for new players. Depending on your own playstyle you will discover what works for you. The rest of the customization options for your character are purely cosmetic so unleash your inner 5 year old and play dress up. Like Rainbow six Vegas you gain XP both offline and online. As you level up you'll unlock more outfits and earn ability points to upgrade your characters skills. Like Team fortress 2 skills are divided into classes: Soldier,Engineer, Medic and Operative. There are universal skills that can be purchased and used no matter what class you choose but to get the really cool stuff you need to decide which set of cool stuff you want.
Weapon customization is a bit disappointing but still better than almost any other game. What I do like is that weapon add-ons can all be unlocked before you start either campaign. They can only be unlocked through challenge missions. Challenge missions are separate missions from the campaigns and I recommend you try them first. Not only will you unlock cool doodads for your guns but they also teach you how to play Brink.
Objectives are very flexible. Each level has a list of objectives that your team has to complete. These range from defending a certain spot, blowing up something to repairing or building defenses. The interesting thing is that you can complete these objectives in any order. There’s one main objective and the rest are secondary to it. Depending on how you want to play will determine which objective you'll want to do. As long as you're doing something you will be helping out your team. This means that those people who prefer to be lone wolves won't make it any harder for team players or people new to the game. All objectives are class specific. This means in order to win a game you can't all go engineer and spam place turrets and mines everywhere.
Every level is unlocked right out of the box. This is because there is no separate multiplayer section of the game. Every level can be played either online or offline or you can open up your game and let people jump in whenever they like. I recommend for the first playthrough of the game you play it in order and leave the what-if missions till last. This is definitely a game that you'll want to play with friends or other people. Maybe it's just because I'm terrible at shooters but the A.I on your team is terrible and the opposing teams A.I seems to have been programmed by a super genius.
Brink at first appears to have a rather straight forward storyline. A civil war on a floating city called the Ark built as a way to save humanity from extinction due to global warming and rising sea waters. There are two sides to this fight. Ark security who are fighting to maintain control of the Ark. And there's the Resistance who are trying to get off the Ark and contact what's left of the outside world. Each side has its own storyline that will crossover with the other. Each campaign comes to its own different end and afterwards there are some bonus 'what-if' spin off missions you can do. These missions are usually levels in the campaign that you play from the opposing side. Usually in games that allow you to choose sides by the end of it you have a good idea which side you should be on. Even after playing through both campaigns I still don't know which side to be on. This isn't a bad thing. Brink just gives you all the facts and allows you to make up your own mind on what you think is right.
While I have ranted on a bit about the story don't let that scare you. Every cutscene can be skipped and while it does set up the gameplay it doesn't get in the way of it. The major parts of the story are told in the campaigns but if you want the whole picture you're going to have to unlock all the audio tapes. Similar to the holotapes in Fallout 3 audio tapes give you an insight into what the major players on the Ark are thinking. So if you're like me and love a game with a good storyline this gives Brink a lot of replay value.
The whole focus of the game is how it plays. I've heard people say it's Mirrors edge with guns. This isn't entirely true. Mirrors edge focused on movement and discouraged you from using guns whereas Brink puts its focus on combat. It doesn't matter what kind of gun you have movement is still the same. Character customization however does have an effect on movement but there's a fair trade off. When you customize your character you have the choice of three body types: light, medium or heavy. The light body type can move the fastest and jump higher than the other two but it also has the least health making them easy to take down. In contrast the heavy body type is the slowest and least agile but has the most health and is the only body type that can carry heavy weapons. The medium body type has a good mix of health and finesse and is a perfect starting point for new players. Depending on your own playstyle you will discover what works for you. The rest of the customization options for your character are purely cosmetic so unleash your inner 5 year old and play dress up. Like Rainbow six Vegas you gain XP both offline and online. As you level up you'll unlock more outfits and earn ability points to upgrade your characters skills. Like Team fortress 2 skills are divided into classes: Soldier,Engineer, Medic and Operative. There are universal skills that can be purchased and used no matter what class you choose but to get the really cool stuff you need to decide which set of cool stuff you want.
Weapon customization is a bit disappointing but still better than almost any other game. What I do like is that weapon add-ons can all be unlocked before you start either campaign. They can only be unlocked through challenge missions. Challenge missions are separate missions from the campaigns and I recommend you try them first. Not only will you unlock cool doodads for your guns but they also teach you how to play Brink.
Objectives are very flexible. Each level has a list of objectives that your team has to complete. These range from defending a certain spot, blowing up something to repairing or building defenses. The interesting thing is that you can complete these objectives in any order. There’s one main objective and the rest are secondary to it. Depending on how you want to play will determine which objective you'll want to do. As long as you're doing something you will be helping out your team. This means that those people who prefer to be lone wolves won't make it any harder for team players or people new to the game. All objectives are class specific. This means in order to win a game you can't all go engineer and spam place turrets and mines everywhere.
Every level is unlocked right out of the box. This is because there is no separate multiplayer section of the game. Every level can be played either online or offline or you can open up your game and let people jump in whenever they like. I recommend for the first playthrough of the game you play it in order and leave the what-if missions till last. This is definitely a game that you'll want to play with friends or other people. Maybe it's just because I'm terrible at shooters but the A.I on your team is terrible and the opposing teams A.I seems to have been programmed by a super genius.
The soundtrack is small but really good. The songs don't get in the way of the rest of the game and it really sets the tone for what brink is all about. Probably not going to make any one's soundtrack to buy list though.
The graphics really convey the point that you're in a distopyian futuristic society. You really get the sense of how small and fragile the Ark is. In terms of cutting edge though it's fairly average. It can be a bit rough in some areas and maybe its just me but the grenades just don't look quite right.
I had great fun playing this game. It was good to play a game that is so flexible and that just gets to the core of what an FPS is and gets out of the way and lets you do what you want.
8 out of 10
Wednesday, June 22, 2011
What I think of Duke Nukem forever (A.K.A Why it doesnt completely suck)
Recently lots of websites have been saying that Duke Nukem Forever is a completely terrible game. While I agree its not the best game ever made its not as bad as people have made it out to be. The game was made for a different time. A time when guns were far from realistic, when bad guys came from somewhere else other than the middle east and when boss fights resulted in more than who can pull the trigger faster. Its a 90's game.
People still recognize Duke Nukem 3D as a great game but in reality it has worse graphics and the same sort of game play as Duke Nukem Forever. What you need to keep in mind when you play the game is that its not trying to compete with Call of Duty of Halo. In fact it laughs at them 'Power armour is for pussies' as the Duke says. It's in the catagory along with Doom 1 and Wolfenstien 3D. The game is completely designed to poke fun at games and the culture surrounding it. Through out the game references are made to the Alien films, Team America: World Police and even previous Duke Nukem games.
Enough ranting. Duke Nukem Forever (or DNF for short) is set 13 years after the end of the last game. Duke is a world hero and playboy billionaire who can still bench press 600 pounds. That's when he's not busy running his casino, appearing on national television or entertaining his lady friends in his Las Vegas penthouse. Yet again aliens invade the earth and its up to Duke to thwart their plans for world domination. The story is relatively simple mostly because otherwise it would get too much in the way of all the ass kicking you need to do. As basic as the plot is I don't mind that because it is so simple there is lots of room to play around and have fun with it. After all isn't that what games are all about? The whole game is very lewd and rude with its focus being on kicking ass and getting laid so this is not one to give the 5 year old for Christmas.
The graphics look rather good given its been through several engine changes and about as many developers. Yeah its not the tip top super HD 3D need a permit to buy the Tv needed to play it kind of graphics but I wasn't disappointed. The hud disappears around the edge of the screen when not in use giving the game a cinematic feel and shows you more of the ass kicking. It was all at a decent standard. Although I think the menu looks a little bit rushed. As if that was the last thing they did before the game was shipped. Also some of the help tips are a bit to technical. 'Any object with wheel physics can be pushed.' Besides game developers and some of the hardcore audience a lot of people are going to be left bewildered at that sentence. It can just as easily be said that objects with wheels can be pushed around.
Gameplay is your classic FPS blow stuff to crap style. No mucking about, just point and shoot. I love it. I've heard people complain that the guns are inaccurate. Especially the pistol. I'm playing the xbox 360 version of the game and I've had no problems with it. In fact in some points of the game I've been able to take down pigcops at a fair distance with a shotgun. It took a few shots but I've done it. So I think that just comes down to the fact some reviewers are too used to all the help more modern games give you with special sights and aim assist. DNF does have an aim assist but the only scope you're going to see is the railguns sniper scope and its just a stock standard cross hair. What makes this game stand apart is its reliance on you fully exploring an area. Many objects can be interacted with and doing so increases your health. While other objects like the whiteboard are just there to have a laugh, and show how shocking Duke is with a pen.
The opening theme song is awesome. I love the guitar riff. The rest of the soundtrack though is fairly average. Not much to talk about. It just blends into the background and there isn't one song your going to have going round your head. Although that may be a good thing. One real complaint I do have is with the music that plays in Duke's penthouse in the multiplayer section of the game. It drives me up the wall and sounds like something my mother would listen to. Thankfully it doesn't stick in your head but while its on you may want to turn down the volume.
While on the subject of multiplayer this is another component that feels rushed. While comparing DNF to more modern titles sounds unfair given what I've said before but I know that the multiplayer was in development after Call of Duty 4 made waves in gaming so in this instance there is no excuse. I do enjoy that as you level up your penthouse gets more items and babes to fill it with but the gameplay lacks real replay value. So the odds of getting far enough to unlock some of the real cool stuff is slim.
At the end of the day I had fun playing DNF and me and my mates had a good laugh the whole way through the singleplayer campaign. If you're looking for the next Call of Duty or Halo its not here. If you want to play a game and have fun doing so then I recommend this game.
6 out of 10
People still recognize Duke Nukem 3D as a great game but in reality it has worse graphics and the same sort of game play as Duke Nukem Forever. What you need to keep in mind when you play the game is that its not trying to compete with Call of Duty of Halo. In fact it laughs at them 'Power armour is for pussies' as the Duke says. It's in the catagory along with Doom 1 and Wolfenstien 3D. The game is completely designed to poke fun at games and the culture surrounding it. Through out the game references are made to the Alien films, Team America: World Police and even previous Duke Nukem games.
Enough ranting. Duke Nukem Forever (or DNF for short) is set 13 years after the end of the last game. Duke is a world hero and playboy billionaire who can still bench press 600 pounds. That's when he's not busy running his casino, appearing on national television or entertaining his lady friends in his Las Vegas penthouse. Yet again aliens invade the earth and its up to Duke to thwart their plans for world domination. The story is relatively simple mostly because otherwise it would get too much in the way of all the ass kicking you need to do. As basic as the plot is I don't mind that because it is so simple there is lots of room to play around and have fun with it. After all isn't that what games are all about? The whole game is very lewd and rude with its focus being on kicking ass and getting laid so this is not one to give the 5 year old for Christmas.
The graphics look rather good given its been through several engine changes and about as many developers. Yeah its not the tip top super HD 3D need a permit to buy the Tv needed to play it kind of graphics but I wasn't disappointed. The hud disappears around the edge of the screen when not in use giving the game a cinematic feel and shows you more of the ass kicking. It was all at a decent standard. Although I think the menu looks a little bit rushed. As if that was the last thing they did before the game was shipped. Also some of the help tips are a bit to technical. 'Any object with wheel physics can be pushed.' Besides game developers and some of the hardcore audience a lot of people are going to be left bewildered at that sentence. It can just as easily be said that objects with wheels can be pushed around.
Gameplay is your classic FPS blow stuff to crap style. No mucking about, just point and shoot. I love it. I've heard people complain that the guns are inaccurate. Especially the pistol. I'm playing the xbox 360 version of the game and I've had no problems with it. In fact in some points of the game I've been able to take down pigcops at a fair distance with a shotgun. It took a few shots but I've done it. So I think that just comes down to the fact some reviewers are too used to all the help more modern games give you with special sights and aim assist. DNF does have an aim assist but the only scope you're going to see is the railguns sniper scope and its just a stock standard cross hair. What makes this game stand apart is its reliance on you fully exploring an area. Many objects can be interacted with and doing so increases your health. While other objects like the whiteboard are just there to have a laugh, and show how shocking Duke is with a pen.
The opening theme song is awesome. I love the guitar riff. The rest of the soundtrack though is fairly average. Not much to talk about. It just blends into the background and there isn't one song your going to have going round your head. Although that may be a good thing. One real complaint I do have is with the music that plays in Duke's penthouse in the multiplayer section of the game. It drives me up the wall and sounds like something my mother would listen to. Thankfully it doesn't stick in your head but while its on you may want to turn down the volume.
While on the subject of multiplayer this is another component that feels rushed. While comparing DNF to more modern titles sounds unfair given what I've said before but I know that the multiplayer was in development after Call of Duty 4 made waves in gaming so in this instance there is no excuse. I do enjoy that as you level up your penthouse gets more items and babes to fill it with but the gameplay lacks real replay value. So the odds of getting far enough to unlock some of the real cool stuff is slim.
At the end of the day I had fun playing DNF and me and my mates had a good laugh the whole way through the singleplayer campaign. If you're looking for the next Call of Duty or Halo its not here. If you want to play a game and have fun doing so then I recommend this game.
6 out of 10
Wednesday, June 15, 2011
E3 Wrap up
Well E3 has come and gone for another year and as always has sent the gaming world into a frenzy with its announcements.
Nintendo has given a name to their newest console calling it the Wii U. I get that the U stands for you so why not have a laugh and put it at the start not at the end... Because that's the sound you make when you play, Wiiiiiiii! It features a rather interesting controller that has a built in touch screen that you can interact with while gaming (probably serve the same purpose the touch screen on the Nintendo DS does) and allows you to keep playing even when the Tv is switched off. The design of it looks a lot like what you would get if a Wii and an Xbox 360 had a baby. In terms of games for it on release Skyward sword will not be one of them. However Nintendo has not ruled out that the next Legend of Zelda game will be released on the Wii U. There's no set release date for the Wii U but its expected to hit shelves some time in the middle of 2012.
Duke Nukem Forever has finally been released. I've yet to play it but after 13 odd years it should be good.
It was on display at E3 more for developers Gearbox to say 'We made it, look we're not lying. here it is' rather than to actually show off the game. I wonder what Gearbox are going to work on next. Borderlands 2?
More details for Mass Effect 3. It will use the voice control feature on the Kinect to allow you to put your voice in game and probably talk to the characters. Unless they fix the Kinect so that us Aussies can use the voice control feature at all I doubt we will ever get to use that little perk. Unless you can do a really good American accent. Still on games Saints Row: The Third is looking better and better the more I see it. It seems like you're going to be able to do more wild and crazy stuff that the games series prides itself on. Like shooting... while free falling from an airplane.
Finally its my birthday tomorrow and if you like feel free to wish me a happy birthday on my facebook page.
Till next week.
Peace.
Nintendo has given a name to their newest console calling it the Wii U. I get that the U stands for you so why not have a laugh and put it at the start not at the end... Because that's the sound you make when you play, Wiiiiiiii! It features a rather interesting controller that has a built in touch screen that you can interact with while gaming (probably serve the same purpose the touch screen on the Nintendo DS does) and allows you to keep playing even when the Tv is switched off. The design of it looks a lot like what you would get if a Wii and an Xbox 360 had a baby. In terms of games for it on release Skyward sword will not be one of them. However Nintendo has not ruled out that the next Legend of Zelda game will be released on the Wii U. There's no set release date for the Wii U but its expected to hit shelves some time in the middle of 2012.
Duke Nukem Forever has finally been released. I've yet to play it but after 13 odd years it should be good.
It was on display at E3 more for developers Gearbox to say 'We made it, look we're not lying. here it is' rather than to actually show off the game. I wonder what Gearbox are going to work on next. Borderlands 2?
More details for Mass Effect 3. It will use the voice control feature on the Kinect to allow you to put your voice in game and probably talk to the characters. Unless they fix the Kinect so that us Aussies can use the voice control feature at all I doubt we will ever get to use that little perk. Unless you can do a really good American accent. Still on games Saints Row: The Third is looking better and better the more I see it. It seems like you're going to be able to do more wild and crazy stuff that the games series prides itself on. Like shooting... while free falling from an airplane.
Finally its my birthday tomorrow and if you like feel free to wish me a happy birthday on my facebook page.
Till next week.
Peace.
Wednesday, May 25, 2011
PSN is online
So two weeks ago I reported that PSN was still down and in its third week of pissing off Sony PS3 users world wide and sending Xbox sales through the roof. Late last week PSN was finally brought back online (what did I tell you "I reckon PSN will be up at the latest by the end of next week.") and PS3 users around the world rejoiced as they updated their consoles and jumped back into their favourite games.
Australia is online though some users may still be having some trouble but keep trying because you will get through. 600,000 PS3 users are trying to log in all at the same time. Not many servers can handle that. Japan however is still down. Not because of Sony. The Japanese government have said that the updated security that Sony has implemented is not at an acceptable standard. Given that Japan is Sony's biggest market I'll bet they take that pretty seriously.
I'm still waiting on my welcome back package.
Comment below and tell me what game do you want as compensation?
Australia is online though some users may still be having some trouble but keep trying because you will get through. 600,000 PS3 users are trying to log in all at the same time. Not many servers can handle that. Japan however is still down. Not because of Sony. The Japanese government have said that the updated security that Sony has implemented is not at an acceptable standard. Given that Japan is Sony's biggest market I'll bet they take that pretty seriously.
I'm still waiting on my welcome back package.
Comment below and tell me what game do you want as compensation?
Wednesday, May 18, 2011
Modern Warfare 3 Announced
OMG MW3! Not really that excited but when The Call of Duty Youtube channel posted its first teaser trailers for the game you can imagine a lot of people said just that.
On Saturday four videos were uploaded showing what seems to be invasions in England, Germany, France and the continuing battle for America that was started in Modern Warfare 2. There isn't much to see but last week there were rumours that Activision would announce MW3 at E3 this year. These trailers are proof that Activision will provide more details about its upcoming shooter at E3 and will most probably continue to upload more trailers over the coming months. Stay tuned.
For those who haven't seen the trailers here are the four that were uploaded on Saturday.
Till next week, Peace.
On Saturday four videos were uploaded showing what seems to be invasions in England, Germany, France and the continuing battle for America that was started in Modern Warfare 2. There isn't much to see but last week there were rumours that Activision would announce MW3 at E3 this year. These trailers are proof that Activision will provide more details about its upcoming shooter at E3 and will most probably continue to upload more trailers over the coming months. Stay tuned.
For those who haven't seen the trailers here are the four that were uploaded on Saturday.
Till next week, Peace.
Wednesday, May 11, 2011
PSN is down for the count.
Today marks the third week of PSN offline due to a security breach. Sony had stated last week that the Playstation network would be online. Sony is now before the American congress having to explain their actions leading up to this incident.
So far it is estimated that as many as 600,000 Australian PSN accounts (including my own) have been compromised. With passwords, email addresses, full names and even credit card details in some cases have been stolen. Sony has said that when PSN does go back up all PS3 users will have to update their consoles and change their passwords.
Because Sony are doing a complete overhaul of the network I had real doubts that they would have it done in two weeks. I reckon PSN will be up at the latest by the end of next week. There is so much that will need to be done seeing as they want to stat from square one and strengthen it that way. While this is an effective method its going to take time.
Of course we can't forget that when PSN went down it wasn't just gamers that were effected. Users of the Sony service Qriocity (basically Netflix for Sony TV's) have also potentially has their accounts compromised also. But this is a gaming site so lets focus.
Comment below and tell me what game you miss playing online with your mates?
Till next week, Peace.
So far it is estimated that as many as 600,000 Australian PSN accounts (including my own) have been compromised. With passwords, email addresses, full names and even credit card details in some cases have been stolen. Sony has said that when PSN does go back up all PS3 users will have to update their consoles and change their passwords.
Because Sony are doing a complete overhaul of the network I had real doubts that they would have it done in two weeks. I reckon PSN will be up at the latest by the end of next week. There is so much that will need to be done seeing as they want to stat from square one and strengthen it that way. While this is an effective method its going to take time.
Of course we can't forget that when PSN went down it wasn't just gamers that were effected. Users of the Sony service Qriocity (basically Netflix for Sony TV's) have also potentially has their accounts compromised also. But this is a gaming site so lets focus.
Comment below and tell me what game you miss playing online with your mates?
Till next week, Peace.
Wednesday, May 4, 2011
US and UK 3DS launch schedule for the rest of 2011
Nintendo has released its US and UK 3DS launch schedule for the rest of 2011. The games are:
The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time 3D
Star Fox 64 3D
Animal Crossing
Kid Icarus: Uprising
Mario Kart 3DS
Paper Mario
Transformers: Dark of the Moon
Resident Evil: The Mercenaries 3D
Pinball Hall of Game: The Williams Collection
Lego Pirates of the Caribbean: The Video Games
Deca Sports Extreme
Pac-Man & Galaga Dimensions
Cave Story 3D
Dead or Alive Dimensions
Spongebob Squigglepants
Green Lantern: Rise of the Manhunters
No release dates were given but its a safe bet that when these games come out there it will be either on the same day or a little later here. I'm looking forward to Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time 3D and Star Fox 64 3D just because they are my favorite games on the N64 (which by the way I still have and play often) and seeing what the 3DS can do when these games come out I may just buy a 3DS. If Dead or Alive Dimensions is anything like Dead or Alive Xtreme Beach Volleyball I'll buy that too.
Comment below and tell me what 3DS game you are most looking forward to and why?
Till next week, Peace.
Source: http://www.pocketgamer.co.uk/r/3DS/Nintendo+3DS/news.asp?c=29396
Thursday, April 28, 2011
*BREAKING NEWS* Will Xbox be next? Microsoft issues service alert to Xbox Live users.
Microsoft has issued a service alert for players using the matchmaking feature of Modern Warfare 2. Please be advised that users may receive potential phishing attempts via title specific messaging.
From Microsoft - "We are aware of the problem and are working to resolve the issue."
This comes after the Playstation network (Sonys online gaming service) being brought down by hackers 6 days ago. You can be sure that Microsoft is taking the threat seriously and is attempting to avoid a similar incident. However there appear to be cracks appearing in Microsofts security shield everyday. Reports of consoles once outlawed (banned from using the Xbox Live service due to illegal modifications of the unit) being able to once again access Xbox Live.
Will Xbox be next?
Source: http://support.xbox.com/en-gb/Pages/xbox-live/xbox-live-status.aspx?wa=wsignin1.0
From Microsoft - "We are aware of the problem and are working to resolve the issue."
This comes after the Playstation network (Sonys online gaming service) being brought down by hackers 6 days ago. You can be sure that Microsoft is taking the threat seriously and is attempting to avoid a similar incident. However there appear to be cracks appearing in Microsofts security shield everyday. Reports of consoles once outlawed (banned from using the Xbox Live service due to illegal modifications of the unit) being able to once again access Xbox Live.
Will Xbox be next?
Source: http://support.xbox.com/en-gb/Pages/xbox-live/xbox-live-status.aspx?wa=wsignin1.0
Wednesday, April 27, 2011
iFEST 2011
If you're wanting to become an independent developer and you live in Melbourne iFEST is the place to go. While iFEST 2011 has finished I'll give a brief overview of what its all about and get you excited for next year.
So basically iFEST is a day where people who are involved in the independent gaming community gather and talk about different aspects of what you can do should you want to 'go indie.' From developers who had made it like Ed McMillen, the guy who made Super Meat Boy who answered questions from the audience about a range of gaming related topics. To people who have an involvement in the community other than being a developer like Yug Blomberg who is the co-founder of the Mana Bar who told us about his roller coaster experiences throughout the gaming industry as a whole. All very interesting stuff.
My personal favourite talk of the day was from the lads at Anomalous Interactive. They talked about how to start up an independent studio from a business perspective. Everything you needed to know like where to get funding, writing a business plan and even when to move out of your lounge room and into an office. It was all there. I have pages and pages of notes from them alone. Brilliant work guys keep it up.
Along with the talks were some games created by students from the Academy of Interactive Entertainment available to play. The one that stuck out to me was Microbe. It was only in early development but my mate from Thumbpad and myself saw a lot of potential for it to become something like the next Super Meat Boy. I'll review it once it is finished don't you worry about that.
The only advice I have for those who want to go next year is get there as soon as the doors open. Its cold in Melbourne this time of year and unless you have a nice warn coat standing around outside for half an hour is brutal.
Till next Wednesday. Peace.
So basically iFEST is a day where people who are involved in the independent gaming community gather and talk about different aspects of what you can do should you want to 'go indie.' From developers who had made it like Ed McMillen, the guy who made Super Meat Boy who answered questions from the audience about a range of gaming related topics. To people who have an involvement in the community other than being a developer like Yug Blomberg who is the co-founder of the Mana Bar who told us about his roller coaster experiences throughout the gaming industry as a whole. All very interesting stuff.
My personal favourite talk of the day was from the lads at Anomalous Interactive. They talked about how to start up an independent studio from a business perspective. Everything you needed to know like where to get funding, writing a business plan and even when to move out of your lounge room and into an office. It was all there. I have pages and pages of notes from them alone. Brilliant work guys keep it up.
Along with the talks were some games created by students from the Academy of Interactive Entertainment available to play. The one that stuck out to me was Microbe. It was only in early development but my mate from Thumbpad and myself saw a lot of potential for it to become something like the next Super Meat Boy. I'll review it once it is finished don't you worry about that.
The only advice I have for those who want to go next year is get there as soon as the doors open. Its cold in Melbourne this time of year and unless you have a nice warn coat standing around outside for half an hour is brutal.
Till next Wednesday. Peace.
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