Video game review [Archive] - The Enchanted Quill

sir archely

August 23rd, 2003, 01:41

Max Payne is the story of an ex-cop...or something...i think he was FBI maybe? Whose family was killed in a drug related incident of some kind. The drug's name is Valkyr. I think. You can tell that it left a big impression on me. Anyway, Max Payne is you, and you spend the game trying to not get caught by the police, find out who killed your friend, and clear your name, as you were framed for the killing of your friend. Oh, and also, get vengence for your murdered family. I know i'm not doing a great job of relating this, but whatever.

It actually is a pretty good game. The controls are excellent. Like all games it takes some getting used to, but once you do, they're great. No perspective or "camera" problems, although you can usually 'cheat' by using the angles to peer around corners you really wouldn't be able to see around. The game is a nice first-person type shooting game, a few puzzle solving or movement type (jumping, narrow ledges, etc) challenges, but i really didn't get far enough to know how this pans out in the later stages of the game. One thing that does stand out is called "bullet time." This is a sort of slow-motion thing that you have control over activating and stopping. If you don't learn how to use this, you can't win. Period. You can make it through much of the game, but this gives you the edge on some of the tougher fights. So learn it.

The game is pretty linear, actually extremely linear, and you go through chapters as levels. It's a story/movie type thing, lots of cut scenes that come in as you go along to tell the story. If you're not patient with this and don't want story, then don't play this game, rent something like doom. Some of it is in comic book type format, which is interesting, but not the greatest. Otherwise the graphics are nice.

Anything else i'm missing? I'm not sure is replayable, but i'd definitely go through it once. It has 4 difficulty levels, but i don't think the story line changes, and that's always just too repetitive for me. I'd give this game a 7.5/10.

LaughingTurtle

August 23rd, 2003, 09:24

pssst....play it where it was originially made for - the computer and you can download mods and extra levels, etc for it = mucho replayablity. ;)

max payne = :thup:

QuirkyTemplate

August 23rd, 2003, 12:38

max payne was a joke man. Those comics ... did anyone else just bust out laughing?

epiph

August 23rd, 2003, 13:18

they're coming out with the next one soon...all my friends started replaying it because of that...beating it using different things. one of my friends beat it using only kung fu except for the few levels where you just can't. and my ex boyfriend, the first time he played it, would not finish a level unless it was perfect...

sir archely

August 25th, 2003, 13:52

okay, QT, i can see where you'd say the comics were a joke, because they weren't exactly the greatest, but i don't think that makes the entire game a joke. actually, i think the game has one of the best control systems i've seen. it's pretty crappy that it's hard to get a game where the controls are decent enough so that getting the right camera angle isn't part of the challenge of the game. the challenges should be in-game, not artificial like that.

the levels were highly interactive as well, you could do a lot with random stuff just laying around. the little things like that make it a better game than some game with the same plot and idea that lacks stuff similar to that. i did think that the doors were pretty horrible though. they put all these doors in that you aren't supposed to go through, so you can't open them at all, even though at some points in the game you have to shoot the lock off on certain doors. somehow the doors that you aren't supposed to go through have wood and locks that are impervious to bullets.

sir archely

August 26th, 2003, 11:52

This game is possibly the greatest ever created. With the possible exceptions of Double Dragon III and Contra. I haven't played it all the way through yet, so maybe i'm behind the times (well, i know i'm behind the times, but that's besides the point). Oh, i also haven't played NWN to know about that either so...i dunno. Obviously it's my opinion. I just got it this summer from a friend who was finished with it. Haven't had much time for game playing lately either though so...~shrug~

Anyway, the game is set in the Forgotten Realms, a D&D world setting. If that doesn't spell it out for you, it's a role-playing game. It is a II, so it's a continuation of Baldur's Gate. However, it's a step up in almost every aspect, imo. You start out the game in a prison, held by a powerful wizard named Jon Irenicus because you are a 'child of bhaal'. A dead (evil) god who knew he was dying and so spread his power through mortal children, in an effort to cheat death. In BGI you met and ultimately killed one of the other children, named Sarevok. You must break free of the prison, but in doing so, your pal Imoen is captured by the Cowled Wizards. The beginning of the game takes off from there, as you try to find out where Imoen is being held.

I like to think of this game as a sort of Diablo with a brain. It has a similar look to it, with the overhead, slightly skewed perspective. It has superior graphics, however, much more detailed and interactive. It also has a way more intricate plot than diablo ever came close to thinking about maybe having. The game is filled with side-quests, and decisions that split you down different paths. Right now i'm playing two groups, a good one and an evil one. Yes, playing a group that's evil is viable in this game. In fact, some of the NPCs are evil, there are items that are usable by evil chars. only, and there are decision options for evil chars. The game is run sort of like an old "choose your own adventure" book. Your character goes through, and most things are done with dialogue between your character and someone else. You have choices with what to respond, and this affects what happens. Along the way you can pick up any number of different NPCs to join your little group (though no more than 6 people at a time), who each have their own motivations and personality, and may or may not agree with what you have chosen for the group. In fact, if you piss someone off enough, they may leave your group.

The game is run using AD&D rules, which i find annoying, since i don't know them very well, but it really makes no difference. It's not going to be terribly difficult for someone with no D&D knowledge to understand what's going on. Plus, i never got a rule book, so maybe it explains it more in there for non-gamers.

This game is replayable, and pretty much defines the term. It seems like every time you play the game, it'd be different. Depending on what class you are, who you have in your group, what you choose, etc. In fact, if you only play it through once, you're guaranteed to not find/do everything. If you play as a man, you've just got too many love interests to get all the first time. And that's just one thing that'll be different.

One thing i will say is that it seems to me that it's a hack'n'slash campaign. Granted, there are things you are supposed to do that aren't killing, but the majority of the time it's killing things. ~shrug~

This game is complex, but not to the annoying or impossible point. It can be played any number of times without it feeling the same, and the controls are easy and straightforward. I give it a 9/10.

sir archely

August 26th, 2003, 16:54

Well, this happens to be one of my favorite console games, so forgive me if i'm a little biased. However, i do think it's for good reason.

I've been playing this game since it came out...and i have entirely too much time logged on it. It's basically the unofficial sequel to Goldeneye for the N64, but surpasses Bond in every imaginable instance. There are nay-sayers who profess to like Bond better, but when you are faced with a side by side comparison, it seems they only like it better because it's easier. I played Bond for a long time before Dark came out, and trust me, Dark is just the next step if you want a better game.

The single player on Dark is great fun, different difficulty levels have different objectives, so that the missions change slightly as you work your way up the difficulty. The simulants (or sims) change from being idiots to being fairly smart, although they can get stuck in a rut sometimes. Control is good, i think the same or very near to goldeneye, so you can go from one to the other and not notice a difference in control. Bonus levels appear as you beat the different difficulty levels.

The levels on Dark are far more extensive and usable than any on Bond, you can actually jump down off of edges, no invisible barriers that prevent you from leaping to your death (or just down to the next level). You still cannot jump up though.

The weapons set is larger, pretty decent size for any game, i'm not sure i've played another game like it that has more. Some 'alien' weapons with interesting effects, and every weapon has two ways to use it. Be it from using your magnum for pistol whip, throwing or slashing with a knife, or choosing if you want to use the grenade launcher or automatic rifle of the superdragon.

In addition to single player, you can also mess around in the carrington institute, basically your home base. Mostly training exercises, you can try out all of the weapons at the firing range and try for the bronze, silver and gold medal in each, or practice your other skills, like hand-to-hand combat (still just punching, although sims will kick at you) or using other tools.

Multiplayer is the real gem of this game. It's not even right to compare it to bond. Quite a few levels, and they even reproduced a few levels from Bond to use in this game. You can play preset games they have already set up for you, choose the settings all yourself, or play "challenges." There are 30 different challenges, each with setups for 1-4 players. They range from the incredibly easy to the nearly impossible. In this multiplayer system, you do not have to just play other humans, although you could. You have the ability to set up to 8 'sims' of varying difficulty and/or personality types to play against, or on the same team as. However, by far the best aspect of the multiplayer is that you can save a player, and have the game keep track of your stats and awards. Every new player starts at level 21, and as you play and gain stats/awards, you go down in level, to level 1.

I've been playing this thing for far too long, and i'm still not tired of it, though i probably should be. Mostly i play multiplayer with a friend and with random weapons and levels, most of the time every game is unique. Anyway, i like the game a lot, i give it a 8.5/10.

merryd

September 2nd, 2003, 14:55

all right, I suppose I have to admit that I am really not very good at most video games and even the relatively 'simple' ones are actually pretty challenging for me (which makes it easier for me to find good games)

however, I have enjoyed Tomb Raider, at least what I've played of it so far. The one thing that really bothers me about it is the inventory control menu -- it seems like they could have spent just a little bit more time in development on that aspect. Once I got used to the controls, they aren't so bad -- but, I haven't finished the game yet.

I am splitting my time between that and Wizardy 8 and actually I am spending a lot more time with Wizardry.

merryd

"regardless of our attempts to inform, it will be our ability to inspire that will turn the tides" -- syracuse cultural workers

(yes, I had to type that in myself because guess who isn't a prominent enough member to warrent frills and gizmos -- that's right, it's merryd -- low woman on the totem pole)

sir archely

September 8th, 2003, 12:08

This past weekend i went and visited a good friend, staying at his apartment. He has a PS2, and he rented Enter the Matrix, telling me, "man, this game is awesome, you've got to play it." Well, he was right, imo.

One of the most important things about the game is that it was made in conjuction with the movies, by the same people, with the same actors, everything. It basically flows along with Reloaded, giving you a more in depth look at a couple of the characters, and more story. The two characters are Niobe, and Ghost. In the game, you can play through as one or the other of them. The storyline for each is slightly different at points, but mostly the same. My friend and i beat this game in a day, because it was so grasping.

Aahh...i don't know where i'm going with this review, there's no order. I'm just throwing stuff out there.

Anyway, the game is set up with the perspective of standing behind your character watching as you do things. A lot of it is running through areas, finding different things, or places, and trying not to get killed by the police, guards, SWAT guys, or agents as you go along. One of the best aspects of the game is the hand-to-hand combat they've got. There are tons of possible combinations of moves for either character, and they aren't the same. Apparently they are based on the actual actors' movements, but i can't verify that. Throws, punches, kicks, jump kicks, cartwheels, flips, diving, running up walls, throws, neck grabs....it's incredible how much thought they've put into it. One of the features of the game is called "focus." You have a little focus bar that goes down as you use it, and replenishes itself over time. This is how you use "matrix powers." It basically puts everything into slow motion, and you can dodge bullets, or pull off other cool stunts like jumping over big pits, or throwing that guard off the catwalk by his ankle.

The story is also quiet good, and it even comes with real movie sequences. Some few are actually from Reloaded, and some seem to be scenes that were cut from Reloaded. The whole game is stuff that happens off screen in reloaded, and now you get to see it. It explains further some aspects that they glossed over in reloaded as well, like how the keymaker got out, or more of a reason as to why niobe volunteered to go on the mission. Also, you get a preview of the new Oracle, and an explanation as to why she looks different now. (IRL, the actress who played the oracle died, so the oracle in revolutions is a different one.) Additionally, when you beat the game, you get a preview for Revolutions, which is awesome. IMO, playing as Ghost is more entertaining, but there really isn't that much of a difference. Ghost is just much cooler. If you've played it, and you know me, you'd know why i think that.

A couple problems: One thing that happened, not frequently, but often enough, were 'glitches in the matrix.' We had one guard who couldn't stop falling down. He'd fall halfway, suddenly be standing up again, and then fall once more. As far as I know, he's still falling. Also, a really freaky thing occured sometimes when going from the normal view to the first person view where the stretched out face of ghost's skin, sans sunglasses, would flash over the screen. The eyes are all buggy and it's distorted, so it's quite the shocker. Also, sometimes in hand-to-hand you or a guard will clearly miss, but the effect on the enemy will still happen. It's bound to happen in stuff like this, and the rest is so amazing it's okay. The other problem was that some of the missions are just impossibly difficult. Well, at least they seem that way while you are doing them. Some of them definitely took a lot longer than others, and were pretty frustrating. By comparison, the last couple levels were a little too easy to really seem like a hard fought finish. However, they fit with the plot, so...~shrug~

All in all this game was simply awesome. The story and the mechanisms both were great. Character handling was easy, and controls were simple to master. I give it a 8.75/10.

ChronoDmin

September 8th, 2003, 19:02

you really liked the game archley? cause i have it for xbox and untill the last 2 boards i was like yawwwwwnnnn

now Mechassault on the other hand....... :D

stepping on people, blowing up entire cities , :kill: destroying other mechs ahh destruction bliss

JEDIWAN

September 9th, 2003, 00:01

sir archely

September 9th, 2003, 10:37

damn, i just accidentally deleted my entire response to this. crap. anyway, short version.

chrono: last two? i thought those were about two of the easiest in the game.

jediwan: i totally forgot about the hacks, we didn't do anything with them...what do they even do?

dealing with the agents i thought was a little on the easy side, since really niobe or ghost shouldn't be able to defeat them, even if it isn't actually overpowering them, but whatever. dealing with the group was a pain in the ass. the first time you do it, and have no idea where to go...man...we get in corners and be surrounded by 5 or so of them. Then it's just, pick you up, throw you down, shoot at you, over and over and over until you're dead.

JEDIWAN

September 13th, 2003, 13:59

sir archely

August 25th, 2004, 14:59

Recently i've been playing a lot of Age of Mythology on my wife's mac. Her brother had it and finished with it so i got it.

If you're familiar at all with Age of Empires, it's going to be very familiar to you. I do think that Age of Mythology has better graphics, but i haven't played too much Age of Empires to really know.

The game is a real-time strategy type, in which you control gathering resources, developing an army and upgrading your civilization. Pretty straightforward with the resources, food, wood and gold. Although, one nice thing is that not all trees are the same, and there are different ways to get food. Domestic animals, hunted animals, farms, berries and fishing. Improvements to food tech. won't help you in all aspects of food gathering. The chain of improvements and buildings is very easy to learn, and no big charts or instructions are required for this game. Everything is right there on the screen.

So far, not so different from any other RTS game. The really great part of this game lies in the mythology part. At least, that's what makes it fun for me. There are three groups (an expansion gives a fourth) that are playable: The Greeks, the Egyptians and the Norse. Each group has it's own units and abilities, but moreso, each group has its own Gods. To start, you pick a primary God, (say, Odin, or Zeus) and each god has its own unique powers that it grants you, upgrades specific to it, and "myth" units that you can produce (say, hydras, giants, scarab beetles, chimeras, etc. etc.) As you advance through ages, you select secondary gods that again grant you a God power (like lightning storm, or healing spring) and access to different types of myth units. Each god (of which there are many) has unique abilities.

Very engaging game, the campaign is 36 levels during which you play as each of the three factions, and of course you can set up levels to play just on your own. In addition, clicking on a unit can bring up a description of that unit (any unit) that will give you some information about how that unit developed, or where it fits in mythology. The plot actually has some decent mythology in it (you are an atlantean, you storm the gates of troy, build the horse, put osiris back together...), the obvious time differential that makes the game possible notwithstanding.

Anyone who enjoys RTS and enjoys mythology should give this game a try.
screenshots, features, more descriptions and a which god are you test (http://www.microsoft.com/games/ageofmythology/norse_home.asp)

edit: originally wasn't sure about graphics vs. age of empires... played age of empires II a bit and age of mythology graphics-wise destroys it. much better interface and handling.

Apoc

August 25th, 2004, 19:09

Without a doubt the best game I have ever played. I've had it for ages and it just keeps getting better and better everytime. I always start playing games at the deep end, pah who the hell bothers playing the whole game on easy just to play the same thing only a little harder then again and again through the difficulties, but Resident Evil had me struggling and jumping and screaming from the start with the scares getting greater and greater as the game progresses.

I'm still trying to complete it with Chris, but I keep running out of ammo just as a boss approaches ~sighs~ but I love playing with Jill, damn she's fine and it just makes it harder for I don't want her to die, so I keep running away from nasty baddies, hehe.

Anyway, the graphics (is that the right word) are outstanding, games released only today still don't even compare.

The storylines change depending on how you play, so far I've had five different endings and about fifty scene changes and thats only with Jill.

Oh, I'm ranting about how great this game is and haven't even explained the story...so:

Umbrella Corporation (EVIL) has been conducting unmonitored genetic research within the mansion walls of the Spencer Estate for years.*The Special Tactics and Rescue Squad (S.T.A.R.S.) Bravo Team response unit was deployed to investigate rumors of an accident at the facility, but they have gone missing. So it falls to Alpha Team to go in and investigate and find their missing comrades, only to find that an outbreak of a virus (T-Virus) has turned everything into the walking dead and all the genetically modified beasties are running amok also.

You can play as either Chris Redfield or Jill Valentine (hmmm~swoons~) of the STARS (Special Tactics and Rescue Service) Alpha team as you piece together clues and just try to stay alive.

The ultimate survival horror game...the sequal thats a prequal-Resident Evil 0 still couldn't catch this if it attached rockets on its feet, the best!

10/10 (and a gold star)

;)

Buck

August 27th, 2004, 02:54

Well I couldnt resist posting while this thread was semi bumped up lately.

Id like to speak to you all about the game warcraft 3. Now I know what yall are going to say about it, but specifically Id like to point out a specific custom game that i fell in love with months ago and snuggle whenever I can spare some time.

Before I go in details, w3 is the latest blizzard rts or real time strategy game. I prefer games that give me aerial view. RTS are my beholden favorite. Online, you can download custom maps and play them against others.

This specific custom map is called DOTA, or defenders of the alliance. Like a lot of custom games out there for w3 you only control a hero. This unit can gain levels. As he/she gains levels you pick a new ability or upgrade an old one. You can also buy a wide variety of items. The best part of buying items is that certain types of items when you have them in your inventory will automatically combine to give better items and to clear your inventory. There are recipe's listem in your home base and there is even a secret store you need to make the uber stuff..Like a buriza. Anyone who has played diablo2 online should know this item. :) It is as nasty as the in d2 and requires 5 items combined to make which are rather expensive. there are I believe, something along the line of 80 recipes and maybe so many items total. That and the fact that there are so many heroes(48) to choose from makes the game quite enjoyable and replayable.

In game, there are two sides and up to 5v5 can play. One side is called the Sentinels and the other the Scourge. Good heroes on one side and evil heroes on the other. This map is continuously updated and tested for balance issues. Currently it is in verson 5.60beta

Anyone who has w3 and the expansion should go to the mapmakers's site and get it and try it out. The learning curve for anyone who knows how to play w3 is about a couple hours but you remain a noob for quite sometime because of the complex strategy invlved in playing. The game is very interactive and tests your mettle against others.

Get the latest map here (http://www.rtsgames.com/downloads/index.php)

This site has a forum with tons of complainers who know very little of the game but if you sift you can find some very useful info.

I highly recommend it. I play this more than normal w3 online nowadays and every now and again I run into sots playing on there too. Too bad neither of us can host. One of these days... one of these days *shakes fist*

edit- Added pic.

sir archely

August 27th, 2004, 10:39

well, i thought about making a game system thread but then i realized i really didn't care that much. So i'm just hijacking this for a bit.

the deal is this, for the wedding, someone gave us a $150 gift certificate to Best Buy, with the instructions that we should use it for evil. i mean, get either a PS2 or an Xbox. So my question to all of you is which?

also, if you say gamecube i may be forced to delete your post.

LaughingTurtle

August 27th, 2004, 11:53

PS2 all the way. True Xbox has a few good exclusive games but when you compare it to PS's vast library there's no comparison. And when I say exclusive I mean for said console only. PS also is backwards compatable so you can play PS one games, increasing your gaming selection even more. Coupled with free online gaming compared to a pay service and the fact that you can play DVD's on a PS straight out of the box (Xbox you have to buy an adapter/remote thingy) my vote goes for Playstation.

In gamecubes defense, (roommate has one along with a playstation so I've played both a lot) it's basically like xbox in that it has a few very good exclusive games but that's about it, heh.

EDIT: when I get some time I do plan on putting up a few game reviews of my own considering all the gaming I've been doing recently (yay no work!)

Malcor Sylverwood

August 27th, 2004, 12:01

Agreed. PS2 is the better game machine. I grudgingly admit that X-box has an edge in hardware tho. Although, as people are learning more about PS2s proprietary coding (from what I understand) the differences are being minimized.

On that note tho, I'm pretty sure I've read that the PS3 might make an appearance next year at the big conventions and such... ;)

-Malcor "PS2er" Sylverwood

LaughingTurtle

August 27th, 2004, 13:33

PS3, but also Xbox 2 as well. Though whatever genius decided to launch it without halo 2....halo was the main reason why the majority of people bought an xbox in the first place. They're also making the PSP, a playstation handheld dealie like gameboy.

As for actual hardware comparison...I don't see too much difference, sure having the harddrive is nice but what good is space if you lack many good games to play?

Apoc

August 27th, 2004, 17:58

~has a PS2, XBOX and Gamecube~

Basically, I only bought my gamecube for resident evil and I believe it was worth it...but Res Evil and Res Evil 0 are the only games I have for it....

My PS2....I basically gave it to smee, cause I never played it after getting the XBOX...

So...XBOX....Halo, Tony Hawk, Tenchu and a load of others....the most played console by far of the three....especially with four pads :) ...but I have returned a shitload of games cause they where rubbish...but if you buy right...its definately the best choice...it just has quite alot of crap games that dwarf the good ones...but the good ones are pretty damn good. ~nods~

So I say-XBOX :)

Buck

August 27th, 2004, 20:27

I concur with everything LT said. I was having trouble deciding myself until someone pointed out the differences back a year or so ago when I got my PS2.

PS2 has many great games --period.
XBOX has a handfull of really nice ones, but the good ones are only a handfull. Like the ones apoc mentions.

When it comes down to it, what type of games do you prefer arch, b/c that will be the deciding factor. Xbox seems to do well with arcade type games.

Anything else, I think the PS2 defintely has the upper hand(note ps2 makes nice arcade games too but they both are about equal imo). PS2 leads in RPG's, which Im sure you like, and has a sweet selection of EA sports games. The new 2005 ones are comming out now/soon :) and lots of classics. All the japanases type games are a specialty of PS2 in general. Im highly biased toward this in case you didnt notice.

Final Fantasy, Prince of Persia, Xenosaga, .... Jak II, Ratchet & Clank 1 & 2.

If I were you Id play both a little on both and decide. Personally by biggest turnoff from xbox was that hideously hard to hold controller. Im an old school player, so I prefer something that resembles the ol' NES like the PS2 controller. The XBOX one needs 3 hands to hold and the buttons are in odd positions and they feel ...funny. :umm:

*flees from apoc's wrath*

And in the defence of the Cube, if you like zelda or smashbrothers this is a good buy. Im thinking of getting on later this fall just for those games alone.

sir archely

August 27th, 2004, 20:53

heh, a friend has the gamecube, i've beaten zelda already. and smashbrothers, if i'm thinking of the right game, is just stupid. i hate the "make the other people fall off the screen" method and the end boss is just...ugh.

in actuality, i've been wanting a PS2 for quite some time... the only thing that makes me hesitate is that my wife's brother has an x-box with lots of games i could stea...borrow for a while.

Apoc

August 27th, 2004, 20:56

*flees from apoc's wrath*

~strikes down upon buck with great vengeance and furious anger~ :D

I like the PS2, I like the Gamecube, but the fact of the matter is that XBOX's good games have the "goback" factor, meaning you won't stop playing after a month or so...also XBOX releases EA games also.

The online gaming is another bonus...but the annoying remote you have to buy so as to watch DVDs is fairly annoying.

I've heard loads of folk complain about the bigpads, I think they're great, especially for Halo, but for those complainers there are smaller pads also ~nods~

Also for the whole time I've had my XBOX, I've had no fckups, whereas my PS2 continually had problems....

Arch....~uses jedi powers~ go with the XBOX :)

-Apoc"teamxbox"alypse

EDIT-Oh and I forgot to mention, no need for a memory card, the XBOX has its own built in memory and you can save songs on it too...~has about 100songs on his~ that I can listen two whilst playing...no more crap gaming music hahaha

sir archely

August 27th, 2004, 20:58

sounds like someone had a visit to the re-education center.

Apoc

August 27th, 2004, 21:03

~thinks arch should go to the re education centre to learn that XBOX is better than PS2~

:p

Malcor Sylverwood

August 27th, 2004, 21:25

I think bill gates just called apoc to enforce the liscence agreements. IIRC, mine said I had to be his gardener... doh

-Malcor "Slave" Sylverwood

Buck

August 27th, 2004, 21:32

Let us all be lucky that you dont have to wear skimpy shorts while "gardening"

And apoc, to get the cool pads, youd have to buy them

PS2 wins there. Though I'll give you the hard drive thing. you have to buy memory cards for the PS2 like in PS days.

Honeslty it is preference. Arch needs to see both systems for himself. Unless he really is simple minded...

*attempts jedi mind trick on him*

Cypher

August 28th, 2004, 04:51

I went with the PS2 solely because of the mass of RPGs that are out for it, granted the Xbox has some that are solely for it, but there's nowhere near the numbers.

I guess the real deciding factor for which system is what type of game you like.

Buck

August 28th, 2004, 13:13

arch...see logic? :rolleyes:

*attempts jedi mind trick again*

King Albert

August 29th, 2004, 01:24

[PC] Far Cry

Scoring system:
5 (best) – 1 (worst)

Video/Audio : 6 (breaking my own scoring system here)

At this time I feel that Far Cry holds the award for best looking game ever. No visual detail is overlooked in this game, from the image of palm trees refracting in the stunning water to real-time shadows sweeping over your character as you crawl prone under vegetation. I could go on forever about how beautiful this game is but it really has to be seen to be believed. The audio, while not as extraordinary as the video is still good and useful in adding atmosphere and detecting enemy location.

Game Play/Controls : 3

If you can play any other FPS using mouse/keyboard controls this game will be no problem. Stealth is done well in this game which sets it apart from many other FPS that have gimmick “stealth” levels that are usually frustrating. As part of your HUD you have a detection bar that will fill as enemies detect you. The transition from foot control to vehicle control is seamless. Your character can carry a limit of four weapons at one time. Weapon selection is mostly realistic and range from pistols to sniper rifles.

Storyline/Plot : 3

A standard FPS-style plot. Plot is driven by pre-rendered cut scenes and scripted in-game events. A few twists along the way keep it interesting.

Fun Factor : 4

This game is really a “5” about 95% of the time. The reason it is a “4” is because of some areas and enemies that are extremely difficult even on the easiest difficulty setting. The other factor that gives the game a “4” rather than an average score is the well-done physics engine. Once again some games include physics and maybe use it effectively once or twice in the whole game. While playing thru Far Cry I cannot count the number of times I was able to shoot cables dropping enemies off a bridge or push barrels down a hill to destroy a vehicle, etc.

Replay ability : 5

I am still replaying certain levels and exploring areas of the maps that I didn’t visit before. The size of the levels also means that there are different ways/routes to try after beating the game once. There is a small community that is making new maps, both single player and multiplayer to try out.

Pros:
-GRAPHICS!!!
-Well-implemented stealth and physics
-Lots of freedom and replay ability
-Fun vehicles

Cons:
-Some extremely difficult enemies
-Average storyline
-A relatively high end computer is needed to play at quality settings

Total Score: 21/25
Bottom line: If you have a good computer buy this game!

Screenshots:

Bumpmapping! (http://filebox.vt.edu/users/shmille4/FarCry0062.jpg)
Up a creek (not all details turned on) (http://filebox.vt.edu/users/shmille4/FarCry0209.jpg)
Dusk attack (http://filebox.vt.edu/users/shmille4/FarCry0230.jpg)
High detail muscles (http://filebox.vt.edu/users/shmille4/FarCry0242.jpg)
Paradise (http://filebox.vt.edu/users/shmille4/FarCry0265.jpg)

Buck

September 13th, 2004, 21:23

Two fold post...

World of Warcraft.
I played in the Stress Test Beta for World of Warcraft. Im not much on MMORPG's but for those that are this game is well polished as it is now and it is still in beta. A lot of the features are still being worked out but the game visually is stunning. When they closed the Stress test I spent my last hour dancing with 100 other stress testers and grooving then some of us took a griffin rides to another city. I flew over some sweet looking terrain. I saw a red dragon that was way down in a valley and it was STILL huge. :umm: Like I said though, MMORPG's arent my thing...I really dont like them b/c a) only people who can afford to play 6 hrs a night can get good and b) monthly fee just to play it. No thank you.

Score 5/10. (note that the max score of any mmorpg from me is probably a 5)
Release time :slated for Nov/Dec (wishfull thinking)

Now for the fun....

Warhammer 40,000.
This game is the latest real time strategy (rts) game. This game has gone gold and released their demo for download. I did so and played through a sample campaign and some non campaign skirmishes. All I can say is omg. This game is the best rts I have played undoubtedly since star craft. In fact, I forsee this being bigger than star craft. The game is visually stunning. I never played the game on table top but from the buzz vine I can say that it follows the table top version very closely while at the same time making it very playable. It is full 3D. you have full camera control. Zoom in all the way down to the head of one marine or to the hatch of a tank or zoom all the way out to a city block. Only was allowed to play the human/marines and had access to tier 2 units. I didnt play with the biggest toys but I was able to enjoy myself with what I had. The game is different enough from other rts's to give it a unique feel. The resource gathering is non traditional and Im guessing that reflects its table top origins.

The AI that came with the demo was easy and hard. Easy was a snap and hard was forget about it. Im assuming that the AI varies from map to map(like others in this genre) and that the full potency was not sampled through the demo.

The only thing I cant comment on and that can be quite improtant is balance issues. Balancing can make most games but in RTS's it is an absolute must. Withough it noone will play multi. The demo only let me have access against the orks and marines and I had only access to have the units err I think. Im not familiar with the Warhammer universe at all. I think the balancing should be fine since this game is a direct port of the taletop version. The game has stood the balancing test for 20 years. The only tweaking really would probably be the attack speeds, which in itself isnt exactly easy. Trial and error over a couple months should fix the gross misbalances. Im also sure enough that the makers will patch this thing. The game looks way too polished for them to abandon it.

Another thought I have is how multi will work. Will they impliment a battlenet system? I dont know, but I will find out! :D

Score 10/10 Im being very bold and confident here
Release date: Slated for later this month :cool:

sir archely

September 22nd, 2004, 22:26

is ot just me or does the star wars battlefronts game look awesome?

of course, there's also the potential to suck hardcore cause it doesn't live up to expections. and i don't know anything about the actual interface and gameplay, but still, if you really get to shoot the ewoks, i'm all about that.

LaughingTurtle

September 22nd, 2004, 22:56

Well it’s basically just a clone of Battlefield 1942 set in the star wars universe, and considering how good of a game that is I’d play my bet on battlefront being a really good game too. Plus there’s the fact that you can use more vehicles –

AT-AT
AT-ST
TIE Fighter
TIE Bomber
AT-TE
Clone Drop Ship
Clone Tank
Jedi Starfighter
Geonosian Stealth Fighter
Droid Star Fighter
Droid Walker
Droid Tank
Droid Battle Ship (Flying Fortress)
Droid Speeder
X-Wing
Y-Wing (bomber)
Rebel Speeder, 2types
Snow Speeder
Sand Skiff
Speeder Bike
Cloud Car
Taun-Taun
Kaadu
Gian Speeder

To name a few. And not only can you kill ewoks arch, you can kill gungans too – BONUS! I would pick it up but I don’t know how well it would work on my computer. Have yet to be able to play KOTOR that I picked up months ago :(

On a side note, my bro just picked up Warhammer 40k Dawn of War and my god it’s fun. Will have to bug him to put up a review.

~KA3AK~

September 22nd, 2004, 23:12

I haven't played video games in quite a while till a couple weeks ago when I tried Doom 3. Boy, was I disappointed. The game is basically a clone of Half Life (same storyline) with great graphics but without all the cool weapons and gadgets. This is nothing like the original. No more pleasure of running around killing hordes of monsters. The heart and soul of the original is gone. You just wander around this ceepy base and wait for something to jump out on you for like 10 levels. :thdown: :thdown: :thdown: :thdown: Don't buy it!!!!

LaughingTurtle

September 23rd, 2004, 00:13

Heh then you bought the game for the wrong reasons. Doom 3 was not meant to be like its predecessors. Good or bad, it went in a different direction. Look at Quake, the first one was meant to be all creepy and scary (sorta like Doom 3) whereas the 2nd one was all fun and gun like the old doom series. Also I hate to break it to you but Half-life didn’t invent the “aliens invade, loner saves everyone” storyline. Though I at least hand it to you that you didn’t complain about it being too dark ;) For what it’s worth it’s a beautiful game, fun and scary - not anything earth shattering mind you but definitely not a waste of money.

As for Star Wars Battlefront…bro just installed it….I think I’m in love…will have more on it later. (have already killed EWOKS! :D )

Buck

September 23rd, 2004, 00:49

Leave the little ewoks alone man!!

I played the demo for Warhammer 40k and the only reason I have not bought it yet is cause I have a big exam within the next month and having the full game in my apartment would be just counter productive. I have self control up to a certain point. A good quality RTS is my kryptonite however. From what I saw LT, it is good. Battlefronts looks good. I may get that eventually too. There are so many good games coming out over the next couple months it is not even funny. :)

~KA3AK~

September 23rd, 2004, 01:06

Heh then you bought the game for the wrong reasons. Doom 3 was not meant to be like its predecessors. Good or bad, it went in a different direction. Look at Quake, the first one was meant to be all creepy and scary (sorta like Doom 3) whereas the 2nd one was all fun and gun like the old doom series. Also I hate to break it to you but Half-life didn’t invent the “aliens invade, loner saves everyone” storyline. Though I at least hand it to you that you didn’t complain about it being too dark ;) For what it’s worth it’s a beautiful game, fun and scary - not anything earth shattering mind you but definitely not a waste of money.
I didn't say I bought it, I said I got it. And I know Half-Life did not invent the alien invasion storyline. Doom 3 just looked to much like.

sir archely

October 13th, 2004, 23:07

well, after much deliberation.... went with the X-box today. another little piece of my soul is black, but then again... i have an x-box. :) first game is Bond: everything or nothing. huzzah for cheap bond games i like!

Buck

October 13th, 2004, 23:17

I'll try not to hold it against you. Although you may curse me if I point out that new handheld by nintendo. It has two screens!! I may get it after the christmas break if I dont get it as a gift.

*BLATANT COUGHS and emails a link to this post to everyone he knows*

what? :halo:

Apoc

October 13th, 2004, 23:52

arch....you have chosen...wisely :)

~been playing Star Wars Battlefront healthy loads~

~been playing tony hawk pro skater 3 and 4 alot also~

~a few games here and there of Halo~

~a few of LotR:Two Towers~

~and loads of Tenchu and FIFA~

:)

and though I am skint at the moment ~coughN'awlinscough~ there are about four games I really want for XBOX and one for my Gamecube.

JEDIWAN

October 14th, 2004, 15:00

Welcome to the Dark Side...

jUstIn

October 18th, 2004, 13:11

what type of game is battlefronts? FPS or flying?? just curious

Jennifer

October 18th, 2004, 13:15

It's a fps.

Munky

October 18th, 2004, 14:05

but you can use vehicles, hence why some screenshots sometimes look like flight simulators

jUstIn

October 19th, 2004, 11:36

~drools~

is there co-op by chance?
~will own this game tonight, oh yes, it will be mine!~

thanks for the info guys

Buck

October 19th, 2004, 11:54

think of it as Battlefield 1942, except set in the Star Wars Universe. :)

jUstIn

October 19th, 2004, 12:20

whats battle feild 1942??

~ducks~

edit: i just got this game because of you guy's reviews....

hope your right

Apoc

October 20th, 2004, 08:02

~curses~ I bought a Gamecube JUST for the resident evil games cause apparently they are gamecube exclusive....and what do I now find....Resident Evil:Outbreak is only on PS2 and they're not going to do remakes of Res evil 2 or Nemesis :furious:

Resident Evil 4 comes out soon though and I guess thats ok...but still! ~not happy~

I was in GAME yesterday...and just browsing whilst waiting for a friend I picked out games I want to get.....Silent Hill:The Room, FIFA 2005, Halo 2, The Suffering, NFL MADDEN 2005 and a few others, all for XBOX yeah....I had $800 in my pocket...if it was pounds then I'm sure I would have bought a game :( but it wasn't...sooo-for my return :)

sir archely

October 20th, 2004, 10:03

buying a Gamecube can only lead to tragedy and heartbreak. and beatings, probably beatings too.

epiph

October 20th, 2004, 10:06

but...zelda!

sir archely

October 20th, 2004, 13:17

i'll give nintendo zelda, and the newest legend of zelda looks to be really cool, but wind waker was a piece of junk that got by on the name zelda had already established and the new look.

also, hilarious (http://www.vgcats.com/comics/).

LaughingTurtle

October 20th, 2004, 14:02

There are only two other games that I can vouche for that are gold for the GC. First, Skies of Arcadia Legends, and Wario Ware. Skies of Arcadia is a solid RPG, and Wario is one of the best party games.

jUstIn

October 20th, 2004, 17:53

after i first got my arse kicked in battlefields, and saw that its not a FPS, its third person!! argg!!! which pissed me off at first then i got the hang of it and its a blast. i compare it to playing command and conquer with army guys, and you get to be a squad commander. (rocket men, tesla men, assorted tanks and such,) my tactics may be a bit unrefined (rack up the kills!!! charge, and protect your squad from with cover fire and kill everyone in sight and take a base regroup and continue)

Apoc

October 20th, 2004, 22:25

favourite level-Geonisis....~is air support~ :D I get at least 150 kills...otherwise my average is 60 :) ~on hard~

oh and hoth...where I don't really go for kills...but ATAT's! ~loves tripping those big bastards~ :D heh

And I just love killing the gungans and ewoks...but those damn wookies ~shakes fist~ on Kashyk I always miss them cause they're hidden soo well and out of nowhere...boom...sythadiez was kill by woookie :furious: :)

and justin...though you can't go to first person with the gun showing...you can change your view three times ~nods~

jUstIn

October 25th, 2004, 12:53

there is an option that allows first person perspective... in the option menue... but it doesnt work for split screen...and i hate piloting with said view ~shrugs~

Cypher

November 5th, 2004, 03:48

X-Men: Legends Platform: PS2

Great game, I'd say it rates up there with Champions of Norrath or perhaps Baldurs Gate: Dark Alliance 2. Tons of detail, not any blood though, beatiful cinematics in between, load screens are good to look at, although not for such a long time. Plays like the above mentioned games although you control up to 4 mutants at a time, other 3 are productive enough even when you're not using them. Easy to switch characters and choose what you want the character to do. The gameplay is about as good as a game like this can get. I'm not sure how far into it I am, but all my characters are lvl 15 or so and they just got their extreme mutant attacks which I love the way some of them are done, very detailed, yet a couple could use some help. The storyline is strange for me, since I don't know much about the x-men universe... at least not the time frame mentioned in the game. Has a girl who becomes Magma captured by the brotherhood for their evil plans, go and rescue her and learn the controls with wolverine and, eventually, cyclops. Starts off action packed and seems to continue that way. A couple of puzzles require certain mutants, either Magma or Iceman to make a bridge, Cyclops to weld stuff together, other people to do other stuff (some of which I probably haven't gotten to. The play gets progressively difficult, early on you can just hack and slash your way through, but by the time you get to the sewers there's people that will respawn other guys unless you kill them first, there's devices that sap your mutant ability power, so you can't use special moves, and the sentinals, yeesh, they can wipe you out in 2 hits if you're playing with cyclops or someone with low health, but there's items to equip that will help you with hard situations like that. The money part is a problem though, not very easy to make enough to buy stuff, and you have to wait until a checkpoint to sell or buy anything (most of which is easily achievable by killing people by the time it shows up in the shop). The potion limit sucks, but also adds to the difficulty of the game.

Gameplay - 10/10
Graphics - 9/10
Difficulty - 8/10 (not even half way through though)
Sound - 6/10 (don't really pay attention to it)
Overall - 9/10
Replayability - 8/10 (I'm sure there's tons of stuff I could've done differently and I probably missed some stuff, so unless I can go back to places I've already been, I'll probably replay)
Its a great game for people that liked aformentioned games or even if you liked games like Diablo 2 on the computer (which I never played with sound but played very often).

Vivacia

November 8th, 2004, 17:49

For a Half-Life modification, this is the cream of the crop.

The premis of the game is one team of players plays as the marines (humans with guns), and they are all controled by one player known as the commander, which is not a problem most of the time, but sometimes a commander that doesn't know the game can ruin it for all the other marines. The other team is made of aliens. The basic alien lifeform is the Skulk, which is a small dog sized creature, who bites. The Gorge, which builds all alien structures. The Lerk, which flys around and spits poisonous gas. The Fade, which is a quick moving and fast hitting marine sized creature. And finnaly the Onos, which is a cross between an Elephant and a Rhino, with a hint of Cow.

The game is a fast paced First Person Shooter, with Real Time Strategy elements. Now I hvae completely lost my train of thought...

Anyway, this game does have some drawbacks. The community is small, and a lot is expeted from the newcommers to the game, and they are often kicked or banned from servers becasue of a simple mistake they make, that unfortunatly cost their team the game. To help them, their is a combat mode (denoted by co_ before the maps rather then ns_ before the maps for regular maps), which is NS without the need to gather the resource nodes or depend on a commander for your upgrades.

Summery: Natural-Selection is a well made game that is constantly being upgraded, but is based on a 6 year old (going on 7) game, that is starting to show its age, but is still holding up well, and is currently on version 3.5b.

The website can be foudn at www.natural-selection.org, along with a players guide that will help you start out in the game.

Gameplay- 8 - Its blend of FPS/RTS and the COMPLETLY different teams makes it revolutionary, but it does hvae some drawbacks.
Audio- 7 - It sounds good, but there are a lost of anoying sounds, very noticable around the hive areas, that interfears with gameplay.
graphics- 7.5 - Hey, its and old game that its using for its engine, its showing its age against game like UT2K4 and Farcry.
Community- 7.5 - Though I mentioned they are not kind to the newbies, al surprising amount are. There is even a team of people founded by the maker of the game thats soul purpose is to guide newbies around and teach them.

Overall - 8.5 - Ya, it doesn't work out with the other scores, but it is a VERY good game.

---From the green-ninjalo, not Vivacia.

epiph

November 8th, 2004, 21:34

natural selection makes me motion sick, which really sucked back when all my friends were addicted.

Buck

November 9th, 2004, 18:43

Xmen Legends is a cool game. I finally got it and am enjoying it a whole bunch :D

I have to keep my plastic sword nearby when I play though. My roommate keeps grabbing the second controller and killing off 3 of my characters. :dozey:

Apoc

November 10th, 2004, 09:11

Silent Hill 4: The Room

Damn, this game had soo much potential and though it looks good, the scares are lame and the baddies are far too easy to avoid.

Basically I got really far after about two hours of seperated play without getting injured or killed once...and this is on hard?!?

I'm going to go trade it in today for Full Spectrum Warrior.

~sighs~

Cypher

November 11th, 2004, 08:44

Hey Buck, how far have you made it in the game? and where did you have the most trouble? I still think the first time in the sewers was my hardest part, especially now that I have a team that can take out most things easily... Dark Avalanche was pretty hard for me also, but I managed to get by him with 2 characters still alive... ouch.

Buck

November 11th, 2004, 13:38

Hmm, at first I kept dying, but once I got the hang of the controls it isnt so bad.

The sewers were definitely difficult at first but I made it through ok. Cyclops, Storm, Iceman and Wolverine seem to work really well together.

Im having a real hard time atm on the next level on the ship out at see. There is a time restraint and Im not quite sure where to go and what to do. Do I just rescue everyone in time? There is another objective listed but I cant seem to fulfill it at all.

I hope I didnt screw it up too much, cause I only have one save file and it is at the begining of this mission. :umm:

Mesaana

November 11th, 2004, 21:42

OMG the freakin sea ship...

if you want I can give ya a clue if you are really stuck. I HATED that damn ship.... However once you get past it tis some smooth sailing ahead... and more fun characters to come!!! It gets exciting ;)

LaughingTurtle

November 11th, 2004, 22:30

Ratchet and clank: Up your Arsenal

The third installment in popular series, R&C III comes packed with more weapons, more bad guys and the same old formula. Once again the dynamic duo are called upon to save the galaxy this time from a menacing robot by the name of Doctor Nefarious who would like nothing more than to kill all organic “Squishy” life. Now before you can say ‘Holy run on sentence batman’ I shall reveal why the game should have been labeled more like an expansion pack than a true new full installment.

First off, there really wasn’t much they could improve upon in matters of game play. A few minor things were tweaked from the previous versions but nothing to write home about. As usual the graphics are cartoony yet very fluid and beautiful. Getting to the meat and potatoes of it all, the weapons. You’ll quickly recognize many old familiar ones as well as a few new ones like the whip ;) Each weapon can be leveled up and after you beat the game once you can unlock the mega weapons and the ultimate weapon. I’m one of those 100 percent gamers who has to complete everything and I leveled up all the weapons.

The battle arena is back, there are new vehicles, there’s even an awesome side scrolling mini-game included in the story. On par with the series the humor never stops and the gags are actually somewhat funny. I’d have to admit, Captain Quark reminds me of Quirky for some reason…

My main gripe comes in with the brevity of the game. I beat it in just a few hours. It seemed drastically shorter when compared with the previous two titles. And as I said before I’ve beaten it twice, nearly gotten 100%, all the platinum bolts, unlocked secrets, and leveled up weapons all in less than 18 hours. Now some of you may say that’s a long time but for a game with nil replay-ability the first run-through should last a good while.

So in all, a good solid game but it was over before it began it seemed. 7/10

Cypher

November 12th, 2004, 00:45

Sea ship... have iceman and either storm or cyclops and the time restraint shouldn't be too much of a problem... its the first place to really go that you need to weld stuff (optic blast, lightning bolt) other powers weld I'm sure, but those are the 2 I normally use. When you weld the places the time limit increases, so it gets rather easier.

Damn me, I missed finding the Danger room Disc for Qualifying Exam 400, so now I can't get to the upper danger room levels... *grr*

Buck

November 12th, 2004, 00:50

Yea cyph, I got that far and even rescued 6 out of the 8 before my time ran out. I had trouble finding the other two, it seemed like I was running in circles. I wont have a chance to touch till sometime this weekend though.

Cypher

November 12th, 2004, 01:12

Ahhh, the yellow X symbols on the map are where they're at, the last 2 I believe require destroying walls, or running through/putting out fires. (With my party I put them out) I normally use the map on big mode in the middle of the screen (was used to it since I played Diablo 2 the same way). It's easy once you figure out what the X's mean, heh, I normally don't even read the objectives, so sometimes I don't know whether to pull a lever or destroy something... I just got through the Sentinel Facility and it seems I get to go try to rescue Xavier now... joy.

Buck

November 12th, 2004, 01:16

I played d2 with the map full too cyph, the lack of contrast makes the xmen map a bit hard to see, so I have it on mini mode and dont pay much attention to it.

Cypher

November 12th, 2004, 12:50

Ahhh, well, the yellow x and blue x stand out pretty well, along with the character green arrow. I find that Jean Grey's psychic shout, or whatever it is, the 2nd skill thingie, it works very well at high levels, kills lots of guys in 1 hit. So I normally find a way to incorporate her into whatever party I make.

Mesaana

November 12th, 2004, 13:06

(psst how the heck do you use her special power?? Phoenix force... I envoked it by accident and had no idea what the hell to do with it.... I'm sure it makes her uber but...)

Cypher

November 12th, 2004, 23:22

All of them have that one special power that attacks the whole screen, its R2+Triangle The big X's on the bottom of the screen next to the character select is what determines if you can use it or not. once you hit level 20 you get 1, then you get 1 more for every 5 levels until you have all 5, in order to fill those up, bad guys or barrels will drop the necessary item. So far as I can tell it doesn't really matter whose move you use as they all do incredible damage, but perhaps if you use someone that has an ability the bad guys are not resistant against. I find those moves lacking in graphic effect, wish they could've made them cooler to look at.

Characters are around the level 35 range and I think I'm getting close to the end although I still haven't reached Asteroid M.

Apoc

November 22nd, 2004, 19:38

Halo 2

Ok, I've had it for some time now, completed it in the first twenty four hours of purchase and haven't felt the lure that the first one did of replaying...the deathmatches are also a bit of a let down, one of the maps you can't see a damn thing...the dual weapons and the ability to hit people off vehicles are quality bonuses, but it just doesn't feel like that massive a leap from the original...and the shocking cliff hanger ending really hurts.

The story of the game is fairly cool, but I just feel its trying to be far too clever, some of the time I didn't have a clue what I was doing all the fighting for and who was on my side....

The Arbiter storyline is a saving grace and the voice acting is top notch in my mind, as the game progresses as do the effects, well at least thats what I thought anyway.

The sword is the best weapon in the game, the ability to go close combat and cut flood to itty bitty pieces is priceless....but overall, a story that is far too smart for my gaming pleasure, though well done and excellently delivered...its quite short and confusing as hell at moments...when it ends I was left screaming that I had been robbed of what should have been an excellent final level...the after credits bit doesn't help but it is a nice touch.

Hopefully Halo 3 doesn't take too long to come out...

Halo 2 works as a nice middle chapter, but as a sequal with no ending, its a let down to say the least...

The online clan game sounds pretty nifty though...~will ahve to get hooked up~

7/10

Buck

November 22nd, 2004, 21:01

Warhammer 40K: Dawn of War

I never played the tabletop version of this game so I went in sorta blind as an avid lover of RTS's only. I had put off buying and playing this game for a long time due to being busy with school and what not but I finally installed and played through the game's campain. Admitingly enough, I was not expecting much of it, so I was pleasantly surprised when the plot proved to be somewhat captivating. Insert your classic enemy lurking in shadows and shake in some plot twists and sprinkle in some truely cool dialogues and *tadaa*. There was enough of an interesting plot to keep me to the task and finish the campaign. My only let down was the actual final map which was way more easier than it should have been.

As far as the actual RTS itself:

There are 4 races and all seem to be fairly well balanced. This most definitely is an effect of the tabletop version being balanced for eons. The controls are really straight forward and even someone knew to the genre will find the que system easy to learn. My only grief is that lack of depth in the micro management. Now as an avid RTS lover (I make no claim to being an uber 1337-ist here...though all who know me phear me :p) I must say that it is too user friendly. As a very reasonable point of reference I use Starcraft. The micro management level for an 1337 user is disgusting. In Warhammer it is too easy to que things up and sit there. I played around with the various races and they all played very similarly in that respect...especially the Eldar with their nasty tree of upgrades. You just click on one building (the research building) and click on the 8 things to upgrade and your done.

Micromanagement of Units:
The one point I consider both a pro and a con is the grouping systems in unit control. Depending on the type of infantry/race you can have anywhere from 4-14 units in one platoon. You can not click on the individual units, the platoon as a whole responds together. The great thing about this is that to control 50 marines you only need to treat them as really just 5. The downside or direct consequence of this is if your moving along with 3 stacks of units when they stop they spread out quite a bit when the reach their destination. Also, moving along tight/narrow areas or obstacles delayes the whole unit quite a bit. The true con for it is that you can re-enforce the stack whereever you are. So if Im down to the last guy I can take him to the side and and re-enforce him back to 8. Im still 50-50 on this and havent fully decided if I like it or not, but its not like I have a choice.

You can also choose to upgrade some of the (specifically 4 out of the 9 for space marines) indivdual units in the platoon, to have a specific type a weapon. This includes rocket launcher, plasma gun, a pea shooter upgrade and my absolute favorite-the flamethrower. The flamethrower does some decent damage to buildings and vehicles mostly but also even more importantly it effects to disrupt morale! Morale being broken in another enemy infrantry unit makes them scatter like the ants that they are...err..*cough*

Further differentation is mixed in by having differing melee and ranged attack damage types. Some units are better at melee and some are nice long ranges snipers. The days of a zergling rush are no mare Im afraid. The only way to truely make way in battle is to balance your force. I consider this a con, a fleet of tanks should be able to win imho. They do to a certain extent but the bottleneck on how many you can build isnt depressing. I can build 5 predator tanks max! :eyebrow:

The graphics for the game is astonishing. You have the standard freedom of control with your camera view and you can zoom in quite a bit --again standard now adays. The gore itself is pretty graphic which directly lends to the mature rating the game receivers (ages 17+)). Some units randomly use special attacks while in melee and some of them are really cool. As an example, the Space marines' dreadnaught (its a mech!) while engaged in melee with infantry will occasionally either slap away and knock back all surrounding units or actually instant kill one individual unit by picking it up and dismbebering it and throwing it. :umm:

The AI is a bit lacking. There are 5 settings and the actual difficulty level as you scale it higher goes directly from peice of cake to GG with no happy medium. Im still experimenting with it by putting myslef up against 3 enemies of varying AI ability. Of course, games like this luster the most in their multiplayer functionality. It doesnt to me at least, to have the halflife of starcraft, although it definitely beats out warcraft3, command & conquer and the like. I dare not judge it, time alone will tell on this one.

I give the game and overall 8/10 for replayability and on my magic RTS meter I give it a 3/5 . Im as much a hard ass in this scale as amelia is in the avy wars ;)

Cheers!

sir archely

November 22nd, 2004, 21:11

Further differentation is mixed in by having differing melee and ranged attack damage types. Some units are better at melee and some are nice long ranges snipers. The days of a zergling rush are no mare Im afraid. The only way to truely make way in battle is to balance your force. I consider this a con, a fleet of tanks should be able to win imho. They do to a certain extent but the bottleneck on how many you can build isnt depressing. I can build 5 predator tanks max!

Wow, you consider the need to be balanced a con? i still play starcraft fairly regularly, but i consider one of its great cons to be that one-dimensional forces almost always prevail against a more balanced force. i was actually just thinking about this recently, cause now i play age of mythology more, and i love how more balanced forces are superior. it's so much less exciting if you know that you're going to go one unit type and that's it every time cause it will destroy a comp AI. actually gives it a bit more in the replayability dept. i'd say.

Buck

November 22nd, 2004, 21:17

No no, Im complaing about the population limit there, The vehicle and Infantry limits are both only 20. A predator tank is worth 3 units, so that comes out to be 6 actually.

I agree that massing one unit should not (edit --typo!!!)net you the win, but you should be able to do it to finish someone off as an example. It adds that extra nelson laugh finishing move.

edit-- your total forces when you do max out, dont seem that many. Im probably spoiled by Rome toal war though*

And age of mythology is indeed a nice game, although a bit slow for my taste I do like how they actually use proper ancient greek for unit talk. :)

sir archely

June 18th, 2005, 21:25

~res~

anyway, bringing this back to due absnot flux.

and i think apoc just chooses x-box games poorly. right now i'm in the middle of a morrowind III campaign and i'm loving it. so much stuff to do. the leveling system is a bit weird, but it's a good change of pace from the usual.

AquaFizz

June 18th, 2005, 22:08

remember when you were younger...and for awhile you decided you were too grown up for videogames? Yeh...

Heh. Sims makes me giggle. Except..I don't know how I feel about my guy HAVING to get nekkid and get in the hottub for me to continue in the game. I just...ugh. Kids play sims and...ugh.

I'm about to bust out rainbow six 3 in a bit. I'm in the mood to shoot stuff.

~nodnod~

sir archely

June 19th, 2005, 04:47

remember when you were younger...and for awhile you decided you were too grown up for videogames? Yeh...

yeah, so that never happened...

Waffles

June 19th, 2005, 05:13

Pirates! by Sid Meier is the best game... YARRRGH!
Does get a little repetitive after a while, so you have to make sure its at a hard setting. The easiest two are seriously easy. But yeah... the boats are awesome. However, the HARDEST part of the game is the dancing. I mean seriously hard. Wow...

magatsu17

June 19th, 2005, 10:08

AAAHHH a gaming thread, I didn't even know there was one here?

I'm going old school for this week, playing FF7 on my ps2 in honor of going anime convention of friday, and going cosplaying as Barret from FF7 advent children.

Also playing a few games right now, Poject Snowblind, which is pretty good not great, just a fun FPS. XIII which is also good, but i got it for like 6 bucks at EB so that was agreat deal. DOA Ultimate, which was a really good deal for 20 bucks. DOA Xtreeme Beach Volleyball which is addicting some how, and not just for the TnA factor.

and i'm getting back to playing Halo 2 online again. It was always fun, just kinda drifted away from it for a while.

Apoc

June 19th, 2005, 21:20

Resident Evil 4

The most recent in the fantastic series with enormous changes...they ain't no zombies ahhhhhh...chainsaws gzzzz gzzzzz chzzzzzzzzzzz chop...shit...did you see that!!! :eek: my head just got chopped off..... :confused: ....cool :devil: hehe...

Other changes include non static angles...as we follow the character about the place instead...massive change to the way you get weapons with the characer of a merchant, selling and buying stuff...creepy guy...i wonder if he's gonna suddenly bite my head off on one of these random occassions when i wish to buy stuff from him or sell hmmm...

the stories good, though doesn't have the huge mystery to it that the original did, nor are there as many monsters...well i've come across a few...but still, i really crave a Hunter to scare the shit out of me by jumping through a wall or something...the only thing that keeps catching me majorly off guard is the snakes hidden in the item boxes...whch i like...though its dissapointing this is the one thing that i can think of that gves me a major fright...not to say all coming your way isn't scary...its just you get advance warning with a shout or a moan....nothing really jumps out at you ~sighs~

so far, i'm loving it immensely...but i have left out my major annoyance til last...and this is that you can only go Leon :( not that Leon isn't damn cool...but i loved getting the choice of two characters...and so far no Jill :cry: ...though Ada Wongs showed up :) which was super cool...though your sidekick is this lil bitch who most the time i just wish would get mauled...though she never does...an older dakota fanning she is ~nods wisely~ and the ~sqeeky annoying voice~ i'm the presidnts daughter :dozey:

overall thus far as i seemingly approach the end is that the game rocks...i love the weaponry, i love the spooky settings, villains, monsters, scenarios, traps, puzzles and gore :devil: not as great as the remade original...but a damn good effort

:) -9/10

Buck

June 19th, 2005, 23:55

If you are looking for that scary Hunter crashing through a window type of fright I suggest Doom 3. It reuires a powerful pc to play but if you turn down the effects it is still very good. The first hour of the game scared thehll out of me. I played it late at night in the dark and I couldnt count how many times I justwas too afraid to move down a dark corridor.

Rinse and repeat this over and voer again and there you have Doom 3. :cool:

I dont play much aside from W3 and WoW nowadays. Occasionally I'll mix it up and play some of my oldies but goodies, but that is about it. Im waiting mighty impatiently for Dungeon Siege 2. I played through the beta and it looks nice.

I am starved for a good RPG. I havent played a good one in years.

NFL Street 2 is also nice diversion. Being able to customize your own team is a nifty feature.

AquaFizz

June 20th, 2005, 12:58

Uh! I played NFL Street with the guys!!!

And NCAA Football!! Or..was it Maddon?! Buh! Whichever one you can ALSO make your own team for...and we recreated our entire high school team for it! SO MUCH FUN! ...We did pretty decent, too.

Meep! ~scurries~

Buck

June 20th, 2005, 19:53

yea NFL Street is the one that lets you make your own team. you can customize appearance, clothes, walking and running styles and faces. One of my friends has a team with all of us in it and the funniest and most accurate player character is the one that resembles my roommate.

Buck

August 6th, 2005, 14:26

A good laugh (http://www.1up.com/do/feature?cId=3142444) :)

JEDIWAN

December 10th, 2007, 15:08

O.K. not really a review, but check this out

http://www.g4tv.com/pile_player.aspx?video_key=19180

http://www.g4tv.com/pile_player.aspx?video_key=19317

LaughingTurtle

December 10th, 2007, 16:34

Speaking of game reviews...I totally recommend watching this GUY. (http://www.escapistmagazine.com/articles/view/editorials/zeropunctuation)

Humorous - Check
"Funny" Accent - Check ;)
Current games - Check
Fast paced - Check
Check - Checked

Buck

December 11th, 2007, 01:22

Zero Punctuation makes my Wednesdays something to look forward to. My favorite review by the Yahtzee fellow is the one he did on the Orange Box, all his reviews are hysterical but this one especially I agree with every word.

JEDIWAN

December 11th, 2007, 12:56

Dude, that has to be one of the funniest things I've seen in a good while....:ninja:

Apoc

December 12th, 2007, 16:56

I totally forgot about this thread and was considering making one for awhile now...heh dum dum dumb anyways...apocs 2007 game reviews-

Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare XBOX360 :kill:

Brilliant, great entertainment and a suprisingly fantastic and hugely entertaining storyline, great alternate mission from a stealth sniper mission, to a 4 vs an entire army defence of a village, to a gunship level thats so realistic its frightening, to a blackhawk down like battle through the streets of a middleeastern country...so many and so entertaining - 9/10

Heavenly Sword PS3 :arrr:

Brilliant, only the second game in my long history of gamin that i'd give a 10/10 on everything for-great story, amazing visuals, fantastic gameplay (especially twing-twag heh) just an absolute pleasure to play, great entertainment and awesome fun- 10/10

Clive Barker's Jericho PS3 :devil:

Fun with some cool ideas as you descend with a supernatural special forces team consisting of a psychic healer, a pyromancer, a reality hacker, a seer, a telekinetic, a bloodmage (the best character imo) and an exorcist, into a hell-like dark and gorey prison of a dark and evil entity, as you go further, the further back in time you go. Some great levels and fun gameplay with ability to jump from team member to team member to deal with situations as you like, some levels require specific expertise...great fun til a horribly anticlimactic ending, probably the worst ending (even worse than halo 2's cliffhanger) aside from that though, a fun gaming experience that could have done with some gorey death scenes (its pretty much impossible to die in this game (especially with the healer in the squad) but yeah, good then decent with a spattering of great moments to then descend into an awful end heh -7/10

Fight Night Round 3 XBOX360 :apoc:

Fantastic fun, the punch control is great and the knockout moments are bonecrunchingly entertaining - 8/10

Assassins Creed PS3 :ninja:

Hugely dissapointing, if it was just set during the crusades it'd be awesome but the constant annoyance of a future storyline continuously butting in totally kills it. Visually its stunning, the gameplay is decent and one half of the story is very cool...but the other half (the future storyline) is just dull and totally throws you out of the adventure assassin game you where playing, every forty mins you're thrown from your adventure to do nothing, just walk around a lab go to the bed, wake up go back into the game...its dumb, plus the stunning visuals and cool mysterious protagonist are destroyed by the whiny anakinlike character that should just be quiet and mysterious-abandoned for now.

Fifa 2008 XBOX360

a step down visually from the previous installment but definately much better than Pro Evolution Soccer. 2007 may have been visually better but this latest installment has definately raised the gameplay and skill abilities for the player to have fun with - 8/10

The Darkness XBOX360 :devil:

A good start but trailed off into boredom-abandoned for now

Gears of War XBOX360 :furious:

Entertaining, good storyline, fun gameplay, great two player and live. - 8/10

Resistance Fall of Man PS3

One of the playstations launch titles but jus a poor challenger and a huge stepdown from the xbox's gears of war. ome good weaponry but easy and few villains. -6/10

Fear PS3

Some good frights and spooky sounds o start but visually i hate it and thus - abandoned

Dead Rising XBOX360 :zombi:

Great zombie bashing fun and suprisingly addictive, you'd think you wold get tired of it after the first few levels but its just soo much fun and great big villains, mostly just psychos-its fun to slaughter your way through the zombie hordes but its the humans who are the real danger, great fun- 8/10

Vampire Rain and Ninenty nine nights - played both once, abandoned both instantly, may pick them up again when i've got nothing better to do...but yeah...ignore.

Malcor Sylverwood

December 12th, 2007, 17:33

heh, here we go again. I thought both FEAR and Resistance were both really solid games, esp since FEAR was an older port and Resistance was a launch title. I haven't played much recently, been too busy...but I HAD been looking forward to Heavenly Sword and COD4...but maybe I'll go with assassins creed instead. lol ;)

-Malcor "Disagreeable" Sylverwood

Apoc

December 12th, 2007, 21:37

I didn't say either where bad but Fear, for me personally, i just didn't like the graphics and never got further than the second level...it had no grip on me to want to go back ~shrugs~ i'll maybe oneday get around to trying it again...Resistance though...was ok but if you want to do that sorta thing Gears of War just blows it away...i found Resistance faar too easy even on its most difficult setting it just felt too simplistic in its structure, there where no big baddies that made you go "ackkkk i'm gonna die RUN AWAY!" heh

I can't recommend Heavenly Sword enough...its brilliant and definately the second best game i've ever played...i still play it, especially the twing-twang levels hehe Andy Serkis is brilliant as the villainous emperor but seriously, its the most fun you'll ever get on the playstation, great story, great characters, dare i say it wonderful acting heh glorious visuals and brilliant gameplay...this game turned my ps3 from paperweight to awesome console in one night :apoc:

Malcor Sylverwood

December 12th, 2007, 21:49

The only complaint I have about FEAR is that eventually all the enemies are the same basic guys, but they do a good job of mixing up scenarios and locations that most of the battles feel different. And the creepy sections...some of them are REALLY creepy. It wasn't quite Resident Evil total freak out scary...but what is?

Resistance wasn't terribly difficult, if you were careful enough. But where is the fun in that ;). And maybe I just suck (and that may not be too far from the truth), but there were a few places that were hard enough because of the numbers and the way they have you pinned down. The one I remember was in a mall type thing...after a wave of the face huggers (heh, not quite the critters from Aliens, but close enough), you have to go against a handful of beasties in good defensive positions with a heavy gun outside ready to blast you if you expose yourself too much.

~shrugs~

I'll probably try Heavenly Sword and COD, mostly I was giving you a hard time...I also want to try Uncharted...and another one who's name escapes me at the moment...I think the PS3 may be finally getting to where its really worth having...although I enjoyed the games we've mentioned as well as Blazing Angels and Elder Scrolls: Oblivion (tho it got a bit tedious after a while).

Buck

December 12th, 2007, 22:53

I played plenty of Resistance co-op last year on a buddy's ps3. I completely get where apoc is coming from with his review of it. Being the lead alien type FPS on the PS3, you can't help to compare it to the analogous 360 game -- Gears of War -- and there is honestly no contest.

If you havent played it Malc, I highly recommend it. It really does take shooters to the next level. The story mode is extremely well done, the weapons handle real well, and the cover system adds a level of depth that truely makes the game a gem in the rough.

On its own, Resistance is an ok and fun game, but Gears of War is the type of game that changes your perspective on the whole genre. Resistence is definitely a pretty game and tossing those exploding needle grenades down a hole always puts a smile on my face, but the game still lacks something, I dont know what.

Malcor Sylverwood

December 12th, 2007, 23:52

Don't get me wrong, I don't doubt gears of war is better, but Resistance was a launch title...and a damn good one for that. And don't talk to me about perspective, sonny...I've been around since before Wolfenstien ~shakes cane~ lol

Buck

December 13th, 2007, 01:51

Pfft, that sort of cane waving won't work on me. I too was around since Wolfenstein and prior. You know that step forward from going from a 2D shooter to a 3D? A cover system is that big of a step forward in my book.

Gah, I just had a flashback to playing Earth Siege on my brother's laptop over 10 years ago. Man, now that game rocked. I wonder if any mech type games are coming out any time soon. The last couple Mechwarrior games sucked so much, they made my soul shed tears. A good joystick selection would be asking for too much.

Malcor Sylverwood

December 13th, 2007, 06:06

Pfft...I haven't even pulled out the big guns yet...how about playing Jumpman or Bard's Tale on the Commodore 64? Or pitfal, pacman, and, yes, pong on the atari 2600? Then, in the great war, when we ran out of... ~dozes off~

JEDIWAN

December 13th, 2007, 11:58

Apoc, trudge through Darkness.

It's in no way the greatest game in the world, but it's so very intertaining when you get to KILL KILL KILL HAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA...
I may play it through again on easy or normal just to see if making a different choice will effect the outcome (doubt it) and to get some easy achievements (Yeah. That's Right...I Said It....What!?!).
You're playing a gangster (with a heart o' gold) who gets "possessed" with The Darkness (some ancient evil thingamabob), thus giving him, well, power...You, ofcourse, draw power from dark places. I never read the comic on which it is based, so I can't scream about lack of accuracy; but it's a nice, dark, distraction. The thing with the lights and/or lack thereof gets a bit tedious, though. 7/10...i guess..KILL KILL KILL

Malcor Sylverwood

December 19th, 2007, 16:25

Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare XBOX360 :kill:

Brilliant, great entertainment and a suprisingly fantastic and hugely entertaining storyline, great alternate mission from a stealth sniper mission, to a 4 vs an entire army defence of a village, to a gunship level thats so realistic its frightening, to a blackhawk down like battle through the streets of a middleeastern country...so many and so entertaining - 9/10I was on the PS3 version, obviously. It is a good looking game, with decent levels. I was amazed sometimes at the amount of fire coming at me, and that I survived, heh. But, this game is too short to get that high of a rating, IMO.

-Malcor "Left me wanting more" Sylverwood

Apoc

February 3rd, 2008, 16:33

Mass Effect

Well, i found this game to be frighteningly addictive. Finally completed the entire game with back stories and everything, this after three playthoughs...learnt on the first playthough to kill the love interest character when you get the chance, else be subjected to the worst, most corny and just down right awful flirting between the characters...i did find though that if you choose to make your character female then the story plays alot better, heh i like this game, kinda babylon5 (shadows/reapers, protheans/vorlons) meets SW:knights of the old repubic (Spectre/Jedi) this game pretty much draws influences from everywhere, very little is actually original, but ~shrugs~ so they shamelessly rip ideas from great scifi ideas? They put them all together quite well. The last hour of the game is great and really builds toward what should be an awesome sequel. -8/10

Bioshock

Just started playing and i'm already wide-eyed impressed. Very original and very cool, i haven't shivered in the moody, spooky atmosphere this creates since ResEvilRemake (bestgame ever) heh

JEDIWAN

February 4th, 2008, 13:20

Mass Effect

very little is actually original, but ~shrugs~ so they shamelessly rip ideas from great scifi ideas? They put them all together quite well. The last hour of the game is great and really builds toward what should be an awesome sequel. -8/10

Oh, you mean that them using the SAME [albeit rediculously convenient] rappid transport system that you see in KOTOR wasn't original!?!...
Did I mention the the whole Convenient thing...
Starting this, though, makes it kinda' hard to go back and play KOTOR 2 (freakin' Apoc...)
I only Just got the ship....

Apoc

February 4th, 2008, 14:24

I only Just got the ship....

Normandy's a cool ship, not as cool as the Ebon Hawk from KotOR but ~shrugs~ that was based on the falcon man! heh

remember dude, when you get the chance, kill the love interest character (ashley if your chars a guy, Kaiden if your chars a chick) coz otherwise your ears will bleed at the buildup dialogue to their "love" scene :sick:

Go Krogan ally aswell, Wrex is the best character in the game, his dialogue is great and he kicks ass-his grumbling and thirst for battle is fantastic.

Bioshock is kinda disturbing, grabbing the little sisters after taking out a big daddy is very uncomfortable to watch. Cool spooky atmosphere is great, realised though that you can't really die in this game (a bit dissapointed by that) but meh, the Big Daddies are still fckn terrifying and brutal :devil:

Eyreplenh

February 4th, 2008, 15:14

Just throw a little somthing in here... We have this kind of legendary game review dude in Norway, he's been at it since rock stone scissors were invented in the late eighties; Bioshock is the first game he's ever rated 5.0 (perfect).

*nods*

JEDIWAN

February 6th, 2008, 15:15

WOW. Bioshock got/gets a lot more recognotion than I thought it would.:cool:
I didn't get very far (the perrils of playing too many games (some of which are borrowed) at once), yet, but I've been saving the Little sisters:halo:
I may harvest in my second playthrough:devil::halo::umm::ninja:

JEDIWAN

February 14th, 2008, 14:29

....and NOW ccomes the semi delima of do i play throught Devil May Cry's 2 and 3 for real or just to get through them so I can get to 4...hmmmm
eveyon snickering because I only, just last week, picked up the the anniversarry 3 pack in order to catch up; CUTITOUT!!!!

Apoc

February 14th, 2008, 15:37

heh its strange that i've never gotten into devil may cry...being that it was originally a concept for resident evil (best series of all time)...there's something about it that just doesn't interest me, it like i'd rather watch it than play it y'know? i'm kinda the same with prince of persia too.

I've not really gotten much further with Bioshock, its been ok so far but nothing particularly amazing yet...i know i'm still quite early into it but it hasn't grabbed me yet and so progress has been slow...its like i keep having to force myself to go back to it rather than just blasting through it with a thirst to know how it ends heh :apoc:

oh well, was playing FIFA onlinelast night and won 4 in a row and had folk yelling at me, had two people quit on me too...heh i suppose when i'm 5-0 up i should let up hehe? nope! huzzah.

So jedi, halo ain't the only game people are gunnin for me on bwhahahaha

LaughingTurtle

February 29th, 2008, 19:37

Tired of Guitar Hero's same old song and dance? Wish you could rock out to your own favorite songs no matter how hardcore, :arrr: unique, :nf: embarrassing,:blush: or spandex :ninja: they require? Then try out Audio-surf! (http://www.audio-surf.com/)

It's a brand new game whose tag line of Ride Your Music pretty much spells out the entire game. Sure you don't get any nifty plastic guitar or microphone but you do get to play the songs you want, in a variety of different methods. Note: I bought mine off of Steam.

What can play: CD, mp3, wma, ogg, flac and iTunes are all supported.
How hard is it: Totally up to you. Tracks are generated based on the music but can be tweaked with various play modes - chill with a free ride (no score just jam'n) set to mellow Mozart all the way up to mind numbing nigh impossibility of ninja mono set to Dragonforce.
Why: At only $9.95 how could you turn down such a deal?
Scores! You can compare your score not only globally but locally (state wide/country) or between just your friends (you create your own account)

Still not convinced? Take a look at these:

Mozart "Eine Kleine Nachtmusik" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s9j-wnWJEIo
Dragonforce "Through the Fire and Flames" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1-z6YK92otg

Amelia

March 2nd, 2008, 17:15

My Will has a Playstation 2 and Im going to be a total girl and by DanceDance Revelution or some game like that.......I want to have fun exercising and I read that its good exercise and fun. My downstairs neighbor might get pissed.

Malcor Sylverwood

March 2nd, 2008, 18:37

I've been playing two games of late on the PS3...

Folklore...just amusing enough to keep me playing. It's been very repetitive...every level so far has followed the exact same pattern. It also looks nice, but on a PS2 level...by that I mean its pretty and well designed but there is no way its taking advantage of the ps3 ability. Also, as with any game with an external camera view...there are places where it will cause problems.

Burnout Paradise. While I love Gran Turismo with its racing simulation...a game like this that is over the top is just *fun*. I probably haven't had this much fun with a racing game since Need for Speed 2...

LaughingTurtle

March 7th, 2008, 18:55

Yet another interesting game on the horizon, this time it's for free and no it doesn't involve illegal downloading to get it!

http://www.battlefield-heroes.com/

A FPS created by EA in the stylistic vein as Team Fortress 2 but if you think it's only trying to cash in on TF's success that's where the similarities end. Set in WWII this 3rd person shooter's goal is more towards fun than "skill." Players are matched skill wise (think Halo 3) and have a choice of three distinct customizable classes. One last nice tidbit is most microwaves have more robust system requirements than this game so one and all should be able to play.

I checked out the trailer on the site and I'm definitely looking forward to this summer release...I mean it has people wing walking on spitfires during dogfights people! (ala BF1942)

Apoc

March 9th, 2008, 11:32

So I just completed Bioshock (got the evil ending heh, guess i shouldn't have harvested all the kiddies :devil: ) but yeah...its a good game...nice and dark with some cool twists, turns and ideas...i like the pasmas ideas giving your character superpowers basically, sometimes the weapons are quite annoying, i really like the crossbow but its reload takes forever and when you're fighting a big daddy, you want to be fighting and defending, not reloading...favourite plasma was the freeze one, got quite adept at freezing folk then hitting them instantly with a crossbow bolt-shattering them into tiny little pieces hehe

I think the reason this game has been hailed a great is for one small part of the game-would you kindly :devil:, due to this small part the games suddenly really clever...i think i saw the whole atlas thing coming but that little piece of the story (the spoilered piece) was very entertaining and did, i must admit, make me grin in surprise.

A good game, very original, and a bit darkly disturbing (just how i like it hehe) but very entertaining also, the Big Daddy/Little Sister storyline is what carries the game-its mystery is what really keeps you playing i think...i think it could have been better, basically it only felt like there where about four long levels...anyways-took me about triple the length of time it usually take me to complete a game and i died an awful lot...basically i think i only managaed to beat a big daddy about four times without dying...and that was later in the game when my characters plasmas where quite powerful...otherwise it took me about two deaths to eventually wittle the daddies life down to zero heh

So all in all, this game that seems to have gotten 10/10 across the board from all kinds of reviewers...i thought was just good and worthy i think of an 8/10 mainly for the reason i think on quite a few aspects they could have made alot better-then end baddy was very difficult though which is always a bonus...played so many games where the big baddy was a let down, in this though, no, he's pretty hardcore powerful.

Buck

March 9th, 2008, 12:28

It is a great game, and owes a lot to the game it was based on - System Shock 2.

quick review (http://www.escapistmagazine.com/articles/view/editorials/zeropunctuation/1394-Zero-Punctuation-BioShock)

Apoc

March 10th, 2008, 22:18

The Darkness

Sometimes this game is sooo frustrating...I had abandoned it awhile ago after not being able to find an exit in the trenches level, replaying it i still ran around like a headless chicken a few times but with the brightness turned up abit i found the tiny gaps etc...in the city though ~shakeshead~ seriously the map is just awful...but yeah, i finally completed it and it did have some cool touches...like the fight with the darkness where you cheekily just had to lay down you weapons and walk up to him and accept him, instead of fighting him and making him stronger...heh the two storylines-revenge and the darkness are nicely interwoven and the visuals are pretty good-gameplay is fun too though sometimes the darkness powers accidently come out when you least want them to heh i liked the impale claw, it was fun impaling folk then flinging them out windows and stuff heh overall i liked the story, lked the visuals, the gameplay was decent too and it had a few good frights- 7/10

JEDIWAN

March 28th, 2008, 12:17

yep. The Darkness Guns and Creeping Death were my faves to use. Did you accept the offer to become the new Don? and do ya' think it would be a futile attempt to try to get a different ending than.."Hey! You're Screwed Buddy! HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA........?
I plan to finish replaying it at some point in the future....So what I have to deal with finishing Rainbow Six: Las Vegas so that I can do the story mode of part 2. STOP LAUGHING AT ME! :mad:

Amelia

March 30th, 2008, 17:03

I bought Dance Dance Revolution, mostly for the workout mode. I want to workout and have it enjoyable so I bought it and I havent used the workout mode just played the game and its fun and I played for over an hour and when I stopped and sat down I was sore so thats a good thing. I was suprised that it had 80's and 70's songs.

Apoc

July 26th, 2008, 02:23

Assassins Creed PS3 :ninja:
-abandoned for now.

Woah, so I wrote that way back in december...anyways, started playing it again the other day and just completed it...damn is it a great game, visually stunning and when you get in the groove of the controls its brilliant. Heh totally caught me off guard that its pretty much about the theories i've been researching of late, all nwo, templar mysteries, bloodlines, 2012, illuminati etc fck'n awesome game...loved it though the ending was a bit sudden and anti-climactic...another small gripe is that every fight is pretty much the same, surround you and attack one at a time all with the same style of swordplay, i'd have liked say...the saracens have a fighting syle with their scimitars and the templars have a more brutal powerful style with their longswords...anyways, love the stealth and counter kills...though once learned you'll pretty much never die or get hit no matter how many enemies you're facing...the fluidity of the fighting, exploring/free-running is superb, i loved the freedom of the cities and the stunningly cool abilities that Altair has (even if they are easy to pull off) it still looks cool.

Future information was cool but poorly presented and laborious...seriously, couldn't desmond have learnt from his ancestor to run/jog? Another small gripe is the lack of good female characters...there where only two and both where, though devious, totally underused...i liked that lucy was a secret assassin though hehe...anyways. The voice actor for Altair was appalling and somewhat spoils an otherwise deent voice cast...it was so painful at times to listen to that i really wish there was an option to change language, i really wanted to click it over to japanese with english subtitles..anyways...
story - 10/10
visuals - 10/10
gameplay - 8/10
voice acting - 5/10
overall - 9/10

JEDIWAN

July 26th, 2008, 05:15

...it was so painful at times to listen to that i really wish there was an option to change language, i really wanted to click it over to japanese with english subtitles..anyways...

OFCOURSE Anime Boy wants it in Japanese...
The second game is supposed to take place in Japan. How's you like the stupid "O.K. ummm....so whatdo I do now!?!" ending...especially after the credits finished?:umm::mad::grumbles:

Apoc

July 30th, 2008, 22:46

~flails some more~ new resident evil 5 trailer is out and it looks fckn awesome! And the female character is a new char...she looks pretty cool but i'd have preferred jill, rebecca, ada or even claire returning instead. Chris being the main protagonist, having his sister (claire) or his partner (jill) or even the medic (rebecca) he saved in the first game rather than a new one, but ~shrugs~ still looks frickkin awesome, they've continued and advanced all the excellent work done in the last game...oh man, sooo excited :apoc:

res evil 5 (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-Die58WOjZk&feature=related)

question is, though it'll definately be awesome, will it finally be able to surpass the excellence of the first game?

Jonboy

July 31st, 2008, 01:04

yes, back on the old PS, the ultamate thrill was busting out the ol' Colt Python and exploading heads and destroying all in your way.... just dont save after you wasted all that precious ammo.... ;) a few months after resident evil, my mother traded a horse for a colt python.... after i shot it i totally belive it would explode a zombies head. or a regular head for that matter....

Apoc

July 31st, 2008, 06:02

OFCOURSE Anime Boy wants it in Japanese...
The second game is supposed to take place in Japan. How's you like the stupid "O.K. ummm....so whatdo I do now!?!" ending...especially after the credits finished?:umm::mad::grumbles:

yeah, i switch alot into japanese, i like the language and it helps my learning it...i can understand alot of it now ~grins~

No doubt the sequel will likely take place on yona guni, the mythical atlantian like island of japanese myth and be ninja and samurai, that'd be fckn cool.

And the ending? I personally liked it, though it's not the real ending the game (that being what you play in the attimus) did finish well i thought...the future back story though has its completion also in a way...though i think i'll get ultimate completion once i've gotten all the damn flags and killed the last of the hidden templars (got like five more to get but fck knows where they are!) anyways, i liked it.

Watched all the new resident evil 5 stuff on youtube from the E308...and i gotta say hot damn! Sheva Alomar looks like she'll make a pretty good heroine from what i've seen and there is a mysterious woman in a white dress who i believe is a grown up sherry berkin...another mysterious figure in a hooded loak and mask (who knows) wesker's returning, chris is looking buff...the baddies are looking insane, the graphics look awesome aswell! The new chainsaw decapitation looks alot more realistic, i like the weaponry how it hangs off your char and that you can now flip through itinerary without exiting the gameplay...aww man march 13th is faaar too far away, i seriously can't drool for that long, i'll dry up, wither and die before then! Gah!

Gonna go off and get soul calibur iv now...not sure about it...but it looks the most solid fighting game for the next gen consoles.

Apoc

August 9th, 2008, 22:19

Soul Calibur IV

So i've had this game for a week now and am loving it. It's definately one of the best fighting games i've ever played, they've added so much new cool stuff like critical finishes (akin to the fatalities of mortal kombat) and their character design option is amazing...you seriously have the possability of hundreds o characters (playing the same chars over and over gets a bit dull, not in this! Pretty much facing a new face everytime, fighting style may be similar to the main chars but the massive range of different appearances is astonishing.) It's constantly fresh and exciting and the graphics are wonderful to behold. The weapon fighting styles are awesome aswell, whether you want the speed of a rapier or the precision of a lance and shortsword or the brutal strength of a battle axe, so much weaponry and fighting styles!

The modes; First up-story mode, probably the weakest part of the game is each characters tale. Near all lack depth and though you get the typical short ending movie (some funny, some action packed, some tragic) all last little more than a minute and though they're decent finales to the build up, all the build up is is one liner entrances before every fight and a poor written prologue with seemingly little imagination. The fighting is cool though in story-mode, usually you're matched up against between two and four opponents each match and sometimes you have a follower to tag with...a nie feature that could have been used better though as it's near exclusive to the story-mode (no team batles in this game which sucks) but yeah...once you've completed everyones story the over all storyline becomes clear and its decent albeit again lacking depth. There are three bosses in this game-Algol (a new char to the sc series), the evil soul edge wielder Nightmare and the not entirely good soul calibur wielder Siegfried-so basically if your a bad char you'll end up fighting Siegfried, oif you're good you'll likely get Nightmare and if your neutral or siegfried or nightmare-you'll get Algol.

the next mode is the best part of soul calibur iv- The Tower of Lost Souls. In this bruce lee-game of death-esque tower you have two choices-ascend and try reach the 60th floor with your life being renewed every 2-4floors, on each floor a new challenge of multiple enemies awaits and their styles are all different so you have to be smart as most opponents will likely only be able to be defeated in certain manners (you get vague hints before each level, like the path to victory lies in defence, you also unlock treasure by fighting the way the hint requested)...or descend as far as possible with only one life. Both are bloody difficult but rewarding and entertaining. It is the tower that gives this game replayability, usually this game would ware i think if it was just the story mode but this is so challenging it'll have you trying and trying and soldiering on.

Training is in there too as is arcade and online versus also, all top notch.

Small gripes would be not being able to change custom character height or being able to add the special items onto custom characters (the rings and jewels that raise stats). Some signature moves of returning characters have been changes also which is a shame.

Overall this game is amazing, it looks fantastic, it plays beautifully, the custom section is fun in itself and most of all, it's challenging. The new characters are great and though the story lacks depth the tower of lost souls mode is thrilling and will have you genuinely celebrating getting to a further level.

Best fighting style? I'd say Amy-wickedly quick and plenty stabiddy stab stab!
Best character? I'd say Hilde-well presented and looks a genuine warrior not just a chick with a sword or a big muthafcker with a giant weapon.
Best story? Sophitia's tale i think was the best, tricked into servitude of Soul Edge to save her daughter, but meh, none where all that amazing.
Best critical finish? Yoshimitsu's hehe

Oh and the english dubbing is dreadful so switch it to japanese if you have any wish to see how the game should be.

One last thing- the bonus guest characters from star wars of Yoda (360), darth vader (ps3) and the apprentice (both) i found a bit annoying. Yoda is a pain in the ass to fight as and against and i've read and heard that vader isn't that great either...the apprentice is pretty good but all the proper soul calibur characters are waaay better...yep, even that annoying bitch cassandra. They're tie in stories are decent but i just saw no real reason for them being in it and prefered the older editions guests of Link, Heihachi etc

- 9/10

Apoc

October 9th, 2008, 22:49

new res evil 5 trailer! (http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=EseGvEJrBrU) Ok, i know i'ma total res evil fanboy...but seriously all the little hints and sneek peaks are driving me nuts...at the end of the most recent video there is a gravestone...and the name on that gravestone? Jill Valentine :eyebrow: :cry: :( :mad: :grumbles: they CANNOT kill of my favourite chaacter in anything i've ever watched, played, seen etc...she's the greatest character and i didn't run through the mansion and the whole of raccoon city to save her just for her to die here...it has to be a joke...it HAS to be! Rumours are already saying she's faked her death to hide from wesker...yeah, i'll believe that...i gotta otherwise capcom is gonna be hit by a very angry apoc :apoc:

ummm played and completed some other games since my last review...

GTA IV
Psychopathic fun...there is so much to do in this game but to be honest...only the bank job and escape ala Heat was truly exciting...i got tired with the repetitiveness of the cycle of missions and the whole girlfriends part was tedious and fckn annoying that you couldn't cap the bitch that basically got all the good characters busted and killed...
story - 7/10
visuals - 8/10
gameplay - 7/10
voice acting - 8/10
overall - 8/10

Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots
Astonishingly brilliant...the cinematics are incredibly long but so is the gameplay giving you real value and days and days not just hours of entertainment. The twists, turns, characters, missions, visuals, freedom...everything was just spot on. I've never been much of a fan but this game is the first complete and faultless next gen game that i've played.
story - 9/10
visuals - 10/10
gameplay - 9/10
voice acting - 9/10
overall - 9/10

AquaFizz

October 9th, 2008, 23:35

I really thought Corv would link this review (http://www.escapistmagazine.com/videos/view/zero-punctuation/251-Star-Wars-The-Force-Unleashed). I don't see it though.

Maybe because he knew you'd probably seen it. However, listening to it made me remember 'Poc's comments about Wii. (and giggle) So I thought I'd put it here for y'all...just in case you HAVEN'T seen it.

Malcor Sylverwood

October 10th, 2008, 06:15

Zero punctuation is great. You should all listen to all his reviews...

-Malcor "Fan" Sylverwood

Apoc

October 11th, 2008, 06:41

Yeah ZeroPunctuation rocks...

i'm freakin out man...all the new res evil 5 teasers have got me flailing and desperate...jill gravestone?!!! I don't believe she's dead but i'm getting the uneasy feeling wesker killed her then brought her back as a bioweapon and she'll be a boss you as chris have to defeat...like the masked woman for instance...its driving me nuts...i'll seriously explode if they have killed her but i'll lose it completely if they make me have to kill her...i'd abandon the game if i had to do that! On another resevil5 note...Sheva Alomar is fckn cool...i just know i'm gonna be so greatful of her saving my ass at least ten times a level heh And Wesker is as badass as ever! 5 months, 5 MONTHS! gah i soo can't wait that long...call of duty5, gears of war2, final fantasyxiii...none can tide me over...must have res evil 5 now :zombi:

FIFA 09
Fantastic...a big leap forward. I especially like the new collision physics and the graphics and movement are all vastly more realistic than the last game.

visuals - 8/10
gameplay - 9/10
overall - 8.5/10

Mesaana

October 15th, 2008, 18:45

Too Human (http://www.escapistmagazine.com/videos/view/zero-punctuation/213-Too-Human) (one his most scathing I think)

Mass Effect (http://www.escapistmagazine.com/videos/view/zero-punctuation/18-Mass-Effect)(cause I may as well rep the 'Ware if I am procrastinating on their dime)

I have to say, Metal Gear Solid 4 is brilliant looking, but if you are not a long time player of the series next to impossible to pick up. The game design isn't intuitive in the least. Also I think I'm just bitter about not finding the tiny pile of rocks subtly hidden to crawl under within the first 5 minutes of gameplay. Their cinematics are some of the best out there though and it is rather pretty looking all around. I think I'm more bitter about it because I HAD to play it. Rather than buying it myself and playing at leisure.

Also bonus video that someone showed me hoping to 'entice me to play' MGS4 with less bitterness...
OH MAI! (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-ZE_kclLlIA)

Buck

October 15th, 2008, 19:42

I was looking forward to Mass Effect, and when I finally tried it out I didn't like it >..>

Have any of you guys seen the Diablo III clips? They revealed another class at Blizzcon, the Wizard, and it looks really good. Im stoked about this game. I haven't had reason or want to upgrade my PC for any game in a long while.

Apoc

October 15th, 2008, 20:38

I liked Mass Effect...alot. It was one of those games with good replayability (if thats even a word)...i liked MGS4 also but though i rated it a 9/10 i had serious issue with the really painfully long cinematics...the ending after credit graveyard scene...SCENE!...felt like it lasted an hour and probably did...and that was one scene, just a conversation between two characters...it was ludicrous.

As to Diablo 3? I have a serious problem with Blizzard...yes they make very cool cinematics and their storylines are pretty cool but i find their gameplay and game graphics very poor and not worthy of even an amstrad...it just really is not my sort of game...i'm very much more inclined to the likes square enix and final fantasy...who blend wonderful cinematics with good gameplay and excellent gameplay graphics also.

Apoc

October 31st, 2008, 11:21

So ummm yeah...

i just pre-ordered five games :apoc:

Nauto: Ultimate Ninja Storm PS3-7/11/08-looks amazing and more frantic and bloody awesome than the anime!

Gears of War 2 Xbox360 -7/-11/08-well just coz any self respecting gamer can't miss this.

Little Big Planet PS3 -5/11/-08 -wacky fun :apoc:

Football Manager 2009 PC -14/11/08- most addictive game ever.

Left 4 Dead Xbox360 - 21/11/08- brutal 28 days later ultimate survival zombie rampaging!

It is a great month for gaming ;) :thup:

Mesaana

October 31st, 2008, 14:03

It is!! I gotta say Fable 2 trumps Fable "you can be anything you want as long as you are an archer".
The mechanics for accepting quests and opening doors is great, it also cuts down on people accidentally skipping pertinent dialogue or cutscenes! The graphics are charmingly stylistic and there is also something awesome about being an evil, lesbian, magic warrior with devil horns >.> who has a gypsy wife.

Also for anyone interested in playing Dead Space, I generally give it a thumbs up. It's pretty fun and creepy, however it is also frustrating as hell with the 'tension' mechanic of "even if you don't have the weapon we'll drop ammo for it so you aren't ammo flooded with the proper things you need to kill baddies". For example if you have the Line Gun in your inventory you need Line racks. The ratio of Line Racks to say Flame Fuel is sucktacular to "what is this my fifth drop of it in a row??!". Despite that your ammo (lack) is somewhat manageable as you can buy ammo from the store. Still and inconvenience though. Definitely worth a play through though. :)

Oh LBP is AWESOMENESS IN A CAN. As is Fallout 3. :D

Buck

November 1st, 2008, 05:21

Fallout 3 rocks.

The game itself is all sorts of awesome, but the part of the game that has me loving it this much is the dog you can get. Dogmeat rocks! He growls when there are baddies nearby, he can handle mutants nearly on his own, and he plays fetch.

:love: Dogmeat

Apoc

November 8th, 2008, 07:05

Gears of War 2

A far more epic follow up, but not very challenging.
-8/10
~goes to bed~

Apoc

November 10th, 2008, 22:01

Naruto: Ultimate Ninja Storm

Quite possibly the best fighting game ever...definately up there with tekken tag and the snes street fighter II...i just love it, though story mode is a lil odd at times coz it sets you up to fight as characters that lost the matches in the manga/anime...so you win but then the summary story says you lost...its odd...but major plusses for the giant battles...seriously, fighting gambata and gaara's sand demon and the sannin fight between orochimaru, tsunade and jiraiya...oh such goodness...and akutski are in it too...Itachi is awesomely cool....and the addition that you can pull off the third hokages death seal move just makes this game AMAZING. One gripe is that on the box it says "At last, the line between Naruto animation and gaming truly dissapeared." I disagree...though the levels/arenas are very well done...the characters are still more game anime than tv anime. Awesome fighting...you'll become obsessed with pulling off each characters best jutsu...like naruto's kage bunshin no jutsu or kakashi's super chidori or even (my favourite) Neji's 64 palm jutsu....such awesomeness...heh Tsunade i think is the most powerful character in the game...sometimes i think i'm winning and she'll just wack me once and i'm outta there...heh

-9.5/10

Apoc

December 3rd, 2008, 15:57

Left4Dead

Zombie slaughtering co-op awesomeness. The 4 "movies" (levels) are very cool but not very long, you can pretty much do each movie in about 90mins what makes this game so awesome is Valves Source game engine which makes no replay the same, there is simply such a large degree of change between zombies/hunters/smokers/tanks and witches in their appearances and placement in each level that this game just fails to ever get old...eight player co-op online of the four survivors vs four players playing as special infected is fantastic....the survivors are also great fun, each seeming to be the typical sub character in a zombie apocalypse flick, you have the student chick, the 'nam vet, the hardman biker and the office man...louis is by far the most annoying character, if your playing the offline story and trying to get the don't disturb the witch achievement, louis will always disturb her...and he'll always jump in your way thus destroying your chances of the friendly fire achievement...zoey always seems to be the one who saves you and heals you up...and bill seems to be the one who'll lead the way and tell you what you gotta do...francis is the character i go most, he's badass...but simply it doesn't really matter who you go, all the survivors play the same and don't have any special abilities exclusive to them alone...it's a super cool game...much fun has been had and i'm still loving it...there is nothing funnier than watching a last survivor making a desperate last stand against a tank :apoc: but yeah - 9.5/10

Malcor Sylverwood

December 11th, 2008, 11:51

Zero Punctuation on Left 4 Dead....
http://www.escapistmagazine.com/videos/view/zero-punctuation/459-Left-4-Dead

I should get paid for advertising... ;)

Apoc

January 31st, 2009, 18:53

I totally forgot about this thread and was considering making one for awhile now...heh dum dum dumb anyways...apocs 2007 game reviews-

Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare XBOX360 :kill:
- 9/10

Heavenly Sword PS3 :arrr:
- 10/10

Clive Barker's Jericho PS3 :devil:
-7/10

Fight Night Round 3 XBOX360 :apoc:
- 8/10

Assassins Creed PS3 :ninja:
-8/10

Fifa 2008 XBOX360
-7/10

The Darkness XBOX360 :devil:
-6/10

Gears of War XBOX360 :furious:
-8/10

Resistance Fall of Man PS3
-6/10

Fear PS3
- abandoned

Dead Rising XBOX360 :zombi:
- 8/10

Apoc's 2008 game reviews...

Soul Calibur IV -360
wonderfully entertaining, the character customization is fantastic and opens the door to you fighting a different character near every fight and trying to work out what style they're gonna fight in. Aside from Tekken and the Naruto ps3 game, this is by far one of the most fun and exciting fighting games i've played. -8/10

Naruto: Ultimate Ninja Storm -ps3
What can i say, by far the most jam packed game i've played in years. The fights are fast and awesome and the story covers near all the major story arcs (the xbox ones only cover one arc each, this one covers like six). The graphics are outstanding, very close to being just like the anime. If you're a fan of the series, this is the must play game! -10/10

Naruto: Broken Bonds -360
Compared to UNS this is very poor, some characters didn't look right either...gameplay was decent but again...it just can't compare to the ps3 effort. -5/10

Left4Dead -360
bwhahahaha zombie co-op slaughtering. Online, this game never gets old. You'll be yelling and screaming your way through every movie level, beware the witch, run! hehe awesome fun - 9/10

Mass Effect -360
This game is simply outstanding. Excellent story, brilliant level design, excellent graphics and level up system, great character creation - 9/10

Bioshock -360
pretty disturbing, what with having to extract "adam" from little girls...i mean siters...but the big daddies will surely give you at least one "oh fuck" moment...visually its cool but for me, i'll likely notplay this game again. For all it great ideas its rather awkwardly executed. Good story but doesn't come anywhere close to the hype -6.5/10

GTA IV -360
psychotic fun and wonderful freedom to do pretty much anything....but the base story is quite poor (only th bank robbery being worthy of note). Nico Belllic is a great lead but so much in this game is quite tedious...the controls aswell where very annoying at times but simply this is gta and its definately a leap forward in gaming - 8/10

Metal Gear Solid IV -ps3
Astonishingly brilliant...the cinematics are incredibly long but so is the gameplay giving you real value and days and days not just hours of entertainment. The twists, turns, characters, missions, visuals, freedom...everything was just spot on. I've never been much of a fan but this game is the first complete and faultless next gen game that i've played.
-9/10

Fallout 3 -360
What a Game! Very Mad Max...all the excellent things aside (V.A.T.S, Storyline, gameplay freedom, world etc etc) the character creation is poor and as much as its likely blasphemy for a game like this, i'd have liked a few cinematics...i feel they're a bit of a payoff for completing a quest in other games...in this though getting a character talk to you and thank you always felt abit of a let down - i just led the brotherhood of steel and a ginat robot on a full on assault against the enclave, least you could do is give me even a ten second cool cinematic for my efforts! heh quality game though and a buck said...dogmeat rocks! -9/10

Gears of War 2 -360
Wow, excellent continuation story with just sooo much extra goodness. Horde mode is outstanding, lack of any solid antagonist was a dissapointment though...chainsaw predator dude could have been so much more. But yeah, ~growls~ get some! ~stamps on a locusts head~ - 8/10

Fifa 09 -360
A big leap forward. I especially like the new collision physics and the graphics and movement are all vastly more realistic than the last game. A good step forward - 8/10

Force Unleashed -360
For a game thats being awarded "most dissapointing game of the year" awards left right and center you can imagine my surprise when i picked this up and discovered...its fckn awesome! Embrace the power of the dark side and go fckn bezerk. The story is excellent and brilliantly acted and directed, the lead Starkiller being played by battlestar gallactica's Crashdown...this isn't just a spin off, it's got gl's approval and is cannon now as a link up between the two series...awww unleashing the force has never been so much fun-take that wookie, eat this jedi...fck you star destroyer...yep-you take down a star destroyer man...how cool is that! It's pretty difficult until you get the knack of it as is the insane jedi kazdan paratus...two minor blips being the difficulty of thos two parts...but once you have them down...sooo much fun! the other is the game does have glitches and one annoyance is the saving system and that you can't carry your upgrades to a higher difficulty...but yeah currently Sith mastering...and loving it! - 9/10

Kane and Lynch: Dead Men -360
I got alot of stick from colleagues for picking this up as in their words, "it's shit"...but i enjoyed it, it's so very Heat and as thats one of my favourite films, maybe thats why i liked it...story isn't very long but its entertaining. With the bank robbery being the best bit of gta, this game just felt like a whole game of that one awesome level...and to me that isn't a bad thing...its a fun thing - 7/10

Need for Speed; Undercover -360
There hasn't been a good nfs game since Most Wanted...but this had serious potential but failed to hit it, the gorgeous maggie q is totally wasted and the story is an utter mess, popping up in bits and pieces at random...racing is fun but the second you get a veyron everythings piss easy...no split screen co-op forces you to xboxlive which is fun but very mismatched most the time, you gotta race in the fastest cars to have a chance...visually its pretty sweet but gameplay hasn't improved that greatly and there's nothing really new here but visuals and a poor story - 6.5/10

Mortal Kombat vs DC -ps3
Oh man, sooo dissapointing, a poor selection of characters and moves and a severe lack of gruesome fatalaties (what an mk game must have!) A decent storyline idea and some added extras like the close combat and freefall parts and interesting and creative character damage (cuts, bruises, clothes etc) but after an hour of gameplay you've got the moves nailed and it all just feels too simplistic, especially compared to the likes of Soul Calibur and even previous mk games. Joker rocks though...but that's about it -4/10

well it certainly was a good year for gaming i think...and 09 looks like it's gonna be even better..especially with Res Evil 5 finally going to be released...oh man its soooooo goood and sooo close (march 13th).....~drools~...killzone 2 will also finally be released, most expensive game ever made yo...Final Fantasy XIII, Tekken 6 and a host of others await us in the coming year...hooo rah ~dances and bows~

oh man i love my job :apoc:

JEDIWAN

January 31st, 2009, 19:51

Apoc's 2008 game reviews...

Force Unleashed -360
For a game thats being awarded "most dissapointing game of the year" awards left right and center you can imagine my surprise when i picked this up and discovered...its fckn awesome! Embrace the power of the dark side and go fckn bezerk. The story is excellent and brilliantly acted and directed, the lead Starkiller being played by battlestar gallactica's Crashdown...this isn't just a spin off, it's got gl's approval and is cannon now as a link up between the two series...awww unleashing the force has never been so much fun-take that wookie, eat this jedi...fck you star destroyer...yep-you take down a star destroyer man...how cool is that! It's pretty difficult until you get the knack of it as is the insane jedi kazdan paratus...two minor blips being the difficulty of thos two parts...but once you have them down...sooo much fun! the other is the game does have glitches and one annoyance is the saving system and that you can't carry your upgrades to a higher difficulty...but yeah currently Sith mastering...and loving it! - 9/10

Don't forget the stupid camera and targeting/toggle system...

but, alas: also doing sith master. Can't....Stop....Playing

Buck

February 1st, 2009, 06:28

I played Forced Unleased on my friend's ps3, it's by far the best star wars game I have ever played. Using force lightning on a jedi and taking their health down from max to zero is extremely gratifying.

:devil:

I picked up Left 4 Dead for my PC, since I dont have frequent access to my 360. If any of you have it on PC let me know. I have a group of 6 people I play with and we've been looking for 2 more.

Malcor Sylverwood

February 1st, 2009, 17:01

Yeah, The Force Unleashed was fun...not great, but fun. The combos and quicktime events were a bit blah...

Resistance 2 was a disappointment. The first was pretty good for a launch title...but the second didn't add anything. There weren't any 'holy crap' moments like in the first. Well, there was one, but it was in the trailer so it lost something...

LittleBIGPlanet...not quite all it was hyped up to be. It's strength is in the user content, which I haven't spent a ton of time digging into, so it might get a better review some time later. The one official level pack, the Metal Gear Solid one, was FUN...but too short.

Guitar Hero World Tour. Lots of fun...I just suck...especially at the drums. I wish it had the downloadable content of Rock Band...but I might just pick up that game since the instruments are compatible now.

DarkSector. Picked this up on discount. Not a great game, but I probably enjoyed it more than R2. Cutting people in half with the glaive rules!

sir archely

February 1st, 2009, 21:13

Guitar Hero World Tour. Lots of fun...I just suck...especially at the drums. I wish it had the downloadable content of Rock Band...but I might just pick up that game since the instruments are compatible now.

what's the difference? guitar hero world tour tells me to go online to download things. i never do, but i thought there was stuff. is there only user-generated stuff for GH while RB actually has professionally made additionally stuff?

Malcor Sylverwood

February 1st, 2009, 21:44

No, GH has some real songs to download...just not nearly the quantity that RB has. So far, I've downloaded a couple of the pack that they have for free (The Boss, a couple of guitar battles), the classic rock pack (Boston, Foriegner), the hard rock pack (Hinder, Nickelback) and "Mr Brightside". I'll also pick up the Bob Seger pack that comes out at the end of the month...

Rock Band has something over 500 songs available though...

Apoc

February 1st, 2009, 23:06

Don't forget the stupid camera and targeting/toggle system...

yeah the targeting system can be bothersome, force repulse solves this problem in most fights though...man, i'm mastering the dark side...sith lorded in under four hours and am at imperial kashykk on master after just under two hours play :apoc: man, these punks don't have shit on me...my only likely hold ups from here on may be the destroyer and the start of the death star level...but i think i can beat my lord time on master...awww such fun...yo jedi, you got the jedi temple download?

gah i have two games that i really want to make a better effort on but can't be bothered-project slypheed and lost odyysey...the latter doesn't seem to have any gameplay...it just feels like i'm reading a book but its a movie thats pretending to be a game...if that makes any sense...over and hours play and all i'vee done is cross a field and entered a town :dozey: Project Slypheed is damn difficult and crazy...warning, don't take drugs whilst playing this game...i'm still bugged i can't change it into japanese :mad:

Buck

February 4th, 2009, 15:01

I've been having a lot of fun with Left 4 Dead. It's immensely entertaining. The sheer randomness of the spawns keeps it interesting. It's hard to just not run after some of the undead. I have a gun and they are dumb zombies. Should I not have the upper hand?

Oh wait, it's a never ending horde and I've been taken by the bloodlust, and am doomed because I separated myself from the other survivors.

We're up to 4 people, soon to be 6 or 7. A couple more people and we'll be able to do 4v4s. :cool:

Oh and *shakes fist at witches* I've lost count of the number of times I've been mauled by one trying to do the achievement. I can't get the aim just right for the headshot.

My squad just snickers at me and usually one of them sneaks up right with me to save me when she rips my face open. *sighs*

Apoc

February 4th, 2009, 19:58

Oh and *shakes fist at witches* I've lost count of the number of times I've been mauled by one trying to do the achievement. I can't get the aim just right for the headshot.

My squad just snickers at me and usually one of them sneaks up right with me to save me when she rips my face open. *sighs*

up close dude, when she stands :kill: ...and its gotta be the shotgun! And hey, when the frack are you on...i'm on loads and never see you! :grumbles:

Arianna

February 5th, 2009, 01:28

i like the burn the witch achievement the best of all. i'm such a pyromaniac :devil:

Buck

February 5th, 2009, 05:21

I got the crowned achievement on the first try last night. I figured out what I was doing wrong. I fired too early, while she was still on the ground and was immune to fire. Now that I know, I can (too a semi reliable degree) take her out with a single shot. During our advanced level runs, I got designated as our team's witch killer. I love using the shotgun, so it's all gravy.

I also got the burn the witch achievement as well. Though that one was on accident when we did the airport campaign on advanced. There was a witch in a side room on the far side of baggage claim event room and my malatov coctail set her on fire through a wall.

All I know is that the achievement popped up out of nowhere... I put two and two together and booked it in the other direction and up the escalator, hehe.

:umm: apoc, I got it on the PC. Aside from having more access to my PC than my 360, a small group of friends I regularly game with also got in the PC, and we play together. When I get my own place in a month or so, I may pick up the 360 version for kicks mayhaps, or you can get the PC version and I can send you the ventrillo info.

Apoc

February 19th, 2009, 19:10

Lost Odyssey
So as a mental gear up and preperation for the new final fantasy (last enix rpg i played was ff x) and after hearing rave reviews i picked this up and though not as visually stunning as recent enix titles i was blown away by the story. Simply the protagonist is a badass immortal who has lost his memories and who is being used as a puppet by an arch villain bent on world domination, after meeting another immortal you start to regain your memories (this done through wonderful and emotional short stories after seeing something that triggers a dream sequence), the combat system has evolved also with the use of rings, pick the right element to do more damage depending on element...the rank up system is very well done and the bosses are enjoyable, some impossible if you don't have the right team or gear (frackn arthrosaurus's and blue dragon ~shakesfist~) but overall an absorbing and very enjoyable title. - 8/10

Fear 2: Project Origin
I wasn't a major fan of the first one but that was more due to the visuals with the sequel though they fixed that and now you can get scared shitless by alma and all her ringlike supernatural spooks in a more visually realistic setting. Decent storyline with a fcked up ending (you get raped) and spectacularly spooky soundeffects and visuals mixed in with fun bullet time fps action is a recipe for a scary but most enjoyable night...the story is however quite short and once played doesn't have much replay value as you know the scares now and how to take baddies out and so its logevity falls to its multiplayer...unfortuantely in my opinion, this royally sucks ass...maybe its just because i suck but each weapon feels stunted from that in the story and well, i can't shoot for shit for some reason in it and yet in storymode on hard i blaze past all comers with relative and skillful ease and accuracy, so what the fuck? I don't know, all i know is that i don't want to play it anymore, i've gone back to the story to pick up some extra achievements but for some reason the developers have made most of those multiplayer ones :dozey: and i don't know about yoiu but multiplayer achievements suck ass...especially as the only way to get them is on xboxlive and seeing as most my friends don't have the game i'm stuck with strangers who have no sense of working together...returning this tommorrow and getting street fighter but for the story alone i give this game a - 7/10 (multiplayer - 2/10)

meh

21 days til res evil 5! oh man i've waited for over two years for this game and each trailer has been like scoring a taste of the biohazardous wonderdrug...a new glimpse with each one...the newest one pretty much spells our what i suspected...the masked lady is jill :arrr: ...under weskers control :eek: well at least she's not dead..there is hope she can be saved...and i will play this game to death to save her! For she is the greatest heroine in anything ever! She must be saved so as to be the protagoinist in res evil 6 :apoc:

Arianna

February 19th, 2009, 21:14

i don't wanna be captain bring down, but the demo of res evil 5 (which is out on the 360) was pretty disappointing. i LOVE love love 4, and am still really excited about 5, but, still, this demo wasn't amazing. maybe it is just b/c the demo just plops you down somewhere in the middle (?) of the game. there is just no back story, which is part of my love of the game. meh, i'll still be first in line to buy it when it is out.

Apoc

February 19th, 2009, 21:40

yeah i got the demo like 3months ago and loved it though it still had alot of bugs and was incomplete, i can assure you though that there is plent buildup to the scenes and loads of story...it is going to wrap up major storylines...and open new ones, like Jill Valentine and how Wesker managed to make everyone believe she was dead and somehow control her, sherry birkins in there too and you know its going to bring up the TriCell Umbrella link and building up to them maybe finally taking down Wesker...or will wesker win? Will Sheva survive? (i bloody hope so, her and Jill!) Anyways, i strongly think this may surpass the greatest game in all of history...ResEvilRemake...sooo excited!

Malcor Sylverwood

February 25th, 2009, 14:11

Fear 2: Project Origin
Yahtzee on FEAR2: http://www.escapistmagazine.com/videos/view/zero-punctuation/565-Fear-2

It's by far technically better than the original but the firefights get just as dull after you've seen the same two guys for the millionth time. And, it just isn't as creepy as the first. In the first one, things would happen just off camera, just out of sight...here its all: oh look, alma is standing there again...and again...and again.

~shrugs~

Not bad, but more of the same basically. I think I'm starting to grow weary of the FPS genre. I'll try Killzone 2 this weekend though...

Apoc

February 25th, 2009, 20:09

Street Fighter IV

wow, this shit is hard. man, seriously this game has a steep learning curve and even when you think you've got it down you go in at medium difficulty and get your ass handed to you...it is however a fighter where when you lose you know you lost because the opponent was better.

I like my fighting games and street fighter ii on the snes was the classic that pretty much began it all for the genre in my mind...and this still holds to those roots but has been given a next gen facelift it still though retains all the charm, looks and gameplay of its much loved predeccesors going on the "if it ain't broke, don't fix it" motto...so yeah, its still 2d and it still has all the classic characters with just a couple new ones, though you likely won't play as them as their skills just don't compare to the legends of sagat, ken, ryu, chun li, cammy and of course the legendary Akuma...as to the last dude though (and heres my pinch) man is he difficult to unlock! bah...oh well, i'll keep soldiering on and hopefully...get better heh see thats the thing, you know you will get better, its just going to take some serious learning and gradully your quality will start to shine through :apoc: -7.5/10

Eyreplenh

March 2nd, 2009, 10:15

Street Fighter IV

wow, this shit is hard

Just saw this and found it wuite amusing:)

http://www.ctrlaltdel-online.com/comic.php?d=20090220

Arianna

March 20th, 2009, 14:06

played the new resident evil yet, anyone? thoughts? i'm too poor to buy it so i want to live vicariously.

Apoc

March 20th, 2009, 15:50

bwhahahah of course i have...waited two years with bated breath for this game and a major benefit of working in a game store meant i got it a few days early also...so umm yeah...had it since last wednesday, completed it three times-on easy, hard and veteran and replayed levels loads, just unlocked the professional difficulty and will be hitting that soon :apoc: love it...but then i was always going to love this game as res evil is like...my game!

I had high hopes that this installment in the greatest game series of all time would finally surpass the original, it falls just short for being more action and movie than survival horror and puzzles...but it finally concludes one of the series main storylines.

It's received alot of mixed reviews and all i can say is those who dislike this game because of the controls are fools, it's res evil not halo...this is a survival horror (albeit and action packed one) but it is most certainly not an fps! The story is great, the graphics are amazing (especially on an hd tv), its well paced and well, just fckn awesome!

The ai partner is excellent, my one annoyance was that you could only go chris...but this was rectified after one playthrough as it unlocks the ability to play as sheva...but yeah, the daths have been toned down but as a follow up to res evil 4 its a vast improvement and if you liked res evil 4 then i think you shpould love this...but only if you are smart enough to realize this isn;t a fckn fps...but a masterpiece of survival action gaming!

story-9
graphics-10
being able to rescue gamings greatest character - priceless

-10/10

:devil:

Apoc

March 25th, 2009, 11:36

wow, yahtzee didn't like it...first time i've ever not agreed with his reviews...he's tore into games i liked before and i've always agreed with his points but his res evil 5 review sounded like he already had a pickle up his ass before he even played the game, maybe he only played it on easy with the ai partner...and his moan about the inventory which took up half his review was bullshit...i loved that up down left and right automatically brings up whatever items you placed there without going into the inventory, i loved that it didn't pause everytime you go into it for something not at the quick grab positions...i missed the merchant too but it was unlikely he made the trip from spain to africa heh and he wasn't really needed in this one...but for fucks sake, i'm dissapointed that he's lowered himself to the dumb and blind bullshit view that its racist, anyone who thinks it is is a fckn moron. :zombi:

Malcor Sylverwood

July 9th, 2009, 11:08

Played a few new things of late...

Infamous. This games was fun, and largely amusing enough to play through twice...once as good and once as evil. Better sandbox game than GTA. Only flaw is playing through one side it needs a little more variety in mission types. Highly recommend. I've got Prototype on order...

Ghostbusters. Man, it's like a third movie. The actors return and are funny. Games seemed a bit on the short side though. Still, that's one childhood dream taken care of...to be a Ghostbuster!!!

Sacred 2. Extremely cheesy voice acting. Lot's of grinding. Missions are all the same. No new powers as you level up, only upgrades. New loot rarely seems that different from what you've had. Ease of gameplay varies greatly with character class. On the bright side, the game is big and will eat a fair amount of time. And I was starving for any RPG even if its a poor Diablo clone.

Killzone 2. Great looking game. Solid shooter. It takes some getting used to because the movement and aiming is much weightier than any FPS I've played.

That's all that comes to mind...although I've been replaying some of Burnout Paradise because they've added some more stuff to the game (10 bucks for the add on, IIRC). Stuff fun...great crashes. :D

I still play some Rock Band 2. Its better than Guitar Hero World tour mostly due to the large amount of songs you can buy. I'm still not good at the game though, lol. I can play most of Bass on Expert, a fair amount of guitar on Hard, and I'm still on Medium for drums...I suck at drums. No singing for me...although I *could* do it on easy. Since on easy it doesn't match pitch, you can just make noise...heh.

sir archely

July 9th, 2009, 13:33

oh dear. I may have to buy Ghostbusters. I was waiting for that game, and forgot about it.

~tries to avoid spending money~

ack, when's my next 'i deserve something' holiday?

Buck

July 9th, 2009, 18:08

I've got Prototype on order...

If you have even a remotely sadistic side, you will love this game. Nothing says loving like gliding over central park, lunging down and grabbing a cop by the head, throwing him at another cop, grabbing a random pedestrian as you sprint away, and then run to the very top of the Empire State building to have a mid afternoon snack.

My favorite aspect of the game is the sheer variety of playstyles that work equally well. You can brawl and bash, play like a slippery rogue, or everything in between.

Everyone I know who's played it (save 1 person) loved it.

Though fair warning it has its flaws. The game isn't as polished as infamous. As much as you may be tempted, don't compare the two too much. Despite both being sandbox type superhuman games, the goal of the games are widely different.

Prototype is about the moment's frenzy. :devil:

I give it a solid 9/10, and I'm a game snob.

JEDIWAN

July 26th, 2009, 19:38

http://g4tv.com/videos/40212/Star-Wars-The-Force-Unleashed-Ultimate-Sith-Edition-Trailer/

Apoc

July 28th, 2009, 17:51

oooooh cool.

As I have a few moments, i reckon i can quickly buzz through a load of the games i've played since last i posted...

Persona 4
A playstation 2 game that i picked up for my ps3. Its a jrpg murder mystery with plenty twists turns and humourous character developments...i was seriously gripped to the story as each day a new clue and more doubt and paranoia grew...it is indeed clever with a murderer throwing his victims through tvs into an alternate dimension where the worst fragment of a person would manifest itself and kill them when mist grew on your side of the world...the dungeons and monsters where fun and entertaining and the bosses spectacular and quite difficult...some grinding is required but with so many ways the story could go and so many questions that if answered wrong could spell death, this was a solid and fun game. Unfortuantely nonoption to change to the original japanese with english subs-the dub at times is cringingly awful. -8/10

Tales of Vesperia
xbox360. Another jrpg with wonderful visuals and fun gameplay with the battles no longer being turnbased but rather a melee of stringing combos together and finding the right elements to deal the most damage. A fun story and good character development but once again the english dub can't be changed to its japanese original...this is a very very long game and the story is typically jrpg. I did like very much how the main character WAS a badass...no goody goody here, if the villain was going to get away with it, he'd kill them, it was cool. A good assortment of characters, Rita and Raven being the most entertaining. After Lost Odyssey my stance of child characters had changed (the two kids ion that where very entertaining) but vesperias kid sidekick is frankly a pain in the ass and when at one boss your forced to fight with just the kid it makes your ears bleed at the annoyance of this tag shitty sidekick...anyways, a fun entertaining game with good heroes, villains, bosses, monsters and a vibrant and wonderfully immersive and beautiful world to explore - 8/10

UFC:Undisputed
xbox360. Daaaamn this game is fun. So ok, i love the ufc and the career has its flaws (damn training) but once you've mastered and perfected a standing and ground game and got your timing down, this is awesome. A massive roster of real life fighters and a good character creation with stunning visuals, flash knockouts and some of the most realistic brawls in gaming history this in my opinion is a must have for fighting fans. Forget fight night and wwe games, this is the master game of the genre. - 9/10

Guitar Hero: World Tour
xbox 360. So some here may know how much i despise this kind of false-game, you just need watch the southpark episode to nail my opinion on it...but there i was sitting at a friends house and they where all playing it and i got passed a guitar, of course i failed miserably as i'd never touched nor wanted to play this game, but with that embarrassment i at least wanted to get a grip of it and play along should others wish to AND my flatmate had a copy so i thought i'd at least get good on easy...and i did and then i put down the guitar after one blast through of the career to never really have any wish to pick it up again. Coz in my mind its retarded and basically just a tap along to the tune game...but meh, maybe some people might delude themselves that they can actually play guitar after experting this, i just don't get it...i'm in awe of musically talented people but this is just a poor excuse for musically inept retards like myself to think they can play too...and that is dumb imo - 3/10

LaughingTurtle

August 1st, 2009, 23:00

Infamous
Agree with Malc, it’s a great game. Controls were tight; story if rather predictable was compelling and after beating it I immediately went back through a second time to play through the other moral side.

Prototype
It was hard not to compare the two as I played Prototype right after I beat Infamous though what Buck said rings true. I enjoyed the free roaming carnage I could cause but I still have yet to beat it. The final boss just causes me to lose all interest with the sloppy AI targeting and infernal timer. That and the fact that I’m stuck at the boss checkpoint and can’t return to free roam has killed my interest in continuing the game for the time being.

Shatter
PSN title, think breakout but with awesome music (could almost recommend it on the soundtrack alone), and a new gameplay mechanic tossed it. Easy to learn but hard to master, it was worth the price with my only complaint being the bonus mode can die in a fire.

Fat Princess
Another PSN title, a dash of TF2, a little castle crashers tossed in, and a lot of cake. I’m torn on this one as it can be loads of fun to play…but getting to play is half the problem. I guess it’s a victim of it’s own popularity as connecting to a game is hit or miss and when you’re primarily a multiplayer game, if you can’t join a game and the loading takes several minutes only to find out that you’ve been dropped, it’s not a good time. Maybe once they iron out the net-code or when things slow down a little I’ll revise my opinion but until then, meh.

Malcor Sylverwood

October 22nd, 2009, 16:04

Guitar Hero 5
Despite Apoc calling me dumb, I'll mention it anyway. First, I'm happy with the music games I have and wouldn't have picked it up--except that I got it for half price AND they threw in Guitar Hero: Van Halen (which I just got in the mail, but haven't played yet). Anyway, it's pretty much more of the same. I don't like the the song list as well, but GH is finally coming around--they let you import all of your World Tour downloads and a fair bit of the songs from the disk. 5 also adds the ability to play any combination of instruments...but since I doubt most people have more than one drum set around will mostly only allow both people on guitar to play lead (instead of one playing base). There is also a party mode where players can come in and out without stopping songs.

Batman: Arkham Asylum
Pretty fun game. Has an interesting balance of puzzles/fighting/stealth. Biggest downfall is that is a repetitive and easy--too easy.

Uncharted 2: Among Theives
Well, here it is kids. One of the best games I've played in a long time. Probably the best looking game to date (on consoles anyway--I've been out of PC gaming for years now). And just damned fun. The characters are great and the lead is just damned funny. He's got a line for pretty much everything that happens...and there are a lot of things that happen.

Short list of my favorite games: Pitfall, Pool of Radiance (the old gold box game), Super Mario Bros, Doom, X-wing, Dark Forces, Tomb Raider, Knights of the Old Republic, Uncharted 2. Maybe a few others...but not many ;)

Apoc

October 22nd, 2009, 17:17

Guitar Hero 5
Despite Apoc calling me dumb, I'll mention it anyway.

Just for the record, i never called you dumb...the game is dumb, you're just a musically inept retard, like me :apoc: and the gt and rb games are poor excuses for folk like us to delude ourselves that we can play...i don't know anybody that can play an instrument that doesn't look down on these games with disgust and to me anyway, i can see why.

heh

Agree with you on Batman, it's fantastic but short and too easy...that said the extreme fighting challenges are proving very difficult, almost got 100% complete but for those extreme ones...the sneak ones are very cool though.

sir archely

October 22nd, 2009, 18:25

well, i can play an instrument pretty well, another fairly well, and half a dozen with some degree of proficiency (currently acquiring skill ranks in perform (guitar) ) and i think guitar hero is a pretty fun game. there are a lot of things about it that could be significantly improved to make it better (like, have the music scroll sideways instead of at you, and it'd be more relatable to actual sheet music. etc.) and i think the idea of a "practice" mode is crazy, but it is still a pretty fun way to play with some friends.

Malcor Sylverwood

October 22nd, 2009, 18:28

Just for the record, i never called you dumb...the game is dumb, you're just a musically inept retard, like me :apoc: and the gt and rb games are poor excuses for folk like us to delude ourselves that we can play...i don't know anybody that can play an instrument that doesn't look down on these games with disgust and to me anyway, i can see why.

Just giving you a hard time ;)

And I don't get the whole 'real instrument' thing. I don't expect to be a space marine just because I play Halo. So why is this game different? ~shrugs~ And I know one person who plays a real instrument (drums) that also enjoys these games. ~shrugs again~

I haven't tried the challenges in Batman much, I wanted to get on to Uncharted. I might go back though, the predator ones should be fun. Although I also have the new Marvel Ultimate Alliance game to start to play :D

Edit: With arch chiming in...I guess I know two ;)

JEDIWAN

October 22nd, 2009, 19:35

HALO3:ODST

It's basically Halo with other characters (Firefly and BSG peoples, pay attention: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1446689/).
It's too short for a stand alone game/should've been a download. Takes place about a month before Master Chief's exploits in Halo 3. There's some new equipment and the controls changed a bit (in a good way). No real complaints...
I went right back to play Legendary mode after I finished and, now, want to play Halo 3 (and Windows Vista version of ...2--achievements, you know).
No notable on-line play...just the equivalent to "Hoard mode" on Gears of War 2 (like I said: should've been a download)

I'm thinking 8.5

Apoc

October 22nd, 2009, 19:53

Just giving you a hard time ;)

hehe always bwhaha

As to Guitar Hero and Rockband etc have you never thought that all they needed do was release one game like say - world tour - and then have like an itunes thing to download all the songs you want rather than release game after game, hell join singstar and lips to them and just basically have the one game...i just find it insane that guitar hero five is essentially just a whole load of new songs that surely you could have just downloaded into world tour, no?

The only one thus far i've seen that was worthy of being it's own game rather than downloadable content was Beatles Rockband...anyways to each their own i guess...i suppose me liking survival horror games is just as odd as you liking these instrument kareoke games :apoc:

sir archely

October 22nd, 2009, 21:28

i'll agree to that apoc. about the GH/RB stuff. though... i only have one version, so i don't know how much the gameply might actually change from version to version. i can't imagine it's too much though. certainly they could improve the zombie dancers. or just eliminate them altogether 'cause they're pointless.

Dregs

October 22nd, 2009, 21:49

Until they work out a trumpet controller and make Ska-band, I'm not interested.

Malcor Sylverwood

October 22nd, 2009, 23:52

As to Guitar Hero and Rockband etc have you never thought that all they needed do was release one game like say - world tour - and then have like an itunes thing to download all the songs you want rather than release game after game
RB2 is mostly like this, which is why I prefer it. It has a pretty good sized store to get songs. And it lets you import most of the songs from the first one. There is also some talk in letting studios code their own songs, which might make it start to look like iTunes in terms of selection.

GH is worse, but it looks like they are starting to see the way letting you imports World Tour sonds (and all your DLC) into GH5. On the other hand, they are also putting out Van Halen (which I did get for free) and Band Hero ~rolleyes~

Apoc

October 30th, 2009, 01:48

So ummm, i'm wondering whether i should pick up Dragon Age Origins...it's made by Bioware (who made the awesome Mass Effect) and it's apparently heavily influenced by GRRM's Game of Thrones...though, aside from Mass Effect and Fallout 3 i've not really been a fan of western rpg's, mainly coz the character animations and look are well...shit, compared to their japanese counterparts. Even Fallout 3 and Mass Effect i got annoyed at the poor wooden animation of characters, mainly coz i know it can be done awesomely like Lost Odyssey and Tales of Vesperia, granted they're very anime in look but western rpg's and from the look of DA:O, they look like wooden, soulless puppets.

So, even though it's made by an awesome studio and influenced by one of my favourite book's...i'm not really sold on this one...especially as i like to give games a really good go and with rpg's i gotta choose carefully coz they're so massive and to give an rpg a good go means alot of hours...i've made this mistake once already with Infinite Undiscovery, i don't like it but i paid for it and the trade in value is shit and it's just sitting there now taunting me to chore through it a bit more so i can get my moneys worth and then return it.

bleh

Apoc

November 16th, 2009, 13:27

Ummm just a note to say that if you like a Song of Ice and Fire then you have to play Dragon Age: Origins, it's fckn awesome!

Anita Blake

November 17th, 2009, 09:29

oh, guess what!

New Super Mario Bros. Wii! That's what!

Because I'm filled with nostalgia, I bought this game yesterday. And yup, it's fun. It takes all the fun (and music, and style) of Super Mario Bros. 3 and Super Mario World, mixes it up with some new Wii-based silliness, and gives you multi-player ridiculousness, and it altogether fun. My bf and I played this last night for something ridiculous like 3 hours (from people who rarely bust out the video games). I'm not crazy about the super-moves that require the remote to be shaken, but other than that, it's very much like stepping into some kind of future version of Mario 3, which is probably the only video game I ever spent hours and hours and hours playing as a child (well, that and Contra... me = not a gamer).

In multi-player mode you play with all the players simultaneously. This is OK with 2-players, but I"ve read that 4-players is a nightmare. It's definitely hard to get used to - but you really do have to be cooperative. When you hit a power-up, usually two items will pop out, sometimes the same, sometimes not the same. Your partner will get totally pissed if you take them both. And if one person dies in the level, as long as the other person is still going, you can come back into the level. You come back floating in a bubble that your partner has to break for you - so if he dies before bursting your bubble, it's game over for that level.

There's a couple of fun new things, like the propeller suit and the penguin suit and ice-throwing mario, but ultimately it feels like a really good, solid update of an old favorite. (unlike Mario 64 which I could never get a feel for). The worlds and levels are set up much like Super Mario 3, but you jump for flags at the end of the levels like in Super Mario World, and Yoshi is around to help you out from time to time.

I give it a thumbs up. It's fun, and that's what counts. :)

Amos

December 4th, 2009, 16:49

Eternal Sonata

"A video game somehow incorporating the music of Chopin? This could be interesting," I thought to myself. Naively. After about five minutes of gameplay I turned off my PS3, and if you play this for yourself and don't turn it off even sooner it's because, like me, you recognized the voice of Hirano Aya from The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya and felt compelled to listen. Either that or you're a simpering 14 year old girl who prefers to be led by the hand through everything. This is not even really a game, it's paint-by-numbers role playing with the option to beat up rats and pumpkins with your sword. Why a young girl who sells magical flower dust (pollen?) for a living should have a weapon in the first place is baffling, almost as completely baffling as my decision to rent this.

Questionable Features:
A girl named Polka, which reminds me of an adolescent joke.
Suspicious lack of camera control: you see only what They want you to see!
Pretentious intro: almost as embarrassing as Franz Liszt's biography of Chopin.
Last-gen graphics: would have looked great on the PS2.
Choice of using either "X" or "O" for attacking. For the sake of variety, I guess.
Turn-based combat: like a duel but with grating politeness and narcolepsy. "Oh no, you hit me first. I insist. Oh, wait, you've fallen asleep, I guess it's my turn. Oh no wait, now I've fallen asleep, and so has the person controlling me."
No AI: If this thing was even remotely intelligent it would have turned itself off while I was still making up my mind.
Hirano Aya: has a lovely voice and should be pursuing more meaningful roles, like say in advertising.
Theoretically speaking it's possible that this game gets better the longer you play it for. So you can always wonder "what if?". ~romantic sigh~

Buck

February 14th, 2010, 15:36

Dante's Inferno

I finished it on the medium difficulty setting yesterday.

This game had it all, for some 'Gears of War clone'. Two experience bars, added depth in the form of customizable magic abilities, not to mention Relics modifications. The Quick Time Events's overall were well done.

Yes, the game has a few frustrations, but in hindsight I would say that it forces you to become a better player to move on. And it just builds and builds you up for the last leg of the game. Dante felt immensely more powerful by the time I was done, and the progression in that strength was very fluid. I can't say enough good things about the amount of customization that can be done and how much of it is in your complete control with the Absolve/Punish mechanic. Very well done. I wasn't expecting this when I picked up this game.

The fighting mechanics were all implemented very well. There are loads of options, I'm already planning a couple different playthroughs using different builds.

There was an almost even split between combat and platform/puzzles. The see-saw between the two felt like it was done just right to me. I'll admit to having to look up this one platform puzzle in the Greed level online. But that was mostly due to poor lighting on the screen and not being able to see a platform on the left side of the screen unless I knew what I to look for.

I'm looking forward to April, when the online/multiplayer editor gets released. I'm curious to see how that works out.

Overall, I give it a solid 9/10. The only con I can come up with is that it's a bit short, but the replayability and sense of accomplishment makes up for it.

Apoc

February 14th, 2010, 18:04

really? i thought it was fairly meh....i mean seriously it's the shortest 360 title i've ever played...completion time logged at like 4h10 min which felt like it went by quicker...i liked the cinematics but it felt very much like just one long laborious level where the only true threat came from falling rather than fighting, only lucifer himself gave a real fight i felt...but yeah the ideas where imaginativd, Cleopatra fight was visually excellent...gameplay wise it felt too much like a button basher, only on a few occassions did you really have to do something specific and quite difficult, hell i cleared the gates of hell 50 levels on my first run and that was on the unlocked new harder difficulty....i played the main game on the hardest difficulty on offer which felt very mediumish to me. so meh my simple opinion that a game should not take four hours to complete, fours hours is how long a fckn level should take, not a whole fckn game! -4/10 for Dantes Inferno for me...

Bayonetta
It astounds me how many awesome reviews this has received, yes it's very original and yes the combat is extensive but when you just have to hold Y with a sword and wipe out near everything with it why need all the other abilities? frantic fighting at mind boggling speed was fun but ended up feeling repetitive, stylistically i think its a very aquired taste and am surprised its been so popular, coz i thought all the characters looked fckn retarded and don't get me started on the insanely bad storyline and dialogue...it's a game that is delivered very well but the concept, ideas and style i felt where massively wasted on the imagination of a demented child with a sick fetish for long insectlike legs and dominatrixlike schollteacher fantasies...pretty short game too splitup with absolutely infuriating mini games-plus points are its fluidity and flair but it fails for me in its insanely stupid story and characters. -4/10

Mass Effect 2
Long has Resident Evil been the greatest game i had ever played...that was until i got ahold of this...absolutely outstanding, the final shot left me wide eyed and swearing and desperately in need of the third game...brilliant, spectacular...the storytelling and characters in this game are so utterly compelling and the paths you can explore so varied that this isn't a game any longer, it's a story that makes you believe that YOU are the storyteller...it's got the best of all the great sci fi shows, it's firefly sometimes, battlestar at others, Babylon 5, farscape and many more...heh and by the time you think you're ready for the suicide mission there is still all that doubt and fear that the team you've assembled may not be good enough, that you're not all coming back, that you may not come back...and if you do a shit job then yeah, you can and will all die and the story will just go on, no restart, you are dead! You are ALL dead! fck this game can be played a thousand times and each time it'll change, something new will appear...the continuation feature to carry over your char from mass effect 1 just makes it all the sweeter as all you did before carries over, did you kill the council? who did you leave to die on virmire? oh man, it all rolls...and it fckn rocks, i can't foresee any game surpassing this this year, best game of the 360, full fckn stop! -10/10

Man, I played alotta games these last months, but mass effect 2 has erased them from my mind heh

Buck

February 15th, 2010, 15:43

I won't argue the points you brought up for Dante's Inferno, apoc.

If I streamlined straight through without looking for all the shades and as many of the relics as I could find, I'd probably would have finished it in 5-6 hours as well. The game was definitely a bit short, but it does have replayability and there will be an online component available in April, so we'll see if it's worth the full price.

As it is, the save file logs just under 10 hours for my run through the game. Does the game log all that time lost in reloads?

And I'm very much interested in picking up ME2, quick question. On the 360, how are the load times? Is it a few seconds to load a level like in Assassin's Creed 2 or non-existent like in Dante's Inferno?

This is the one real deal breaker for any game for me, and I'm always wary of getting the 360 version of anything due to this one point. I'm spoiled by instant or very minor load times, even a 3 second delay feels like a damnable eternity and will have me switch the damn thing off.

AquaFizz

February 15th, 2010, 21:55

Is that the one where you shoot Fetuses (Fety?)?

Apparently there's a graphic novel companion.

Buck

February 16th, 2010, 11:42

They are called Razor babies. But before you form an opinion about it, please do consider all the facts. The game is rated M for Mature, it is meant for adults-- *NOT CHILDREN*. And the setting *IS* the Inferno according to Dante. The unbaptized were considered heathens in the medieval ages.

All the creatures you battle in the game are a distortation of their circle of hell (Limbo, Lust, Gluttony, Greed, Wrath, Heresy, Violence, Fraud, Treachery).

I'm putting it in spoiler tags:

Sloths are large, puking, defecating abominations.
Lust driven whore beasts that lash at you with sharp claws and tentacles coming out of inappropriate places.
Razor babies are toddlers that have their arms replaced with sharp hooks and swarm around you.
etc...

You can kill any and all of them. You could also chose to Absolve them instead. The game allows you to beef up either a Holy or Unholy persona and the powers you gain are a direct result from whether you "Punish" or "Absolve" them.

You can bless them with a cross of your beloved, or you can chop them into minced meat with the reaper's scythe.

AquaFizz

February 17th, 2010, 22:41

:umm: I was only asking. I'd overheard someone else talking about it at work and wanted to know if it was really true or just some crazy hype. I'm not really opposed to fake killing anything...except maybe puppies...and kittens.

Anyway, the spoiler text sounds far more disturbing than the actually killing. And, yet...I want to play it.

Apoc

February 21st, 2010, 08:13

And I'm very much interested in picking up ME2, quick question. On the 360, how are the load times? Is it a few seconds to load a level like in Assassin's Creed 2 or non-existent like in Dante's Inferno?

This is the one real deal breaker for any game for me, and I'm always wary of getting the 360 version of anything due to this one point. I'm spoiled by instant or very minor load times, even a 3 second delay feels like a damnable eternity and will have me switch the damn thing off.

Well I think you gotta play the first one and carry your save file over to really see how much this game rocks...but that's just me apparently...although i can't fckn understand folk who want to start a story half way through, it's madness to me.

As to load times, well their are some, like when you move between the decks of the Normandy it plays a little animation of your lift moving to the floor you're going to...ummm before landing on a planet there are loading screens but they pass in no longer than 15 seconds...but dude, seriously, this game fckn rocks and i noticed no lag on my 360 and very rarely did it drop frames, the game is gloriously absorbing dude...don't not play it coz you can't wait for ten seconds as your ship lands.

Buck

February 22nd, 2010, 19:42

Fair enough, I'll give ME both a whirl next month when my schedule stabilizes a bit.

SonoftheSands

April 1st, 2010, 03:19

Starcraft II Beta: So, only the battle.net pvp is available at the moment. It is good, but the zergling rush is still reprehensibly fast. then need to fix that. Also, Blizz needs to fix it so players can see whether a friend on the "friends list" is in game or not.

I feel like the Tech trees open up too fast, this game can turn from the opening stages to deadly Battlecruisers, Protoss Carriers & Ultralisks in under 12 minutes. Its a Korean's wet dream come true.

Buck

April 1st, 2010, 11:50

The game is indeed rush heavy right now, but it is beta and they've been revamping balance quite a bit with each patch. Zerg rush is defendable, both Protoss and Terran can wall off their ramp easily. The more scarier thing atm, is the canon rush Protoss can pull off. If a probe manages to get into a corner of your base without notice, by the time you realize what's happened it is too late. =/

I'm on the fence with the whole hard-counter thing. You can spend loads of resources on massing a certain type of unit, and if your opponent has the right hard counter, nothing you can do (micro wise) will prevent your loss. Scouting and hard counters need to get toned down a bit, imo.

I'm mostly playing 2v2 either on random or with a friend of mine, can't wait for 4v4 to go active. It was my favorite matchup in the original.

Oh and SotS, you *can* see if your friends are in a match or not. If they are online, they have a green dot next to them, if they are in game there is a SC logo next to their name.

I rarely play, between work and school (and going out) I back burner gaming a lot these days. But feel free to add me... with the reset my SC user name is Lucius.fox
If I'm on, it's either in the early afternoon for a quick match or two, or late in the evening if I'm not falling asleep easily.

Amos

May 27th, 2010, 18:41

I've been playing Red Dead on the 360 for about 6 hours. OMG. I was hooked even before I bought the game after watching trailers and reviews on YouTube. Here's a short list of some of the things I've done/have had happen to me so far:

was mauled to death by a cougar
lasso'd a woman!
deposited lasso'd woman on the train tracks and waited... 'twas messy...
picked flowers by the light of the full moon
lasso'd a thief and dragged him behind my horse for miles
oh! lasso'd a horse and broke it in. I do love my lasso!
got a stylin' new coat to wear
rode my horse off a cliff... 'twas messy...
herded cows... okay that one wasn't so great for me, being a former cow farmer :eyebrow:
lost a lot of money playing poker
saved a guy from being hanged by shooting the rope tied around his neck
accidentally shot a guy who was being hanged
hunted for treasure
strode slowly into town while romantic western music played
killed two men in duels. felt no regrets.

:love:

Apoc

June 6th, 2010, 18:22

Red Dead Redemption

Awesome. Nearing 100%completion, done all the story and I crave for more and more even though i've been given so much. I do feel strongly however a couple of things could have made this game an absolute masterpiece.

Be forewarned, major spoilers follow.

First off, a better introduction. A prologue of your fall during the bank robbery and capture by the bureau, giving hints to the mysterious shadowed figures who you believe abandoned and betrayed you that you now must hunt down and of course the proposition where you're told the bureau have your wife and kid and that you must hunt down your former gang pals...this is all i feel badly pieced together in the progress of the first act and would have made it far far better being shown rather than told. It didn't feel like they where telling the backstory as something to slowly be revieled but as something the player should already know that's just being reiterated to other characters in game.

Second. Bonnie. I thought she was a great character and suddenly she just drops out of the story after the first act to appear later in minor bits...i did love that last shot of her though where she's alone and playfully kicks at dust whilst sighing achingly for john as he rides off with his wife. Not just Bonnie though but she seems the main support character...other characters that you only meet momentarily like that funny chick that winds john up for mistaking that guys love for her when its for the horse, that cracked me up and she got what? 5 mins of great dialogue and then vanished off the face of the game. Landon Ricketts got good coverage as a kinda Bill (killbill) dude...but i think it;s just that these folk just vanish to never be seen again and yet they make so much impact on John you'd expect he'd be able to go see them where they're based and get some small chat off them or just a nod that they're still about, but no...gone. I guess i love and hate it, i love it coz it's pretty realistic but i hate it coz their small stories have no real resolution, it's very annoying to me.

Third. I fckn hate being jack after the credits, i want to revert bck to being john. Or at least have the option to choose between jack and isabel...(i know, she's dead but fck) I would have preferred it if it where her that became a bounty hunter, revenge seeking badass.

As a side I have to mention it, the stranger quest of "I Know You" was phenomenal, whoever wrote that should be given a fkn prize for impacting something upon the player so cool and unexpected in such a short manner was outstanding.

I like that John is faithful to his wife and his put downs to all the whores etc, it was a funny but pointless part of gta, the whores, that i'm kinda happy didn't get carried to this. Story is fairly linear though, i would have definately preferred (maybe coz i got spoiled with mass effect) that your actions have consequences that change the storyline, i saw no difference in the decisions i was supposedly given like kill this bad guy or let the rebels finish him? No change to story. Capture or Kill your mexican former partner, no change. I was really hoping the actions taken in the I Know You sidequest would have consequences (i robbed the nun and gave money to the guy t sleep with a whore) thinking this will lead to damnation rather than redemption but it didn't really affect squat.

meh, i have my annoyances but there is no denying this is a fckn awesome game. Glitchy though but it looks wonderful (the weather blew me away, especially the storms), the dialogue and voice talent plus the syncing where brilliantly done. Story is the only real let down but that's only coz it seems disjointed and badly told when it could have been excellently shown.

Still...and after all that ranting...it is a 10/10. Massively enjoyable, addictive, engrossing etc etc...

JEDIWAN

June 15th, 2010, 11:23

http://e3.g4tv.com/videos/46386/E3-2010-Star-Wars-The-Force-Unleashed-2-E3-Trailer/

Amos

June 19th, 2010, 02:10

So looking forward to this... The next incarnation of Civilization which I will most likely continue to suck at:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JVQtoDY25Rk

Apoc

June 19th, 2010, 15:03

Really? So far at E3...Metal Gear Solid Rising looks fckn awesome, Raiden and that sword cut anything at will gameplay looks phenomenal, will definately be getting this. Coz let's face it Raiden was waaay more badass and cool than Snake!

The other big one for me, Mortal Kombat 9...back to the gore YAY the fatalaties looked awesomely gruesome and sick, luv it...and they've gone back to the 2d plain, double yay...and for the triple yay? It may even get rated to Adult rather than "just" mature...awesome!

As to the tech on show, oh man i hate motion controlling being applied to gaming, it's awesome tech for browsing minority report style but gaming? no way...i hate hate hate the Wii and it's play like a fckn spasticated monkey being annoyed by flies contol system. And now Microsoft and PS3 are going that route, fckn sucks..Project Natal...oh sorry...Kinect (yeah that's right let's give it a more pansy ass name) is an absolute joke, the kinect games on show where sooo unimpressive and just plain lame that it was laughable, this shit just isn't cool man...all the gamers i know come back from work or school and just want to chill out and play a computer game, they don't want to jump around like a spazz and if they did they'd go to a club or gig not play a video game for fck sake and if they want exercise? well you know...all you need is a floor and a lil bit of spaceor you could go outside and have a walk or run or play sports....personally i feel all this shit will be a collossal flop.

My major dissapointment for this E3 is Capcom...i mean come on! new Res Evil on the ds3d are you kidding me? Please flee from nintendo guys and if not well at least give the fans what they really really want, you know of what i speak...THE game...the greatest game...you did it with Res Evil now please, all res evil fans beg you, please make Nemesis Remake like you did the first one.

sir archely

June 19th, 2010, 20:27

Okay, i need some video game suggestions. But here's the kind of thing I'm looking for:

Something similar to Myst, Return to Zork, 7th Guest, Kin'gs Quest, etc, only newer. The sort of puzzly adventure game genre. I'm specifically looking to avoid anything that has to do with shooting (so, not something like Half-Life). I remember quite liking these old adventure games, and just recently played through Beneath a Steel Sky, because it was recommended and free, and had a lot of fun with it. Though again, i'm not really looking for great classics in this genre, but something that was made more recently.

So, 1. Anyone know about the sequels to Myst and if they are worth paying for? I played Riven, but honestly don't remember much of it. 2. Have any other recommendations based on what I'm looking for?

Apoc

June 19th, 2010, 20:55

If you're looking for a graphic adventure game that's new there's not alot to choose from, the only one i'd reccomend is Heavy Rain but that's probably not in the genre you're after.

The two games i can't recommend enough if you've not played them are Resident Evil Remake which has lotsa puzzles and mysteries to solve and not alotta shooting (you'll wish you could shoot more as you really gotta conserve your ammo) and Mass Effect I and II as they're just plain awesome,though again likely not what you're after as they got alotta shooting. OOOh Dragon Age is excellent aswell, i highly recommend that, become a grey warden dude and fight the blight!

I really want to find a game that we can all play together, Kingdom Under Fire II looked really promising but is taking an age to be released, Old Republic looks like a big pile of pony piss and won't be released til next year now aswell...there are a couple jrpg's that are coming out that look really good that have mmo capability...but yeah ~shrugs~ i'm not really into pc games, prefer console.

In other news, the new Old Republic cinematic is pretty cool, not as good as the old one...it's so annoying how great this game could be but instead they made the gameplay flat and the characters look retarded, why of why couldn't bioware and lucas arts do what they did with their other games-mass effect and force unleashed and deliver graphics we know they're capable of, why must western mmo's look like crap?

Buck

June 19th, 2010, 23:51

Arch, if you're looking for a good adventure game on the PC and haven't tried Trine. The game is fairly simplistic but has an excellent atmosphere. There's also the Monkey Island games, I believe the second episode was released recently. Aside from those, I'd recommend Batman Arkham Asylum. I know it's not exactly an adventure game, but it's so well done I can't help mentioning it.

As for E3, the one thing that caught my eye was the Portal 2 teasers. Sooooo excited they are making a full game out of this. I hope Valve delivers

Malcor Sylverwood

June 20th, 2010, 00:25

If you're looking for a graphic adventure game that's new there's not alot to choose from, the only one i'd reccomend is Heavy Rain but that's probably not in the genre you're after.Heavy Rain is the closest thing to one of the old school adventure games that I've seen in a long time. But, it's a little too Dragon's Lair...

I've been playing some Star Trek Online. It isn't bad. I've long since completed all of the solo story though, so it is quickly losing appeal.

Buck

June 22nd, 2010, 23:15

JEDIWAN

July 20th, 2010, 16:39

Apparently, a new transformers game is out this week. I dl'd the demo on my 360 and gave it a whirl and it reminds me of Shadowrunner (the 360 game, not table top). Anyone getting this? I want to know if the solo campaign is any good, as I won't be playing online often enough to warrant getting it.

Played past the first chapter...I like (makes up for the stupid movie game). I'll let you know if it starts to suck but I don't see that happening.

Malcor Sylverwood

July 22nd, 2010, 16:06

And I don't get the whole 'real instrument' thing. I don't expect to be a space marine just because I play Halo. I feel kind of dirty quoting myself like this... ;)

Anyway...real instruments?

http://www.rockband.com/zine/rock-band-3-announcements

If you're ready to take the next step in music gaming, check out Rock Band 3's Pro Mode. Ever had someone ask you why you play plastic guitar instead of learning a real instrument? Now you can tell them you ARE learning a real instrument. Rock Band 3 empowers players to develop actual musical skills through the fun of Rock Band Pro gameplay. Start at Easy and work your way up through Expert on three different Pro Modes, just like you did with the plastic guitars and plastic drums.

•Pro Drums supports three expansion cymbals, with gameplay differentiation between toms and cymbals.
•Pro Keys features pitch-accurate keyboard performance across a two-octave range, displayed on an easy-to-read keyboard track.
•Pro Guitar features notated guitar and bass performances, available for play with either the new Fender Mustang PRO-Guitar simulated guitar controller from Mad Catz or the Rock Band 3 Squier by Fender Stratocaster Guitar real guitar/controller hybrid. The Rock Band 3 Squier Stratocaster is a fully functional, full-sized, six-string electric guitar that also functions as a game controller that Fender and Harmonix have teamed up to develop.