Tuesday, May 31, 2011

Metro Last Light Announced The Sequel to Metro 2033! Video + Screenshots


One of my favourite - first person shooter/survival horror/some RPG elements/post apocalyptic/Russian- video game of 2010, Metro 2033, is getting a sequel called Metro: Last Light. Bet you cant find those features on the box of your typical FPS's! 

Sounds bizarre but yet the game works, or at least some of it works. You see the game had some rough edges throughout the game mainly due to its clunky shooting mechanics and its wonky as fuck AI. It was a pretty linear game that followed the journey of Artyom. A young man that is immune to the power of the Dark Ones, radioactive mutants.

To some people it surprisingly got a Metacritic score of 77, which is a pretty fair score in my opinion. Personally I loved the game it was dark, gritty and was haunting from start to finish. The only question I have about the single player is which ending Last Light will take up from 2033. I'm not going to spoil it for y'all, but there pretty different from each other. 

Teaser: 

Its also been confirmed that Last Light has multiplayer nothing has been specified as of yet, but we'll see by E3 this year about any details. 






Here's me looking forward to this at E3, expect me to cover this over the course of the expo and others also!

Sunday, May 29, 2011

Gears Of War 3: "Epic" Game Deserves an "EPIC" TRAILER!


Last week we were given a teaser for a trailer that was going to be aired during the Champions League final, to sum the match up Barcelona played their usual way of playing and Manchester United just couldnt out play them (no one can). 

So it left for a pretty boring match when Messi scored (it was well game over by then) and the only thing I was looking forward to was the Gears 3 trailer. To summarise it's pretty awesome, lots of actions scenes but the main thing for me was the Lambent Leviathan. I just got to the point in the book where the fight like three of these bastards and, my, they are big motherfuckers. They look awesome by the way, check it here: 


War Pigs! Awesome song! Can't wait to finish it on September 20th! 

Friday, May 27, 2011

Driver Parallel Lines: Review


Driver, the driving game series that I have spent the majority of my virtual street racing life playing. The game normally puts you under control of Tanner, an under-cover cop. However this game decided to break with the trend and bring out a new driver ,T.K. Set in 1970's and 2000's New York you better fasten your seatbelts.

Story:
If you're a fan of Driver, you should already know that story is a minimal feature in the games and that VERY little is placed on it and in fact what draws a lot of people to the game itself is it's LEGENDARY take a ride mode where you travel around cities you like. The story in Driver Parallel lines is...well... possibly the worst story i've ever encountered in my life. It makes no sense about making no sense (See it's rubbed off on me as well). The game opens pleasently enough with T.K doing a mission in '70's "New York" with some Blondie music blaring in the background. Then it does mini mission after mini mission and then suddenly i'm in New York 30 years later. I personally don't get it. I was playing through the game normally enough went away and the games yellow hud has changed to an ugly blue and my character is in his 60s. Maybe the PC version was missing missions but I personally don't understand how I could miss such a HUGE leap in the story.


Gameplay:
Driver has always been known for it's amazing driving engine, although not known well, it was nearly always better than the driving in GTA. The whole car system has been completly revolutionized with changing tires, suspension and such allowing for experiments to get the car that's perfect for you easily... as long as you have the cash. Any car you pick up and store in a garage can later be used, repaired, cleared of felony or customized. However I strongly disliked the whole custom body kits, which gave some bitching bodies to cars but covered them with hideous paint job. The cars as usual have excellent precision and driving capabilities with the engine being even more accurate it can allow even a new player to quickly master the controls and being timing jumps right and making use of the hand brake to avoid the police, who have greatly evolved since the cops of Driv3r who made me see what it would be like if a mentally deranged squirell were behind the wheel. Also cop chases are now more expansive in terms of more frequent road blocks, more cars in a chase and helicopters in the sky. The Felony system has had it's sensitivity reduced, now when you crash a car into a wall the police won't go red alert on your ass.


Violence has nearly always been kept to a minimum in Driver. In the early drivers you just couldn't hit peds with your car. In driver 3 they drought in guns which were awful all around, however it was their first time so it was passable in terms of that. Driver PL changes the weapons set around and introduced auto targeting to the mix. However they share the same buttons no matter what so it makes it impossible to do my favourite move to police ( Do a 180 turn and shoot out their wheels while reversing). It always locks onto the enemies themselves and if you're unlucky they can wreck themselves into a nice impenetrable package. Jumping was removed as well for no reason that I can see. It wasn't that good in Driv3r but it was handy. There have been so many times that my character has been bested by a tiny 2 foot wall. It's my Runescape days all over again....

Swimming, another key point of Driv3r was stolen as well and if you have played Driv3r i'm pretty sure that you can work out your self that means NO boats. While the boats weren't something I used often and WERE something that was horrifically bugged such as the lack of police boats ever appearing on my PS2 and PC versions it still would've been nice to take a poat out around the Hudson Bay.

Take a ride has been removed and so have driving games and have been rolled together with the campaign for one big super open world.

Graphics and Music:
The graphics in this game have taken a huge leap up from what was in Driv3r. New textures were brought in, windows didn't keep the same animation when smashed, more detail but into simple things. These new graphics did make a good change and made the slo-mo car jumps over roads, ditches or rivers all the more enjoyable. The music was barely passable. For once Driver got with the times and put in a radio station instead of crappy OST in each game. The music in the 70's was alright with a few songs getting my nerve. The music in the 2000's made me want to cut myself. Seriously when did driving music become trance and dance music? There was only one song I liked which is the alternate rock song, Oh My God by the Kaiser Chiefs. If I recall, people use Powered Rock Ballads from bands like Motley Crue, AC/DC and White Snake. Sure it is meant to be the 2000's so those wouldn't be really fitting seeing as AC/DC are the only ones still writing new tunes but their new stuff would be suitable, Bands like Motorhead, Disturbed, Foo Fighters, Kiss and so on would've been so much better. I've found myself muting the music in the game and turning on either the Brutal Legend soundtrack or some general rock songs to keep my sanity.

So in conclusion
What I liked:
Improved Graphics
Setting of 1970s New York
Better car customization and driving engine.
Open world with missions
Better police

What I disliked
Seeming irregular story,
Music
Guns
Boats missing
Jumping Missing
Glitches

So what did I think overall? This game gets a

4.5 /10
This game is barely even worth pirating, which i'm glad I did first because it definitly isn't worth any price north of €5,00. A lot of the good features of it were removed making it generally un-enjoyable or just plain irritating.

Tuesday, May 24, 2011

I'm Buying This! + Leaked Video of Gears 3 Campaign!


So yea see that crazy weapon in the picture? Its gonna cost around $100 so that's about €80 or if you pick it up from Gamestop it'll be $80 so thats about €60 so add that on to the Epic Edition of Gears Of War 3 I mentioned earlier, which is about $150 or €120, and you get $250 or €200. Sucks to be my wallet. 

Yea I'm totally buying this, I knew Epic Games where gonna make this even before Gears Of War 3 was announced the only thing I didn't expect was the Epic Edition, which I'm totally getting. Love this beauty.


So this has been confirmed in US only and NECA (The manufacturer's) are still yet to distribute news about where they're going to sell this beast! They expect something soon, so first word I get I am placing my order on this beaut. 

+

So speaking of Gears Of War 3 and my plans of buying ridiculous swag I came across a short cutscene focussing on Baird, one of the four protagonists of Gears, and ironically he's talking about my wallet....
You see kids, the Locust are the dick heads at Microsoft, Epic Game and NECA who develop "shit" that goes way over any persons expectations for their wallet. 

Friday, May 20, 2011

It may be the end of the world as we know it, But i'm feeling fine with playing video games, What are you playing?





Well seeing as tomorrow could well be our last day on the Old planet earth as rapture is meant to begin tomorrow. No the world isn't going to turn into this epic under water city with only 50's music and Justin Bieber, Axel Rose and the Gallagher brothers (My 3/4 most hated celebrities) Don't exist and where quoting R.E.M. Songs is forever gone. Well in my Final hours I want to spend my FINAL gaming minutes playing some FINAL games. Is it catching on yet? Well no i'm not really going that crazy over Final Fantasy games in my FIIIIIINALLLLLLLLLLLLLL hours alive... really. I'm actually spending my Final Hours playing the following at the moment :
  • Metal Gear Solid 4- Hideo Kojima truly is a God at making this game and hopefully THIS god will help save us in Rapture,
  • Final Fantasy VI- I've been meaning to play this game again for a while, It may be one of the early Sprite games but some of those are better than the modern ones.

  • Driver 4: Parallel Lines- This game is relativly unknown but it's basically a ps2 GTA game with better graphics, less violence and MUCH BETTER DRIVING. It's also set in 70's New York which always helps :P

So what are you playing readers?

Thursday, May 19, 2011

Metal Gear Solid 4 Review



Metal Gear Solid. The Tactical Espionage game that has sucked in fans around the world and has never let go. This may be out 3 years nearly but I recently picked it up again and thought i'd review it. Metal Gear Solid 4 was released 10 years after MGS1 and 20 years after the original Metal Gear which started the franchise. This game is the final in the main franchise and boy did Kojima deliver in giving Solid Snake a heroic send off. Set in the year 2014, Solid Snake has been brought in to assassinate his brother Liquid Snake. Liquid has taken control of the worlds military powers and has sent the world into near 24 hour war. Well here's my review.
Story:
Well the first thing that people should know is, Snake isn't a young man anymore and it isn't just because the game secretly advanced decades between the 5 years that MGS2 and MGS4 were separated. This is later explained to be his cells deteriorating seeing as he is just a clone of Big Boss. The game isn't just set in one big area which is just replayed over and over again like the Big Shell in MGS2 and Shadow Moses in MGS1. MGS4 is set in 5 unique areas, The Middle East, Papua New Guinea, Eastern Europe (Based on Czech Republic according to credits), Shadow Moses and Arsenal Gear.
The world has been plunged into eternal war, mainly thanks to Liquid Snake controlling a large amount of the worlds PMC groups and his want to stomp out all resistance. Snake is charged with killing Liquid and heads to the Middle East to kill him however as the game progresses and more and more twists undo, we learn that after years of killing Weapons of Mass Destruction, Snake is turning into one. The Fox Die virus that Naomi Hunter inserted into him in MGS1s receptors are breaking down as he ages, in simple terms, when the receptors go, The virus kills anyone regardless of genetic code. I don't want to say much more about this story but it is truly fantastic. Many characters return for one last pow-wow, Meryl Silverburgh, Johnny Sassaki (The guy who has made some form of appearance in each game and then preceeds to shit himself Johnny), Otacon and Colnel Campbell of course are back. Various boss's return in some form and more. The story truly is gripping and if you've been a fan of the MGS series for a while it's nearly impossible not to crack a tear at the end.
GAME-PLAY: With each installment of the Metal Gear franchise, more and more elements were brought in which revolutionised our tactical espionage experience. In Metal Gear 2, they introduced FPS and area damage (e.g. Radios breaking when shot, kneepcaps being shot, Hold ups). Metal Gear 3 they introduced camouflage and stamina and CQC (Close Quarter Combat) and in Metal Gear 4? They revolutionized what revolutionized means...
All these features return with so much more it's surprising they could even fit it on one Blu Ray with everything else.
One new addition is the "Drebin Shop". Drebin is a gun launderer you meet in the opening minutes of the game who agrees to unlock weapons which have ID locks on them and sell you ammo and buy extra guns back off you. Weapon customization has been all out renovated with about 80% of weapons being able to have customizations such as scopes, laser sites, grenade launchers, lights, masterkeys, grips, silencers and more. Camouflage returns in the 'guise of the Octocamo, a sneaking suit which mimics the terrain around you to make you get the most out of your camouflage. There's so much variation in terrain that I find it nearly impossible how they could've ever done it, it also gives you the opportunity to play as other characters by turning on the face camo and playing as young snake, Raiden, the bosses and more and it's possible to use codes and using your ability to scan levels to unlock extra outfits such as militia outfits, tuxedo and Altairs traditional garb from Assassins Creed 1. There is even more though, if you find some unique camo you can store it for easy access. There are other features like the Solid Eye, which acts as you're radar, NVG and Thermal goggles for this game.

Weapons have more than octupled in this game so you're never stuck for choice whether you want to go primitive with a sawed-off shotgun or high-tech with a rail-gun you can find the gun that's right for you. The Metal Gear brand of Comedy returns and there's a lot of it. For instance when you're in Shadow Moses and arrive at the location where in the middle of MGS1 you had to change discs Otacon calls you up and an amusing conversation starts up (see below)
There is so much more that you can do but i'll let you guys find that for yourselves.
Graphics and Music: It's obvious that the PS3 has better hardware but the Xbox has far better online (Only highlighted by the recent psn outage), but because this is exclusive, Konami was able to pump as much as they can into this Blu-Ray disc and it was mind-blowing. Transition from CGI to normal isn't even noticeable and the textures on things like grass and guns really do look amazing. MGS returns with another OST but this time with an "Ipod" feature where you can play songs from the Classic games, Whether it's MG1 or MGS1 you'll be satisfied with the wide array of songs. The originals though are as always brilliant and done really well for what ever the mood may be.


Other: In the extended edition of Metal Gear Solid 3, Snake Eater (Subsistence) there was a multiplayer option, this has been introduced to MGS4. I don't like it. Metal Gear I think, isn't really a game you CAN make an online with. You may be able to down the line but this part is just a waste of space on my Ps3s hard drive. There are many flaws with it such as making a friendly game with friends being impossible. The community too is a big reason why I hate it, even though it's not necessarily Konamis fault it's just that a lot of people like to report people for abuse if they do better than them, Not all players do this, but a lot of them do. There is one advantage to having this game get an online feature. By typing in passwords in the online menu you can get yourself new shit for single player, such as a free scoped Desert Eagle, a Patriot (The smg with infinite ammo from MGS3) and various camo and weapons with special abilities


Verdict: Well this was the last of the main Metal Gear games and they have given Snake a truly heroic send-off. This isn't just a game to me, it's in fact one of the best games I've ever played and even makes my top 3. It was one of the reasons I chose a ps3 when I was looking to advance in hardware and it was worth it. It was also worth the 12 play-throughs on my main save file.
It truly is amazing and I whole heartedly recommend it. Well done Snake, You've earned your rest :')
Liked:
  • Amazing Story
  • Amazing Game-play
  • Amazing Graphics and Music
  • Retention of original Metal Gear games
  • Easter Eggs and character Comebacks.
Disliked:
  • MGO
If this game came with a decent online, it could have done SO much better. But I just can't give this game the 10 it deserves for it's offline play because of it so It' gets a
9.25/10

If you have a PS3 and DON'T buy this then it's safe to assume you're going to hell :P. Until next time,

Monday, May 16, 2011

Sony release compensation game list


These are the games we get for our trouble + a month of PS+ so i'm told. Annoyingly for me I already got 3 of the Ps3 games... *sigh* guess my psp is getting some new shit on it namely... LITTLE BIG FUCKING PLANET for the PSP which i've been trying to find for quite some time...
  • LittleBigPlanet (I have)
  • Infamous (I have)
  • Wipeout HD/Fury (I have
  • Ratchet and Clank: Quest for Booty (Europe only) ( I played and hated)
  • Dead Nation (Looks good, may get it)
  • Super Stardust HD (Usa and Ger. Only)

And two PSP games from the following list:

  • LittleBigPlanet PSP (WANT!!!!!)
  • ModNation Racers PSP (ALSO WANT!!!!!!!)
  • Pursuit Force
  • Killzone Liberation

Gears Of War 3 Epic Edition Confirmed!


I don't often post about Collectors Editions towards video games, but for this one I feel that its appropriate considering I am totally buying this for 100 Euro's. Mad you might call me? Insane maybe? Well I dont care, you see I have been playing the Gear Of War series since November 2008 and ever since it quickly became my favourite game ever, then it became an obsession. 


Prowling around the internet trying to find anything that gave me clues or insight to the Gears Of War storyline I found myself buying books and comics on the franchise and the occasional figure of my favourite character. But thats what is awesome about being involved in a franchise, you buy everything. You may look at me and say I am crazy but when a game with those extra bit of something comes around and starts tickling your wallet you almost cant refuse. You love the world so why not? 


With the finishing of the Beta today this announcement sure is a good one with all these goodies in the box which include: 
Limited Edition ($79.99 US) – The must-have for fans who want to celebrate the culmination of the trilogy, the Limited Edition includes:
• An Octus Award Box with Octus Service Medal – A 1:1 match in size and weight, this zinc-alloy cog-shaped medal replicates the award given to Adam Fenix in recognition of his work on the Hammer of Dawn. [Dimensions: 77 mm (3 in.) x 10 mm (0.4 in.)
• Exclusive Unlockable Adam Fenix Multiplayer Character – Each Octus Service Medal replica is engraved with a unique Xbox LIVE code that is the only way to unlock Adam Fenix in multiplayer.
• A fabric COG Flag – Proud colors that once flew above the House of Sovereigns.
• The personal effects of Adam Fenix, including his "Last Will and Testament," the initial Hammer of Dawn schematic, and other Fenix family mementos.
Epic Edition ($149.99 US) – The ultimate collection for hardcore fans who can't get enough "Gears of War 3," the Epic Edition includes:
• A Limited Edition Marcus Fenix Statue – Designed by Epic Games Art Director Chris Perna and expertly crafted by the artisans at Triforce, this fine PVC statue collectible makes the ultimate living room centerpiece for any true "Gears" fan. [Dimensions: height 285 mm (11.2 in.), diameter 225 mm (8.9 in. Weight: 1.7 kg (3.7 lb.)
• 
The Art and Design of Gears of War by Tom Bissell - Through unprecedented access to the Epic Games team, acclaimed author Tom Bissell (Extra Lives) gives readers an incisive behind-the-scenes glimpse into one of the most celebrated sagas in video game history with 96 pages of interviews, photos, concept artwork and more.
• Infected Omen Weapon Pack — Custom multiplayer skins for the game's five starting weapons; Lancer, Retro Lancer, Hammerburst, Sawed-off Shotgun, and Gnasher Shotgun.
• All the contents of the "
Gears of War 3" Limited Edition.
The awesome thing about this statue is that its designed by Epic Games Art Director Chris Perna so you  know its in awesome quality, not only that Project Triforce who have been making Gears Of War replicas for a while now are making these beauties. I am loving the whole prospect of Adam Fenix becoming the main focus of the Epic Edition. Adam is a real cool character from the comics and especially from the books and there is a lot of mystery following this guy since the ending of Gears 2. I am sure we'll find answers in the final game. 

Beta impressions will be up soon with gameplay and some awesome kills by yours truly.  

Sunday, May 15, 2011

PSN is back!


Well Playstation Network is rolling out world wide again. In a video announcement Sony announced that we will get a welcome back package and that the store shall be returned soon... Well I am going off to update my console and play a bit of COD BO :P

Friday, May 13, 2011

Modern Warfare 3 Announced With Concept Art and Impressions UPDATE: 4 NEW TRAILERS!!


Yep, its back folks the series that made the biggest game of mankind is once again hitting shelves on November 8, 2011. And if you had any game that you felt was going to be a top seller this quarter well then you certainly must drop those thoughts. Because MW3, as its called on the cover, will destroy every game on the charts. End of....

Now of course I am not saying this is the best game ever created, I am saying that its the best selling game in the world which is a slight shame. But in fairness it deserves it, and its only the aftermath that we gamers have to endure that truly sucks. I dont know about you, but did anyone notice the god-awful strand of games that tried to copy this? *cough* Medal Of Honor *cough* 

But nonetheless I am liking the sound of this game that will feature missions in New York City, London and Paris, why travel when you can play this game? And they are really war torn check them here: 






So the storyline follows just after Modern Warfare 2 where Soap and Price after killing Shepard are still on the run and meet up with some of Nikolai's Russian loyalists. You you play as a man named Yuri when the focus is laid on Soap and Price. 

You will play as new soldiers on the American side of the battle, Frost and Sandman are two new guys into the game and whether Ramirez will return from Modern Warfare 2 is not yet been confirmed.

You also play as a Russian agent in one of the missions protecting the president of Russia from Makarov. 

Seal team six will also make their appearance in the game but only by voice. They are given a salute by the Infinity Ward team by being heard over the earpieces. 

The game sounds impressive and I like the sound of the crazy battlefields in the massive city's such as New York. Unfortunately nothing is mentioned about multiplayer given its just been announced, it shall be interesting in the next coming months considering we don't have to wait that long. 

Looking forward to this I have to admit, I always liked the Modern Warfare series especially the campaign (yea I know, weird right?). 




Wednesday, May 11, 2011

Don't have Angry Birds and have Google Chrome? Well guess what... YOU DO NOW!


Angry Birds, the smash hit title on the Ipod touch, Iphone, Ipad, PSP etc. is now on Google Chrome. For what price I hear you ask? Free, Zilch, Zip, Zero, 何.
All that you need is the web browser Google Chrome, which is by far, in my humble opinion, the best browser there is. The Download link is Below:

Tuesday, May 10, 2011

Metal Gear 3D gets release date


Metal Gear Solid 3D Snake Eater, The Naked Sample, has finally gotten a release date. November is the month. That's all we know. My guess on the date though? 11th or earlier. It would be beyond stupidity to have it after seeing as Skyrim and a few others will be coming out then. What i'm unsure of is it just going to be a demo like the 10 minute trailer looks like or a full remake... Let's hope it's the latter.

Saturday, May 7, 2011

Thor Movie Review


Well last night I went to see Thor with a friend of mine. I never really cared much for Thor but being a general fan of Marvel I did know of him. This is the first of the big super hero movies released this summer and here's my review of it.

A pic of the Ice Giants


Thor is the about the Norse God of Thunder from the land of Asgard. Thor grew up alongside his brother Loki while being thought the methods of being a good king from his father Odin (or his All father I should say... yes it was a very bad pun). I'm a huge fan of Mythology from Egyptian to Greek and of course the Norse so this did seem interesting in terms of a film. When it comes to Thors ascension day to become the new All Father, an unexpected attack from the Ice Giants happens as they try and steal the Cradle the source of their power. However Odin saves the day with the flick of a wrist and this doesn't go down well with Thor that his big day was ruined. So with the help of his friends and his brother Loki he invaded the Ice Giant stronghold of Jotenheim. Thor moves to attack them, throwing his hammer, Mjolnir, into the face of anyone who came near but was soon pushed back to the edges of a cliff. However at the last second Odin saves him but for starting a new war with the Ice Giants Thor is exiled to Earth and had Mjolnir removed until it found him worthy. Well that's enough spoilers.
Loki who is played by Tom Hiddleston

This movie really set up the Avengers movie for next year. Agent Coulson from the Iron Man movies returns along with Nick Fury and more. The cast personally for me, I had heard of barely any of them before but they did deliver. The 3D in this movie was spectacular, nothing is cooler than seeing an Ice Giants head explode in slo-mo as a big-ass hammer flies through it's head towards you. I loved all the Norse references e.g. Folstag (Who funnily enough was an Ice Giant himself in traditional mythology), The Einerjhar was awesome too and the special effects that was done for him. The realm of Asgard too was a mind fuck. Sailing through an epic golden city in 3D was even better than the Hallelujiah mountains in Avatar, no joke.
A pic of Odins throne in Asgard

The script was brilliant. The writers managed to deliver an amazing action script with a comedic twist which couldn't have been done without the amazing actors performances especially by Chris Hemsworth (Thor) and Anthony Hopkins (Odin). I loved all the little Viking references e.g. The scene in the coffee shop. There was also an amazing original sound track. This is one that i'm definitely going to buy.

Chris Hemsworth (Thor) and Natalie Portman (Jane)

But the question is, how does it stand against the original Marvel movies? Hulk movie (well who could call that a movie) Fantastic 4, Spiderman, Iron Man, X-Men and such. I think it's up at the top with the big boys. It's all a matter of opinion as to what it could be equal to, greater or less than but for me it's possibly the best or it could be tied with Iron Man, i'm still not sure. It'd definitly been the best movie I've seen so far this year and i've seen a few e.g Tron, Jackass 3D, Rango. What did I like/Dislike about this;
I liked ;
  1. The great witty script
  2. All the actors performances
  3. Nordic references (especially Eihnerjar)
  4. The music
  5. The 3D and Special Effects
What I disliked :
  1. Nothing, nothing at all...
This movie was near epic and has got me seriously excited about the Captain America: The First Avenger and The Avenger movie, One big ass super sequel of Iron Man, Hulk, Thor, Captain America etc.


This gets 5 stars, 10/10, two thumbs up, 100%.
I just can't find any flaws and have been looking for them but I enjoyed every second. If I didn't convince you to see this, check out this trailer:


Wednesday, May 4, 2011

Anonymous splinter cell confirmed to have hacked PSN



Now I've posted A LOT about anonymous these past weeks and at the start of the PSN outage I suggested, along with a large percentage of the internet, that some form of Anonymous was to blame. Well Sony has now with yet another delay announced that Anonymous members left a file called "Anonymous" after it was hacked with their "We are legion" tagline. However the "leaders" of Anonymous forums, automatically delete any and all Sony related threads in terms of accusing or planned attacks. I still see them as the problem. This splinter cell of their group wouldn't have showed up if they weren't all pissy and moany about Sony wanting to sue George Hotz (the guy who jail broke the Ps3). So regardless they are in some way to blame, but I do like how they are trying to at least show that they had nothing to do with it. So they get a +1 for me for their online presence. Still a long way to go before they ever get close to positive again.

Tuesday, May 3, 2011

Does Osama Bin Laden's Death Effect Gaming?


Just pondering on the news channel throughout the past couple of days eagerly anticipating any new information on the assassination of Osama Bin Laden and I start thinking about how I have played this mission a million times in Modern Warfare 2. 

I don't know about you but when I heard about the assassination I was immediately thinking about the Call Of Duty: Modern Warfare series. It was just putting the mission that I felt was most similar to it, which my conclusion was The Gulag from Modern Warfare 2.


It was one of my favorite missions but the only problem with it was that it was a rescue mission, sent in to get Captain Price. If you were sent to kill someone the whole operation would have been very similar to Osama Bin Ladens death. But you have to admit, when you heard the news you were quite tempted to pop in that Modern Warfare 2 disk or at least tempted to play it. 

Its interesting to consider if you compile both Modern Warfare 2 and the Medal Of Honor reboot, together you get quite a similar operation done in Pakistan on Monday. The video technology that was used in Medal Of Honor is quite a contrast to what Obama was using to watch the operation live through their helmets. And obviously the mission layout of Modern Warfare 2 is similar to the outline used by the Navy Seals. After all you do kinda play as them in the The Only Easy Day Was Yesterday mission. 


I guess its an interesting look at video games when it comes to military operations like these, especially when these things do happen. Sometimes....

But whats bad about this piece of news is that the demand for modern warfare games will go up making developers less imaginative and publishers less inclined to go for more innovated titles. Modern warfare games have earned its own genre of games considering its popularity over the coming years. When someone said on the news that this 'ends a chapter of modern warfare' I knew games like the upcoming Battlefield 3 would prosper highly from this news. 

Of course this new piece of news wont change the gaming industry directly, but for the folks that hate Call Of Duty and modern warfare games in general, be prepared for a little surge of games set in modern warfare. 

Monday, May 2, 2011

Portal 2 review

The past few weeks, a friend of mine was going mental over a new game that was meant to be coming out. This was Portal 2. I never heard of Portal before he became excited by it. It wasn't just him. A large amount of gamer friends on Facebook were all going mental over it. So I decided to download the first one. Portal 1 was great and I was really enjoying my play through of it... that was until I got to level 18 and found out that was the second last level. For a game I spent about an hour and a half on, it'd seem maddening that anyone would want to pay more than €20 on it. I left the Portal fanbase and deleted 1 from my Laptop. I didn't want 2 gigs of space being taken up by it. Then came the Portal 2 release date. More Portal spam for me then. Everyone was going game of the year, game of the year. I didn't get how a game could have improved so much. IGN was giving it high scores as was the community. Then after an hour of being bombarded with a friend telling me to play it, I downloaded it. This is my verdict...

Portal is about a woman named "Chelle", who has to participate in scientific testing in the "Arperture" science labs using portal technology. The technology in question is a gun, which allows you to fire portals to create new pathways for yourself and or objects. You must traverse through various test chambers with the sometimes questionable help of Wheatley, an Enclave Eye bot like robot ball. However all dosen't go to plan as Glados, the villain controlling Arperture in the first game is resurrected making escape from the facility by Chelle and Wheatley much more difficult. There isn't too much of an "Epic" story, It's no Red Dead, Final Fantasy or Bioshock but it is well written. There are a few twists but that isn't where it's quality comes from. The script is a comedy based one with very good jokes thrown in, even the blue screen of death makes an appearance at one point. I suppose this came down to having Stephen Merchant (Wheatley, also known for the Office (English Version)) play a part in it as he is a writer himself. J.K Simmons is also in it who is known better as the editor of the Daily Bugle in the Spiderman movies, J. Jonah Jameson.

The music is really well done. It's a unusual twist as to what soundtracks usually are. It's filled with Techno music. Not such a high pitched loola who's idea of music is chipmunks singing. It's techno in term of high tech computer noises which really add to the futuristic feel of the game. The music also changes depending on the situation. It gets more fast paced if you're detected by enemy robots or hurtling through the sky which I really liked.


Now as I said, the idea of Portal is that it's a puzzle game where you use a portal gun to open path ways previously un-reachable. It was simple in the first game seeing as there was only you and the occasional cube that passed through it. However in this game there is force fields, magnetic fields, repulsion fields, Blue bouncy goo, Orange speedy glue and white portal amplification goo which only makes puzzle results more varied and the puzzles themselves more difficult. Earlier on I mentioned how I rejected Portal one for the insanely short length of it. Portal 2 has fixed that tremendously. The length has gone from 1 and a half hours to 9 times the length of the original. So that aspect of the game-play was fixed. There is one thing I didn't like about the game that I didn't like in Portal 1. The camera. The camera in this game is the worst i've seen in a long time. People are probably confused as to how a first person game can have a bad camera. When jumping through Portals I found it flew around uncontrollably and really just made it awkward to play.


So in conclusion, what did I like/ dislike about this game see below...

What I liked
  1. Comedic Script
  2. Ingenious yet simple idea
  3. After 9 hours keeps you interested
  4. Good story with plenty twists
What I disliked8
  1. Camera is still messed up (IMO)
This game was truly great and has completly changed my opinion about the Portal franchise after the bad taste Portal 1 left in my mouth. The game lured me in with it's hilarious script that was lurking around in the portal 1 script. This is a great game and I will be buying it for my ps3 ASAP
This game is getting a
9/10
I don't want to jump on the band wagon but everyone is giving this game close to 8 to 9 out of 10 and I agree. It's B-R-illiant.


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