Thursday, 19 April 2012
WIN: GHOST RECON: FUTURE SOLDIER BETA KEY (xbox 360)
It's in the title! Be the first person to tweet @willo290592 "Give me the beta key you cheap bastard", or the first to comment on the article, you get it. Simple. Go.
Thursday, 5 April 2012
Skyrim
Here we are ladies and gents, for my first review I will be looking at Bethesda's latest title.
Skyrim is the next in the series of Elder scrolls games, following on from Oblivion, which is still selling anniversary copies to this day. With these big boots to fill, the hype leading up to the release, was always bound to be huge. Bethesda promised a lot from this game, and as such, a lot was expected.
The gameplay for Skyrim is great. The amount of options you have as a player going into combat are numerous, with 3 different branches of combat, magic, ranged and melee, each of which branches off further, giving the player plenty of options. The world itself is huge and persistent, giving the impression of a living breathing world. Npc’s will go about their business regardless of where your player is within the world. In cohesion with the deep and developed lore that comes with the Elder scroll series, the game really does seem alive.
One massive boost to the story element is the addition of radiant stories, which take actions from the game and creates random quests, this is an innovative addition that has really extended the potential game time that can be spent on the game. As an RPG, the story for Skyrim is quite possibly one of the most important features of the game, which makes it all that more surprising that the main storylines of Skyrim do not really strike me as a story people will be talking about for a long time. The questlines, both the main and the guild, are average, which is unexpected considering the rich and deep lore that has been built into the elderscroll series. Don’t get me wrong, for the average player the story is interesting and enjoyable, but as a player who has played the previous elder scroll games and read about the lore, the story is definitely sub-par. However, an element of Skyrim that has had a lot of effort put into it is the music, which is quite frankly beautiful. The music, taking on a Nordic theme, is appropriate for Skyrim, and really gives the feel of the world, and during battles the music takes on an epic tone, which is truly out of this world. Easily one of the best music scores for a game I have ever heard.
Overall, Skyrim is an epic game that will easily sink a massive amount of your time. The world is huge, with a vast amount of lore, as a role playing game it is one of the best and will be setting the bar for open world RPG’s for a long time. It is very hard to play Skyrim, despite its innovative combat system; its quest creation system; its beautiful scenery, and not be disappointed by the lacklustre storyline, which is by far the games weakest point.
Thursday, 8 March 2012
Nexuiz- Xbox Live Arcade
IT'S REALLY FUN is what i'm trying to say. A problem I have, however, regards the networking. Or the logistics of it. When you've got a full game going, it's exceptional. When a player drops out, and it's three on two, and you're on the smaller team, you're screwed. Unless you're brilliant at FPS's (which I am not) 9 out of 10 times you're gonna lose. Which sucks.
Graphic-wise this is gorgeous. This has been a trend this House Party, and long may it continue. Nexuiz uses CryEngine 3, the same engine that powers Crysis 2 which is still one of the most beautiful games of this generation. From an artistic point of view, this is standout. Colours pop off the screen. They're so vibrant, almost tangible. Considering pretty much every game in the genre is several shades of brown. It's beautifully refreshing to see colours in a first person shooter.
By next wednesday, we'll have a review of I Am Alive on the site, and after that we'll be ploughing through a few retrospective reviews (Alan Wake, Donkey Kong Country Returns among others). So keep your eyes peeled.
Tuesday, 28 February 2012
Alan Wake's American Nightmare- Xbox Live Arcade
Thursday, 23 February 2012
WARP- Xbox Live Arcade
It may sound straight forward on paper, but it's not. The warping ability offers a fresh opportunity for puzzles, but that opportunity's not taken. Instead, we're offered a pseudo-Metal Gear Solid sneak combat type thing. If you get spotted, you're gonna die. Your ability to attack is limited to warping into your enemies, and blowing them up from the inside, by wiggling the right stick as fast as you can. It's satisfying to watch, but unsatisfying to create. Let it be noted that the game is possible to complete without killing a single soul. An achievement is your prize for doing so, so consider that when you're thinking about watching a hilarious explosion animation.
Thanks for reading. If you liked this, tell your friends, co-workers, family, local MP, Vicar, manager at your local Tesco etc.
Monday, 5 December 2011
Batman: Arkham City
PLANS ARE GOOD, AREN'T THEY? I'd planned to cover the UKs premier gaming events in full, but only covered Modern Warfare 2.5. It could've been massive. Ah well. Onwards, eh? Let's review a game that's been out for a couple of months...CUTTING EDGE