Michael0134567's GameSpot Friend's Reviews Michael0134567's GameSpot Friend's Reviews Michael0134567's GameSpot Friend's Reviews en-us Copyright (c)1995-2013 CBS Interactive. All rights reserved. http://www.gamespot.com 20 Sat, 25 May 2013 05:28:25 -0700 GameSpot Michael0134567's GameSpot Friend's Reviews http://img.gamespot.com/gamespot/shared/promos/misc/gs_logo.gif http://www.gamespot.com 135 40 Tue, 30 Apr 2013 17:54:20 -0700 meconate reviewed Counter-Strike: Global Offensive for the Xbox 360... http://www.gamespot.com/counter-strike-global-offensive/user-reviews/810880/platform/xbox360/ ...and gave it a 4.0.

I've been a fan of the Counter Strike series for a long time now, and not one has come to disappoint me, and are among one of the most balanced, hardcore and fun multiplayer shooters I have ever played. However, I stuck to Counter Strike as the PC game that it was born from, and even though I enjoyed the original Xbox version (that was basically Condition Zero), I still think the franchise is best played using the keyboard and mouse.

Now one day I decided to give Global Offensive a shot on the Xbox 360. I was looking for another shooter game besides Call of Duty and the other usual FPS "must haves" of today, and was curious to see whether Counter Strike really stood a chance on console gaming.

I can safely say, at least in this case, it doesn't.

Global Offensive is just downright offensive to anyone who is clumsy enough to purchase this at full price. The game lacks what makes the PC version so appealing. The menu feels too simple and stripped down, and I felt there weren't enough options to tweak for my custom game liking. There's a very small amount of maps to select from, which is a shame considering console gamers won't be able to download custom maps like the PC versions of Global Offensive.

However, what's I felt what a real smack in the face was two thing; horrible aiming, and ridiculous amounts of lag. Now I'm not entirely bothered that the game lacks an aim-assist feature that most console FPS games provide, infact I think it's a good thing. But the aiming sensitivity in the console versions of CSGO just feels bad. Opponents are either too fast for your aiming to catch up, or you're too fast and one slight analog knock can send you aiming way off target. There's no in-between, which only proves why CSGO just feels far more suited to the keyboard and mouse.

Now then, the lag... oh the wonderful lag. About 80% of full games you join, lag is ensured. Just when you're shooting someone, you find yourself in a completely different room.. or dead. You'll notice your shots not hitting, you'll notice you're being shot from nowhere. Yeah, it's just typical, terrible lag, and it's very noticeable.

It's been a fair few months now, and still no word of a patch to fix these problems of the console versions, or even to at least fix the lag issues. For that reason, I'm staying clear away from the console's CSGO, and I recommend you do the same thing too.

Valve, someone, please fix this.. this is really not like you.

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"meconate reviewed Counter-Strike: Global Offensive for the Xbox 360..." was posted by meconate on Tue, 30 Apr 2013 17:54:20 -0700
]]> http://www.gamespot.com/counter-strike-global-offensive/user-reviews/810880/platform/xbox360/ Mon, 29 Apr 2013 13:21:57 -0700 jg4xchamp reviewed BioShock Infinite for the PC... http://www.gamespot.com/bioshock-infinite/user-reviews/810834/platform/pc/ ...and gave it a 8.0.

The thing that stuck with me most about Bioshock Infinite was that I wanted to replay the game instantly after being finished with it. It's rare that a game causes this kind of reaction, and it's even rarer for that game to be a big triple-A blockbuster. Yet here I am, and I can't just go through it once. Even after trying to explore every little nook, alley, or trash can, I need to find the stuff I overlooked. After taking as much of the atmosphere and narrative in as I could, I still needed to go back to see what I missed. For the first time in a long time, a big triple-A game genuinely made me wonder what was coming up next.

Bioshock Infinite starts a lot like the original Bioshock did. A man named Booker Dewitt who travels to a lighthouse. This lighthouse contains some cryptic writing, and before long he's well on his way to a city unlike anything he could have imagined. Only this time you're ascending high into the sky and entering the world of Columbia, not sinking down into the depths to find Rapture. Whereas the original Bioshock was about discovering a city that was already in ruins, Infinite is about a city that is still going strong.

Columbia isn't a haunting city in ruins as much as it's something almost awe-inspiring. This sense of old American nationalist pride permeates the city as it is decked out in the colors of old glory. Where Rapture was built on science, Columbia is built on faith. It's fitting for a city high enough to be in the heavens, and for those opening moments you're just taking it all in: the raw vertigo that comes from being that high in the air, the incredibly well-done production values, the prayers of the priests in the opening church, the white supremacist nature of this society, and even aspects of the city that just feel wrong.

The game is set in 1912, but there is an uncanny anachronistic aspect to this opening, aside from the the fact that Columbia is a city in the sky. Early on, there is a quartet of singers sharing a piece of music that has no business being in 1912. You're playing a character who has no idea this city even existed, and yet the city already knows him as a anti-Christ known as the False Shepard because of the mark on his right hand. On top of that you're here to capture a girl (Elizabeth) who is so valuable she can wipe away Booker's debt from men who you don't want to owe money to. It's a city that can be as uncomfortable as it is inviting, and it's a feeling that stays strong through out the majority of the experience.

Before our two leads ever meet, we first get a glimpse of the game's main antagonist: Zachary Hale Comstock. He is to Columbia what Andrew Ryan was to Rapture, but he is more a man driven by faith, and presents himself as a prophet to a society that is blindly willing to follow him. He is a well-meaning man that can be downright frightening because what his ideologies drive him to do. He truly believes in what he is doing no matter how flawed his actions seem when compared to what he is preaching. Like Ryan was an example of the potential dangers of Objectivism, he is a take on the potential flaws of religion when taken to extremes.

Religion isn't the only theme at play in the early going. The game also wants to handle racism. It won't be long before you also start dealing with the Vox Populi, the rebel force that is trying to save the non-white members of this society, who are living life at the bottom of the barrel. It gives you the impression of a game (like the original Bioshock) willing to make a statement on these real-life themes by showing us extremist interpretations of them. Sadly, it never quite takes these themes as far as it could as the narrative is about the mystery behind the girl.

Who is she really? And why is she capable of doing the things she does? Elizabeth isn't a normal damsel in distress. She is capable of opening things called "tears" that are like windows to other worlds. But their exact nature is unclear, and the game will make you, and the characters, wonder what they are? The future? Another spin on that time-line, or something else entirely? In search of a way out of the city, Elizabeth and the player go on the run and start getting their answers along the way. And as they go further down the rabbit hole and begin to unravel Colmubia's mysteries, they also see the unraveling of Columbia, and the game world changes to reflect this. What was once a calming blue sky is now a thunderous group of storm clouds creating an ominous darkness over the city. A bustling street and fair now lay in ruins that evoke some of the more terrifying imagery found in the original Bioshock. All this deconstruction and destruction builds up to a fever pitch before you get to the game's conclusion, which is so compelling that it demands another run through, and you'll find yourself viewing what once seemed minor scenes with no real importance now feel like important tidbits that were foreshadowing the grand conclusion all along.

A lot of the story is also conveyed through environmental discoveries by the player. There are secret codes by the rebels that the player must solve to earn gameplay rewards. There are voxophones that give you further insight into the many characters and story beats at play the same way the audio logs did in the original Bioshock. In most cases, they can explain certain tidbits about the city or provide context for gameplay elements, but there is far more interesting stuff as well. For instance, the true story about what happened to Lady Comstock, and her actual feelings in the final few moments of her life may very well be one of the best aspects of the game, and are only available to the player through voxophones.

All of this makes Columbia a city worth exploring, even if you're going to feel that, at times, there just isn't enough of it to actually explore. A lot of the progression in the game is linear, and takes place in straightforward narrow paths. You get some boardwalks, beaches, and the like to explore, but more often than not you get funneled into combat zones.

Which means there also happens to be an action game tied to the story. Bioshock Infinite plays much like the previous Bioshock games. You have your basic weaponry which ranges from pistols, rifles, and shotguns, to heavy weapons, and then you have the Plasmid like powers of Columbia: Vigors. At the press of a button, you can unleash a bolt of lightning, release a flock of crows for crowd control, or deliver a furious bull rush, which provides a more visceral thrill compared to the other powers.

Charging these powers can create other abilities as well, which essentially allow you to set up traps. One such trap can detonate fire bombs, while another can provide an electric barrier if you need to protect something. There are also skylines, which happens to be a form of traversal in the city that also play a role in major set pieces. It provides a vertical dynamic to the combat that just wasn't there in the original Bioshock and makes it possible to escape combat zones more quickly, as well as bring death from higher vantage points.

It all comes together to create this powerful action game that feels far more fluid than the original Bioshock. Where the original felt clunky and almost lacked impact, Infinite genuinely wants you to feel strong. Even the more spongy enemies sell the notion that you can do serious damage, and the entire balance of the game is built with the idea that you play with some offensive latitude as opposed to a more laid-back, strategic approach.

The upgrading system is also a little familiar to Bioshock in that you do a lot of your upgrading at vending machines. With the right amount of money you can either upgrade your powers or your weaponry. These can range from damage boosts to quicker reload times for guns. For Vigors, the upgrades add bonuses effects, such as allowing your charge move to replenish your shield after every direct hit. There is a gear system that allows you to deck out Booker with other advantages as well. The player can wear up to four of these at a time, and they can do anything from increasing ammo capacity or adding effects to actions done while on a skyline.

All of this delivers a combat experience that is far more invigorating than the original Bioshock. Weapons feel stronger, set pieces feel larger, and environments are just big enough to allow proper experimentation with the multiple powers you have. All of this is welcome. The drawbacks come from some potential gameplay elements not found in the game.

If you're wondering if there are any scenarios where the player has the option to avoid combat, there really aren't, outside of one forced stealth scenario. While the original Bioshock allowed for a more "plan it out" approach, Infinite is about pure offense. The weapon wheel is gone and replaced with the often abused two-weapon system found in most FPS games. The addition of a shield also allows the player to play a bit more recklessly without any real drawbacks.

On top of that, you have the addition of Elizabeth who essentially cripples any real chance of a challenge in the game outside of 1999 mode, which gives you limited resources, removes quick revivals, and features more spongy enemies. She is constantly roaming the battlefield and is quickly there to resupply you, making sure the player is in no real threat of running out of ammo for their weapons or salts for using Vigors. Her tears provide some excellent combat options including added cover, automated allies, or even weapon dumps. However, they come with no real penalty. You can just spam them at will, and it creates a combat experience where, on top of all the power you have, you aren't ever really threatened by your enemies.

There is this familiarity to Bioshock Infinite that makes it feel like a game in which Irrational focused more on fixing the combat of the original Bioshock, and less on creating something that was new and belonged entirely to Infinite. On top of that, aspects of the game just feel stripped down or even further simplified. The hacking mini-game from the previous games is now replaced with a simple lock picking mechanic that just requires you to scavenge a certain amount of lock picks. Upgrade paths are more straightforward and limited, and the Vigors can be borderline game-breaking with the right upgrades. It's not anywhere near the thinking man's shooter Irrational hinted at as much as it's right in line with the many adrenaline fused action games on the market.

So, of course, there are some drawbacks along the way. The final combat sections aren't nearly as strong as some of the more intense shoot-outs in the middle of the game. The final stretch of gameplay is a tedious endeavor that is drawn out far longer than it should have been. You have to deal with the disappointment that the Songbird is a potential gameplay obstacle the player never has to deal with. There are story elements that just don't gel with the rest of the game or feel like outright filler. Plot swings sometimes make very little sense, and other major characters come off a little underdeveloped given their importance. Columbia never lives up to Rapture in terms of exploration, and Comstock never quite delivers monologues on the same level as Andrew Ryan.

The game misfires more than a truly great game should. Instead of being graceful all the way to its conclusion, it gets there stumbling, tripping over itself, and at times falling flat on its face. Yet, it won't be those moments that stick with you as much as the moments where the game completely knocks it out of the park. It's going to be the part where the city drew you in immediately with it's absurd and almost majestic nature. It's going to be the combat that, while never challenging, makes you feel powerful in ways most standard triple-A action games rarely ever do. It's going to be an ending that changes the way you look at entire scenes throughout the game. It's a conclusion worth thinking about, and one that is effective enough to make you want to go just one more round to see what you missed.

Bioshock Infinite isn't as deep as it could be, or as concise as it needs to be to be truly effective. It doesn't live up to all the ambition that was shown in its many previews before it released, and it doesn't provide anywhere near the same commentary the original Bioshock did. What it does succeed at is showing you that there is still some wonder and excitement to be found in the triple-A action game. And that makes it an experience worth playing, warts and all.

Get the full article at GameSpot

"jg4xchamp reviewed BioShock Infinite for the PC..." was posted by jg4xchamp on Mon, 29 Apr 2013 13:21:57 -0700
]]> http://www.gamespot.com/bioshock-infinite/user-reviews/810834/platform/pc/ Sun, 28 Apr 2013 00:22:13 -0700 ShadowsDemon reviewed Sleeping Dogs for the Xbox 360... http://www.gamespot.com/sleeping-dogs/user-reviews/810774/platform/xbox360/ ...and gave it a 8.0.

You play as Wei Shen, an undercover cop in the Triads. This open-world game set in the crime-ridden city of Hong Kong lets you experience the best of both worlds and how Wei struggles within both sides.
Single-player:
Let's get one thing straight before we even begin guys. Not only is Sleeping Dogs is everything that Grand Theft Auto should have been, it excels and dwarves almost every single open world game out there (excluding RPGs of course). It's one of those games that you'll be able to play endlessly, and never failing to be amazed at its stunning and brutal world.
So, what's the whole background of Sleeping Dogs? Well you play as Wei Shen, an American-Asian police officer who has been assigned with infiltrating the Triads of Hong Kong, called Sun On Yee and take them down. The plot sounds simple, but in reality it is anything but. Wei becomes engaged in brutal war that involves multiple gangs within the Triads such as the Water Street Gang, the Jade gang, racers, drug dealers, the police and more. It's a complex tale that has you question your original assumptions of good and bad once you realise that they aren't really so clear-cut as you believed them to be. As you continue through the story, and grow found of characters such as Winston Chu and his crazy mother, Jackie Ma, Uncle Po, your multiple girlfriends such as Amanda Cartwright (voiced by The Amazing Spiderman's Emma Stone) you'll discover their secrets, passions and goals, and you'll see that they aren't all the typical gangsters you'd automatically perceive them as. It's sobering to know that these people are regarded as evil when subjects as such family and honour mean so much to them.
The story interweaves between multiple objectives set you to by friends, the triads, police and alike. Even though most of the missions are similar, they have a distinct feel to them, and allow you to delve a little deeper into the world of Hong Kong's Sun On Yee and its complex members within.
The best thing about this game is the atmosphere. It's delicious and steamy layout does the inside of Hong Kong justice, and as a person who has visited the island, I can vouch for its authenticity. You can wonder into the night market, and rub shoulders with the locals as you hear their broken English and fluent Mandarin as the shopkeepers cry out and beg you to shop at their stall, which they insist is 'da best place you can buy, sir, I show you, yes', despite pretty much all the shops selling the same clothes. You can pick up a new mattress for your apartment, some pets and more. You can stop by the many food-stalls and buy delicious Asian food such as Pork buns and fish curry balls. Feeling tired? Go for a massage. In the mood to win some cash? Gamble your money on cock-fights. Now before you all buy the game, it's cocks as in chickens, thus chicken-fights.
All this adds up to make one of the most atmospheric games in recent memory. The rich neon lights that hang over you as you explore every inch of this city is a blast. There's also sightseeing to do, the malls to visit, and karaoke to sing. If you're feeling religious, you can even pray at the many shrines around the city, which will also increase your health. Even when bumping into people on the street, their irritated cries and curses in broken English assist in making Sleeping Dogs a genuinely immersive game that you can easily get lost in. It's stunning production values and variety of quests, missions and objectives keep the game from going stale. Unlike so many other games like it, Sleeping Dogs goes into great detail with everything, from the smallest rooms to the city view at night. You can tell that the developers made a real effort to make their game as tangible as possible, and that's something you cannot possibly deny.
The world of Sleeping Dogs is brutal, violent and complex, but in despite of that it manages to create a compelling narrative in an immersive world. This is everything that Grand Theft Auto should have been, and thus is one of the best single-player campaigns you'll come across this year.
Gameplay:
The gameplay in Sleeping Dogs allows to do anything at any given time, each other crazier than before. Are you in a high-speed chase? You can jump from one car to another as you speed along the highway. Are you getting pursed, by either the triads or the cops? You can shoot out their wheels, and then observe the carnage in slow-motion. You can do the same when in a gunfight, the slow-motion battle feeling as awesome as it is brutal. If you've played Vanquish, you'll feel right at home here.
But the best part of Sleeping Dogs where gameplay is concerned is the combat. Very much like Batman: Arkham City, you'll face off in some cases over a dozen thugs with brutal moves and techniques. However, unlike Arkham City, you can actually kill your opponents, and sometimes with the aid of the environment. One of the best (and most gut-wrenching) environmental kills comes from forcing the heads of your enemies over a burning furnace, and then watching as they burn to a crisp. Other options, such as throwing them in garbage bins, smashing them against walls and fans, not only look awesome, but earn you face points as well, which can then be used to deal extra damage to your opponents, and force them to cower in fear.
You have a number of unique moves at your disposal, increasing as you complete a particular side quest. The unparallel violence is enhanced through the slow motion kill cams, as the blood sprays, bones break and the screams of pain are heard. Even better, you can equip a weapon such as a tire-iron or kitchen knife – which can be dropped by your opponents – and use them to your advantage.
But that's not all you can do, however. In the game's many thrilling car chases you can hijack the cars, meaning you can jump from one to the other within seconds, and take control of the cars. It's the sort of work that gets your blood pumping and has you craving for more. The game of course has guns, and has been tweaked to feel surprisingly meaty and effective, unlike so many other third person shooters. It's not that all realistic, considering you can simply pick up a shotgun and let it rip, but the way in which the game allows you to shoot, especially when in slow-motion, gives a sense of gory satisfaction and weight. I will, however say that in the midst of these gunfights, the controls become clunky and unresponsive, especially when trying to duck for cover or run away. You end up feeling like an idiot as the enemies puncture you with bullets.
The AI aren't exactly smart enough to all gang up on you, such as in the game like The Witcher 2, but they know when to strike, and when your back is turned in combat. They even position themselves in such a way that makes your escape even more difficult, and they will pull you out of cars if you – like me – decided that running them over instead of fighting them would be an easier solution. They become even smarter in gunfights. They only fire when it's possible to hit you, and they won't spray either. They'll duck for cover and then only peek out to fire a couple of rounds – all together, might I add.
The gameplay in Sleeping Dogs is brutal, weighty, and satisfying. It's got everything you could want from an open world game, from brawls to car and police chases to minigames like karaoke and gambling, and everything the game does do it does smoothly. The gun fights leave a lot to be desired, but the game fulfils your expectations from the first moment to its last.

Presentation:
The virtual version of Kong Kong is utterly drenched in detail and brilliant design. The city and markets come to life with huge neon signs and lit up buildings. The many shops have aisles and stacks of products with writing you can read. The fluent Mandarin spoken by the locals is often hilarious and thoughtful, especially when you bump into them. The visuals shine both technically and artistically, though a little weaker on the artistic side. Regardless, this is one of the best open world games you'll be coming across, and it damn sure looks sweet.
The voice acting is solid, with hundreds of hours of genuine Mandarin script and voices with use great gusto such as Mrs. Chu, Wei Shen and Winston. Sleeping Dogs does everything it can to make this world feel real, and it does so to its best extent.
Another praiseworthy aspect is due with the radio stations. Many real bands such as Queen appear on the radio, along with advertisements and radio shows, both in English and Mandarin, adding yet another layer of complexity to the game.
Trophies:
The Sleeping Dogs isn't that hard, it's merely time-consuming, but in a good way. You'll need to win a certain amount of cash at gambling, kill any enemy with each type of gun, among other things. Regardless, Sleeping Dogs provides an enjoyable, albeit long, journey to its platinum trophy.
Conclusion:
Sleeping Dogs provides you with a complex story, a dark world in which two sides blend into one, brutal combat and gunplay, brilliant design and fantastic replay value. It'll take ages to complete and find everything, and you'll enjoy every moment of it. Sleeping Dogs is not only one of the best games of the year; it's one of the best open world games of all time. It's everything that GTA should be and more. This is one adventure you don't want to miss out on.

Get the full article at GameSpot

"ShadowsDemon reviewed Sleeping Dogs for the Xbox 360..." was posted by ShadowsDemon on Sun, 28 Apr 2013 00:22:13 -0700
]]> http://www.gamespot.com/sleeping-dogs/user-reviews/810774/platform/xbox360/ Sun, 28 Apr 2013 00:21:08 -0700 ShadowsDemon reviewed Final Fantasy XIII-2 for the PlayStation 3... http://www.gamespot.com/final-fantasy-xiii-2/user-reviews/810773/platform/ps3/ ...and gave it a 7.5.


FF13-2 is one of those titles that's exactly the same as it's prequel in some areas and the complete opposite in others. The gameplay is somewhat similar, with the battle system containing 6 roles, ATB bars and micromanaging your own spells and abilities. This time around though you have the opinion to change your party leader, even in the midst of a major battle. You can also "tame" your former enemies, getting them to fight at your side in battle. There's nothing better than working with a chocobo to slain a monster 100 times bigger than you. The trouble with the game though lies within the story. There's a lot going on with time, paradoxes, seeing the future and in short what's happening around you. It's a well done tale with a lot of twists along the way, but you'll be confused for the most part for where exactly you want or need to go. You'll be given multiple time gates that allow you to travel back and forth – like using the ship in the old FFs in a way – and doing this over and over again gets confusing to say the least. Not to worry though, it's as fun as ever.
The technical side the game has dramatically suffered with Square deciding to squeeze the game onto a single disc for the 360 unlike for the last game. The graphics aren't quite as crisp as they were previously, and there's a lot less of those stunning CGI cut-scenes to gawk at. The soundtrack also suffers. A strange blend of metal, techno and party music does little to suit the atmosphere in some cases. Even small quirks like enemies becoming one with the battlefield and popping up randomly is a sign of a drop in quality. However, the gameplay is more enjoyable and complex in battle. You'll have a blast, and with the linear aspect completely gone FF13-2 has an extremely enjoyable, albeit a short, single player experience.
FF13-2 doesn't quite match up to FF13, even though the gameplay has improved and the linear aspect done away with. It's still a fantastic title however that is well worth your time.

Get the full article at GameSpot

"ShadowsDemon reviewed Final Fantasy XIII-2 for the PlayStation 3..." was posted by ShadowsDemon on Sun, 28 Apr 2013 00:21:08 -0700
]]> http://www.gamespot.com/final-fantasy-xiii-2/user-reviews/810773/platform/ps3/ Sun, 28 Apr 2013 00:19:56 -0700 ShadowsDemon reviewed The ICO & Shadow of the Colossus Collection for the PlayStation 3... http://www.gamespot.com/the-ico-and-shadow-of-the-colossus-collection/user-reviews/810772/platform/ps3/ ...and gave it a 7.0.

Overview: It's been six years since we mustered up the courage to slay 16 shadowy monsters as big as mountains to save the life of a loved one back in 2005. Now we get the chance to re-experience the glory in HD. Will Shadow of the Colossus maintain its memorable gameplay and stunning presentation on the PS3, or will it just turn our nostalgia sour?

Gameplay:
If you ever want to set yourself a messy and difficult job, you could try to describe the gameplay of a game that's from the last generation and compare it to the video games seen in recent years. It's about as simple as nailing jelly to a tree. But I'll try to do my best.
Over the years video games have dramatically changed in terms of gameplay. The reactions are sharper and less clunky; there are less glitches and more flexibility. As these elements continue to improve we strive forward in the world of electronic games and achieving near flawless results as we enter the realm of a masterpiece. But then what if we look back and see just how far we've come?
When Shadow of the Colossus came out – it was like nothing that had come before it in terms of gameplay. With your bow and dagger you toppled beats as big as mountains. We were blown away back then, and it's something that will always be remembered. Then suddenly here comes the catch: with the gameplay seen today how well does SotC hold up?
One could say that it is near impossible to compare the two generations, and it is. But with the HD remake hitting the shelves the page is ready to be written on. SotC appears deceivably simple at first. You ride your horse around a deserted land (you might want to adjust the button configuration before heading off. Yes, it's been that long) and hunt down the colossus with your weapons.
The colossus's seem simple enough to kill to start, but then you'll find that you'll need to make use of the environment in order to topple them. In some cases you'll need to hide yourself and climb up its beard when it searches the cave for you. In other instances the only way to get the better of them is by waiting until they climb up on the wall of a building and then knocking them down. This added element of complexity increases with nearly every encounter. Part of the thrill of slaying these monsters is by discovering their weak point by means of a sophisticated way and then plunging your dagger into them.
Doing this is by no means easy. You are rarely given clues or hint how you can get the better of them, and even when you do the clunky controls will frustrate you more times than you'd like. We just have to remember how long ago it was in comparison to the games we get treated with today. However that won't be too likely as you fall of a colossus once again because you accidently let go. Climbing the colossus shouldn't be this much off a chore, and as you constantly fall off or press the wrong button your patience may give in too soon. Of course, everyone who played the game when it came out is expecting this. Newcomers might be disappointed and unpleasantly surprised at the game's harshness.
It's great to know that the using your weapons is spot on in terms of smoothness. As you plunge your dagger into the colossus's weak points and aim your bow there's a feeling of strength and accuracy. Riding your horse and aiming at the same time with your bow bonds the hunter and his horse a realistic and pleasant way.
You may find yourself getting continuously irritated at the dated, clunky controls, but you have to remember how excellent it was back in 2004. This HD remake will shock first timers until they slowly adjust to the game and appreciate it's art, whilst those who had played the game on the PS2 will be right at home.
Single Player:
At the start of the game you see Wander come into the Shrine of Worship and lay down a person wrapped in white sheets. Without spoiling too much, if you want to bring your loved one back to life then you must kill 16 giant colossus that roam free in the area, and destroy the 16 statues in the shrine. You then set off on your quest with nothing but a dagger and a bow to slay these beasts the size of mountains.
The story isn't memorable to start, and often you'll be wandering..sorry..wondering if this is all there is to it. The area of which the colossi roam free is completely devoid of other life sources apart from a few scattered lizards, birds, fish and your single trusty horse – Argos. It feels lonely and empty; somewhere you'd rather not be in as you seek to bring your loved one back. The story isn't a main factor in this game, and you'll wonder why it's even there to start with. By the time you reach the end the story takes you by surprise as you await the shocking ending that you probably knew was going to have to happen.
Other than hunting and toppling the colossi there's absolutely nothing else to do in this world. You can eat fruit off the trees and lizards to increase your stamina and health, but there is literally nothing else in the world of any interest for you. It increases the sense of isolation and exploring the unknown that some may find appealing. If you had to explore a magical kingdom populated with towns, castles and bustling people then this game wouldn't be the same. There's no inventory, no sense of progress or interaction. It's just a Wander, his horse and the massive colossus.
Looking at the glass half full there are no distractions or branching options that draw you away from your main quest, giving you the sense of little time left as you seek the next boss after the other. It's not something everyone is accustomed to, and will unquestionably leave a lot of people underwhelmed. Then again it's extremely effective in terms of creating a brilliant atmosphere and environment for you to explore.
It's a very different aspect to consider, and will leave a lot of people asking that age old question: "What were they thinking?" It also provides you with a mysterious story, an isolated and shadowy land and a unique environment. It's an acquired taste, and those who don't have the stomach for it will possibly be turned off until the spirit of emptiness summons them to return once again.

Technical:
This is where it becomes extremely difficult: how do we compare the graphical and technical presentation of the HD remake of a 2004 game? To say the least even with an expensive makeover the technical side hasn't fared well. Characters appear to be no more than cardboard cut-outs at times, and trees seem to be second-dimension at times. This is strangely the polar opposite of the artistic side of the game, despite the land sometimes being one gray corridor after another or shape lumps of rocks jutting out of nowhere. You really get a massive scope of the land and it's emptiness by gazing at its clever art design. It's excuse for running short on the technical side is of course that the game was originally on the PS2, and when it came out on the console at the time it blew everyone away. This is what we'll remember for years to come – when we gasped at the unbelievably visuals back in 2004. Strangely enough the visuals in with the HD remake look half baked at times – though this is often seen in open world games.
But what it disappoints in visuals in makes up in audio. The sound design is brilliant as is the soundtrack, sending chills of nostalgia tingling down our spines as we yet again get treated to one of the most astounding soundtracks in gaming history. It may be impossible to ever top SotC's mighty soundtrack, and if it's one thing we'll remember the game by it's from its audio and soundtrack. It's a shame the visuals don't match up to our expectations but the soundtrack will never let us down, and will be the benchmark for all future gaming soundtracks that many developers have strived to match.
Trophies:
The trophies in SotC aren't difficult, but merely time-consuming. Multiple playthroughs will keep your entertained as hunting for all the fruit and lizards will. Granted it's not a weekend platinum and will often frustrate you at times, but SotC contains a trophy set that is mildly challenging but takes a fair amount of time.
Closing Thoughts:
Shadow of the Colossus is an extremely difficult game to review, especially in comparison to how we viewed it on launch and how we view it today. Those would played the game back in good ol' 2004 will be right at home here and will love the game just as much as they previously did. Those who haven't will unquestionably be shocked by the clunky controls and tattered visuals until they get a grip and see the brilliant works behind this ancient masterpiece. It doesn't matter if you've been eagerly waiting for a shot of fresh nostalgia, waiting to get your teeth into the game once again, or a newcomer who wants to see what the hype is about, Shadow of the Colossus is a game that everyone should try for themselves and see what's behind the curtain. Some will be turned off by its dated and unusual gameplay and tale, but that's a judgment you'll come to make for yourself.

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]]> http://www.gamespot.com/the-ico-and-shadow-of-the-colossus-collection/user-reviews/810772/platform/ps3/ Sun, 28 Apr 2013 00:18:49 -0700 ShadowsDemon reviewed Ratchet & Clank: All 4 One for the PlayStation 3... http://www.gamespot.com/ratchet-and-clank-all-4-one/user-reviews/810771/platform/ps3/ ...and gave it a 4.0.

Overview: Our old Lombax friend, his robotic sidekick, the green clown in green and evil genius with a few screws loose all team up in the latest Ratchet and Clank game from Insomniac. Has this game lived up to its worthy predecessors, or has it taken the evitable turn for the worst?
Gameplay: Ratchet and Clank is probably best known for its meticulous and ridiculously fun gameplay. After taking a dab in the shooter genre with Gladiator, the gameplay continuously kept improving from Tools of Destruction, before giving us the innovative Clank time mechanics and more in A Crack In Time. Where does that lead up to in R&C A4O?
You basically get a similar experience for the most part that you got in the previous games; you bought and upgraded bizarre weapons, you solved puzzles and leapt across bottomless pits, and you used as many gadgets as you could possibly handle. It's all here in Ratchet and Clank: A4O, but it doesn't do it quite as well as it did in the previous games. The camera angle continuously struggles to keep with you and your buddies, for instance. It'll be jerking all over the place, and you'll be unable to focus on your objective simply because you cannot get to it. Even as the AI characters will be busying doing something else that they happen to believe is more important than the situation or objective at present.
The controls also infuriate you time after time. You'll often clear a gap and then suddenly slip off for no apparent reason. Other annoying quirks like getting the aim and select weapon analog sticks confused are more plentiful than they should, and will most likely turn you off after a short while.
Never the less, the gameplay is as fun you'd expect it to be, and with the classic bolts, creates and more, A4O does at least do the franchise dignity by supplying us with enjoyable gameplay and co-op craziness. Now that you're able to play with a total of four people you'll have action and carnage a plenty as you all rush to the bolts or rescue a friend from a close shave with a razor saw. As expected, many puzzles and bosses can only be beaten with steady co-operation from all four players. The sense of victory achieved from pure teamwork is well worth the effort in every instance. Having a few buddies over or playing with other gaming dweebs online is a blast. The clunky controls are slightly less noticeable in co-op, which is a great thing as there are enough problems playing co-op as it is thanks to the jerky camera angles.
Thankfully for previous entries in the series brushes with glitches have been kept to a minimal. All 4 One has obviously decided to make up for it, as the glitches are worse than they should be at any rate. You'll regularly die expectedly; the enemies will be un-killable or certain section nigh-on impossible unless done with fewer or less people. The Ratchet and Clank franchise has built itself on tight controls and ridiculously fun gameplay; and whilst it still has that the game feels as if it's been rushed and dumbbed down.
Ratchet and Clank: A4O's gameplay is close enough to the core to remind us of its origin, but simultaneously it's too far to match up to any other previous installment on any scale. The glitches are also more than annoyance, but you can get by for a good amount of the time.
Single-Player:
Our two heroes can never seem to catch a break, can they? From stopping Dr. Nefarious' plan to turn the universe's inhabitants into robots and being held hostage by an organization baying for blood, to running from a certain Cragmite and racing against time, Ratchet and Clank have always had their more than fair share of action and adventure in a (mostly) light-hearted universe. The stories were always comical and intriguing, particularly A Crack In Time which possessed the most powerful and awe-inspiring stories ever created by Insomniac Games. Plenty of replay value and goodies always kept you coming back for more through the fantastic campaign.
So what went wrong this time?
Ratchet and Clank have finally decided to retire from playing the roles as heroes, but the universe has other plans for them. Captain Qwark and Dr. Nefarious are also thrown into the confusion as the four are marooned in foreign territory and struggle to find a way back home. Now, as if this didn't sound tacky enough as the four work together to get home they come across Ephemeris the Creature Collector and have to save the universe once again. This sounds the standard procedure for Ratchet and Clank, but in truth it's anything but. The story gets no form of attention or care of any sort. You wouldn't be able to care less about our heroes or what they're getting up to this time. There's nothing to hold your interest or imagination. You'll trudge through the levels continuously without even noticing them slip through your fingers, and then you'll come to the end of the single-player in near to no time at all with a story that is underwhelming simple and poorly constructed.
Even the level design is simple and straight forward. You'll clear gaps, fire your guns, solve simple puzzles and plod along with barely anything holding your interest. It's tragic that Insomniac had to soil the franchises reputation for their lengthy and enjoyable single-player campaigns. Instead they give us the complete polar opposite. Avoid like verenal disease.
Multiplayer:
If there's one area where R&C A4O shines the most it's in the co-op without a doubt. Solving puzzles, leaping across gaps and exchanging insults with three other buddies is a pure blast. It's enough reason to play the game alone; not that there's many other reasons at all that this.
As enjoyable as it may be – the server issues cause a severe headache. Constant lobby crashes, excruciatingly long loading times, connection errors and more will send you into an occasional fit. Even when you've created the lobby the game will freeze suddenly when someone wants to join. You'll be unable to exit out as they attempt to join the lobby, and then in the end they won't end up joining. Even finding a lobby that isn't full can prove to be a challenge, and for some reason people seem to be fighting over Ratchet – which cuts down the available lobbies even more so.
But when you do happen to find a lobby that you can have a game in – or get three friends to share with the tiny couch with at home, you'll enjoy the co-op even more so. Firing your guns rapidly together to create an explosive effect and working together with each of your unique abilities is somewhat similar to LittleBigPlanet, albeit a much timid version.
The multiplayer is enjoyable, explosive and will get a few good laughs out of you. The many problems with match making and alike will frustrate you, but for the worst part it's worth putting up with it until the end.
Presentation:
Rich and deep colours inspired the artistic visuals behind R&C A4O, as well as a silky smooth framerate and very rare moments of slow-down or texture pop-in. They aren't as smooth as R&C ACiT, nor are they as technically outstanding, but they do a fine job regardless.
The soundtrack is designed by Boris Salchow, the same mind behind the works of ACiT's soundtrack. Comical and light-hearted tunes occupy your mind as you play through the game; though it's noticeably less brilliant than ACiT's. The audio design is above average at best, neither being particularly poor nor fantastic.
Closing thoughts:
Ratchet and Clank: All 4 One shows us exactly what happens when you turn a series into something that is the complete polar opposite of the previous games. It's almost as if Insomniac Games wanted to disappoint their fanbase. A4O doesn't feel like a feel Ratchet and Clank game, and if it weren't for the title name the game would be called back off the shelves. The comical humour and enjoyable co-op do ease the pain of seeing this franchise hit rock bottom, but maybe this is just another lesson learned; and our creative designers at Insomniac have humbly released their mistake and will bring the real franchise and its dignity back.
You got what you deserved Insomniac.



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]]> http://www.gamespot.com/ratchet-and-clank-all-4-one/user-reviews/810771/platform/ps3/ Sun, 28 Apr 2013 00:17:15 -0700 ShadowsDemon reviewed MotorStorm: Apocalypse for the PlayStation 3... http://www.gamespot.com/motorstorm-apocalypse/user-reviews/810770/platform/ps3/ ...and gave it a 7.5.

Single Player:
Goodbye the beautiful beaches and rainforests, hello to the crumbling cites of America, where the buildings that tear themselves away from the ground to crush you, the civilians shoot at you, and where a mistake will not only cost you the race, but your life.. Welcome to the apocalypse, baby.
What's your first thing that comes to mind when you read those words? If it's pure chaos, beautiful madness in a frenzy of cars, buggies, ATVs and monster trucks, all willing to kill to stay ahead of hell, then you've got the perfect image in mind that sums up MotorStorm: Apocalypse.
You might be surprised that this game is actually superior to its past games, considering that most of the locales aren't as varied as before. You won't be racing across beaches, lush tropical jungles, hot volcanoes and mudcliffs. Most of the racing takes part in industrial areas, the city streets and even on top of skyscrapers. While this isn't exactly for the best, the way in which it is handled causes you to wonder what you saw in the past games compared to now.
You might be surprised to learn that this game actually has a story. You play the role of three different characters, Mash "The Rookie", Tyler "The Pro", and Big Dog "The Veteran". Each of these characters offers a different perspective of the game's story as well as an altered difficultly level, which offers multiple play throughs. Instead of just selecting the levels and tracks that you choose to race in, after each race you will be progressed to the next one, with some text and dialogue that allows you to catch up on what's happening. It's a good way to get the story flowing, and the tracks that are given to you are varied and in complete different locals, which allows you to taste the full spice of life that the apocalypse has to offer. New additions include superbikes, hot hatches, and supercars, each with their own certain advantages and disadvantages. In some cases it's up to the personal player in choosing the perfect ride for themselves, or the track in-particular.
One of the best things about the single player campaign, however, is that the race track constantly changes. You might be burning your way across a certain path, but then suddenly a building collapses in front of your very eyes, forcing you to change your direction within a split second to avoid crashing. The track is completely altered, forcing you to go an entirely new direction, or in some cases drive under or above the obstacle. It's a great sensation to wonder when the track will change, offering some new burst of excitement just when you thought the track was going to get dull.
Sadly, in terms of the games' story there's no real backbone to substantiate any genuine reason to care about the tale. The story is merely a flimsy hook to hang the progression of your career and edge you along. Then again, not many racing games actually employ any form of a story at all, so the mix up is nice to see once in a while, even if you won't really be getting much out of the story at all.
MotorStorm: Apocalypse provides a great single campaign, albeit a poorly shaped story, that gives you pleasure to constantly experience. The tracks are well designed, the variety brilliantly maintained, all of it soaked in the brutal reality of a real apocalypse.
Gameplay:
If you've ever played a MotorStorm game before, then you'll know exactly what to expect. However, the way in which Apocalypse handles it is quite unique. The steering is drastically improved, the handling and way in which you maintain a steady flow throughout the race has been tweaked to be much more enjoyable. In addition, collapsing buildings, tornados that throw cars at you, helicopters, earthquakes, and gunners try to do everything in their power to turn the race into a playground of burning and twisted metal and fire. It's your job to stay ahead of that, and that element is what makes MotorStorm: Apocalypse so enthralling.
There's always something going on, be it a building collapsing, a helicopter flying through the air, or the stupid locals trying to chuck grenades at you, there's always something on the screen to entertain you that just adds to the mix of adrenaline, speeding up the race. The mix of fire and water also adds another layer of complexity, meaning that you have to be careful when to use your boost. That ledge might give you the extra height or might be a short cut, but if you're in critical mode with your boost and that "short cut" has fire scattered all over it, or some locals and a helicopter decide to fire some lead in your direction, it might just cost you the race. Be careful, and while you always want to get to the finish line as soon as possible, going too fast in some tracks can be the worst thing you could do. Unlike in previous games, Apocalypse is about so much more than just winning the race. It's about a brutal mix of insanity as you burn your way through a track that falls apart as you speed through it. And if there's three massive trucks, all trying to get in that small space that only one of you can fit in, then it's ram, or be rammed, my friends. And boy is it fun to ram and punch (depending on your vehicle and the other vehicle, of course) your opponents to a sudden crash or even causing them to fall off the building. It's hiliarious stuff, especially when you're in the middle of the air, trying to all land in a difficult spot, and you all end up totalling each other. The game often takes itself very seriously in its context and story, but in moments like these you'll realize just how much fun it can be to all crash yourself in the middle of the Apocalypse.
However, this game is significantly easier than the past entires, which is both a good and a bad thing. The learning curve is smoothed out and is a hell lot easier to get accustomed to. However, the desperation of trying to get in that first place is gone here, as the benchmark for many races is 5th place instead. Not only that, many opponents seem to slow down when you get far behind, and seem to crash more. And when you boost ahead, they seem content to let you stay in that position. And quite frankly, I highly doubt that in a real apocalypse that your opponents would be so forgiving.
Apocalypse does a fantastic job of setting the standard for racers, and is more than a pleasure to experience as you crash your way more often than not through the track. The gameplay is slick, tight, and best of all: fun.

Multiplayer:

The core element of MotorStorm: Apocalypse and maybe even the best multiplayer I have ever experienced in any online racer, it's that superb.
You can race with up to 15 other players online, and that creates even more mayhem and destruction than before, as your online opponents seem to love ramming you as much as you love ramming them.
As with every online game, there's ranks to gain, achievements and medals that you can earn that boost your stats, and even create new loadouts for your game. In fact, this is probably the closest any racer can get to have FPS aspects within its multiplayer. And boy does it work well. These loadouts can give you some extra boost, better drift, and so on. You have to adjust it to the actually vehicle that you're driving, as it would be pretty pointless to gain extra drift for a mudtruck.
In addition to standard racing there's a mode called elimination, which creates even more madness in order to struggle out of the danger zone. The way it works is by every 30 seconds or so eliminating the player in last place, and even then if the last two players are close together, it holds a "second chance" system, which will kick the player that falls drastically behind the other. It's even more fun than the standard race, and provides so much entertainment. And be wary that all the earthquakes, crashing buildings, etc, take place in multiplayer too, so if you want to time that ram of yours to send your opponent flying into hell, do it before they do. There's no mercy in the apocalypse.
Another great aspect of the multiplayer is that unlike so much games now days it provides offline, split screen multiplayer, that including
All in all the multiplayer in MotorStorm: Apocalypse is fantastically crafted and will unquestionably provide you with hours upon hours of entertainment and joy. Prepare to get lost in a realm of fun, insanity and mayhem.
Technical:
The gritty urban visuals continuously impress, and the frame-rate never fails, even when a hundred and one things are exploding in your face at once. You won't experience much – if at all – lag, even when playing online, or in the middle of a single player race. The loading times do leave a lot to be desired, however. It's a pain to just sit there and wait for the race to load when you know that it really isn't that big of a file. But regardless, the game runs smoothly, the textures are nice and crisp, and the visuals awesome. If you're one of those few people that actually owns a 3D HDTV, you can try the game in the third dimension. Sadly though, I don't have thousands of dollars to burn, so I can't deliver my own opinion on the matter. I can say, though, that the game would look awesome in 3D, which all the water getting splashed on the screen.
The audio is ace, the soundtrack less so. Thankfully, the developers decided to be smart and allow you to play your own custom music while in any race. So instead of the awful mash of random music that's carelessly slapped together, you get to listen (or at least in my case) to the likes of Metallica, Nirvana and Rise Against. It's great stuff, especially when a song equalizes in tune to the track.
Trophies: Don't expect an easy platinum, but I'd say that you can bag this one without too much trouble. At the rate of how superb the online is and how often you'll probably replay the single player, there's no reason why you shouldn't get this soon enough.

Conclusion:
MotorStorm: Apocalypse delivers a mix of a flaming ball of insanity tumbling down to a highway of superb action with a splash of a story to keep the ball rolling. Sure it isn't that good and the loading times leave a lot to be desired, but this is by far one of the best, if not the best racer that we've had in years, offline and online, and this is coming from a person who dislikes the genre. If you only buy one racer, make sure as hell it's this one.

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"ShadowsDemon reviewed MotorStorm: Apocalypse for the PlayStation 3..." was posted by ShadowsDemon on Sun, 28 Apr 2013 00:17:15 -0700
]]> http://www.gamespot.com/motorstorm-apocalypse/user-reviews/810770/platform/ps3/ Sun, 28 Apr 2013 00:15:13 -0700 ShadowsDemon reviewed BioShock Infinite for the PlayStation 3... http://www.gamespot.com/bioshock-infinite/user-reviews/810769/platform/ps3/ ...and gave it a 10.0!!!

Single-player:
The premise of the game alone shows you that you're going to be in for one hell of a ride. The year is 1912, and Colombia is a floating city in the clouds. You are Booker DeWitt, a mercenary who is in deep shit. Specifically, he's in debt to certain people who aren't so forgiving about forgetting to cough up what they're owed. His last chance to rid himself of the burden is to rescue Elizabeth, a mysterious girl held captive in a tower that is protected by an angry, mechanical bird, and deliver her safety to New York. It may sound deceiving simple, but in reality there is nothing 'simple' about this game and the twisting tale that it tells.
From the game's opening lines (Woman: "Do you fear God?" Man: "No, I fear you.") you know that this is going to be a game layered with religious, political, moral, and philosophical overtones. That's nothing different from traditional Bioshock lore, but the way it is hammered into your skull time and time again shows just how different Colombia is from Rapture. Rapture was mainly about "no government, no god, just people", and all that propaganda. In Colombia, signs and billboards advertising the theocratic government and system along with referring to numerous Bible texts, quotes and tales highlights just how deeply religious (and crazy) this place is. Don't worry; it just gets better from here.
Shortly after you arrive in Colombia and stumble upon a carnival show the mystifying initials "A.D" appear on your right hand. In the lore of Bioshock and Colombian culture this is equivalent to 666 or having a pentagram stencilled on your chest. You are seized by authorities and about to be taken away and killed as a 'devil' and 'false prophet' when you escape, slaughtering the police even though you have no idea why they're after you and what this 'false prophet' represents. Numerous flashbacks, subtle hints, audio logs and cameo appearances by a strange duo all do their part in leaving you itching to see what happens next and figure out the entire plot.
As before, the moral choices and different pathways are given to you, although they are not as painstakingly clear as they were in the previous games. They will, however, affect the way people see you and alter elements in the game. If you decide to blast everyone in the ice-cream parlour to hell with a shotgun and steal their cash, the police will more than likely come running. Just maybe.
A fair warning here, though; this game will possibly offend you if you're a devout, religious person or celebrate American idealism the game will likely inspire outrage and anger. Bioshock Infinite is not afraid to ask questions that revolve around the taboo and fragile subjects such as racism, religion, god, political, reality and moral perception. It's the sort of game that thrusts the questions out there and leaves us to make up our own mind concerning the various topics at hand. I have to say, though, that the game does this in a truly spectacular way. This is a tale of turmoil and strife, of lust and greed; of sin and redemption. On top of the invigorating and heady themes that the game handles, as you get closer to the end you are left with more questions than answers, and the questions that you already were posed at the start of the tale evolve and twist beyond recognition as things start to seem as if they are contradicting each other. You turn off the game with these various questions still in your mind, the gears spinning in your brain as you fall asleep. You'll be so desperate to know the end that you'll almost wish the game was shorter so you could uncover the dark and evil mysteries at the heart of this dystopic and broken city. Alas, you'll have to endure the many hours that only leave you more and more bewildered. But that's a good thing, as it makes the ending pack one **** hell of a punch. But I'll talk about that later.
One of the best things about this game is that it doesn't ever treat you like an idiot; it doesn't hold your hand down the merry lane and pointing at what you have to do and how to reach your goal. Sure, there's a waypoint, but the way you get there and what you do in the meantime is up to you. For example, I decided to plod around and visit the ladies bathroom (creepy, yes I know), and Elizabeth makes some sort of subtle joke at me being a pervert. Then I visit the mens, and then she exclaims, 'I hope you aren't expecting me to follow you in there.' It's these little, subtle touches that I appreciate. They aren't apparent at first, and reward those who seek them out. Even better, the side missions aren't slapped in your face, either. For instance, Elizabeth might remark about a bookstore, or suggest that we explore the boardwalk for a little bit before moving on. In the store I discover multiple weapons, cash registers, and more. I also discover an audio log. Listening to the audio log I figure out that someone has a listen hold in another shop, and Elizabeth urges me to discover it. I do so, and when I open up the secret hatch I find a codex book (which will assist me with another side mission) and more audio logs. In these audio logs there are references to the past games, lore, and other titbits that are useful in forming the enigmatic puzzle that the land of Colombia is.
Now, onto the ending:
It's not good. It's not great. It's not even fantastic. It's **** incredible. There is no other way to describe it. I was expecting a plot twist, but the ending to Bioshock Infinite just blew me out of the water. I can with all seriousness say that Infinite's ending will be the standard for all games to come. Each time an amazing game ends with a fantastic conclusion, it must be compared with Infinite, and even then will likely fall short in a dramatic way.
You probably think I'm exaggerating or even feigning enthusiasm just for the sake of it, but you could not be more wrong. The twists, the absolute jaw-dropping moments, the dialogue and the slow realization as you piece the ending together will stay in your mind until the day you die. It's impossible to explain why without spoiling it, and believe me, this is one game that you definitely don't want to be spoiled. It's an ending you need to see for yourself, and as the gears spin in your head long after you've finished it you will come to countless theories and alternative conclusions, and will then be discussed and dissected for years to come. The ending is completely and utterly unprecedented on every possible scale, and will find its place in your mind and hearts until the very last breath leaves your body.
Gameplay:
Bioshock has always maintained a unique, albeit clunky and awkward style of gameplay. I don't mean the gameplay itself per-say, but the shooting mechanics. They were clunky, unresponsive, and downright piss-poor. That's not the case in Bioshock Infinite. The guns are an absolute blast to use (no pun intended) from the powerful shotgun to the accurate carbine to the RPG with incredible splash damage. Ploughing through the streets of Colombia, blowing off heads and shooting off limbs has never been more enjoyable. Of course, half the joy comes from vigors. If you've played any previous Bioshock games you'll know what plasmids are, and in Colombia, plasmids are vigors. If you don't know what they are, I shall explain.
They allow you to use unique and powerful abilities to screw up, harm, confuse, possess, and piss off enemies. You can use a certain vigor to possess a machine and cause it to attack your foes. You can use the Murder of Crows vigor to send a blast of ravens at all enemies in your radius. You can fire a bolt of electricity that channels from one enemy to the other. Combined with multiple vigors and your weapons, you can a create a mini version of World War III in the streets of Colombia. They're immensely enjoyable to use, and even more enjoyable to deal out punishments with. In BioShock 2 you had a bloody big drill to use. In Infinite you have some sort of cross between a hook and a cleaver. It's good for two things; the first of which is slicing the heads of those who are too stupid to come close to you. The seconds is used for sky-lines. These massive metal railway-like poles suspended in the air can be used to travel on at incredible speeds, firing as you go and gaining access to new areas that were previously out of reach. Even better, you can perform aerial assassinations and surprise your enemies. The sensational joy of speeding along these skylines at break neck speeds never gets old. It's unparalleled joy that was never experienced in any previous games. You'll also go up against a variety of challenging enemies, the most iconic of which is named Patriot and looks suspiciously similar to George Washington. Between cries of 'may the lord guide thee' and ''tis but a scratch' and 'the lamb our saviour' he'll focus his crank gun on you until your health drops to zero. He's a challenge, but a welcome one. Just be glad that religious freaks in real life aren't equipped with crank guns. Most of them, anyway.
As with the previous instalments, you'll purchase upgrades, health and ammo from various vending machines. Unlike Bioshock 2, the vendor doesn't simply shut down after you upgrade a single weapon, so your progress is only limited by the coin in your pocket. In order to get filthy rich you'll need to explore the rich vastness of Colombia. Exploring a secret room and finding dozens of goodies will etch a grin on your face as you listen to the your latest audio log.
A new addition to this game is gear. There's four pieces; the hat, torso, pants and shoes. You'll find them scattered around Colombia, and they provide incredible help to you on your journey. Wearing certain pants give you a 40% chance of having your weapons auto-reload. Maybe a top-hat you found in a deserted garden gives you extra health when you gain a kill. These game-changing clothes allow you to make your own custom strategy and the way you play the game. It allows you to feel as if you're in 'control'. You have a choice. This alludes back to your game changing decisions and pathways that you experience, showing you that Bioshock Infinite is not just a great game where it feels it's convenient to be. Rather, it builds its entire game around a certain set of rules and never falters from the path, no matter how tempting or 'easy' it may appear to be.
That is a sign of a dedicated, firm, and quality game.
Presentation:
From lush green gardens aripe with blood-red roses and grand bronze statues, to the sweeping steam punk landscape of cranking gears and pulsing machinery, Bioshock Infinite never lets you forget where you are. In contrast to Bioshock 2, where almost every neighbour and locale appeared to be the same, each section of Infinite is uniquely crafted and never lets you forget where you are. The incredible blue sky and the golden yellow sands make each area distinct and provide their own special flavour.
Technically the visuals are stunning, and light years ahead of Bioshock 2. However, I did experience a few instances of screen-tearing, jagged edges and extended loading screens in the middle of a level. These minor faults do little to irritate, but they are noticeable. Whilst the graphics of Infinite are fantastic; they aren't ground breaking or 'next-gen'. The audio is where it really hits home, though. The dynamic and sweeping soundtrack binds you in its spell and makes you sway to its dance of beauty. The intense effects don't meet up to those in Bioshock 2's, but the overall soundtrack far surpasses anything in the last two games. Voice acting is solid and are voiced with great gusto, be it political and religious propaganda booming from the speakers, or the audio logs that you will be sure to find in the game. It's very easy to forget this is a game and not actual, genuine recordings done by people in real-life situations. Oh yeah, it's that good.
Trophies:
A lot easier than Bioshock 2's and way easier than Bioshock 1's, the trophies are challenging, but not frustrating. I achieved around 70% of trophies without even trying to earn them. Frankly, the only things that could piss you off is completing 1999 mode without using a vending machine, and finding the seemingly endless collectibles. Nothing that will have you ripping your hair out, though. Overall:
Bioshock Infinite is not a mere game; it is a work of art. It's a game that will cause your jaw to drop and turn your nights into sleepless toss-abouts as you go over the ending repetitively, spinning around in your brain like a marble in a whirlpool. The dark and devious tale will hit you at full impact, and as you think it over and come to another realisation you will be more shocked than before. You'll then want to replay the game, looking through a shaded lens that you'll never be able to un-see again. An incredible, ground-breaking and sublime masterpiece, Bioshock Infinite is nothing less than one of the best games of all time, and will be held as the standard for all games for years and years to come. It will be recalled by gamers with teary eyes, hearts filled with nostalgia and incredible memories that will linger in your mind for decades. You say I'm exaggerating do you? Play the game for yourself and see if what I say is true.
Infinite is a game that only comes once in a lifetime. There may never be a another game like it, and if there is, it must be measured to Infinite's standard as the final judgement. Infinite is not one of the best games of this year, nor it is one of the best this generation. It is one of the best games of all time.
That, ladies and gentlemen, is a fact.

Get the full article at GameSpot

"ShadowsDemon reviewed BioShock Infinite for the PlayStation 3..." was posted by ShadowsDemon on Sun, 28 Apr 2013 00:15:13 -0700
]]> http://www.gamespot.com/bioshock-infinite/user-reviews/810769/platform/ps3/ Fri, 26 Apr 2013 19:23:44 -0700 pspitus reviewed Dead Island: Riptide for the PC... http://www.gamespot.com/dead-island-riptide/user-reviews/810714/platform/pc/ ...and gave it a 6.5.

Link to video review: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xzJYR6SqkOw



*PLEASE NOTE: Review taken straight from the video :).

*Start trailer for Dead Island Riptide*

Ooooh no, I'm not falling for that sh*t again! How dare you Dead Island. Fool me once– shame on you. But fool me twice– shame on me. Ya bastards! Do you guys remember when the first Dead Island trailer was released?
*Start trailer for Dead Island*

It was such an emotionally moving trailer, telling the story of a family's demise during a zombie apocalypse. Frame by frame, our heart strings were tugged at. Our tear ducts began malfunctioning. And as the trailer continued to play in reverse, we kept telling ourselves– "Man– this is going to be the best zombie game ever". An emotionally driven storyline, compelling and memorable characters, free roaming first person combat . Honestly, what could go wrong?

Well it turned out that the game was nothing like that all hahaha xD. Oh man, game trailers– you gotta love them. False advertising for the win!

If you have played the original Dead Island and you thoroughly enjoyed it, you will definitely enjoy Dead Island Riptide.

Now Dead Island Riptide is certainly not for everyone. It is geared towards a special type of audience- in the end you will either love it or hate it. If you are looking for a deep and engrossing zombie apocalypse storyline, and are hoping to connect with the characters in some special way, similar to Telltales' Walking Dead game– then this game is definitely not for you.

However, if you're seeking a mindless zombie killing good time, then this is right up your alleyway. Grab yourself a weapon, and let's do this. Dead Island Riptide is a hybrid action RPG, which combines the levels, skill trees, and abilities you would find in an RPG, and crams it together with the action packed experience you would find in first person shooters. Throughout the game you will spend most of your time bashing, smashing, slashing, shooting, burning, electrifying, killing, maiming, and slaughtering zombies while performing a variety of missions and side-quests. You can also create and upgrade your weapons using a variety of materials you find along the way to increase your level of badassery and improve your zombie killing arsenal.

While it's not essential that you play Riptide with others, I would highly recommend it. To truly enjoy and get the most out of this zombie apocalypse, bringing some friends along is definitely the way to go. Playing as a loner, whoops I mean solo, can often feel tedious, lonesome, and just boring since you spend most of the time doing the same thing over and over again. But add in a friend or two and you guys will definitely have a blast. Power in numbers contributes to the overall experience that you will get out of this game.

The thing that plagues this game more than zombies however are the bugs and glitches within the game. It can sometimes feel like the game isn't even completely finished. Don't be surprised if you find yourself dying for no reason. Or if the audio suddenly cuts off. Or if vehicles suddenly disappear. Or if the mini map leads you off a cliff like a b*tch.

Overall Dead Island Riptide makes minor improvements and addresses some of the issues from the last game, but it still feels like a large DLC rather than a full-fledged sequel. If you are really into zombie games and enjoy mindless zombie slaughtering, you should definitely give this a try. However, for everyone else, stay away from this title as it may just leave you rotting in the brain.

Dead Island Riptide gets 3 "Who do you Voodoo B*TCH!" out of 5.

Get the full article at GameSpot

"pspitus reviewed Dead Island: Riptide for the PC..." was posted by pspitus on Fri, 26 Apr 2013 19:23:44 -0700
]]> http://www.gamespot.com/dead-island-riptide/user-reviews/810714/platform/pc/ Thu, 25 Apr 2013 22:39:48 -0700 DarkLink77 reviewed BioShock Infinite for the PC... http://www.gamespot.com/bioshock-infinite/user-reviews/810680/platform/pc/ ...and gave it a 9.0!

"Bring us the girl, and wipe away the debt. That was the deal. I gambled, and now I owe money to men you don't want to be in debt to. I come here to pay it back."

That's the premise of Bioshock Infinite, summed up by protagonist Booker Dewitt. The deal he refers to is what sets the events of Bioshock Infinite in motion. The details, are by now, well known to you if you've spent any stretch of time following Infinite's protracted development. "The girl" is, of course, Elizabeth and the "here" is Columbia, a floating city founded upon religious principles, white supremacy, and the inherent greatness of America by a man named Zachary Hale Comstock, whom the people of Columbia hail as The Prophet.

It sounds like a deceptively simple request. Unfortunately for Booker, the people of Columbia believe that Elizabeth is the Lamb, Comstock's successor, who will cleanse the Sodom Below (a universal term applied by the people of Columbia to everywhere that is not Columbia, but mostly America itself) of evil. Further complicating matters, Comstock has forseen that a man from the Sodom Below, whom he calls the False Shepherd, will come to take Elizabeth away, and corrupt her in the process. To prevent this from happening, Elizabeth is locked in an ivory tower, and guarded by a mechanical monstrosity called the Songbird, until the time comes for her to fulfill her destiny.

It's a familiar set-up, isn't it? A hero, a girl, a protector, a man, and a city. There's always a man and a city. These are the constants of the Bioshock universe. Throw in some social commentary, and you have the formula for a Bioshock title. It's a formula Infinite revels in, and one the game's opening pays homage to, as Booker is rowed out to a lighthouse by a man and a woman the game does not initially deign to name. But there is one key difference between the two games, and one Infinite reveals to the player as soon as the game begins: something about all of this isn't right.

It's not a particularly subtle suggestion, the way Bioshock's opening moments cleverly hinted at the significance of "Would you kindly?" No, Infinite's is almost impossible to miss, and in hindsight, it's easy to see that the game's opening isn't designed for first-time players. It's designed for the player who is on his second, or third, or fourth play-through. If the kind of opening that tells you that there's something more behind the curtain, but gives you little context as to what that might mean.

And so, you forget about it. Your mind files it away as Booker ascends the lighthouse, and you see warnings plastered on the walls. "This is your last chance, DeWitt," they say. You forget as Booker rings the bells, and sits in a pod that rockets into the clouds, a scene that parallels the original game's reveal of Rapture.

"Hallelujah," a voice cries as Columbia comes into view for the first time, and you get that first, magnificent view of the city above the clouds. "Hallelujah."

The game continues at this pace for a while, allowing you to become acclimatized to the way things work in Columbia. It's a nice start, if a linear one, and it allows you to get used to the sights and sounds of the city before everything begins to spin out of control and the search for Elizabeth takes center stage.

And once things start spinning, they don't stop. Luckily, Booker is up to the challenge, and Infinite provides you with the standard Bioshock staples to combat any problems that might arise. Plasmids return as Vigors, and guns are plentiful and varied, though the game does limit you to two weapons at a time and a small amount of reserve ammo per weapon. These restrictions feel arbitrary, especially later in the game when enemies are both powerful and plentiful, and many combat arenas present situations when more options would have greatly benefited the game.

Infinite's combat is, however, superb. Guns feel powerful, shots have impact, and enemies react realistically to damage. And guns aren't the only solution to your problems. Ironically, outside of the two weapon limit, Infinite isn't afraid to give you options. The game supplies you with plenty of different Vigors of varying types, each with multiple effects. One allows you to possess machines, while another allows you to summon a murder of crows to distract enemies, and both Vigors and guns are upgradeable at the various Rapture-esque vending machines that are scattered around Columbia, provided you have the cash. Booker can also make use of the Sky-Hook, a rotating object worn over the hand which functions both as a melee weapon and allows access to Columbia's Sky-Lines, a rail system high in the sky that transports cargo and personnel around Columbia. Sky-Lines add an unprecedented amount of verticality, speed, and mobility to Infinite's combat, allowing you to rain death while zooming around at high (or low) speeds and to move seamlessly in across the battlefield at the press of a button. The Sky-Hook also opens any additional way to explore Columbia, and you'll have to keep that in mind if you want to acquire all of the game's many collectibles.

Like the original game, Bioshock Infinite features audio diaries recorded called voxophones that significantly expand on the game's plot, and essentially offer a finer understanding of both the story and the characters themselves. New to Infinite however, are infusions, which will allow you to upgrade your health, shield, or salts bar, as well as gear, which can be equipped in up to four slots and allows you to modify everything from weapon properties to the way your abilities function on Sky-Lines.

If all of this sounds like it's a lot to take, that's because it is. Infinite knows this, and the game continues the introduction's slow burn for some time, slowly introducing mechanic after mechanic and building Columbia as a world, until you finally meet the girl. Much has been said about the AI behind Elizabeth, but all the talk of Irrational's programming prowess can't do the character justice. Elizabeth is expertly written and phenomenally acted by Courtney Draper, and she will earn a place in your heart very quickly. Once you meet her, the thought of being parted from her company becomes painful. Elizabeth reacts realistically to events around her. If you're wandering around a crowded area, she might sit on a chair or talk to a nearby vendor. Other times, she'll examine pieces if the environment, pointing out interesting objects as she goes, and in some instances, she'll just lean against a safety railing, and take in the beauty of the city. Elizabeth the heart and soul of Bioshock Infinite, and you'll wonder how the game's admittedly masterful opening sequence ever managed without her.

However, Elizabeth isn't just a wonderful companion to explore Columbia with, and there is a lot to explore, despite the relative linearity of the game. She also provides new gameplay mechanics. Out of combat, she'll help you find money and items such as lock picks, which you can use to have her open doors and safes, should you have the required amount. But it's in combat that she really shines. Elizabeth has the ability to open "tears," which are essentially windows into other worlds. This ability allows Elizabeth to pull guns, health, mechanical companions, freight hooks for you to hang from with your Sky-Hook, and even cover into the world for you to use. In addition, she'll also supply Booker with salts, which are consumed when you use Vigors, as well as health and ammunition.

It would be easy for Elizabeth to completely steal the show in Infinite, given your reliance on her abilities as a player and how well the team at Irrational constructed the character. Fortunately, they've constructed another who is equally compelling in protagonist Booker DeWitt, voiced by the incredibly talented and increasingly prolific Troy Baker. The former-Pinkerton-turned-Private-Detective-trying-to-escape-his-past is an absolutely fascinating character, and easily one of the best protagonists to ever grace the medium. However, it's the way these characters play off of one another and the world and characters they encounter that elevates them to a whole other level, and watching their relationship evolve over the course of the game is one of Infinite's true joys.

Over the course of their journey together, Booker and Elizabeth begin to unravel the mysteries of Columbia and Elizabeth herself. Who is she, really? Why can she do the things she does? What exactly is she doing? What are the consequences? Bioshock Infinite asks these questions and more as it masterfully spins its yarn, all the while dealing with very real social issues such as racism, class divisions, the extent to which religion should be allowed to influence a government, and the idea of American exceptionalism itself. As the narrative unfolds, Booker and Elizabeth are drawn deeper and deeper into the conflict between Comstock and the Vox Populi, and soon, it becomes clear that events are far more complex than they appear. The amount of environmental storytelling present in Bioshock Infinite means that Columbia is just as much of a character as Booker, Elizabeth, or Comstock, and as the foundations of Columbia unravel around you, the world changes to reflect the growing intensity of the city's ongoing civil war. In the end, events build to an unpredictable and magnificent climax that will haunt your thoughts long after the credits finish rolling, and make you want to revisit the game again just to appreciate how well the game foreshadows and builds to its inevitable conclusion.

For all of these successes, however, Bioshock Infinite is not without its failures. Like the two weapon limit, the inclusion of gear feels arbitrary, and the system restricts you more than it should. Certain sections of the game feel drawn out to maximize gameplay, and a few plot points just feel out of place in the world Infinite creates, while others are only explained sufficiently through voxophones the player may not find. The much promoted Songbird is almost painfully underused, and a noticeable number of the game's major characters feel underdeveloped. For all of Irrational's efforts, and they are considerable, Comstock never escapes from the shadow of Andrew Ryan, and Columbia never comes together as a world the way that Rapture did so many years ago.

In the end, though, Infinite's successes are so great that its failures feel minute in comparison. In many ways, the game is a victim of Irrational's previous successes. It's not perfect by any stretch of the imagination, but something this ambitious rarely is. Infinite is, like its predecessor, a game that matters. It's a game that has something to say, about the medium, and about us. It's a game that will be remembered years from now, in the rare way that few games are. It's a game that you'll remember long after you play it, one that sinks its hooks in and never lets go. In many ways, Bioshock Infinite is a lot like Columbia, viewed for the first time in that pod, its magnificent shining towers coming over the horizon, a city we have never been to, yet know intimately. Brilliant, but flawed. Imperfect, but unforgettable.

Hallelujah. Hallelujah.

Get the full article at GameSpot

"DarkLink77 reviewed BioShock Infinite for the PC..." was posted by DarkLink77 on Thu, 25 Apr 2013 22:39:48 -0700
]]> http://www.gamespot.com/bioshock-infinite/user-reviews/810680/platform/pc/ Sun, 21 Apr 2013 00:14:56 -0700 ad0234 reviewed New Super Mario Bros. U for the Wii U... http://www.gamespot.com/new-super-mario-bros-u/user-reviews/810485/platform/wii-u/ ...and gave it a 8.0.

Last year has been a significant one for the New Super Mario Bros series, since Nintendo had released two games of it in that year. That isn't to be said it was a very good one. The earlier one, New Super Mario Bros 2, released on the 3DS, was shoved in during the development of the Wii U version, with young, more inexperienced people working on the game, and one that didn't really succeed all too much, because it was simply too similar to it's predecessors, adding barely any novelty to the series. And then there was New Super Mario Bros U. A game with more significant changes and additions, and simply put, a game that savored more professional work and effort. And New Super Mario Bros U is also the first Mario platformer launch title since Super Mario 64 on the N64. Plus the Wii U needed some fresh, exclusive titles for it's launch, since a lot of the launch games were only ports of games already existing on different platforms. Luckily, New Super Mario Bros U, unlike the 3DS version, has succeed in bringing the series back to a more glamorous shine, even though it isn't that kind of launch title to show off the new console's possibilities and strengths.

--- Presentation ---

Believe it or not, but in New Super Mario Bros U, the story actually gets a little twist. Instead of having Bowser and family kidnapping the Princess and taking her to Bowser's own castle, Bowser this time decides to simply take over Peach's castle, throwing Mario and CO. far, far away from the castle, and now it's up to the heroes to make their way back to the castle and save Peach and the Mushroom Kingdom from Bowser's mighty plans. In every other game such little twist would have absolutely no impact, but for a Mario game, it's actually quite a nice one.

Actually, it is the twists, the little or not so little twists to the New Super Mario Bros formula, that separate this game from it's predecessors. In a nutshell, New Super Mario Bros U is what you expect, and what you've come to know. You have to make your way through eight different worlds in order to defeat Bowser and save Peach and the Kingdom, each world contains it's own typical theme, you'll always encounter a level count that retains the ca. 8-10 levels per world, and so on.

Making your way back to the castle instead of moving away from it gave the developers an opportunity to give the game another load of novelty they have missed. Since your way to the final stand of Bowser is more the exact opposite direction than it is usual, it would have been more than fitting to have some dramatic shift in world themes and the order of them. Instead, New Super Mario Bros U has pretty much the exact same world themes as well as order like in the previous New Super Mario Bros games. Yet, New Super Mario Bros U gives each world theme a new, little twist to make them feel at least a little different.

And another, much better twist of New Super Mario Bros U: It's the first of the New Super Mario Bros games to contain a big, full featured world map with all the smaller worlds fit into it, making the vibrant and rich world of Mario viewable in a whole. It's smaller worlds are connected great with each other, the path Mario must take through the main worlds takes you everywhere, and the different world themes make for a colorful and detailed world map. Not only does it look beautiful, but it also adds a better sense of an actual adventure happening. During any time you may scroll around the map and take a peak at where the adventure will take you, and adding to the charm, the game tosses a few cut scenes that show what happens to the castle while Mario's on his way to that destination. And one last note: the game's world map also contains extra content such as enemies and powerups wondering around the world map, as well as a few other clever features, including some little by-the-by minigames, and hidden paths that must be found, making the world map part of the fun.

As far as the new features of the Wii U go, New Super Mario Bros U doesn't take that much usage of them. It's the best launch title to show off the off-screen play, but the touchscreen is only used for multiplayer, with some good yet limited use of it, and the visuals do not push the graphical abilities of Nintendo's system at all. Don't get me wrong, though, this isn't counted as a negative.

What does seem like a negative is that it seems like Nintendo took it quite easy with this game and made it themselves quite comfortable. They did put a lot of thought and polish into this game, but you'll also notice that they only did that, what was really necessary. Take the visuals, for example. Seeing the typical New Super Mario Bros visual style shine in HD, with backgrounds finally being 3D and getting lots of depth really is great. Actually, there are multiple beautiful and impressive looking backgrounds here to be admired. However, seeing the game recycling backgrounds for multiple levels is a bit odd. Or take the animations. Seriously, Nintendo took the amount of newly created animations to the possible minimum, making some cutscenes look a bit dated.

However, what's absolutely not acceptable is the soundtrack. It's still heavily the soundtrack from the Wii game, with some more, new tracks than New Super Mario Bros 2 had, but it's still lame having to hear so many tracks from the Wii game a third time. It's reaching a limit where the music just comes soaring out of people's ears right after entering them, and it's pretty frustrating and odd to see that Nintendo was so lazy with the game's soundtrack when considering that Nintendo puts a lot of effort into making good music for most of their games.

--- Gameplay ---

Just as the presentation, New Super Mario Bros U's gameplay is very familiar. Like usual for a 2D platformer game, you guide Mario from left to right, avoiding the usual obstacles while snagging powerups to enlarge your chance of success and coins to collect 1-Ups, which are as easy to become as stomping yet another Goomba. Controls are, weirdly, even better than ever. Mario has all of his typical moves at disposal, and he controls as if you're controlling him with your own thoughts. Level Design in New Super Mario Bros U is even more creative than ever, offering the best levels of the series so far, with some meaty challenge after the first 4 worlds of the game, and the 3 Star Coins in each to find, some of them hidden cleverly, while some other are hard to reach. Not to forget the occasional secret exits that unlock hidden paths among the world map. It's all quite familiar yet all still so fun. And like stated before, it's not as if the game hasn't improved over it's predecessors, since it's got clearly the best level design of all four games. And there is some innovation in the level design; a few new ideas and objects as well as a combination of 2 familiar ideas that haven't been combined within a level before make for some innovation, though not much. The majority of the levels seem rather familiar, just better and more cleverly designed than ever.

It's outside of the level design where the game picks more up in novelty. Baby Yoshi's can be found on the world map which than follow you from level to level, until you die or lose them, granting Mario some unique, new powers. Meanwhile, Nabbit, a totally new character to the Mario Universe, steals Mushrooms from Mushroom houses and hides in specific levels, who you then have to chase down in the level he hides in. A much different, but nice addition is the integration of Miiverse. It lets you state your opinion about levels you've just played, while at the same time let's comments from many different people appear on the world map. It really is these touches that make the game stand out from the other ones and let it feel fresh.

And of course, this game can be experienced, just like the Wii one, with multiple friends among your side. While the main four players still play the same role and characters, a fifth player can join the Mustache-Mushroom fun and create platforms out of thin air, as well as interact with some enemies and platforms. The multiplayer is as fun and chaotic as ever, and definitely a particularly great offering for parties. The addition of a fifth player engaging himself with a kind of god-mode is a nice one, though it's probably not as fun as playing as one of the 4 main characters. It can however be a great help for inexperienced gamers, or a great option for those who aren't very good at platformer games and just want to join the fun fast and easy. Oh, and if you're up for some competitive play, Coin Battle mode is the perfect choice. It's the same as in the Wii game, yet a bit more competitive this time around.

Snagging a copy of New Super Mario Bros U will also mean you'll have quite an impressive amount on content to discover. The lengthy main game is only part of what forms New Super Mario Bros U, as there are also two additional modes, Boost Rush Mode and Challenge Mode. Boost Rush Mode is about mastering side scrolling levels as fast as possible, speeding up the scrolling by collecting coins, which is accessible from one to five players. The real surprise is challenge mode. This mode tosses challenges towards you that rate from one star (fairly challenging) to 5 stars(super-enormous-tough), in which you can get a bronze medal, silver medal or gold medal. Or of course a fail. These challenges take place either in totally new terrains or in levels from the main game, and it's incredibly fun to try to beat each challenge, and succeeding in them is tremendously satisfying. They are also quite varied, and only the fewest are less than good or frustrating.

--- Verdict ---

It's simple: New Super Mario Bros U prefers to deliver an experience not very different from it's predecessors, while at the same time, never falling into the category "predictable". Sure, there are some overly predictable parts in the game. But others, like the sudden appearance of an classic Mario enemy in glorious HD on your TV screen that hasn't been seen since the mighty Super Mario World, or a level with a theme unlike any other level seen before in the New Super Mario Bros series, form some truly great moments of the game. You won't be able to shake off the familiar feel the game has, but these new, little twists make sure you will be getting enough "new" to keep you playing.

In fact, New Super Mario Bros U is without a doubt the best entry into it's series yet, as well as one of the launch titles worth to get for the Wii U. It's level design is always creative and fun, it is an overall challenging and satisfying game with lots of secrets, it's got some cool bosses and a very epic final battle, and, unlike the 3DS version, it's able to separate itself from it's predecessors, with new features and innovations, new, additional modes, in particular challenge mode, that add variety, novelty and more fun content as well as HD graphics with much nicer visuals. It's definitely not a good showcase of the Wii U, and does not present next-generation gaming in any ways, but that isn't a negative at all. What does disturb at some occasions is when you do notice that it could have been more, it could have been grander, as Nintendo did stay relatively save with this title, not taking too many risks (and yes, even in terms of level design that is). But it's still an incredibly enjoyable game that is definitely worth getting.

The Good
+ creative, varied and challenging levels
+ fun and cool boss battles
+ Incredible controls
+ Nice HD visuals
+ a full world map with all the little worlds connected with each other adds to the experience and looks really good
+ new features and other innovations give the game a fresh enough feeling, while still featuring many throwbacks
+ Multiplayer is a blast
+ great use of Miiverse

The Bad
- Recycled music, again
- occasionally predictable
- game lies on the safe side


Review Score: 8.0/10

Get the full article at GameSpot

"ad0234 reviewed New Super Mario Bros. U for the Wii U..." was posted by ad0234 on Sun, 21 Apr 2013 00:14:56 -0700
]]> http://www.gamespot.com/new-super-mario-bros-u/user-reviews/810485/platform/wii-u/ Sat, 20 Apr 2013 13:20:03 -0700 pspitus reviewed Gunstar Heroes for the Xbox 360... http://www.gamespot.com/gunstar-heroes/user-reviews/810463/platform/xbox360/ ...and gave it a 9.0!

Video Review: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9mzQiIq_Nsw

*NOTE: This review is taken directly from the video review linked above.

Gunstar Heroes. Oh my god, Gunstar Heroes. Easily one of the best video games on the Sega Genesis period. In fact, if you haven't played this action packed title before, and you used to own a Sega Genesis, I demand that you bow your head in shame, and smash your face against the nearest solid surface repeatedly. I mean it, I want to see blood splattered everywhere, teeth falling out, all that good stuff, and I want to be able to see those bruises from a mile away.

Nah, I'm just playing. I care about all of you guys. And I care about your well being. In fact, the only time you should ever put yourself in harm's way is if you're trying to get newest copy of Pok–mon or something.

Anyways now back to Gunstar Heroes.

Gunstar Heroes is a side scrolling action/adventure game. And the objective is to simply get from the beginning of a stage to the end of a stage while annihilating hundreds of enemies that block your path. Throughout the game you will also encounter many unique bosses that require different strategies to defeat them.
Now I'm not going to lie you guys, throughout my gaming career I have probably beaten this game with my family and friends over 25 times. Now I bet you guys are wondering? What in the world possess a gamer to re-visit a game that many freakin times?

Well I'll tell you. For one thing, the game is approximately an hour long. The second thing, is that despite it being an hour long, there is just so much– what's the technical term– stuff within the game. Yeah I used the word stuff. Don't judge me. I don't know why people think English is difficult to master. It aren't that hard.

Let me give you guys a little taste of what kind of variety of stuff is in Gunstar Heroes . In one level you're skating back and forth, jumping from one side of the screen to the next, while obliterating enemies, dodging bullets, and feeling like a total bad*ss. In another level, you're playing a board game that will test your skills as a gamer mentally and physically while trying to survive long enough to even reach the final boss. The levels, the bosses, everything has a distinct feel and play style and trust me on this, you'll never be caught experiencing the same thing twice.

Another unique feature about Gunstar Heroes is the weapons themselves. You can actually mix and match a variety of different weapons together to create even stronger weapons that give off different effects that are not only awesome to look at, but also deadly. There's just something truly amazing about watching everything and everyone explode around you as you run through the level like a trigger happy psychopath.

Now Gunstar Heroes is definitely not a perfect game, especially since there are a couple of areas where there are a lot of frame rate issues. But you know what, these imperfections can easily be looked over. I mean come on, to all my gentlemen out there– if you had the opportunity to date a super hot sexy super model and her pinky was the same height as her ring finger– would you still date her? And for all you lovely ladies out there watching this– if you had the chance to date the man of your dreams and his breath smelled of onions, would you still date him? HELLZ YEAH! Simply chop of the super model's hand, and shove a sock in that man's pipe hole, and you're good to go for an epic date!

And did I forget to mention that Gunstar Heroes give you the opportunity to troll on your friends like a champ!
Throw him off a cliff and laugh. Tolololololol.
Watch him fall on his ass. Trolololololol.
Broken bones, and plenty of bruises. Tolololololol.
Now they're dead, because they're losars! Trolololol.

Being the first game to ever get a 5 in RatedSTARZ history, Gunstar Heroes gets 5 trolololols out of 5.

Get the full article at GameSpot

"pspitus reviewed Gunstar Heroes for the Xbox 360..." was posted by pspitus on Sat, 20 Apr 2013 13:20:03 -0700
]]> http://www.gamespot.com/gunstar-heroes/user-reviews/810463/platform/xbox360/ Mon, 15 Apr 2013 06:17:01 -0700 pspitus reviewed Orcs Must Die! 2 for the PC... http://www.gamespot.com/orcs-must-die-2/user-reviews/810278/platform/pc/ ...and gave it a 8.5.

Video Review: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k83LQsaBmZQ

**** PLEASE NOTE: This is written review created specifically for the video review linked above :).

The Orc. Big. Green, and Ugly. Unwanted, unloved, these creatures have faced discrimination through countless movies, books, and video games. Every day these pitiful creatures are mocked, scoffed, and slayed by human society. But now is the time for change. Together, we can fight this hate and discrimination and give these Orcs the life they deserve.

Hahahaha–. Screw that sh*t! Just like Elves, ORCS MUST DIE 2!!! *DEMON LAUGH*

Orcs Must Die 2 is an amazing Tower Defense game. The objective is simple: perform a mass genocide of Orc destruction, while defending these things called Rifts. If a set number of Orcs enter into these Rifts, the game is over. Luckily for you, the game offers numerous ways to kill these green bastards.
Welcome to another segment of Cooking with Tubbymora!

Hello sexy people! Today we will be learning how to make nice, sexy Orc dish that you bring to any get together. First you must tenderize orc meat. Listen as green tiny little bodies are crushed, and eye bulge out. If orc meat stop squealing in pain, then orc meat is ready. Next you want heat orc meat at a nice, soothing 10,000 degrees. You literally want to burn green off skin. In fact, you literally want to burn skin off. That's where all cholesterol is. Finally you skewer Orc meat with fine tip needles. The more holes in meat, the better it taste. Then you serve dish, and walla, you have make sexy orc-kabobs. Thank you for joining in segment of Cooking with Tubbymora. I see you next time! Bye Bye!

Well that was weird– ummm– so yeah. After the completion of a level, you can also earn skulls that grant you the ability to unlock new weapons, traps, and items. You can also use these skulls to upgrade the current gear you have to increase your killing potential. You even have the option to play the game solo or co-op. Whether you're a big fan of the tower defense genre, or you just like kicking virtual orc *ss, Orcs Must Die 2 is a great game with a lot of replay value that I would highly recommend to anyone.

Orc Must Die 2 gets 4 Orc Cooking Recipes– out of 5.

Get the full article at GameSpot

"pspitus reviewed Orcs Must Die! 2 for the PC..." was posted by pspitus on Mon, 15 Apr 2013 06:17:01 -0700
]]> http://www.gamespot.com/orcs-must-die-2/user-reviews/810278/platform/pc/ Mon, 15 Apr 2013 06:13:43 -0700 pspitus reviewed Psychonauts for the PC... http://www.gamespot.com/psychonauts/user-reviews/810277/platform/pc/ ...and gave it a 8.5.

Video Review: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ld2i6QQEy0E

****NOTE: This is a direct written review specifically made for the video review linked above.

We follow the story of Raz. A young aspiring Psychic who dreams of being a Psychonaut - a group of elite agents who battles evil doers with their minds. In pursuit of his life long dream, Raz decides to run away from home and join the Whispering Rock Psychic Summer Camp, a place where young kids are given the opportunity to test and strengthen their mental powers and eventually become a Psychonaut. To put it in shorter terms, it's basically Psychic Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts minus the cookies, and tacky uniforms of course. GOD, I hate those uniforms, they always gave me butt sweat.

But moving on, hehehe get it? Cuz I said butt. *cough* Anyway...

Psychonauts is an great action/adventure platforming game. What makes this game so amazing is not the bone crushing, cry inducing, piss your pants difficulty, but rather the attention to the weird, freaky, character designs, laugh out loud humor, and imaginative levels. As Raz enters into different people's minds within the game, you'll be introduced to a great variety of worlds from Coach Oleander's battlefield of pain and misery, to Agent Vodello's bumpin' groovy mind party.

In fact, there's so much variety within the game, it would literally make anyone's head explode! KABOOM! Hey, you see that pink thing on the wall over there behind the couch? Yeah, that's a portion of your brain. Don't worry brah... it's normal. MIND BLOWN!

Also, what other games out there allow you to assert your dominance over feeble, pathetic, little kids!?

BOW DOWN TO ME!

BEHOLD MY POWER!

WHERE DO YOU THINK YOU'RE GOING!?

I'm going to slap you with my face!

MAKE ME A SANDWICH AND THEN THROW IT AWAY YOU PUNK*SS!

Tubbymora, and RatedSTARZ, do not advocate violence against small little children, virtually or in real life in any way, shape, or form. If you've been offended by the previous clips, please feel free to contact 1-800- TubbyHatesKids. I repeat 1-800- TubbyHatesKids. Your calls will be recorded, then deleted cuz we don't give a crap. But feel free to call the number and support your local blood drive today.

Psychonauts is the epitome of a great action/adventure platforming game. If you're looking for a fresh/new gaming experience, or just want a good ol' stomach cramping laughing fiesta, this is the game to go to.

Psychonauts gets 4 child abuse lawsuits.... out of 5.

Get the full article at GameSpot

"pspitus reviewed Psychonauts for the PC..." was posted by pspitus on Mon, 15 Apr 2013 06:13:43 -0700
]]> http://www.gamespot.com/psychonauts/user-reviews/810277/platform/pc/ Wed, 10 Apr 2013 23:11:23 -0700 DarkLink77 reviewed Journey for the PlayStation 3... http://www.gamespot.com/journey/user-reviews/810090/platform/ps3/ ...and gave it a 9.5!

I remember the first time I saw my co-op partner. I was in a large, circular ravine, trying to rebuild a shattered bridge by collecting pieces of cloth that would span the gaps.

I had just collected one of the pieces of cloth, and turned to see what affect that would have on the status of my bridge. It was coming along nicely; the cloth I'd collected had just repaired the second piece of the bridge, creating a flowing red path to the next section. Then, something caught my eye: another adventurer, clad in a red shawl like mine, flying high on his scarf. Until that point I'd been alone, guiding my red-robed wanderer through the sands, exploring the remnants of a civilization forgotten long before my character shook the dust of his (or her, it's impossible to tell) robe, and began hiking towards the mountain in the distance. But here was another person, who was drawn to the strange mountain in the distance the same way I was. He must have seen me at relatively the same time, because I saw him alter his trajectory in mid-air, and angle himself towards me. We met somewhere in the middle of the sands.


There was so much I wanted to ask my newfound friend. Had he played Journey before, or was it his first time? What did he think of the game? What was his name? But I couldn't ask him any of those questions, because the co-op and communication in Journey is restricted. I didn't ask him to join my game, and he certainly didn't ask to join mine. There's no way to invite your friends, and neither he nor I could see one another's PSN IDs. In the same way, there's no way to talk to your partner, at least in the traditional sense. The only means of communication the game offers you is a small chirp, activated by pressing the circle button. Holding the button down "charges" the chirp, until your character practically jumps for joy, shouting at the top of their lungs, and the sand around you ripples in response. In addition, the chirp also serves to power up your partner's jump, which is the only other mechanic in the game besides your character's ability to walk.

At first, this may seem like an arbitrary restriction on the part of thatgamecompany, but it fits with the rest of rest of Journey's design. It's a simple and elegant game that polishes the few mechanics it has to perfection, and then invites you to use the mechanics it does have to explore the world it lays before you. Despite the limitations in communication forced upon us, my partner and I got along swimmingly as we stuck our noses into every corner of the game that we could, finding bits of cloth to jump from, little murals revealing bits of the game's backstory, and most importantly, the collectible glyphs that extend your character's scarf, and give you more air time whenever you jump. We even figured out how to communicate on a basic level.

If it seems like I'm spending a lot of time on Journey's co-operative mode, it's because of how essential it is to the game. Journey did something I never thought a video game could do: it made me care about my co-op partner, and not because my success was linked to his. There is no failure state in Journey. You can't die. The game will never get too hard, and it will never stop you from progressing. The only way to "lose" is to stop playing. Instead, the biggest tragedy is losing part of your scarf, and in turn, part of your ability to jump. Losing a piece your scarf is emotionally crushing. After all, it's a visual representation of how far you've come over the course of the game. However, it's far worse to watch it happen to your co-op partner and realize how powerless you are to help them. You can't defend yourself in Journey. You simply try to get through the things the game throws at you while maintaining as much of what you've gained as possible.

As disheartening as losing your scarf is, however, losing contact with your co-op partner is worse. It might mean losing them forever, or having them replaced with another player. In the latter case, you'd never even know it happened. Yet, the idea of losing my co-op partner was incredibly stressful. Every time he disappeared from my view, I would stop what I was doing and try to find him. Strangely enough, he did the same thing. There was no gameplay incentive for us to do this. I could have finished the game by myself. He could have, too. But that wasn't enough for either of us. I wanted to finish the game with the same partner I'd had since the beginning. We'd taken this trip together. We'd watched each other succeed and fail. We'd shared triumphs and defeats. We'd each led the other to hidden secrets within the game. This story belonged to both of us, and seeing it through alone would have defeated the purpose.

Yes, Journey does have a story, and make no mistake, it goes far beyond the game's initial suggestion that you climb that mountain in the distance. It's played out through mostly silent, beautifully directed cutscenes at the end of certain gameplay segments. It's hard to describe what it's about without spoiling anything, so I'll simply say that the beginning is the end is the beginning, and leave it at that. And, of course, every story beat, and every part of the game, for that matter, are supplemented by Austin Wintory's masterful score.

It might be easy to say that Journey succeeds because it is more than the sum of its parts, but it wouldn't be accurate. Journey is the sum of its parts. It can be nothing else. It's a rare kind of game: the kind where every element is crafted to further one singular purpose. It's the kind of game that wants to offer you an experience, one best enjoyed with a stranger. And you will remember those experiences.

One particular moment stands out for me. My partner and I were moving through some ruins. It looked to be a structure of some sort that had fallen over onto its side. The sun was low in the sky, casting a bright orange glow over the world. We came to the end of the structure, and gazed out the opening on the right side. The world sloped down gracefully below us, into a ravine, the sand a sparkling orange under the light of the sun. We'd surfed the sands briefly before, but nothing like this. I gave a quick chirp, which had become code for "Ready?" In response, my partner leaped off. I followed after him, my character moving effortlessly down the shinning mountain of sand, my eyes searching for my companion. I looked and looked, but I couldn't find him. Just as I was about to give up hope, something caught my eye. A robed figure, like mine, further down the mountain. I sped up. He must have been looking for me as well, because he slowed down. We caught up with one another on the edge of the next platform, another twisting river of sand spread out below us. This time, he gave the first chirp, an apology and a question all in one. I gave a quick chirp, then leapt and sped off into the sands, wondering if he'd be able to catch up. Then suddenly, he was past me, and slowed himself. I caught up, and we raced down the sands, through the arches and the ruins, over the remains of a city the world had forgotten. Together.

Journey is adept at creating moments like that. It's a game that provides equal parts tragedy and victory, joy and sorrow. For all its mastery, however, the genius of Journey is that you will not remember it for the moments it builds for you. You will remember it for the moments you and your co-op partner build for yourselves. You will remember how those moments made you feel long after the credits roll, and that is Journey's triumph.

Get the full article at GameSpot

"DarkLink77 reviewed Journey for the PlayStation 3..." was posted by DarkLink77 on Wed, 10 Apr 2013 23:11:23 -0700
]]> http://www.gamespot.com/journey/user-reviews/810090/platform/ps3/ Tue, 26 Mar 2013 17:44:49 -0700 ad0234 reviewed The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim for the PC... http://www.gamespot.com/the-elder-scrolls-v-skyrim/user-reviews/809408/platform/pc/ ...and gave it a 9.0!

I still remember the first time I started Skyrim on my PC as one of the first PC games I had bought. Quite some time has past by since I've done that. But no wonder, after being astound by the visuals, I found out what was so amazing about Skyrim: I had never seen such a huge world within a video game before. After the introduction and first few hours with the game I knew I wouldn't regret the purchase of Skyrim.

---Presentation---

Skyrim gets a lot right, that's for sure. For one, the story is very entertaining and quite gripping. You play a character who was accidentally accused by the empire, which rules Skyrim, for belonging to the enemy (there's a war between the empire and rebels) and is supposed to lose his head. He/she gets saved by an sudden attack of a dragon, a creature that is actually said to be extinct, since the chaos the dragon causes gives him/her the chance to flee with the help of some other people. During the story you'll find out that the Dragons are back to take over Skyrim, and as it comes your character is the only one able to stop the evil dragons from mischievous plans. It's an exciting story that evolves in a good pace.

Of course, the main story is only the core foundation of what is to happen in this game. Along your way, choices you make affect the story a lot. Actually, you are the one who can decide how the story shall go on. While the main story will end the way it is supposed to end eventually, you may decide how your relation ship to different people are, are able to make crucial decisions that make one group of people to your friends, and another to your foes. And of course, you may decide whether you'd like to be on the good side, or the bad side. You even decide if you want to become a warrior, magician or even a thief. Skyrim has a lot of freedom where you self are able to decide what kind of person your character is, and are able to create your own story. With that said, while it is nice to be able to make such big decisions, the consequences of a few of the little decisions aren't always fitting. The majority yes, but sometimes the consequences of decisions you make are quite incomprehensible. Other times it also felt like the developers had squeezed in one or two too many different decisions to make, when multiple decisions had the same consequence, even though they were two quite different decisions made.

Another reason why Skyrim is gorgeous are the beautiful visuals. The many landscapes of Skyrim are beautiful to have a sight of. There's an incredible amount of details in the world of Skyrim, which can be considered surprising since Skyrim is so huge. Textures are also mostly good, though taking a close look at some objects might end with some unpleasant pictures. Despite some rather muddy looking objects, it's still an outstanding looking game. The same can't be said about the soundtrack. It contains some great tracks, but not very many memorable tracks. Actually there isn't a hell of a lot of music appearing in the game, a lot of the time there isn't any music at all to be heard, and it seems quite random when the music does appear, which does make for some unfitting moments of when the music suddenly starts to play again.

By all means though, what really makes Skyrim so special is that it presents us such an lively, beautiful and exciting world to explore. The world brims of charm, the game represents so many different areas, among them very different kingdoms, so many different characters with personality and other life; it really is amazing what Bethesda has done with Skyrim. They have put so much effort into this game to really give you the feel you're exploring a real, huge world. Not unexpected, but unfortunately, there are quite some glitches and other issues that hold the world of Skyrim back at times. The misleading consequences are only the beginning of many little annoyances that ruin the immersion of Skyrim's world at times. Glitches like getting stuck in environments aren't too common, but they do happen. I don't know about you, but I do perceive it as darn strange when a Mammoth suddenly takes off into the air and lands safe short after the take off. Also, while many people in the game have quite some personality to them, I did encounter people who all shared the same sentences. Which isn't really anything bad, though it also seems very weird when over twenty guardians all seemingly have a cousin who is allowed to fight dragons, meanwhile they have to do their generic, average job as guard. Well maybe they all share the same cousin, an unlikely but still possible solution. Another situation that bothered me quite a bit was the one time where an old lady had died and was lying in the middle of a street. After I had once left and then come back, the lady was still lying there. But the stupid part is still to follow: Whenever a guard who walked along the pathway came along the dead body, he said something like "oh geez, what happened here", knelt down, then stood up again and walked further on. After turning back and coming along the dead body, he did the same thing again. The chances you notice something like that isn't high, but if you do, it really does ruin a bit of the immersion of the world for you. The same goes for dead Dragon bodies, that like to lie in the middle of a way quite some time. Sure, this doesn't have to be unrealistic, but when people suddenly walk through the bones and pretend their isn't anything lying in the way, you do get an awkward impression.

---Gameplay---

Despite my complaints about the presentation of the game, it's still outstanding in general. The same goes for the Gameplay. Right from the beginning you'll be involved in some great action, with battles that look and play great. The main Gameplay aspect of Skyrim is simply traveling through the world and finding all the different areas, always finding more and more content as if it seems that the game does not know what an ending means. And in actual, it doesn't. There are so many different places to find, and so many different missions to complete, that I hardly believe anybody really is able to complete the game with a 100 %. And even if you do have found all locations throughout the whole entire world of Skyrim (which, again, is very unlikely), there are still the many different attributes of your character that you can always improve until there isn't any more to improve. And I'm sure there will always be some foes to have a fight against.

Of course, the game would probably wear out sometime. The main reason why Bethesda had put so much work into creating a world as huge as the one in Skyrim isn't because they expected their player's to explore every single spot in the world, but that players get the feeling their adventure is taking place in what could be a real world, which also leads to even more motivation exploring at least a part of the present world. And it really works. Whenever I come across yet another cave leading into the undergrounds, it's hard to resist for me not to take a peak into the cave. And mostly it ends with me going through the whole cave, beating the baddies that get in my way and coming out with yet another completed mini-adventure that might even be very likely a part of an mission you don't even know about yet. And it's always good to find more and more places since you can fast-travel to any of these places whenever you need to. Also, seeing always more places popping up on your huge overworld map is quite satisfying.

The amount of missions is just as mind-boggling. Granted, I don't know how many there are in numbers, but I know there are a lot. I've got many on my "to do" list, I have done already a lot, and I'm absolutely sure I haven't even seen a quarter of the missions in Skyrim. The missions are also very varied. Find someone or something, bring an object to a specific place or clear off a cage from all monsters in it, these missions are varied enough and most of them are entertaining, at least the ones I've played. The game also always indicates where exactly to go to complete the mission, which guarantees that you won't be stuck on missions because you don't know where to go. That is, except when a glitch appears that let's the arrow disappear, which should normally indicate where to go: then you've got a problem. Luckily, this glitch is a very rare one.

Of course you've got the freedom and can mostly decide which mission you want to do and which not, except the missions that are required for the story mode and other missions that are part of another type of a adventure you choose to take. The freedom of the game really is an awesome part of the game. For instance: you get to make the crucial decision whether to become a magician, thief or warrior. To become a magician for example, you'll have to visit the magic academy, which will then start a kind of totally new adventure for you, that's totally separate from the main adventure, which will then confront you with many more, new missions that become mandatory if you want to end that adventure as well. It really is fun to decide what your character shall become, and to create your own story of your own character.

One thing I didn't talk about yet is the combat: a very important aspect of the game. And it's fun generally. There are tons of different weapons, armor and other spells you can learn to help you in battles (you've guessed it, you can even make your own weapons and armor), and it's really fun using the many different attacks against your enemies, finding out which one's are the best. And combat is quite satisfying as well. No matter with what you battle your enemy, seeing him finally fall is pretty satisfying, especially when special death-scenes occur. Just watch out, as you never know if you're already powerful enough to battle against a specific enemy, or not. It probably won't always end good. Combat isn't masterful though. Without a lock-on system, it's easy to miss your enemy when in a steamy fight, which can make up for some briefly frustrating moments. What really can get a little frustrating however is when you slash right through an enemy and he doesn't take any damage. Doesn't happen too often, but the collision-system isn't always precise.

If there's anything I really have to complain about the gameplay, than it is the check point system. Since there isn't anyone, actually. The game saves automatically whenever you enter an area, house, cave or whatever. But otherwise, there's no automatic saving. Sure, I know, a proper check point system wouldn't be easy to do in a game like Skyrim, but always having to think of saving the game yourself can become a tiny bit annoying, and maybe even interrupt the gameplay a little bit. The real problem of this is simply that whenever you die, you get sent back to your last saving point. And if you have forgotten to save during a long period of time, you might just have to replay a whole lot you had played before. It happened to me once or twice and it wasn't a nice experience. Not at all.

---Verdict---

The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim is an exceptional game. Exceptional when it comes to size, freedom, imagination and design. The main story will lead you through many exciting locations and moments, and it's only one little fraction of what is to be found in the game. But instead of just squeezing in a lot of content into a game without giving it a lot of thought and attention, most of what is to experience in Skyrim is a simple joy, with incredibly lots of content and lots to do, may it be exploring the huge world or trying to pump your many different attributes, and the game makes sure that the game still has a lot of content to be discovered after you finally get tired of the game. Put all remaining issues together in one game that mar Skyrim and you will be confronted with some of Skyrim's weaker moments not too rarely, but compare it with all the positives in the game that deserve to be mentioned, and the issues of the game seem undeniable tiny. No matter how long you expect the game to entertain, you'll be satisfied in the end. It is an everlasting game.

The Good
+ An absolutely gigantic, lively and gripping world that will always have much more content to be discovered than you plan on to discover
+ Huge number of missions with lots of variety, most of them entertaining
+ Beautiful visuals
+ Good main adventure that should keep you hooked until the end
+ A lot of freedom that lets you create your own story of your character
+ satisfying combat with many, many different fighting options
+ Overload on content that you will most likely never ever experience totally

The Bad
- technical problems and other weird moments ruin a bit of the immersion Skyrim's world creates
- automatic saving system barely even exists

Review Score: 9.0

Get the full article at GameSpot

"ad0234 reviewed The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim for the PC..." was posted by ad0234 on Tue, 26 Mar 2013 17:44:49 -0700
]]> http://www.gamespot.com/the-elder-scrolls-v-skyrim/user-reviews/809408/platform/pc/ Thu, 21 Mar 2013 23:42:37 -0700 ps2fatboy reviewed The Walking Dead: Survival Instinct for the PC... http://www.gamespot.com/the-walking-dead-survival-instinct/user-reviews/809191/platform/pc/ ...and gave it a 4.0.

ok movie and tv show tie-ins do have a bad history in games, but last year telltales games did something, they created an original game with characters that you cared for and some suspenceful gameplay,it got rave reviews was a great game, how could this game go wrong it has actual characters from the show, Daryl Dixon and his older brother Merle, well activison have and terminal reality decided to just, rehash old gameplay and graphics i mean this game looks terrible, i thought aliens colonial marines was an ugly game, this is worse, i thought i was playing an xbox original game from 2004 the dated graphics aren't the only issue,the story is a prequal to the events of the show,but it just does'nt hold up,it weak and also been done to death,i knew what to do before in game characters would ask me,there was a real lack of ceativity in this game which is a shame,as the show and comic books are a huge success over the world, this should of been a no brainer, some ideas in the game are good when you get into a struggle with one of the walkers you have to aim down at the head to kill them or you will just stab them, but this idea cant hold this game up,its just really flawed,and buggy even the zombies just looked like they were taken out of another game and put in this one hell even the scenery aswell. looks like activision just wanted to get on the money wagon on this and didnt really care about the fans. do yourself a favour and wait for telltales season two of the walking dead and avoid this game like the undead.

audio 7/10 use of the tv show theme and the two main actors voices helps this game ,but not much
visuals 3.5/10
would be a great looking game in 2005 but in 2013 dreadful.
gameplay
3./10
predictable and repetitive
total score

replay value
0/10
no multiplayer or co-op so if u do the story mode im sure that would be it
overall score
4/10
has potential then just ruins it over and over again

Get the full article at GameSpot

"ps2fatboy reviewed The Walking Dead: Survival Instinct for the PC..." was posted by ps2fatboy on Thu, 21 Mar 2013 23:42:37 -0700
]]> http://www.gamespot.com/the-walking-dead-survival-instinct/user-reviews/809191/platform/pc/ Sat, 09 Mar 2013 02:55:02 -0800 OreoMilkshake reviewed Castlevania: Lords of Shadow - Mirror of Fate for the 3DS... http://www.gamespot.com/castlevania-lords-of-shadow-mirror-of-fate/user-reviews/808545/platform/3ds/ ...and gave it a 6.5.

The Castlevania series received a reboot and Mirror of Fate continues that narrative with a bridge story from the last game to the next. Before, the stories were complete trash that gives you an excuse to whip your way through massive castles with fun abilities. In the case of the new story driven Lords of Shadow games, the stories are still complete trash but with much smaller and linear areas, the problem remaining in Mirror of Fate. You play as three different characters; Simon Belmont, who is out to get revenge on Dracula for killing his father. Alucard, who wants to assist Simon in his quest. Then when you're about 66% through the game, control switches 30 years into the past, giving you control of Simon's dad, Trevor, and telling you the story of what happened to him exactly. The ending was actually a unique plot twist that I enjoyed and was surprised by. A cool thing the game does is, when you play as Simon, you see glimpses of someone else giving you a hand behind the scenes during a boss fight or during a cutscene. When you play as Alucard, you learn that he was the one that was helping Simon as you need to solve puzzles that help Simon get past traps that you'll remember playing as him. It's a unique story mechanic that is sadly wasted on a boring story.

Many may complain about the change of combat from previous Castlevania games, but it seems a welcome addition because of the implementation of the combo system. Your combos can immobilize an enemy and make it that much less tedious to defeat a damage sponge that would take forever if you did it the old way. You can swipe an enemy into the air where they will be completely defenseless to your excessive pushing of the Y button from that point. You'll unlock more combos as you level up, most of which prove useful and satisfying to pull off. You're not at all invincible, though. Some baddies just break right through your combo and kick your ass so the dodge system is useful both on the ground and air. When you take damage, you take a lot of it, so you can adjust the difficulty at any point if need be. The harder you make it, the more tedious combat can get, however. Aside from standard combat, there are a few moments where you'll have to use quick-time events, such as in a cinematic boss battle. It may sound bad just watching these moments in 3D is very thrilling so pressing a few buttons to keep you in the action is A-ok. Each of the three characters gets their own unique set of skill and sub-weapons but this feature is very poorly implemented. You use some of the skills solely to open doors and solve a puzzle or two. I'm not even sure if some of the stuff was useful in combat since you need to take your thumb off of the circle pad to activate them and it doesn't feel necessary most of the time. More clever uses of the abilities would have been very welcome.

At first glance of the touchscreen, the map has the same visual style as previous games but turns out to be very deceptive once you're exploring it. The game is extremely linear with very few branching paths that just lead to dead ends with a scroll or chest so this makes backtracking more boring than before. You can leave a note by dragging one onto the map, which should be displayed larger, so you can remember to where a door or chest is once you get the ability to reach it. Since you'll be walking down the same path with very few fast travel points, it just becomes annoying to go back and forth. It pads out the games already short length, which can be about 8-11 hours depending on how much you pace yourself. There is a big positive here, and that is the platforming. There is a lot of it and the game will have you swinging across grapple points, wall jumping, climbing up platforms that are moving down, and double jumping over spikes. It's surprisingly fun and something that should always be in future games in the series.

It's not the prettiest game ever, but it doesn't look terrible either. Textures can look low rez and muddy up close but you don't really notice it when everything's moving around. Monster and character animations are done pretty well and the game likes to throw some cheap but oddly cool 3D effects out at you, mostly during cutscenes in slow-motion. Story focused cutscenes are done in a weird paper-mache style but sadly nothing really animates a lot including mouths. Cinematic battles happen often and they are astounding to watch in 3D. Normally, this stuff is pretty lame but I got a great thrill out of it. The framerate is rather slow as you can always tell there's some choppiness in almost everything you do. The choppy framerate creates a slight blur in your character which might get distracting from time to time, but it isn't so slow that it becomes nauseating to play.

It's hard to discuss Mirror of Fate's music without looking it up on Youtube to hear it again, as there is practically nothing memorable to draw attention to your ears. The music that's there certainly fits the dark theme and atmosphere but it's nothing special at all. Music is a very subjective subject, but when thinking about Mirror of Fate's music, Dawn of Sorrow's tunes pop into my mind instead. On the other hand, we have a bit of voice acting here and each character has some sort of European accent. Since the story is so boring, it's hard to care how good a job the actors did but they're good for what it's worth.

Fans of the series may be disappointed but the combat and platforming is enjoyable for the few short hours. It's hard to justify the price on what feels like an eShop game on steroids.

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]]> http://www.gamespot.com/castlevania-lords-of-shadow-mirror-of-fate/user-reviews/808545/platform/3ds/ Tue, 05 Mar 2013 17:16:40 -0800 ps2fatboy reviewed Sniper Elite: Nazi Zombie Army for the PC... http://www.gamespot.com/sniper-elite-nazi-zombie-army/user-reviews/808312/platform/pc/ ...and gave it a 8.5.

what another zombie game really?, yes but a very fun and addictive one, i did'nt see much advertisement for this game, i saw some you tube trailers and thought why not, its ony 15 bucks on steam,
the gameplay is simple go from one area to the other blasting zombies to hell, its been done before i know that,but what i like is that its from a sniper point of view, your trapped in a alley with a horde of nazi zombies stumbling across to you, you do a steady aim and crack one maybe two or even 3 or 4 threw there heads and seeing the graphic x-ray view point from the previous game its brutal,but satisfying to see,also the type of zombies you have are great to, some have dynamite strapped to them and charge at you wanting to blow you up, or the sneaky sniper ghouls who leap from building to building,and then there the slow moving ones who will move on you or pop out of nowhere and try and tear you to pieces,the gameplay and mechanics are identical to sniper elite v2,even the back ground is, just all has changed ruined buildings and now in night to add to the atmosphere,what i was really surprised by was the music,it had an 80's suspence horror vibe to it,which worked for me, the solo mode in this game is enjoyable,
the co-op is even better you can have up to 4 players trying to defeat hitlers undead army.im not sure,what the online is like but from the videos on you tube it looks to be a blast.
ok the faults now sometimes when your in cover and try to get out of it you get stuck, or the trying to run away from the nazi horde the control system might let you down.
also the inventory setup was alittle confusing specially when you want throw a grenade and set up a mine instead.
but i really did enjoy this game,even if its just another zombie cash in its actually done well and i recommend this to anyone who wants to kill zombies, instead of playing zombies on cod or left 4 dead.
its a different type of zombie fun in the 3rd person ww2 style.
visuals 7/10 zombies look cool ,could been more inventive on the towns
audio 9/10 music and groaning zombies very creepy
gameplay 8.5/10 shooting zombies in the head fun,inventory could of been better.
overall 8.5 /10

zombie nazi madness
gameplay trailer down below
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z42Hh20-7hM
[img]http://pc.sysblog.info/images/2013/02/61539.jpg[/img]

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"ps2fatboy reviewed Sniper Elite: Nazi Zombie Army for the PC..." was posted by ps2fatboy on Tue, 05 Mar 2013 17:16:40 -0800
]]> http://www.gamespot.com/sniper-elite-nazi-zombie-army/user-reviews/808312/platform/pc/ Sat, 16 Feb 2013 05:31:53 -0800 ps2fatboy reviewed Aliens: Colonial Marines for the PC... http://www.gamespot.com/aliens-colonial-marines/user-reviews/807577/platform/pc/ ...and gave it a 6.5.

ok so many negative reviews,do they have merrit,yes and no,i wanted this game to be the ultimate aliens game unfortunatley it isnt,what it is though is fun with friends online or co-op splitscreen,
ok lets start with the bad the textures and framerate is pretty bad in spots,also the ai of the aliens and some teamates is borderline dumb,its get frustrating when you hurt and your ai teamate watches you die,or the aliens just pop out of walls all choppy and stuff really takes away the feel of the aliens universe,also i wanted to be **** scared playing this,i wasnt i was just shooting,then going into another room and shoot some more.
Ok im done with the negatives what i did enjoy was playing this in co-op mode one of us used the tracker while the other waited for the aliens or human enemies, yes you read it you shoot people in this game but i ruin to much for you,that was fun working as a team,taking down aliens,also finding logs from the characters from the movie and also finding legendary weapons which were cool,the story mode if played by yourself i think you wouldnt like it that much unless a diehard alien fan,but with a friend or two or 3 its enjoyable,the mutiplayer is alot better better than story mode survivor was a very cool mode as 4 marines need to last as long as they can against aliens, the typical deathmatch is there to hopefully there be mode mutiplayer modes like a horde be cool but to early to tell, its a real shame that this game isnt the game we all hoped for yes its fun and is an ok shooter but with history of the whole aliens universe,here why on earth did it looked rushed in parts honestly some graphic were bad so i dont see why gearbox naffed it up really the game does look only half done,which is a real dampner im a huge aliens fan this just wasnt the aliens gam i hoped for ..who needs to answer to this im not sure gearbox i mean i saw video of such cool moments that arent even in the game so what happend,they the potentail to make the ultimate alien game and yet only made a passable shooter for a fun few hrs with mates rekindling on how this could of been the ultimate aliens..when its not shame on you gearbox... story mode gets a 5.5 out of 10 multiplayer gets a 6.5 out of 10

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"ps2fatboy reviewed Aliens: Colonial Marines for the PC..." was posted by ps2fatboy on Sat, 16 Feb 2013 05:31:53 -0800
]]> http://www.gamespot.com/aliens-colonial-marines/user-reviews/807577/platform/pc/