By now we all know that the majority of movie tie-in games are mostly laden with crappy over used game mechanics, lack of development time and a distinct lack of imagination which causes gamers to want to blow their brains out that they’ve just spent upwards of £35.00 on a brand new title. Hollywood has already given them the sandbox of possibilities yet the crunch period often ruins the results. High Moon Studios are back again but this time with Dark of the Moon. War for Cybertron was an admirable effort from the development studio but is their latest title?

The game’s basic premise is to go around killing decepticons within various locations of the world. Each level on the single player involves you using a different robot and with that you’ll have different abilities, whether that be grenade launchers, armor piercing rounds, laser projectiles etc etc. The most fun part though is transforming into your disguised machine, this can be anything from a jet aircraft, suped up hot rod car or for those that enjoy simulators a big rig. It’s the transforming element of the game that yields it’s funnest moments, even if the car handling is a little sketchy keeping the driving locked in to the right analogue stick. Bizarrely though it’s in the transformed mode where arguably you are at your most dangerous. The weaponry feels ridiculously powerful considering this is the method you are using to become mobile and agile against enemy fire. It is then that an element of strategy is taken away from the game when one was added from giving us this ability. High Moon should have left the most powerful tech to the auto-bot pose, the mightiest weaponry when you are least mobile, in a risk/reward style play. Unfortunately the only real strategical element you will get from the game on the single player at least is by hiding behind cover to avoid enemy fire. Easy is too easy and medium is actually on the difficult side at times when you factor in some of the random enemy spawning, especially in locked out arena areas. Whilst the game serves up some nice moments it’s all too linear and all too repeatative. It’s quite surprising when you factor in the different robots you get to play with but fighting wave after wave of decipticon for pretty much every level in the game, within locked out areas just becomes rather frustrating and when you throw in respawning after dying several times (due to totally bullshit enemy spawning), it’s enough to drive you crazy.

The game itself is pretty short, though it’ll feel like a lifetime with the repetition going on. Graphically the game is average and the sound passes you by with some poor robot dialogue and just the audiables of the reminicent iconic theme tune from the films filtering through throughout the game. None of the music actually adds to the atmosphere of the experience. If credit is due anywhere it’s with the games multiplayer and the single player FMV’s. These are nicely rendered and engage you enough to keep you playing and was for me the only thing that kept me playing the game past the second hour mark. The boss fights within Transformers aren’t anything special but they serve up a nice inter-change from defeating the decepticons the same way, one mission involved squashing a huge decipticon boss with the foundations of a building, nice.

So that’s the single player, what about the multiplayer? I was quite surprised by the multiplayer if I am honest. The lobbies are very similar to that of COD and the ability to veto certain maps for a movie tie-in game I thought was a nice added gesture. You can customise your character by it’s liveries and weaponry and as you raise up through the ranks, new abilities and upgrades will become available to you. There several robot classes which included the transformer vehicles of rigs, jet aicraft, cars and tanks. This helped spicen the gameplay up and each vehicle you use has an individual rank attached to it. These can be switched each re-spawn should you want too as well. The ability to transform adds a half decent layer of strategy, but kills do not feel satisfying at all. It’s the spongy bullet impact that once again detracts you from fully becoming involved in the multiplayer experience. You are at times left wondering how the hell you died, even though you had a round of bullets in your opponent prior to them actually killing you. The maps themselves are pretty decent, from high rise buildings, to mountain tops, each map will give you the opportunity to cover, perch and stealthily move around undetected. There are only three multiplayer modes but anymore than that and it would be difficult to get a game. Standard DM and TDM applies and Conquest also makes an appearance. I actually liked this multiplayer experience more than Section 8: Prejudice and that deserves some praise.

Overall you could tell that High Moon Studios were pushed for time. There was never any big enough moments in the game to feel like you were really kicking ass and the moments you did spend with over robots in the single player never felt utilised properly. Destroying wave after wave of enemies works for games like Earth Defence Force but in this environment more invention wouldn’t have gone a miss. Especially considering we are looking at a movie license which has unlimited scope to what it could achieve.

Another point and click release by Telltale Games, the masters of the genre. This time they delve a little into the more out of step area with logic puzzles taking presidence and frequently too. How does this game fare? Watch our video review.

This week ladies and gents I will be reviewing DiRT 3. The latest installment of the old Colin McRae’s Rally series and third game of the Dirt franchise, which dropped the Colin McRae tag some time ago in the American versions of the game. Hopefully Codemasters can continue to capture lightning in a bottle with another stellar racing game. In recent memory every time the boys at Codemasters have touched a racing game it has been amazing across the board.

When it comes to outright gameplay Dirt 3 is in a class of its own. The time behind the wheel part of Dirt 3 is, as has become the franchise norm, phenomenal. Codemasters continues to walk the fine line of arcade and sim racing expertly, giving Dirt 3 just the right amount of speed, aggression, and power beneath the pedal to counterbalance the rigid set of simulation rules.

The meat of the game will be spent in the Dirt Tour. This is basically the games single player campaign. You start out with a few vehicles and begin unlocking more sponsors and vehicle types as you level up. You earn experience by doing the normal routine of winning races and completing challenges. Perhaps one of the best features to be brought into this years game is the new Gymkhana mode that puts players in obstacle courses, challenging them to perform various tricks to earn points. In the Gymkhana events you get to free roam the Battersea Station located in London. This is the very same location our own James Ireland had the opportunity of visiting a few months ago as part of a promotional event for Dirt 3, where he personally got to see none other than Ken Block tear up the course just as you can in the game.

The DiRT franchise was a bit slow off the mark when it came to online gameplay this generation; DiRT’s online multiplayer can be neatly summed up as glorified real-time time trials. Not fun. Now Codemasters have come full circle – DiRT 3 comes bearing zombie cars, cats and mice. Fun. They’re part of a new collection of online multiplayer modes drawn together under the title of party games. They’re mostly fun diversions (diversions being the key word here). Not entirely fleshed out (only a handful of limited maps) or balanced (rarely will the uninfected win in a packed zombie game, for example), but fun and bursting with potential. A stepping stone to greater things in the future, I hope, be it in the form of DLC or in their next hybrid racing title (give us GRID 2 already). I can even see Top Gear’s rendition of car football slotting perfectly into the mix.

Infection (zombies) is initially the best of the lot, but grows old much faster than Cat and Mice, where the Cats chase down the Mini Cooper Mice and attempt to hold up the opposing team’s mouse so that theirs can get to the finish line first. Transporter (capture the flag) is also enjoyable, though I would have preferred the team version of Transporter to have been a more classic version of ‘capture the other team’s flag whilst they go for yours’, with a large map and each team based at either end, rather than the ‘hectic free for all on a tiny map’ that it is at present. Invasion is easily the worst: hit robot cut-outs for points, avoid the cityscape cut-outs which deduct points. Meh.

All of the single player racing types can be played in multiplayer – even the DC Compound and Gymkhana – both competing solo or as a team, with up to 8 players, online multiplayer or offline split-screen. There’s also a non-HUD, assists-free and forced camera ‘Hardcore’ mode. My only value complaints rest on the number of locales – a few more would’ve been great – and the way the party games don’t yet feel fully fleshed out.

DiRT 3 continues Codemasters’ reputation for making absolutely stunning racing games; the graphics are exceptional. It’s a cliché to say that you were so distracted by the visuals that you crashed out, but this truly happened to me towards the end of one of the Finnish tracks. I can’t help but feel the vista was positioned there for that precise reason. Landscapes are lush, all of the tracks absolutely beautiful and stunningly lit, and the plethora of weather settings – snowy, windy, rainy, dusty, rainy, sunny – are a sight to behold. The more extreme ones – like snowstorms, or night time races – are marvelous and introduce new challenges thanks to the way they obscure your vision.

Damage physics and modeling, which the EGO Engine is famous for producing, feature in all their glory. You’ll lose tires, doors, windows, bonnets, and scraps of your car; dent, mark and deform your vehicle, and truly enjoy the game all the more for it, doubly so if you’re using the superbly detailed in-car view. The flashback feature also returns, which allows you to watch those fatal, glorious crashes over and over again (and you will, trust me), before restarting at a point of your choosing sometime before your demise. Twinned to this, you can also upload clips to YouTube, if that’s your kind of thing.

‘So it’s perfect, right? Why haven’t you given it a 10 for presentation?’ Trust me, it would’ve been a tempting proposition, one that I would have agitated over for some time. Unfortunately, sound design and certain areas of menu presentation are so frustrating that they made it any easy decision not to give it top marks in this department. In-game, everything is great; engines roar, purr and whine appropriately, tires screech, and there’s a great licensed soundtrack which plays when you’re working your way through the menus.

The negatives are all outside of the gameplay. Unfortunately, Codemasters have sought to introduce the dreaded beginnings of a story, or at least characters and dialogue, to the series. You have a team, you see, of advisers and annoyances, and they see fit to hold your hand through every new section of the campaign, as if you’re too stupid or dense to figure anything out for yourself. These portions of unnecessary, tedious and slightly cringe-worthy dialogue are, alas, entirely unskippable, so as soon as you’ve finished playing a personal game of ‘guess the horrific accent’ you’ll be more than fed up of waiting. Note to Codemasters: less hand holding, peddle back on story elements, only introduce dialogue if it’s absolutely necessary and let us skip the tutorials, thanks.

Always a joy to look at and enjoyable to play, thanks to its superb visuals and tightly honed gameplay, I highly recommend DiRT 3. This is, without a shadow of a doubt, Codemasters’ most packed racer ever; from the single player (campaign, time trials, single race, DC Compound and stats galore) to the multiplayer, it’s brimming with content and adds more than enough to the franchise to justify a third entry this generation.

Ever since the dawn of man there have been nerds. And since the dawn of these nerds known typically in its Latin name Nerdus Maximus, required some sort of outlet to allow them to live out their fantasies of trolling around dungeons so as they could slay Goblins, Undead Skeletons, and of course dragons. It was a long hard road for the nerd as it waited year after year until finally on a cool misty morning way back in the year of our lord 1974 the call was answered. Dungeons & Dragons was its name! And while John Travolta was busy looking like a fruit cup on the dance floor, nerds were silently rejoicing in basements and YMCA leisure rooms everywhere.

Now here we are in 2011, D&D is alive and well as ever. In the near four decades since its original conception it has since spawned several revisions in the form of comic books, action figures, cartoons, full length featured films, and last but certainly not least Video Games. Some of the most early renditions landed on some ancient platforms like PLATO, Intellivision, and some very old home computers. Since then it has moved on bringing us games like “Pool of Radiance” for the NES, countless renditions for PC & Mac and now finally D&D receives and HD coat of paint in Dungeons & Dragons: Daggerdale. Developed by our mates over at Bedlam Game Studios out of Atari, promises to be a dungeon crawling good time.

The game takes place in the Forgotten Realms on the fictional continent of Faerûn in Daggerdale, a region in the Dalelands. Players will enter areas such as the Tower of Void and the Mines of Tethyamar. Dungeons & Dragons: Daggerdale centers on the desperate struggle to defeat the evil Rezlus and his Zhentarim in their attempt to invade and conquer the Dalelands. Players are charged with the task of restoring order to the Dalelands by unlocking the secrets of the Mines of Tethyamar, defeating the evil within the treacherous Tower of the Void, leading to the final confrontation with Rezlus himself.

The first thing we are going to want to do before setting out on our epic quest is to create a character. All the classic types are here; as you can choose from being a Dwarven Cleric, Human Fighter, Elven Rogue, or the Halfling Wizard. No matter which character you choose you will be able to kit him or her out with a wide assortment of weapons, armors, and clothing to make the character really feel like your own. Starting off I am choosing the Elven Rogue since that is the character I typically play in RPG’s like Dragon Age: Origins which on a side note has many similarities to the gameplay aspect of Daggerdale. But more on that later.

Once you’re done selecting your race/class and abilities, weak though they may be, that will change very soon once you begin leveling up. The actual gameplay is like a perfect marriage of Origins and Diablo. Combat is fluid and fast-paced without being over the top. Lesser enemies can be dispatched with ease and great cunning. As a Rogue I was easily able to switch from melee combat to the use of my short bow so as to keep distance from much more alarmingly sized foes. Overall I would have to say the combat is great. It’s engaging and most importantly fun. There is an noticeable pick up and play quality present here that you don’t see too often in role-playing games.

While this is definitely a hardcore dungeon crawler it didn’t skimp on the RPG elements. Upgrading your character is done via earning xp, which you receive for killing enemies, completing side objectives and handing in quests. With leveling up comes unlockable weapons, armor, and abilities to make your character stronger for the much more difficult enemies that lie ahead. The games flawless inventory system works very well and it is easy to manage. If you are new to these types of games I don’t think you will feel over whelmed with the amount of customizing that takes place.

On the presentation side of things Daggerdale is surprisingly pretty damn good. The environments are beautifully done, however repetitive they may come. But that is expected in a dungeon crawler. The game takes place in a dark place similar to that of the Deep Roads. And while some areas are re used for different missions, I never got tired of going back to loot and pillage more coin and upgrades for my character. The audio is good as well. It creates an atmospheric feeling that reinforces the simple fact that you are in a gigantic fucking cave where voices tend to echo and the constant sound of dripping water is ever present.

If you are feeling lonely and don’t want to tackle this game on your own don’t worry because you are in luck. Daggerdale not only has a split screen option to play with a friend or spouse, but you can also jump online with up to three additional players. You aren’t aloud to repeat any classes in the online though. The game has 4 specific classes/races and you may only select one of each. So if your with a group of dicks fighting over who get to be what, than find a new group of friends mate. The cooperative drop in/out mode is completely seamless. A mate can drop in to assist with a few quests and then pop back over to their game and bring along any goodies they picked up while playing with you.

All in all D&D: Daggerdale is a complete RPG experience with all the dungeon crawling elements the series is known for. The best way to describe this game is if Bioware’s Dragon Age got together with Diablo and had some sort of super baby that retained both parents best qualities, you would wind up with D&D: Daggerdale. And with a campaign that covers four chapters it should take around 12-15 hours to complete the main story, but the life of the game is easily extended if you choose to play through again with different characters. This game really does offer an uncanny amount of gameplay for an Arcade release. I would have been happy paying for a full version of this, so 1200 msp or $15 is great deal. You can pick up Daggerdale now on the PC and Xbox 360. Presumably if Sony ever gets their shit together you could get it on the PS3 too. Cheers and Happy Dungeon Crawling!

Also on a quick side note, Atari has announced that Daggerdale is the first game in a planned trilogy, which is amazing news. I can’t wait to see where the franchise goes next. As of now there hasn’t been a release window given as to when we can expect to see the Daggerdale sequels, but stay tuned to wedogames.net regularly and we will be sure to let you know anything that comes along. J

After nearly eight years in development the time has finally come and we as gamers get to play the 1940’s detective epic that is LA Noire. There aren’t going to be many opportunities for us as gamers to experience a completely new genre of gaming. LA Noire offers this and much more in a familiar style of gameplay. Noire may be an open world game, but it is nothing like its GTA counterpart or last years smash hit Red Dead Redemption.

In LA Noire you play as Cole Phelps, a decorated World War II veteran and a young beat cop on the rise. You begin your journey as a relative noob on the job as you walk the beat playing a uniformed police officer. Things start to change quickly for Cole as he gains notoriety for his ability to put the pieces together from a crime scene and incredible interrogation skills. After solving a couple of murders you get a promotion and a new partner and begin working as a detective within the Los Angeles Police Department.

What LA Noire does different from other Rockstar titles is that it’s much more narrative driven. There is a great story to be told and Team Bondi didn’t want us straying to far off course. So if the elements of GTA like being able to do whatever you want than Noire might not be for you. You don’t go out bowling or playing pool with your cousin Roman and you certainly don’t go around shooting civilians for the fuck of it. But that isn’t to say you can’t do a bit of exploring. The boys over at Team Bondi have done an incredible job recreating 1940’s Los Angeles. You can drive around all 8 square miles of this marvelous city. Playing the game almost makes me wish I was from LA just so I could visit the street I lived on and see what certain areas looked like back in the day.

Other than the main story which should take around 15-20 hours to complete there are 40 side missions which are street crimes. You receive these missions as you drive around the city over your car radio. These can involve anything from bank robberies, suicide jumpers, and a man wearing a pot on his head to block radio waves from seeing his thoughts while beating a gas station attendant to death with a baseball bat. All of the side missions only take but a few minutes to complete, but some of them are rather memorable. You can also go around and find collectibles in the city to extend the life of the game and replaying missions to get a perfect score is important if you plan on getting all the achievements.

Enough really can’t be said about the graphics in this game. The character models faces are stunning. Rockstar has set the bar and over the next few years I would expect nothing less than this type of technology being in every game. There is so much information from the graphics alone that the game spans over 3 discs on the Xbox 360 version while the PS3 is on a single blu ray. I am reviewing the 360 version and I have noticed a few times where the frame rate dipped and some tearing was visible. I have installed all three discs to my hdd and it took up over 20 gigs of space. I can’t speak for the PS3 version as to whether these graphical hiccups are taking place, but hopefully this can be sorted out down the line with a patch.

When it comes to the audio side of things LA Noire comes up aces in all categories. The voice acting is top notch and probably some of the best ever to be featured in a video game. Smooth jazz and other music of the 1940’s fills the air creating a beautiful atmosphere to immerse yourself in. All the cars and weapons also sound great, with one exception. As part of my pre order bonus I received a code for the Chicago Piano Gun which is basically a Thompson with a drum magazine. The first time I pulled it from the trunk of my car and fired it the audio never stopped playing. I reloaded the gun and then threw it on the ground but the audio glitched or something and I repeatedly had to hear the gun firing until I restarted the disc.

Overall I have to say I am really enjoying LA Noire. Rockstar games have been getting better with each title they put out and it’s the same this time around. I do recognize that this game isn’t for everybody, but if you ever wanted to be “that guy” who solves murders and gets the bad guy at the end of the day than LA Noire is for you. I for one love watching police dramas like Law and Order or CSI, so far me this game is right up my alley. You can pick up LA Noire now for the Playstation 3 and Xbox 360 in America. If you live in the UK or anywhere else in Europe you will have to wait until Friday the 20^th to get your hands on this goodness.

I have been a long time supporter of Sony consoles. Ever since the days on the PS1 when I enjoyed playing games like Crash Bandicoot, Metal Gear Solid, and Tomb Raider. I also had a PS2 on day 1 and loved playing great titles such as God of War, Socom, and Shadow of the Colossus. But now we find ourselves in 2011 with the battle lines drawn. For most gamers that aren’t fortunate to have both consoles, their opinions usually wind up being very one sided and ignorant. I however do own both consoles and after playing both of them for the past four or so years I can finally say without a shadow of a doubt that the Xbox 360 is the clear winner.

First thing that needs to be mentioned is the controller. The PS3’s controller feels so dated and is in much need of an upgrade. The analog stick position is awkward at best and always has been. Playing shooters on L1 and R1 just feels flat out wrong. And design points aside, the sticks are practically fucking broken. The dead zones on the Sony controller are absolutely ridiculous. You need to literally move the sticks more than half way to the outside to have any type of movement register. Where the PS3 fails in regards to the controller the 360 shines. It feels better in your hands, stick placement feels organic, and the triggers feel almost like shooting a gun. The winner hands down is the 360.

How do the games play? I would say close to 95 percent of games are developed on the 360 and then ported for the PS3. This comes across in the gameplay, graphics, and overall feel. Most games, especially shooter feel so much better on Xbox. The only games I purchase for the PS3 are the exclusive titles. I’m talking Uncharted, God of War, and Gran Turismo type games. Now while those three titles are amazing, for most gamers it really wouldn’t warrant purchasing an over priced console just to play one or two games a year. I do think when it comes to exclusives the PS3 has a slight edge, but overall the 360 is better at running multi-platform games.

The online is a no contest. Sony flat out fucking sucks when it comes to online. You need to look no further than the recent atrocity going on. The PSN has not only been down for over two weeks, but it went down on will be probably one of Sony’s top 3 games for the year, Socom 4. Which by the way sucked hairy goat dick. And let’s say the PSN wasn’t experiencing this current crisis. It is still a pile of shit. No cross game chat is a joke. This is reason enough alone to purchase a fucking Xbox. I spend more time in party chat on the 360 than I do actually playing games. Also 360 servers almost never are down, and on the off chance they are you get notice weeks in advance and it is usually down in the middle of the night and only for a few hours.

Overall you can clearly see this is no contest. Xbox 360 is by far the best console available today. PS3’s ability to play blu rays and the occasional game isn’t reason enough to own one. If you own a PS3 and are on the fence about getting rid of it because of the current situation with the PSN, think no more. Get down to Gamestop and trade in the hunk of crap for a real console. Last time I checked you can get around $130 for a trade in and 360 costs $129. So there you have it, stop playing that fail of a system and get on board with a real console. Xbox 360 FTW!!!

Might & Magic Clash of Heroes

Might & Magic Clash of Heroes was released this month as a downloadable game on Xbox 360 and Playstation Network, it was formally released on the Nintendo DS in 2009, which was made by Capybara Games and was published by Ubisoft Entertainment.  

It follows five young heroes leading their armies to save the fate of the world of Might and Magic. As they each embark on a journey which will bring the player to several different territories each with its own challenge and enemy.

Clash of Heroes combines elements of role-playing, turn based battle system and puzzle fight scenes.  It allows players to explore the world of Might and Magic doing the main story quests or the optional side quests, speaking to locals and of course able to level up your characters.

Clash of Heroes has several options on the main menu, the first is that of the Campaign, next is that of the Quick Battle mode, which is good if a player wants to play a quick fight and finally the multiplayer with online/offline options, which is a new feature to this downloadable game.  The offline multiplayer allows the player to play 1vs1 or 2vs2.  Whereas the online multiplayer allows the player to play other players or friends online and it also keeps your online stats on leader boards.

Playing with a friend in the two versus two battle mode you both share control of the army, which means both of you will need to cooperate and strategise attacks to win the battle.  This adds a new aspect to game, instead of just you controlling the whole army, both you and your friend have to set up units, to attack or defend yourself, this mode will be popular if you like playing co-op with other players and I really liked this mode due to myself liking co-op strategy games.  If you have played the original game for the DS you would know that it did not support online multiplayer, but this HD version does and I would say this is one good reason to pick it up on the consoles, to test your skills against other players or just have fun playing with a friend.

To the unique part of this game the puzzle battle system.  It is set up with the screen split in half horizontally, with the enemy troops at the top and yours at the bottom.  It is also set up in a grid formation so it makes it easier to see and organize the battle field in front of you. 

You have two main options when playing, you can either set up a defensive line or an attacking one to attack your enemy or defend yourself against their attacks. Either way for doing this is by assembling the same colour troops, this here is the key matching the same colours troops together either in horizontal to defend or vertical to attack troops or directly to the bosses health bar.  Once an attack is formed together it can take several turns before it will activate and attack, but it is all down to what unit types it is, for example archers will only take one turn to attack while others may take more turns and so on.  So really the more colours you matched together the better off you will be either to attack or defend yourself.

On top of that each turn you have you have a limited amount of moves you can use to set up your defensive or offensive line, or to try and match your opponent’s attacks, this will require the player to calculate every attack against the enemy, which puts a fun spin to this game.    This is just a basic overview of the battle system it has a much more to offer the player and the game will explain them in more detail.

Clash of heroes has some beautiful level and environments for an arcade game as well as the animation style of the characters are done well.  You can save pretty much at time throughout this game, which is a good benefit for the player, easy to pick up where you left off at.

My overall thoughts about this game, it was unique and different way to play RPG’s with the puzzle based fighting, it did take me a while to get used to how to play the game, but after I picked that up I really enjoyed it.   Saying this people who enjoy puzzles games and RPG’s will enjoy this game, not forgetting the fans of the series they will enjoy this game, with the HD graphics as well as other new features.  With the long single player campaign and even the multiplayer players will have fun exploring and spending many hours playing this game.  I would recommend that if you are a fan of puzzles or RPG’s to pick this game up, you will enjoy it.

It is out now, for XBLA/PSN for 1200 Microsoft points or £9.99 on PSN.

For my second review this week I will be tackling Socom 4, the latest installment of the series from the guys over at Zipper Interactive. As a fan of the original titles for the PS2 and later versions on the PSP I was excited to hear about the decision to put a single player campaign back in the game. The last game named Socom: Confrontation was multiplayer exclusive and wound up being a huge disaster. Hopefully Zipper can catch magic in a bottle once more and wow all of us with a hit game.

Now that the fluffy intro is done and over let’s get down to business. At this point in time I have fully completed the campaign on the hardest difficulty in a shockingly short 4.5 hours. Now while the short length does bother me, it was also a relief that the game was over. That boys and girls is never a good thing. Zipper did a complete about face on this one and strayed so far from what was so great about the originals that if you hadn’t told me it was a Socom game; I honestly wouldn’t have guessed it. While the originals was most known for its multiplayer in an era where online gaming for consolers was a relatively new thing, the single player was just kind of there for most people as a side note but I absolutely loved it. When you played Socom 1 or 2 you felt as though you just stepped into the boots of a real Navy SEAL. That being said, before I sat down to write this review I actually had to check the box to see if it still said U.S. Navy SEALS under the title, which it does. But for the life of me I couldn’t tell you why. Nothing about this game says Navy SEALS.

In the brief campaign you play as two people, Cullen Gray, whom is a commander of a NATO Special Forces unit. And Lieutenant Park or Forty-Five as she is more commonly referred to. 45 is the commander of a group of South Korean soldiers who all met their end early on in the game only leaving her and a companion named Chung. 45 and Chung tag along with the NATO squad for the remainder of the game. There really isn’t that much story in the game. The characters aren’t very memorable with the exception being 45, and that’s only because she has a cool nickname.

Most of the campaign involves your crew starting at one end of a compound or city area and following an extremely linear path to its conclusion where you usually plant c4 on some object and watch the dull explosion afterward, that your crew usually stand right next to and manages to not even wince. The fun parts of the campaign were playing as 45 on stealth missions. I enjoyed these the most, though I don’t think most people will agree with me. The reason I liked these parts is because it almost felt like the originals. The thing that made those first games so great was the attention to realism. You were usually dropped outside of a territory by helicopter or made some type of midnight amphibious assault, completed a mission without even being seen, and moved out for extraction. There is virtually none of that present in Socom 4. They were basically trying to be more like the big boys of the shooter genre by adding campy acting and a meaningless plotline. Furthermore beyond the basic squad commands of regrouping or running to a bit of cover, the game just didn’t feel very tactical. When I think of tactical gaming, a game like GRAW comes to mind. There were virtually no advanced tactics available in this game, and for that they getting nothing but a big fat F.

Something else that has to be mentioned briefly is the atrocious control scheme. My god. The controls for this game are so fucking wonky, to put it lightly. Triangle for crouch? WHAT THE FUCK WERE YOU THINKING?!?! There is no quick way to switch weapons. If you are in combat and run out of ammo you are basically fucked. You need to stop, hold L2 for what seems like a god damned eternity then press the d-pad button to a different weapon. Hears an idea Zipper. MAKE TRIANGLE THE WEAPONS SWAP! I mean, almost every fucking game we play has that button for changing weapons, apart from the few games that have four weapons, but those games conveniently map them on the d-pad for quick and easy access. Circle takes cover, another weird ass button choice. I swear to god it was like these fucking jack asses have never played a modern shooter. It’s OK to be different, but the controls in this game are fucking stupid and complex.

Now that I am done reviewing the fail of a single player campaign, let’s move onto multiplayer. OH WAIT! I couldn’t play the fucking multiplayer. Why? Because it doesn’t fucking work. Yeah that’s right. Every time I clicked to join the Online I was met with an error saying I wasn’t connected to the Playstation Network, when I clearly was. I checked my connection, ran the connection test, and tried several times over the course of two days to play the online. I did some research on the interwebs and found out I am not the only one experiencing this problem. I’m not quite sure what the issue is but they better fix it fast or you are going to see a lot of used copies at Gamestop. Oh and on the off chance someone makes a smart ass comment like, “Did you put in your online pass code?” Yes I did you hypothetical moron.

Presentation overall was decidedly…meh. On a PS3 exclusive you come to expect a lot more in terms of graphics. The game doesn’t look bad, it just doesn’t look great. When I think PS3 exclusive, graphical juggernauts like Uncharted, God of War 3, and Gran Turismo come to mind. This game isn’t even in the same universe. I would compare the graphics to something more like…Kane and Lynch. The first one, not the second. The audio is pretty bland too. Guns virtually sound identical. The music is an annoying Asian sounding music you would hear playing in the Chinese buffet whilst chowing down on some dim sum.

Overall, in case you couldn’t tell, Socom 4 was a huge letdown. Nothing to great about the single player and the multiplayer didn’t even work. I did play the MP beta once and it didn’t really wow me. So even if it did work I wouldn’t have expected much. I would have to say pass on this one, at least for now. Wait until it comes down in price for like 20 bucks or something. The quality of game on display here really doesn’t warrant shelling out 60 dollars. In stead take that money and pick up Portal 2, it is literally the BEST game I have ever played.

Finally the long awaited day is here and I now get to delve deep into debatably the greatest 2D fighter of all time. I have fond memories of playing Mortal Kombat on the Sega Genesis (Megadrive) as a child. I also remember how crazy the media and parents went over the horrific visuals for the time. MK was the first video game to institute a rating system that until that time was non existent for video games. And since then we have come to see M or 18 ratings slapped across the cover of a game without anyone batting an eye lash. With the ninth major title installment and a new developer in Never Realm Studios and Warner Bros. publishing we will see if MK can capture the magic of the original games which has been absent in recent attempts by the former owner of the MK rights, Midway.

Mortal Kombat looks to return to its roots in this installment in a big way. Over the years the MK series have tried lots of different things, some working and some not. One thing I was glad they ditched was the open world story format from MK Deception. While I respect that Midway was trying to give the series some depth in Deception’s Konquest mode, it really missed the mark in almost every area. Well out the door with that pile of shit and meet the brand new story mode. I am really glad how the developer handled the story. Now in the very first game all you got was an arcade style ladder mode without much narrative. The story in MK9 comes as a combination from the original game and the original Mortal Kombat movie. The story plays out via cut scenes between your matches. Each chapter is dedicated to a different fighter where eventually you get to fight the legendary Shang Tsung and stop the end mankind that was envisioned by Raiden. There isn’t much more to the story, and that is what makes it so great. It’s simple to the point and doesn’t try to be something it isn’t.

As with everything else in this game the combat has stayed true instead becoming an over simplified button masher that any moron with thumbs can pick up and play. We have seen this recently with any one of the recent Street Fighter rehashes. Who knows maybe they can remake Street Fighter 4 for like the 10th time and actually get back to basics with Super Duper Street Fighter 4.5 HD Turbo Advanced Alpha 3D. But enough of that pile of cow shit and back to MK, a game that actually delivers the goods. Kombat is fluid and all your favorite Fatalities and Babalities return alongside each fighters traditional Signature Moves. New to the series however are the X-ray attacks. Basically what you have is a bar at the bottom of the screen, and when it is filled you can unleash a devastating strike that goes slo-mo and shows you the actual damage you are causing internally on your opponent. Each fighter has their own unique bone crushing x-ray maneuver and they are always fun to watch.

And what would a modern day game be without Online? It would be SHIT!!! So in order to avoid being shit MK offers a great online experience where you can battle your friends and perfect strangers to a fight until the death. You can play your standard 1v1 and Tag matches which are great. The online runs smoothly and up until now I have yet to experience any lag. The new kid on the block is the King of the Hill mode. In this mode you and about 7 other players are put in 1 lobby where you take turns in matches and try to stay on the controller by beating everyone. During the matches people who aren’t fighting can cheer and boo accordingly with their avatar’s which line the bottom of the screen in a movie theater style setting, with all the action taking place up on the big screen. There is no leveling to the multiplayer which I actually quite liked. It takes the pressure off trying to level up and instead you can just pop on for a bit of fun when you’re feeling randy.

Visually, Mortal Kombat 9 is stunning and by far the best looking of the series to date. The combat runs at a smooth 60 frames per second on consoles. Lighting and textures all look phenomenal. Most of if not all the backdrops for the different stages have been seen before in other games. What they have gone and done is made everything look a lot nicer. They put a nice HD polish on everything and added in some moving background. All of the fatalities look sharp and the x-ray moves will always entertain. There aren’t any 3D capabilities in this game but to be honest it isn’t needed. I have seen what they did on the 3DS to Street Fighter and it was pretty shit. It was basically 2 separate images laid over each other to play a trick on your eyes.

Not too much to mention in the realm of audio on this one. I was kind of hoping to hear that techno MK song that’s start with the guy yelling “MORTAL KOMBAT!!!!” that shit always gets me going. Pretty much just your bog standard Mortal Kombat audio tracks with all the glory of dripping blood in 7.1 surround sound.

Overall I have to say that Mortal Kombat is a must buy for fans of fighting games. They did a bang up job going back to what it did best and you have to respect them for that, I think. You couldn’t ask for a much better game than this from the boys at Never Realm. I for one am looking forward to playing this one for quite a while.

Review

Pros	Cons
Returned to its roots, 60 frames per second, reliable online	no Mortal Kombat theme song

Rating

95%

Presented By 

Good evening or very early morning, depending on your perspective. I just got home from the midnight launch from my local Gamestop in Ocean Township, New Jersey. What a fucking launch it was. There is nothing I love more that a midnight launch event, surrounded by around a hundred people with one thing in common, the love of video games and the mind set to refuse waiting one second more to get the game they have been salivating over for past months.

There was a good mix of fans there that provided for some interesting conversations. The usual topics came up of course. Xbox 360 vs. PS3, COD vs. Halo you know what I’m talking about. I usually find myself thrown in the middle of these arguments and I am usually put in a position where I need to lay down the law and shut everyone the fuck up. I did however hold back in this instance since I was there on an official capacity. The big reason there were so many different people attending was that there was not one, not two, but three huge titles releasing tonight, which yours truly now has possession of. I picked up Mortal Kombat Kollectors Editon and Portal 2 for the Xbox 360 and Socom 4 on the Playstation 3. I opted out of getting the $150 Move/Sharpshooter bundle that was offered with Socom simply because I tried the sharpshooter on Killzone 3 and wasn’t impressed.

Another big happening at the launch event was the games truck. What is a games truck you might ask, well let me describe it. Image a tractor trailer kitted out with a long leather couch on one side and on the other, multiple flat screen televisions with Mortal Kombat on half the TV’s and Socom 4 cover the other half. Around 24 sweaty gamers were crammed into this mobile video game sweat box at a time to get a chance at glory in either one of the live tournament going on.

Fans fortunate or smart enough to show up before 11:30 PM were entered in a raffle to win a free copy of Mortal Kombat on the system of their choice. Unfortunatley yours truly didn’t win, and I had to shell out the full hundred dollars for my Kollectors Edition. Insert sad face here.

All in all the night went off without a hitch. I am glad the wait is finally over for this epic night and I can now enjoy having a new lineup games to play, beat, and review for all of our terrific readers. See below for my unboxing photos and don’t forget to check back throughout the week as wedogames.net brings you reviews for all three games I picked up.

Hello kiddies! It’s your good old pal Joker here again with another review. This week I will be taking a look at The Masters or Tiger Woods PGA Tour 12, whichever you prefer. Before continuing I would like to add that the much talked about “How to Fuck a Porn star” mode has been removed. Also not included in the final title was the mini game I really was looking forward to where you get to play as Elin Woods and smash the shit out of Tiger’s Buick with his Nike branded 7 iron. But I’m sure there will be plenty of amazing action in store for all 17 people who purchase this game every year.

Now at first you might be saying, “Joker I have been having so much fun playing Tiger’s 2011 edition of the annual golfing simulator. What’s in this year’s version that warrants me shelling out another $60 for a game I basically already own?” Well I will tell you. As the games title suggests for the first time in the franchises storied history you will finally get to play in The Masters at Augusta National Golf Club. Fans of the series have long asked for the addition of The Masters and finally at long last EA has decided to shut them the fuck up by throwing a bone the consumer’s way. The game also features the debut of commentary by the one and only Jim Nantz and the return of David Feherty. There have also been a few new golfers added to this year’s roster. Rickie Fowler, Bubba Watson and Zach Johnson will be featured in the game along with the already stellar list of golfing talent.

If you’ve played even a single Tiger Woods game over the years, then the game mechanics of The Masters should be familiar to you. It’s always as if no time has passed between iterations of the game, and that’s in a good way. Sure, every year comes with tweaks and ‘improvements,’ but the core gameplay has remained the same for a long, long time now. This means that, if you’ve spent the time and effort to get good at the game, it will still come pretty easy to you, and you should be able to get to the meat of it quickly.

It is for you, then, that the new caddie function will seem especially useless. Instead of you choosing your club length and aim yourself, there’s now a little helper that tells you what he thinks would be the best scenario, given your lie and distance. And, to his credit, he gives you a couple of choices, which essentially breaks down to you taking the easy way out and losing a stroke or two, or being a little more bold and trying to tear the course a new one. Here’s the problem, however, with that. After years of playing the game, you will already be likely to attempt (and make) shots that no actual golfer in their right mind would even try.

Now, this is a risk/reward scenario, and you might shoot yourself in the foot, but when it pays off, it pays off in a big way. Your caddie, however, doesn’t seem to see things the way you do, and even the ‘risky’ shots he suggests are going to put you in a hole, from which you might never recover. You can disable the caddie function, and I highly suggest you do so, especially if you’re a veteran player, because you’ll be looking at a lot of long, difficult putting if you listen to your caddy. This is especially true since, and you are not told this at the start, your caddie improves his judgment with your gameplay, so he starts off not being a particularly good one. I can be my own not-particularly-good caddie, thank you very much.

Speaking of putting. Putting in The Masters might actually be harder than putting in real life. I have played a lot of mini golf arcade games in my day and fancy myself to be pretty damn good at them. But this fucking game is in another galaxy when it comes to putting. Several times I would find myself on the green with just two strokes on a par 5 only having to five put my way into the fucking cup no thanks to my dumb shit of a god damned caddie. But I digress. Goosfraba. Goosfraba.

The problem with the putting is that it can be really difficult to read the greens on your own. And on the other hand if you put trust in your caddie it can usually wind up bad, because as I stated earlier the quality of your caddies advice may vary. So when he tells you to aim over here and hit it this hard and you do all those things expecting a good outcome only to find your ball rolling 35 feet past the fucking cup, the word frustrating often comes to mind. Or maybe I would like to take my digital golf club and shove it sideways directly up my caddie’s digital corn hole.

Putting aside the putting there are some good things about this year’s installment. The “Road to the Masters” mode is extremely deep. Almost as deep as my caddies ass hole after I’ve performed my 7 iron colonoscopy. You will be able to take part in 16 events leading up to The Masters tournament. Starting at the bottom in Pro Am events, than joining the pros and eventually being invited to Q school where after completion you can participate in the Masters.

I should add that if you want to 100 percent complete this game you will need to crack open your wallet for a hefty amount of DLC. Day 1 this game launched with an additional $230 worth of content available. Now I have heard of day 1 DLC before but EA has just taken it too far. With online passes, day 1 dlc, and content specific to certain consoles it seems there is no end to the amount of greed EA has when it comes to collect our hard earned money. Now while you don’t need any of this DLC to complete the game, if you don’t it will leave a glaring hole in your career progression and leaving a 100% completion rating impossible with out shelling out some serious cash.

Beyond the career mode there are also quick game modes, versus where you can play locally or online against a buddy. The Online mode isn’t particularly deep but you can earn career xp to level up your created golfer and spend those experience points on leveling up or unlocking new clothing items from the pro shop.

From a presentation stand point I would personally say the game feels slightly dated. There hasn’t been much done in the realm of updating the graphics. Character models look dreadful even the games star player Tiger Woods doesn’t look as good as he should when you look at the treatment players have gotten in other EA games. The grass looks sort of flat and there isn’t any real detail. The audio however is top notch. Commentary by Nantz and Doherty is fantastic and really helps to set the mood in The Masters.

Overall I would say that Tiger Woods PGA Tour 2012 is a pretty good bang for your buck. Even if you purchased last years installment I would think that fans of the series and newcomers alike will be drawn in by a chance to finally chase down and win the coveted Green Jacket. And while there are some rough patches in the gameplay I would still find it hard to get a better golfing experience without leaving the comfort of your living room.

The very first Ghostbusters film premiered in 1984, the year I was born. That’s 27 years and it seems like just yesterday that my father introduced me to the amazing film on video cassette when I was five years old. Since that time I have seen both films countless times, watched the “Real Ghostbusters” cartoon growing up, had probably every single toy that was produced in the early 90’s, and very much enjoyed the recent Ghostbusters video game that was produced by Atari. That being said I was over the top with excitement when I heard the same developer was coming out with a twin-stick shooter Arcade title. Can Sanctum of Slime hold up to close scrutiny and live up to my expectations? Let’s find out.

Starting off I was met with the Sanctum of Slime title screen and the traditional Ghostbusters theme song. So far so good. In Sanctum of Slime (SOS) you can choose to play the campaign in either single player with 3 AI companions or in multiplayer where you and up to four friends can play together. I opted to choose single player my first time out so I could get a feel for the game and do some exploring. Right off the game just didn’t feel right. The entire games story is handled through comic book cut scenes and text bubbles that were next to impossible to read and you couldn’t even pause it so that you could finish reading it. I was playing on a 55” television, so if I am having trouble reading the words, I could only imagine how somebody might feel on a smaller TV.

After about ten minutes of letting these boring comic strips play out I find out that I won’t get to play as one of the four original Ghostbusters. Not only that but they won’t even be featured in the game outside of the shitty comics. Instead you are forced to choose one of the four rookies that have been hired on to help out the Ghostbusters because business is booming and they needed some new hires to take care of the extra work. So after choosing some asshole named Grundle or something I finally get to play the game. The first thing I noticed while playing was that the AI were about as useless as a second ball bag. In fact the only thing the AI did do well was revive me when I went down and even that was a problem. If you go down in single player all three AI’s will come to your aid in an attempt to revive you, completely forgetting about any enemies in the room. More often than not this leads to your partners getting knocked out because they aren’t fighting the enemies.

So after a couple stages in I figured I would try my chops at the online. Thinking that maybe playing with humans would be any better than these thick cunts. We started up in the third level and the first couple rooms went smoothly and than we got to a mini boss. We failed to kill it, got killed and were forced to try again from the room we were in. The checkpoint system by the way is just about the only thing done right in SOS. After being defeated one of the players quit and now it was down to me, 2 other players and an AI. So I figured ok let’s do this. We died again which I guess angered the other two players into quitting. So now I was left back where I started with 3 AI in this room and I figured what the hell, they must have just sucked. I’ll take this bastard down myself. How wrong I was. This thing kicked my ass, after about 30 tries I dash boarded and vowed to try again later. I did try again later but to no avail. I just couldn’t beat this room and I consider myself to be an above average gamer. I always play campaigns on the hardest difficulty but for some reason this fucking game is just unbeatable for me.

The gameplay alone is enough reason to not pick up this game. It really is bad. So you might be asking did the game do anything right? Well I will say that the graphics were good for a top down twin-stick shooter. Most of the twin-sticks I have played are Indie games and it does feel like some production value went into make this Arcade title. The proton streams looked really nice, the enemies were varied, and each level had its own distinct look. I did however have some trouble locating my ghostbuster on screen at times. You all look the same, fire the same weapon and yes there are different color rings around your character but if you lose focus for just a second you will find yourself searching for your character on screen.

As far audio goes it kind of fell flat for me. Other than the original theme song in the games main menu there really isn’t a whole lot going on. The proton packs didn’t sound like they did in the movies; in fact they barely made a sound at all. You are basically forced to listen to dull background music that eventually get drowned out when you’re in combat.

So overall I would have to say that SOS was a huge let down for me. The game play was repetitive, stale, and all together felt bland. The game got way to hard early on and with no way of adjusting difficulty I think a lot of people will feel the same way. There is a free trial available on the game marketplace so if you are a huge Ghostbusters fan you might want to give it a peek, but I’m sure once you try it SOS will have you begging for somebody to save you. It seams the games initials hold up, as I am issuing an SOS call to the developer to Save Our Souls from this massive pile of cow dung. Ghostbusters Sanctum of Slime is available now on the Xbox Live Marketplace for 1200 msp or on the Playstation Network for $15.

Homefront has been penned by John Milius (Apocalypse Now) and the plot twist and turns most certainly contain the trademarks of his work – sadly with the in-game engine running all of this narrative (an in-game engine that doesn’t really play too well for delivering emotional character renders or has the graphical might to pull this off) it detracts away from really absorbing the story and feeling emotionally pulled by it. It would have been better to have CGI cutscenes between chapters in places to really add that sense of drama. Whilst it doesn’t grab you by your seat there are some moments that play with your heart strings but I’ll spare the detail as we don’t want to ruin it or you. Matching this up with other single player FPS games it would be fair to say that some of its conventional FPS annoyances seep through which can make the whole experience frustrating at times. Enemy spawns are deliberately used to create firefights and increased the longevity of the game and on Normal difficulty expect to get spammed with grenades and die some really cheap deaths – probably a good idea that we never did any live single player video capture for this game as the amount of obsenities that we screamed whilst playing this would be enough to turn a nun blue.

Another problem with the single player is that there really isn’t much scope for altering up how you complete missions. You are ordered to follow your team mates consistently throughout the whole game and whilst this works well for the more stealthy aspects – given the opportunity to lead rather than be lead would have added more strategy to the play. It’s especially annoying when you want to go down a rat tunnel or through a door only having to wait for your team mates to catch up – lazy bastards. With those gripes aside the only other critisism is the graphics. Homefront is not blessed with blissful visuals, the games graphics sits halfway between Hour of Victory and Call of Duty 3. Whilst the graphics are sub par for consoles this far into their development cycle – it goes without saying that some of the residential areas that are created have a spectactular amount of detail, from school playground equipment to a war torn White Castle, they have created an experience as realistic as they could with the engine that they have.

The shooting mechanics in Homefront feel satisfying though the Grenade throwing is ropey with the game struggling to hold the grenade animation at the Gas Station, a minor bug perhaps that never was found in the QA. The games atmosphere is realised with a ever evolving back score and the constant sound of shelling reminds you – you are in a fight much bigger than just the area you are in. Homefront does a nice job of mixing up the action and one of your main attributes will be controlling Golliath which is basically a remote control humvee with a .50cal attached to it – satisfying.

Homefront is a slow starter but past the 1 hour mark it starts to get more interesting, it’s single player is arguably too short but I do feel that really depends on your skill level. The game is probably enjoyed best on Easy difficulty as the game has a habit of using cheap tricks to increase the difficulty level (grenade spamming). It’s a steady FPS with an interesting plot but one which lacks polish and any sense of invention. However, it is the multiplayer that sets this game apart from the rest of the pack. Homefront’s multiplayer gives you everything lacking from Battlefield and Call of Duty: Black Ops and melds it into such a strong experience that it is quite frankly the finest Multiplayer experience we’ve played this generation, but more of that on our Multiplayer review!

The recent events in Tunisia and Egypt have shown that people do have power despite what we are fed by the mainstream media. The turmoil in the Middle East and Africa has shown that unity and a common purpose can overthrow corrupted governments that have long overstayed their welcome. The recent protests in both countries have caused political change. There is hope for a brighter future for those that have been ruled by political hierarchies poisoned by greed and power. 

We stand at a similar position here in the United Kingdom. Recent government actions have caused many to lose their jobs and many to rely on the welfare state whilst others lives have changed by the rapid cuts to the public sector, yet many of us stand idly by and allow this to happen under the propaganda played down by the Conservative government that these measures are necessary to restore our economy. Unfortunately government propaganda is nothing more than a smokescreen, we’re led to believe that our previous Labour government are to blame for these measures of austerity when in fact it was a manufactured implosion by world banks to gain more political power and swallow up smaller banks in the process. This isn’t a conspiracy, this is mere fact. 

Egyptian civilians stand up against corrupt Government

One of the most powerful tools in achieving these aims are through suppressing public outrage by distraction, one of those distractions are TV but the other is a much more powerful, a much more immersive distraction, a distraction myself have battled to deal with – video games. We live in a society where we work ten hours a day and are pummelled senseless with advertising and we are told that rich and fame are the two cornerstones of which we should strive for in our lives. These ideologies further serve the financial backing for the big conglomerate companies to carry on their malicious work. For around five years now I have tried to ignore the atrocities around me by escaping into the world of video games, delving into the matrix world of code and polygons as my synapses absorb every ounce of entertainment crafted by the many talented video game developers in the world. It’s the escapism itself that nullifies my need to stand up and be counted, it creates numbness from the outside world and in essence this is a very dangerous path to go down. 

The media are very quick to demonise the video game industry for violent video games or video game addiction but what the media should be focusing on is that video games are very good at desensitizing the population from caring about the more important basic fundamental principles in the world. As millions die of starvation, malnutrition or are innocently blown up because of tides of needless war we’re all too busy battling our own wars between people on games consoles. Sure, its entertainment and pretty enjoyable but as technology continues to develop experiences will become so immersive that they’ll almost if not indefinitely be considered as an absolute necessity maybe even an alternative to live life in itself. Some may say that the film Surrogates (that stars Bruce Willis) is a little too far fetched but such technology isn’t actually far away from delivering experiences directly to the brain. Some might say that the events in Total Recall are completely preposterous but RFID and nanotechnology already exists and being experimented on as we speak. 

The man who brought you Xbox also wants to bring you vaccines that quell population overgrowth, do the maths!

Whilst we are not at the realms of technology to deliver the ultimate distraction, we are delving deeper into a world of no return. Already today’s entertainment is producing a dumber society, a society of lazy people that are by and large happy to be raped for their every penny as long as they can go home and watch X-Factor or escape from the rigors of life by playing through hours of developed code for the satisfaction of a trophy or some added gamer score. What’s even darker about this end game is that Microsoft’s Bill Gates is a key player politically and has spoken openly about using vaccinations to curb population growth. Bill Gates speech at TED 2010 was an eerie insight into the mind of a man using climate change as a means to justify eugenics, yet myself and many others are still buying his manufactured material possessions. 

Even with the likes of Gates ideologies in plain view we are programmed to want the latest technology has to offer, I myself am still despite the subliminal dangers of distraction am some what looking forward to what Microsoft serves the public in future home entertainment production. How many of you can seriously say that you’ve never skipped an evening out with your friends so you can play Xbox? How many of you can plausibly deny that you’ve skipped work in favour of playing the latest Playstation 3 release? With this in mind I think we have a very small percentile that can honestly state that they have never done this, but for those that have – can you see how these entertainment mediums are changing your habits, distracting you from the outside world? I have fallen into that category myself and it can feel very much like quick sand, it’s so easy to get lost in a game – to not care about what is going on around you but something has got to give. I’m not saying for a minute give up what you enjoy doing, I write about games almost every single day of my life, though with recent realisations that may be less of a factor, but what I will say here is that it’s time to disconnect yourself and see the other game that is being played around you as we speak. We are all being played like pawns in a global game of chess and if we continue to stand idly by and allow the corrupt governments, banking institutions, globalisation and the financial oligarchy take control of every single resource and clamp further on our civil liberties it may actually be too late to do anything about it all. 

We live in a police state to control you, not to protect you.

Turn off your consoles! You are perfect as you are, you do not need to buy cosmetics. You do not need to own the latest home theatre system and you don’t need to enslave yourself to this web of debt our society is in. You also don’t need to be distracted from the important things in life; family, justice and freedom. Step away from your machines and question everything around you, once you are fully aware and have unplugged yourself from the matrix you will see that these facets of entertainment are no longer as important as you once first thought. In the fight against adversity these entertainment devices we all love should play second fiddle whilst we readdress the balance and bring back core values to our society, to my fellow human beings in Tunisia and Egypt I show solidarity, we have the power to make things right – it is not game over yet. 

If you are interested in finding out more about the world we really are living in, we recommend watching the following documentaries. End Game 1.5, Fabled Enemies, Money Masters, The Obama Deception, Outfoxed, Loose Change Final Cut, The Keiser Report.

This week EA’s Visceral Games studio has released the long awaited sequel to the amazing 2008 release, Dead Space. The sequel already seems set to out sell the original which really isn’t that much of a surprise. The first game didn’t get much of a marketing campaign and not a lot was expected from it. But for the fortunate ones that did get to enjoy the original they were treated to one epic single player campaign that just begged you to replay it. Dead Space had almost what I would describe as a “cult” following, where the ones that played it loved it or hated it, but no matter what you had to tell a friend about it. Which in part was what made the original so great.

You return in Dead Space 2 as Isaac Clarke. The engineer we all grew so fond of in the original. This time around Visceral has decided to not only give Isaac a face, but he can actually talk and interact with the wide array of character that talk to him through his suit’s communication system. Another new edition to the game is the setting. The first game took place on the abandoned planet cracker known as the Ishimura. And with a new location comes a new way that the campaign plays out. On the Ishimura each chapter was treated as a different section of the ship as you worked your way from one end to the other. In Dead Space 2 however, you play on the Sprawl. This is an abandoned space station. The Sprawl is filled with all of the comforts of a modern major city. There is a school, church, shopping mall and everything else a person could need. All of these different settings play as a creepy background to what used to be a bustling hub of commerce for those that lived there.

You start out the game waking up on the Sprawl in its psychiatric hospital, without an explanation as to how Isaac arrived there. You awake in a straight jacket with a fellow inmate by your side and you two are attempting to get out of dodge. Shortly after you will work your way to a familiar store like in the first game, where you can get your engineering suit and your brand new plasma cutter.

The gameplay in Dead Space 2 feels just like home to fans of the original. The controls are the same, you have all the same abilities, and weapons all feel familiar. A few changes that can be noted are that they have made your kinesis a much more usable feature as a way of killing enemies. Everywhere you look you can find random steel rods that are begging to be picked up and hurled at enemies. You also feel a little faster moving in the game. In the original you almost felt like a “Big Daddy”, clunking around the Ishimura. But in the sequel Isaac seems to move gracefully, and his melee and stomping attacks work much more fluidly than the original game.

The first Dead Space had some amazing graphics, and this time around it’s no different. This game has some of the best lighting effects I’ve seen. And the use of light is used in such a way where the developer almost doesn’t want you to see certain things, so they can later scare the shit out of you when you approach these areas. Textures are all phenomenal just like the first game. And a slight tweak I noticed was to the beams that are emitted from your weapons. In the original it was a solid beam no matter where you went. But in the sequel light seems to cut through the beam, in a more realistic fashion and you can just see the point of contact in some areas.

The fantastic graphics are not the only feature making a comeback. The award winning sound is also back. Audio is a huge part of the Dead Space universe. Playing this game with the lights low and wearing a pair of top notch headphones is highly recommended, as it really helps you immerse yourself into Isaac’s shoes. Clanking metal and horrific screams in the distance fill the atmosphere and will constantly have you checking behind you to see what the fuck that noise was. In one of the most memorable parts of the game you work you way through what used to be nursery school, and you can hear children’s music playing, that just makes it feel absolutely creepy. Sometimes you will hear recorded announcements over the Sprawl’s PA system which reminds you that just a few short weeks ago people were actually living here.

Another new feature being added to this already great game is the multiplayer. When I first heard about the addition of multiplayer I had my doubts. I thought we were going to be getting another tacked on pile of shit that has been done countless times with other games. The “human vs. creature” model is nothing original and usually plays out as expected. But in Dead Space 2 I was blown away by how fun the mp can be. It is insanely addictive. With a leveling system, and unlockable weapons, suits, and abilities for the necromorphs that is on par with any other multiplayer giant on the market, you will find that the mp is not only good, but it is fucking fantastic. There are only 5 mp levels, which is my only gripe with the mode to be honest. Hopefully this can be addressed later through dlc.

In multiplayer you play as either the humans or necromorphs. The humans play just as you would in single player. You start with a pulse rifle and plasma cutter, which you can later upgrade and earn new weapons and suits through leveling. As the humans you are always trying to progress through areas with different types of objectives. These objectives range from destroying objects, retrieving data discs or parts of a machine, and delivering said objects, or sometimes just activating a terminal. As the creatures your sole purpose is to do anything you can to impede the said humans progress. When you spawn you get to choose which type of the four available creatures you would like to play as. Each necromorph has a different spawn time based on the strength of the creature. These range from the babies or “Pack” which can spawn in about two seconds and at the other end is the Spitter which takes about 8 seconds to spawn, but with you patience comes great reward as the Spitter is stronger and has long range capabilities as well as a ferocious melee attack.

Overall I would have to say they Dead Space 2 is an absolute must own. With a campaign that can last from 10-15 hours depending on difficulty, and the inclusion of an unforgettable multiplayer this is one not to be missed. I am about half way through the campaign on Zealot difficulty and have yet to find a single flaw in the games mechanics. Visceral have managed to take a great game and make it even better with the slightest of tweaks. This game should appeal very much to fans of the original as well as bring in some new ones. I would look in the near future to see sales of the original to increase after newbie’s to the franchise get a taste and can’t wait for more.

When Electronic Arts acquired Criterion several years ago, one thing that always rattled my brain was why they never utilised them to re-invigorate the Need for Speed license and raise their games from mediocrity to the truly exceptional. For me, Burnout Paradise taking the free roam avenue wasn’t the best move forward but keeping a structured affair with multiple routes the best form of practice. Well, it appears that Criterion finally got their chance as the NFS series once again took a polar shift from realistic to arcade one fell swoop. Firstly though let me iterate that when I say Arcade I do not mean to the lengths of Outrun or Sega Rally. Hot Pursuit still has plenty of simulated depth in terms of how cars handle from each other, but without the petrol head spectacles and a Haynes manual between your eye balls. Needless to say if you prefer spending your racing hours tinkering with your suspension than actually having fun then this game isn’t for you.

Need for Speed has the DNA of Burnout Revenge coupled with some of the handling and similarities of Undercover. Its single player progression bares a lot of similarities to Burnout along with the almost identical looking world map that was featured in Burnout 3: Takedown. The unique twist for this re-invention of the memorable Playstation One title is the fact that you can progress through the game playing the law and against it. The experiences are both enjoyable as you use an array of realistic weaponry to outrun or destroy your opponents. Playing as the Police doesn’t mean you get stuck with any rusty rides either. In order to compete with the racing scene in Seacrest County the Police are also equipped with some of the worlds most powerful machines known to man. Hurtling down the variety of landscapes in rare beauties from Maserati and Aston Martin is an experience to behold. The events range from winning races, winning races and outrunning the police at the same time, time trials and take down events which either take place in a group of cars or on a 1vs1 basis. Progress through the game with good results and you’ll unlock a car almost every single race.

The unlock system is very similar to what we already know with previous Criterion games. If you complete events under a certain time band, position and takedowns you’ll get classed into rankings. Better rankings equals a bigger wanted level or respect level within the police force. For completionists it opens up a scope to play the game for longer. The environments are vast and switch between day and night scenarios and these are beautifully represented. One race you are racing up in the mountain peaks on wet asphalt (looks amazing) and the next you’ll be out in the arid desert as dust clouds sweep up in the pack in front of you. It’s a visual experience that never bores. Even the look of the Police car sirens lighting up tunnels are one of the many jaw dropping moments in the game. Needless to say that the crashes are represented in slow-motion jizz-building-magma satisfying kind of way, well you wouldn’t expect anything less from the studio that pull off fender benders with such ferocity?

It’s the weaponry that makes the game work so well, if you are with the Police you’ll get access to spike traps, EMP’s, road blocks and a chopper which will push ahead of the pack and lay down spikes against your racing opponents. With the street racers you’ll get the EMP’s and spikes but also a turbo boost and system jamming equipment. The system jamming equipment doesn’t really have too much of an effect in single-player other than rescuing you from being shot with an EMP but online it is a totally new ball game. Before I brush onto the multiplayer components (which are essentially the same as Single Player but against human opponents) I wanted to talk about Auto-Log. Auto-Log really steps the videogame into the social networking generation. Everything you do with the game online will be represented. Auto-log is the equivalent of an online Facebook just without the embarrassing photos and the ability of being FRAPED. You can upload images to your wall, send challenges to your friends and also receive recommended challenges on the basis of how your friends are competing in the single player and online components of the game. It’s recommendations and utilisation of the social media aspect are nothing short of Zuckerberg genius. The games photo mode serves a real purpose as you can show off all your collection on your wall.

Now for the games real highlight, online. You can play straight out 8 player races, or work co-operatively 4vs4 Police Vs Racers action or play Interceptor. Interceptor is the mark of genius. There are no finish lines, just 1vs1 Police vs Racer action. You have to either destroy your opponent or outrun them and because you are not restricted to where you can go it offers strategy within a racing game unlike any other. When I played online I had to make sure I drafted little behind my opponents to avoid getting hit with spikes, count what weapons my opponent has already used and then when I had to be on the other side of the law my plan of action grew even more intricate. When playing a random BNP sympathiser (BNP was on his PSN ID, sad bastard) I gunned my Zonda down a bearing straight and switched on my system jammer. Not only does the jamming device take out your ability to use weaponry, it also takes out the HUD. This means that your opponent cannot see you on the race map. So with hindsight I used the jamming device to park into one of the shortcuts, let my opponent zoom past me so I could reverse and start turbo boosting down the opposite way to outrun the BNP Cop! This moment was perhaps one of my best and memorable in online gaming, outdoing the wow factor of when I heard voices in my ear on Test Drive Unlimited. What I am trying to say here is that finally, Need for Speed is a game that has real online substance and quite frankly is the best game I have played online all year!

If I was to be critical with the game anywhere, it would be that when unlocking the core amount of cars is extremely easy – that and the achievements and trophies for this game could have used a little more invention. Other than that online play is lag free and the single player is a nice romp that can be enjoyed in long sessions. Forget Gran Turismo 5, forget Split/Second heck even forget Blur. 2010’s best racing game is Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit.

Very much to my suprise, Blacklight: Tango Down has been released on the PS3 recently. Released over the summer on the Xbox Live Arcade, Tango Down experienced mediocre success and proved yet again by following in Battlefield 1943 footsteps, that you can in fact offer a decent multiplayer FPS at an affordable price. Crossing over to the PSN now let’s see if the game holds up or falls flat.

Much like Battlefield: 1943, Blacklight has no single player campaign. Meaning the entire experience rests on online multiplayer and versus games. Some might argue this reduces the value of a game, with Blacklight it just means the online had more time put into it. A small ‘Spec Ops’ gametype does exist, where you can pit yourself against computer-controlled bots in short objective games. These can also be done in online co-op, but your best bet is in the traditional versus modes.

So how does Blacklight play? Of course you have the usual Deathmatch, Team Deathmatch, Territories, and Last Man Standing gametypes without anything too bizarre. But the gameplay itself feels like a slightly watered down Call of Duty. Don’t get me wrong, it plays like a solid title, but is faster paced and somewhat more simplistic. Some of the unique elements in Blacklight focus around the ‘netwar’ theme. This is a subtly mentioned plotpoint that involves the integration of war with technology. For instance, certain grenades jam your vision in a pixelated sort of view; or other times your screen will display the infamous ‘blue screen of death’. The unique ‘HRV’ vision literally points out to you where every enemy is on the map. But while in this mode you are completely open to gunfire and sneak attacks, so use it sparingly! Blacklight really doesn’t add too much to the classic formula, but by playing it safe produced a fun and addicting title.

The biggest selling point in Blacklight is the customization. While there are only around 10 basic guns to select, the amount of altering each weapon can undergo is magnificent. By the time you modify a standard SMG with a new scope, or extended barrel you can hardly recognize it. Then perhaps lengthen the stock and apply one of the many camouflages available. Finally, no gun would be complete without a personalized keychain of sorts; I prefer the pink brass-knuckles. As you might expect, new parts are unlocked by climbing up the online ranks. The constant rewards of new parts, armor and camo is enough to keep you playing for hours straight.

Running on the respected Unreal 3 Engine, Blacklight is a beautiful running game. The visuals are some of the best on the PSN, and lag was rarely encountered. Level design was another well-executed point, with many maps available (Far more than Battlefield: 1943, for the record). Guns and weapons are greatly detailed which compliment the awesome character models. During a fast-paced firefight, it can be easy to forget this is an PSN title.

Audio wasn’t quite as good as the graphical side, but didn’t disappoint either. The small soundtrack is appropriately placed and sound effects create a realistic vibe. Gunshots sound right, keeping the overall experience intact.

Sure, Blacklight has its flaws. Some of the spawning points are unbalanced, and spawn-camping can be an issue. I also fear that the online presence always has the possibility to fade away. Say hypothetically the online servers do become abandoned, well there isn’t much else to do besides play online. So take that into consideration.

For $15, Blacklight: Tango Down is a worthwhile investment. You get a multiplayer experience nearly on par with current retail FPS titles. It isn’t perfect, but take in mind this is a brand new series (Sequel confirmed for summer 2011) and patches are always a way to correct mistakes. Blacklight is a strong new series which I hope to see more content from soon.