Having recently played ODST for the second \r time, I can still say with confidence that it's my favorite Halo simply \r due to its narrative. Of course, if you were to ask me the before to \r explain why, I'd honestly be stuck in just saying the structure. I \r couldn't tell you why the structure worked so well, the theme it \r carried, and what it does for the player. I'd almost leave the \r impression that you could impress me with that kind of narrative \r technique despite its use. Now, after about five years, I can do all of \r that. But in doing so, I can't help but see where it fell short of being\r something more than just the beatnik of the Halos.

In ODST, the main character is Rookie, the newest member of the \r squad. He is silent through the entire game, and only becomes a vital \r role to the game's sub-plot at the end. Even then, however, his role is \r to simply act as another gun or driver for the more important characters\r in the sub-narrative.

Early on in the game, the squad gets scattered as they drop into an \r invaded city. The Rookie is knocked out for several hours, and wakes up\r lost and alone in the city. The plot, at this point, is simple: reunite\r with the rest of the squad.

As the game begins, the player, as Rookie, is introduced to the city \r they came to. Being several hours after the initial invasions and \r battles, the city is dark and generally silent. Deep neon lights dot \r along buildings in a jazzy green or red that stand out along a lot of \r black, and dark iron. It's a color combination I can only describe as a \r war-torn poetry club. The music adds to this, by clashing with the tone \r of being alone in a warzone with a dreamy piano tune accompanied by low \r brass and strings.

The low tension, yet mysterious atmosphere almost feels disneyesque. \r There's a sense of wonder that comes over the player- a child like \r desire that demands to slowly stroll through the streets and take in the\r low lightning and dark towers as just another mystery to solve. The \r idea of being attacked or harmed is almost out of sight, and the player \r feels more relaxed. They end up craning Rookie's head around, not \r minding the lack of action or speed as they soak in the world around \r them, a world that's all too inviting to tell you a wonderfully \r fantastic tale.

This is when the theme is starting to get pushed. Rookie isn't a \r desperate, scared, and battle hardened vet looking to find his squad \r and save the day, he becomes something smaller and more naive. Rookie \r becomes a child lost in the expansive and dark woods behind his \r backyard. He's lost, but unafraid. He's focused, yet curious. Little \r trinkets he finds, become artifacts from a great warrior from long ago. \r Shadows are mysterious woodsmen or monsters, hiding and watching him as \r he travels through, but scared and hesitant of the strange thing in \r their woods. Everything he finds tells a fantastic story, despite how \r trivial the object may be, and that's where the rest of Rookie's plot \r comes in.

As Rookie wanders the rest of the city, he comes across items of \r interest that relate to his squad. He uses these items to follow\r their trail and eventually reunite with them. Whenever Rookie does find\r an object of interest, the player is temporarily taken out of the shoes\r of Rookie as one of his squadmates to experience what \r happened to them when they were scattered. This tells the story of how \r they came together, and then accomplished their mission from each \r member's perspective. While this does well to serve the purpose of \r fleshing out the squad, and organically giving players the typical Halo \r experience, this could also be interpreted as a part of Rookie's own \r character.

When Rookie finds an object, his interactions with the object can be \r seen as somewhat childlike. He'll get scraps of metal to poke at a \r hanging rifle, he'll jump on a broken turret and aim it around, as a \r child would play pretend. The idea here is Rookie is drawing his own \r conclusions, and while what the player sees during the flashbacks to the\r teammates could be very well how they transpired, they are also in huge\r contrast to Rookie's own situation. There's a lot more shooting, \r explosions, bravado, and drama. The term unreliable narrator comes to \r mind when thinking of these sections. Like how many children would over \r dramatize an object they find, the Rookie could very well be doing the \r same. Maybe his squad didn't kill that many aliens, or had so many close\r calls. Maybe one just took a fall and got hurt, or tripped and lost his\r gun.

It's a journey of discovery where a person can only understand so \r much thanks to the little they find, and due to these findings, their \r imagination runs wild. The game feels less like a war simulator, and \r more of just a lost simulator. Discoveries carry a lot of weight, and \r constantly bring you towards something familiar that's buried in all the\r mystery the city holds. It's a story that illustrates value on what we \r know, and how it can affect our perception of realities. These realities\r can be very fantastic, and exciting. Maybe not true, but the point is \r they cause us to create our own narrative and expand on what may or may \r not be real. And sometimes we need those fantasies to keep moving, and \r to hold out hope for finding our own familiar security- to find home.

Rookie could have assumed at anytime that his squad had died on \r arrival, or killed in action, but he didn't, because he created \r narratives that kept him motivated. They kept him alive.

Now with all of that said, you might be in agreement that Halo: ODST \r did have quite the story to tell, right? Well, it's all the more sad \r that the game abandons this approach as soon as Rookie does find his \r squad. Nothing is talked about, but the currently front-running sub-plot\r of saving a specific alien due to its knowledge. While this plot \r doesn't necessarily come out of nowhere, it does undermine all of \r Rookie's story before hand. Rookie's experience never truly feels \r complete and concluded, despite him achieving his goal. The focus is \r quickly changed to a very forced and cliche love story, as well as the \r rescued alien. And this focus is so strong, it makes me feel like that \r Bungie only did it to remind the players that ODST was a Halo game.

It's such a shame that such a much more interesting narrative had to \r be sacrificed for the sake of the source material, which did well to \r simply act as a base for the rest of ODST and Rookie's story. It's \r almost offending how quickly Rookie is tossed aside for two much less \r developed sub-plots.

If Bungie had somehow kept to Rookie's story of simply finding his \r way home, I think they would have been able to make ODST stand out more \r in the Halo crowd. It was the first game to not feature Chief, and \r instead emphasized on the struggles of the human characters. This let us\r get closer to Rookie already, and his journey felt much more human than\r anything else in the franchise. Maybe it wouldn't be considered the \r best game in the series, but I believe many more people would appreciate\r it, had it stuck to the path.

It's a bit ironic, and also quite sad, that a game about being lost, ended up lost in the shadow of it's older brothers.

November 4^th marked the release of Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare, the most innovative of the franchise, and in turn one of the worst of its series. Sledgehammer Games has made some changes to how players move in Call of Duty via what is called an Exo Suit, but have failed to tap the potential of these new movement options.

Before in Call of Duty games, players could only walk, run, duck, crawl, jump, and climb. Advanced Warfare expands on these movement options by giving players what is called an Exo Suit. The Exo Suit more or less acts like a jetpack, reinforcing the futuristic setting the game is in. On top of what has already been stated, players can now slide in any direction, double jump, hover, and dash in the air.

• By expanding the movement players have by so much, the rest of the game should be built around these new movement options. Maps should include more verticality, be wider, and give players several paths both vertically and horizontally to encourage the use of the Exo Suit. The size will also allow players to plan their approaches. However, the maps in Advanced Warfare feel as small and congested as ever.

• The Exo Suit seems only allows players to find each other and kill each other even faster than they already could before. While maps have generally lower buildings now for players to jump up to for vantage points, they are also very open. Teams can move across the map, getting around and behind defensive positions so quickly that players are more inclined to keep running in circles to try and keep up with the chaos rather than hold back and let it come to them. Also when players respawn after dying- spawning being the act of being replaced in the map after being killed- they usually are immediately greeted with more conflict, having no time to strategize their next move.

• Despite how conflicting the elements are, the goal is more or less achieved. The Call of Duty franchise does highly value constant high impact action. The Exo Suit makes conflicts almost impossible to avoid, appealing to audiences who love the constant engagements. However, this can also turn off a lot of players who want to take the military genre more true to its name with tactics, strategies, and a playstyle that emphasizes survival over kills.

• After several hours of trying to adapt to the new movement and ever increasing speed of the game, I find myself turned off by the emphasis on reaction and lowered value on strategy. Due to this, I believe Advanced Warfare's addition of the Exo Suit was bold, but hardly considered when creating the rest of the game. I just hope that Sledgehammer will make maps in the future that will better utilize the changes they've made.

Noble Team are the stars of Reach. The squad consists of Carter, \r their commanding officer, Kat, their technician, Jorge, their explosives\r and big arms expert, Jun, the marksman, Emile, the close quarters \r specialist, and finally Noble Six who is the rookie of the group, and \r the player character. Of course, Six is unnamed for the sake of the \r player's immersion.

The chemistry the group has is done fairly well thanks to dialogue \r that helps the soldiers be more than just their jobs. Carter often\r has to check in with command to get green lights for ideas from his \r squad, making him a very by-the-books kind of leader. Jorge acts as a \r translator for the group, speaking and comforting some refugees they \r find in the story. He becomes the gentle giant. Kat is protective of her\r tech, and often challenges Carter's authority, befitting her name as a \r rather "catty" character. Jun seems to be a bit shady, and maybe a bit \r cocky? Emile appears to be the violent, but silent type. Notice how the \r descriptions of each character got shorter and more uncertain.

The time spent with each character is far too short before they begin\r to be killed. This causes a few problems as well. With how early the \r deaths come, the player already knows what to expect. The player will \r have less interest in caring for the squad if he already expects them to\r all just die for one reason or another. Another issue this causes is \r taking screen time away from development and shoveling it into each \r dramatic moment, which isn't even done thoroughly anyway. And of course \r with the characters being shot down like flies, they don't even get the \r chance to develop enough to care about before they die. You can even see\r the developers and writers trying to compensate for this by giving the \r next person on the list to die some extra screen time.

Jorge had his moment with the refugees, and the scientists before \r dying. Kat had her confrontations with Carter before dying. Carter had a\r confrontation with Halsey, the head scientist before dying. Emile had a\r final stand moment with some powerful enemies before dying. Jun didn't \r even die, the guy just left, leaving his part of the story \r hanging. All these sequences do, is prepare the player for their \r inevitable death, it doesn't make them want to live, just guess when.

But let's get into a bit more detail with the actual deaths.

Jorge sacrifices himself to blow up a starship. There's a wonderful \r scene where he tears off his dog tag, holds Six's hand, and carries him \r to the edge of the ship before tossing Six out. As Six floats through \r space and back into Reach's atmosphere, the ship explodes with Jorge \r still inside. This all occurs while in the first person perspective, as \r well. It's a great scene that's timed so poorly, the effect is drained \r almost entirely. With how early this takes place, it makes it feel \r pointless, and undermined by the idea that there's simply more of this \r to come. The fact that the act of blowing up the ship did little for \r them plot-wise doesn't help either. Of course this could be used in a \r powerful way, a motivation to try and make Jorge's death not in vain. \r But we already know it is, so the whole scene feels hallow.

Kat is the second spartan to die. And her's is perhaps the most \r offending of the lot. As the team is running through a corridor, she's \r shot in the head by a sniper in a ship above them which flies off. She \r falls, the dramatic music kicks up, and there's a long shot of the team \r waiting for a ship to arrive, presumably to take her body away as one of\r them holds her in his arms. The entire sequence is so brief, and sudden\r it makes it feel like the developers simply decided to cut time here \r for the sake of the rest of the game. Even if we did have plenty of time\r to grow to love Kat as a character, we wouldn't even get a chance to \r grieve.

Jun leaves. As one of the two least characterized Spartans, we aren't\r even humored with his death. Jun simply leaves the squad at some point \r with orders to protect a scientist. His part in the story is over, \r nothing comes of that. He just leaves.

Carter is next. The scene starts with an AI the squad has demanding \r he seek medical assistance. Blood is on his armor, and his helmet is \r off. The ship he, Emile, and Six are on is being shot at, and he's \r piloting. Telling Emile and Six to abandon ship, he says he'll draw fire\r and give them air support. There's no real suspense here, the scene is \r set; he is going to die. With as much death as there's already been in \r the game, any idea of tension of him maybe shaking the enemy off and \r surviving is simply laughable. You're just waiting for him to blow up at\r this point. Later in the level a Scarab stands in Emile's and Six's \r path. Without a chance to get around or handle it another way, Carter \r quickly throws himself and the ship into the tank-like opponent. With a \r corny one-liner, and brief encouragement from Emile, he's gone.

To a level, I don't mind the dialogue here, however. They are \r soldiers, after all. They do expect to die and give their lives for what\r they need to do to win. So, instead of making Carter's last moment one \r of hatred, anger, and sorrow, they let it be one of victory and bravado.\r If there's any bones I'd throw at Bungie through this, that's the one. \r It makes sense, it feels right. Too bad the timing and set-up, is again,\r way off. It's just another “there goes another one“ moment for the \r player.

Emile's death is another mix of some good and some bad. The timing \r isn't bad, and the set-up isn't awful. While sitting on a large cannon \r to shoot at incoming ships, he's overwhelmed by some powerful enemies. \r He's stabbed and mauled before taking some down on his own. Six has to \r go to the gun himself to use it just as Emile was, and when you do get \r to the cannon you come across his body. This is important. This gives \r the player a moment to mourn. Despite how little I knew of Emile and how\r little I cared, coming across his body still had an impact. It made me \r stop, and my heart dropped just a bit. And after a heavy sigh, I \r continued. It was so close to being a great moment, stolen by the fact \r that when I did stop, I didn't have much to reflect on when it came to \r him.

After five characters, and Bungie has only scratched the surface of \r the emotional shock a death should have. After Six man's the cannon, and\r the VIPs get away to trigger the rest of the events in Halo, he's left \r alone, his objective complete, and his teammates dead. Reach is lost, \r but thanks to him and his team's sacrifice there's still hope for \r humanity to win the war. Their role in the rest of the universe is done.\r The credits roll.

But Six's own journey hasn't yet ended. Once the credits fade out, we\r find Six standing in the middle of some torn down buildings. An enemy \r ship passes by overhead and drops off a group of aliens. The player is \r back in control and an objective is presented: Survive. With nothing \r left to do, no one left to protect and fight for, Six has only this \r instinct left. He won't make his last stand for humanity, for his team, \r for a future, or a past. He won't fight for Reach, or even just because \r it's right. Six's last stand is for him, and him alone. It's a moment, \r one last moment, to just be who he is: a warrior. A warrior in its most \r purest form.

With enemies coming from all directions, the player is able to live \r and experience Six's last moments of being a solider. The player fights \r for as long as he can, killing as many as he can, and running for as \r long as he can until he's finally overwhelmed. It's a moment of \r catharsis for both Six and the player, to just let loose and kill \r everything just because they can, just to prove how strong their own \r resolve is; counted by bodies.

When the player finally submits to the onslaught we have a scene \r where Six falls to the ground as aliens surround and overcome him. Some \r are shot or hit away, until one is able to deliver the final blow. \r The scene is drawn out, and doesn't provide hope, but instead a point. \r It doesn't try to be dramatic, because you wanted to live. It's \r dramatic, because you want to keep fighting, you want to keep standing, \r you want to survive. And when you die both Six and the player feel the \r sword pierce into their heart, punctuating the end of Halo: Reach.

The post-credits final stand of Noble Six was a perfect example on \r how to handle a protagonist's death. It's a moment where the player and \r character finally meld together. Their motivations are the same, and \r held in fiery passion. Together, Six and the player have one last moment\r to truly test their skills, ambition, and will.

Obviously, I found Six's death to be the strongest part in the game, \r and maybe even one of the best deaths in video game history. It's just \r such a shame it took Bungie five characters to figure it out.

Planet of the Apes: Last Frontier opens with a brief summary of how a tribe of apes got separated from Caesar's tribe and had to make a new home on a mountain devoid of any food or livestock. Because of this lack of food, the tribe of apes are slowly starving to death and must act quickly if they hope to avoid this fate. Khan, the chimpanzee leader of the tribe, instructs his sons Bryn, Tola, and Juno that they must go out on a last-ditch effort to hunt for food. However, Khan and his adviser Clarence, an orangutan, warn the brothers not to hunt outside of the mountain because if the humans know of the ape presence in the mountains, it will put the entire tribe in danger. Tola disregards this warning due to the knowledge of there being no food on the mountain and convinces Bryn and Juno to hunt with him on the plains below.

We cut back to the three ape brothers as they spot a small farm with cattle guarded by two humans. Tola recommends that they kill the humans so they can get the cattle without witnesses, but Juno advises that they should either turn back or find a way to gather the cattle without harming the humans. Regardless of who Bryn sides with, one human ends up dead and the other wounded. The wounded human is able to reach Jess' town and explain to her and the town's folk that apes attacked, killed his brother, and stole cattle. This is where the human characters' story begins to intersect with the apes' story. Anything beyond this would be a spoiling the plot of the game.

The choices themselves don't seem to make much of an impact outside of smaller, more inconsequential ones either. No matter what you pick, Bryn will go with Tola to steal the cattle. No matter who you side with, the human farmers will be attacked and will alert Jess to the apes living on the mountain. It seems to me that outside of the possible endings, the choices dictate more of who will like you rather than where the story will go.

You may have noticed that I spent much more time looking at the story than I would normally. This wasn't by accident. That is because Planet of the Apes: Last Frontier is a purely narrative driven experience. And I do mean "purely narrative."

While I've defended games that have been falsely labeled "interactive movies" in the past, this is one instance where I can not because the label adequately defines Last Frontier. With the lack of any sections where you can actually control and move your character around, your time spent with Planet of the Apes: Last Frontier can be similarly experienced by watching War for the Planet of the Apes and pausing the film for 10 seconds every time a character is contemplating a decision. So Last Frontier ultimately begs the question of: Why did this have to be a video game? With the underwhelming performance of the latest film at the box office, it is still uncertain of whether or not there will be a fourth film in the rebooted franchise, and seeing as how the scope of this game is nowhere near as large as any of the films, Planet of the Apes: Last Frontier would have worked much better as a short film or as a television mini-series.

With a fantastic story, but devoid of any actual gameplay, it's difficult to recommend Planet of the Apes: Last Frontier to anyone. Especially with a price tag of $29.99 USD for a 3 hours experience. However, I understand that this is the type of experience some players are looking for, and for them this is exactly what you want. But for those of us that prefer to play a video game rather than watch one, Planet of the Apes: Last Frontier may only be worth your time once the price drops significantly, if only to experience the story.

To me, the game feels like Borderlands textures meet the cartoon styles of Fleischer (Inkwell) and Disney Animation Studios. While the game has puzzle mechanics where you have to flip levers and switches to find items and the next open door reminding me a bit of the puzzle you would find in Portal. There is a lot of backtracking in the first few chapters that started to get old quick though was easy enough to breeze right through. I did get lost a few times trying to find a few switches and when I watched an old walkthrough I found out how much the game had changed from the earlier releases. 

One thing that I found out that some of the gameplay was different for me then it was when I finally found a walkthrough for the Nintendo Switch. I don't know if it was a bug or the game was made that way, but I really enjoyed the unique experience. The game still has some bugs to work out. Though it's way less buggy than Fallout 76, I found that I either had to restart or die to get the game to progress. Rooster Teeth sent me an email saying they are fixing known bugs, so there should be a patch sent out soon after they stop playing Super Smash Bros Ultimate.

You play as Henry Stein, a retired animator who used to work at Joey Drew Studios who returns after an invitation from his old friend and employer Joey Drew. To me, Joey seems to be a Walt Disney type visionary, and Henry is Walt’s old friend and partner Ub Iwerks. As you look around you find something called the Titular Ink Machine. While looking for items to turn the machine on you find a real-life Boris (Goofy type). Not knowing why Joey did this, you find tape recordings of Joey and the employees have been partaking in occult practices.

Though why bring these characters to life at all? You later find out that Joey’s investors were not happy with the studio and a new theme park. To bring something new to the amusement park landscape Joey wants to bring their mascot, Bendy, the dancing demon, and all of his friends to life with a brand new invention called Titular Ink Machine from the Gent Corp. Thomas Connor of Gent tells Joey that these creatures are soulless. Joey replies that he has thousands of souls to occupy the bodies. One of these people is desperate voice actress Susie Campbell. Joey tells her she will bring Alice Angle back to life once again after she takes part in Joeys "small project".

To me, this sounds like how Disney really runs things. Finding young talent promising the world, then, in the end, you’ll sell your soul and become something ugly you don't even recognize. I don't know if theMeatly and Mike Mood had the parallels in mind for the story. Though they really know how to bring my nightmares to life.

I really like some of the Easter eggs they have in the game. Benny's eyes are Pac-Man, there are times where Joey reminds me of Cave Johnson the CEO of Aperture Science in the Portal series. 

"Ok, let's stop it right there. I can only do so many takes of this trash a day. And tell the guys in writing I want more use of the word dreaming in every message. Keep railing on that, get it? Dreaming! Dreaming! Dreaming! People just eat up that kind of slop. Hmm What? It's still on? Well, turn it off, damn it!". - Joey Drew

Wally the janitor finds a big chocolate cake sitting in a chair. Yet another Portal node. I bet there's more that I didn't realize, so comment below on more. Another cool Easter egg is the posters you see on the walls are fan art that they put in the game, along with music created by fans. This is a first for me to see such community involvement in a game outside of it being crowd funded.

This was definitely one of the better first person games I played this year. If you're looking for something different to play this holiday season, Bendy is a good 6-10 hours of gameplay with new tools and a bonus level to play after the first go around. I have it for my Nintendo Switch. So it's great for those night time road trips. 

The mechanics can be a bit rough without any prior knowledge, since the game can overload you on information. The tutorial can help, but you may find that it's easier to learn on the go, playing a few practice games is the best way to understand the mechanics. Don't be discouraged right at the start. The game is rewarding to learn, and eventually you'll find yourself managing an entire empire AND an army at the same time with a few clicks. 

Endless Legend possesses a fairly powerful non-player AI at its disposal. Past the normal difficulty the AI expands quickly, and falls into their preferred victory type quickly. You'll find that the more militant AI will expand and build armies quickly while the more political will send you compliments or peace treaties, hoping to win by forging good relations with all other players. The competent AI provides an enjoyable and challenging option for players who cannot play online or chose not to. For those who look towards the challenge of real players, you might find that online matchmaking is poor, so you may have to do a bit of searching looking for players. This is a problem all 4X games possess, the time requirement for games such as these means you cannot knock one out in an hour, games can span days or even weeks, depending on settings. Building up a friends list and setting times to play is crucial, since most evenings will end with a save to be picked up later. 

It would be remiss not to mention the flaws in the game. It contains some minor glitches and bugs, such as quests not working properly or minor crashes, but considering the quality compared to more recent releases, they are only minor inconveniences. Considering this, the overall quality far outweighs this tiny issues. The online works fantastic, and rarely do you experience crashes or internet issues that would impede gameplay. 

Easily a top 5 game of 2014, it was easy to miss Endless Legend if you don't actively monitor alphas or 4X games. But I highly recommend anyone interested in joining the 4X genre or just looking for a fresh start try out Endless Legend. The developers are still actively patching and updating the game with new content, and I see a bright future for the series. 

Pre-Word

So it seems like (for me at least) the general consensus about Assassin's Creed Unity is that it was a major hit and miss. All the reviews and message boards Iv'e read through have said similar things ranging from moderate praise to downright hatred. Iv'e even tried talking to people who haven't even played the game themselves and I hear a lot of complaints. As I was blessed with a seemingly perfect copy of the game and never experienced any graphical issues or game play issues whatsoever (Playing on PS4) I think I can give a pretty good summary of the game as a whole!

BRIEF BACKSTORY-

Assassin's Creed Unity is the latest game in the Assassin's Creed series and is set in Paris during the French Revolution. This is a bloody and dark time period, full of strange characters that were really alive during the time period. The main character Arno Dorian is a handsome, young man who after the death of his father was raised by the Grandmaster of the french Templars. Thirteen years after his fathers death, Arno is framed for the murder of the Grandmaster and sent to prison in the Bastile. Arno is accepted into the Assassin's order after being trained by the assassin Pierre Bellec in prison and the plot of the game begins.

INITIAL ANALYSIS-

What sticks out like a sore thumb immediately is the similarity's between Unity and AC:2. Arno and Ezio are very similar, both womanisers, masters of romance and quick to get into a fight. But as the story progresses they become more mature and focused. These similarity's aren't a terrible thing, AC:2 is considered by many to be the best in the series, and I really appreciate Ubisoft's efforts to bring the series back to it's roots. With the introduction of ship battles in AC:3 and then the pirate simulator that was Assassin's Creed Black Flag, the series seemed to get off course (pun intended). Black Flag barely had anything to do with Assassin's and Templars! The side missions are all interesting and hold a lot of content, the Characters you meet are all really cool to look at and have their own identities. It brings the series home and does it well!

THE WORLD-

The world looks beautiful. The colours are all very vibrant and everything is textured well.

 Broad open cities with so much going on in them. Side missions and collectibles that will keep you entertained between story missions. They've introduced random encounters throughout the city. People getting extorted for money, fights between citizens and royalists. These seem to pop up whenever you start to get bored and makes for some interesting scenarios. It's so easy to just zone out and run around Paris, getting into fights and doing side missions.

COMBAT-

The combat in Unity is personally the best it has ever been. Moving away from the one hit kills and chained combos in favour of a brutal, sophisticated combat system. Three buttons are utilised: Roll, Parry and Attack. A bar above the enemies heads represents the timing at which to either roll or to parry (depending on the enemy type). Getting into fights with large groups of enemies can be devastating and only gets harder. Enemies can throw flash bangs, knock you to the ground, shoot at you and parry your attacks. Combat becomes a wild dance as you dart around enemies, picking your targets and desperately trying to hold your ground. Button mashing is a thing of the past.

CUSTOMISATION-

A really neat addition, and the game is better for it. You can customise Arno to look however suits you (using the possible combinations). By adding in this customisation, it's much easier to feel like you're progressing through the game and getting stronger. Weaponry is varied and interesting, and allows for many different styles of play.

MULTIPLAYER-

Multiplayer is excellent when you are playing with your friends or with expierenced players. I advise to avoid the Multiplayer until you are pretty far through the game, as I encountered many players who simply wouldn't cooperate and had little experience with the new elements of the combat. There is no real way of communicating with other players without a mic, except for a Portal 2 style 'Go Here' marker. The Multiplayer missions are really interesting and add alot to the game, definitely play through them all if you have a couple of friends on Skype to play with.

FREE RUNNING-

Not much to say on this topic other than it's been improved simply by adding a 'free run down' feature. This new feature allows you to vertically climb down buildings, giving a lot more control to the player

MICRO TRANSACTIONS-

I have little complaints about the micro transactions. Micro transactions are really only used as a way of getting to content before you have enough in game currency to do so. I personally never felt like they were being shoved in my face or that I needed to spend money to play the game, the option is just there for people who might not have enough time to get all the in game currency required for items.

COMPLAINTS-

- The story goes on for a little too long, and it became a drag to play story missions towards the end.

- Some of the 'Legendary; equipment in the game is locked. You can only unlock it by participating in big multi player events which are confusing and often difficult to complete. 

-Towards the end of the game, almost every enemy can shoot at you and this is a major issue. When you try to run they will never miss, and the only way to dodge is to roll when in a combat situation. Getting shot will take major chunks out of your health.

-Glitches. I didn't encounter any but many people did. Frame rate drops and graphical glitches are all possible while playing.

- One of the major selling points of the game was its massive crowds, but the game doesn't really really pop them into existence until you get really close, which creates a really distracting effect. Major complaint, has been slowly getting better each patch but is still an issue.

OVERALL VERDICT-

I love Assassin's Creed Unity, it is by far my favourite in the series. It does everything AC:2 did and better. I personally don't believe in putting a number to something but I would absolutely recommend at least borrowing it from a friend, if not buying it yourself. With the amount of people trading it in, it will probably be really cheap, really soon!

First review ever really so,tell me if I should never write anything again?

While attending this year’s New York Comic-Con, I\r had the rare opportunity to use the Oculus Rift for the first time. The Oculus\r Rift is a three dimensional video gaming device that tracks the motions of your\r head in order to control your character’s movements. The game system’s technology utilizes a\r strap-on visor and headset in order to immerse the player into the world of the\r game with a full range of vision and surround sound capabilities. The game I played was a flight simulator\r based on Dreamworks’ “How to Train Your Dragon.“ As my character flew over the ocean, I was in\r awe of the spectacular graphics and accurate motion tracking capabilities of\r the visor as I looked in all directions.\r The experience was so immersive that an attendant had to tell me to “take\r it easy on the controls.“ In those two\r minutes I spent playing, I had become more immersed in a video game than I had\r ever experienced in the countless hours I have spent on other console and\r computer games. This technology heralds\r a new era for the gaming industry. In\r only a few decades, video games have gone from 8-bit graphics to complex three\r dimensional worlds. With the Oculus\r Rift, the concept of virtual reality gaming now seems feasible, and with it, a physical and mental evolution of the gamer.

I feel that the goal of gaming has always been to\r immerse players in a new world, inhabiting another person’s body, and\r experiencing physical and mental challenges that may not be possible in their\r own lives. Games as they are now rely on\r joysticks, buttons and triggers in order to carry out an array of functions\r such as running and picking up items.\r These factors ground the player in reality and keep them detached from a\r heightened experience of gameplay. Basic\r motor functions are carried out by pre-programmed functions and animations\r within the game. What if these functions\r depended upon the player’s own physical actions in order to be performed (beyond the motion sensor capabilities of the Wii and Kinect)? What if video games immersed the player\r through senses such as touch, instead of just sight and hearing? Any person is sure to notice a distinct\r difference between swinging a sword using the B button on a controller, and\r holding the simulated weight of a sword in their own hands. Physical stimuli evoked from a video game\r would have major health benefits for players.\r Playing video games would no longer be limited to problem solving and\r hand-eye coordination. It would be an\r experience that requires players to engage their minds and their bodies in\r order to complete challenges, resulting in a new form of exercise. The adrenaline released from this exercise\r would serve to increase a player’s overall physical health and mood. Enjoying all of the fantastic experiences\r some games would have to offer would be dependent upon how much a player is\r willing to improve upon themselves both mentally and physically. "Achievement unlocked" would no longer be a generic means of praise for the players doing what they are supposed to do in the game, but a true sense of achievement from pushing their minds, bodies, their entire being, in order to accomplish their goals. Eventually, this same feeling will inspire gamers to push their limits in other parts of their lives, such as their careers.

However, I believe it is important to remember that\r games such as this must also be designed to accommodate physically challenged\r individuals, as basing a game’s functionality on complete body control would be\r discriminatory toward the handicapped.\r While some might like the idea of complete physical control of a\r character in a game, there might also be individuals who enjoy the prospect of\r complete mental control of a character.\r What this would entail is using a person’s brain activity and thought\r patterns to control video game characters.\r Joysticks only have so much accuracy when aiming at a target or changing\r direction, but future technologies might be able to calculate a character’s\r movements based on factors such as a player’s eye movements and focus, creating a new level of\r precision control. Complete mental\r control would also provide handicapped individuals with realistic simulations\r of physical functions that may no longer be available to them, since thoughts\r would dictate actions. There is always the fear that individuals might become dependent on this type of escapism, choosing to experience simulations of a fully-functioning body more often than experiencing life in their own limited ones. However, if video games can be programmed to react to brain stimuli, who is to say they cannot be programmed to respond to the brain with stimuli of their own? The clash of swords could replicate the feeling of an amputee player's arm tightening. The sensation of running could simulate the feeling of weight pressing on the feet of a paraplegic person. Eventually this technology might yield advancements in the production of prosthetic limbs, electronic eyes, etc., allowing the brain to recognize these appurtenances as part of it's organic makeup.

I'm typically not one to review games, or to read a whole lot of reviews unless they're from people that I value the opinions of. These are people that play a lot of games and know when something is good and well, when it isn't. 2014 was a slow year for video games in my opinion, and Titanfall stands out as one of the few "diamonds in the rough" that we were gifted last year.

Now, let's get on with the actual review. The multiplayer, (which is all this game is) is an overall solid experience with a nice amount of variance in weaponry and loadouts, albeit reminiscent of the "Call of Duty" franchise that the dedicated gamer community loathes. But hey, in a game that literally boasts "Crafted by key developers behind the CALL OF DUTY franchise..." on the back of the box, what more can you expect?

Game Modes

Titanfall has a number of different Game Modes to pick from when you initially load up the game, some of these are well known, such as "Capture the Flag" and "Hardpoint Domination", but others are a bit more unique, such as "Last Titan Standing", and "Pilot Hunter". Attrition, which is the main mode that you'll see played, is very simple and basically "Team Slayer". Using your standard loadout weapon or Titan mech, you kill enemy pilots, grunts, or titans to earn points. These points go towards your overall team score, and the first team to reach 300 is the winner.

Another Game Mode featured is "Campaign", although it hardly lives up to the name. Campaign mode consists of cooperatively playing with other players as well as against enemy players. You play as one of two teams, The IMC, or The Militia. This is where the story really shows its thin, underdeveloped plot. Basically, the IMC is the big-bad government that wants to have control over all of the colonized planets, and the Militia is primarily made up of those on the frontier that want to have their own independence. Not much more to it than that, unless you attempt to externally dig deeper for the lore. All I could think of while playing was the Insurrectionists vs. the UNSC from the Halo franchise, but maybe that's just me.

Anyway, Campaign places you into a battle on one of these two opposing sides, as well as giving you a very brief explanation of what purpose the battle holds. For example, one assault by the Militia on an IMC refueling depot was to prevent the IMC from having the capacity to refuel their warships, thus being unable to make the jump into the frontier effectively. Hardly anything new or inspiring, but hey, it is what it is.

Gameplay Mechanics

Gameplay is where Titanfall really shines. Your pilot is given a standard loadout at the beginning of each match. This can vary from your Automatic Carbine or SMG, to a Semi-Auto Rifle or Sniper. You're also given a sidearm, explosive ordinance of your choice, and a pilot ability, which range from increased running speed to cloaking. Perhaps the unique part of this loadout is your Anti-Titan weapon, such as a massive homing rocket-launcher or a slow-yet-deadly laser. These are the weapons that give you a fighting chance against the behemoth mech-suits called Titans that fall out of the sky when you've earned enough points to acquire one.

Speaking of Titans, this game is called Titanfall, and the real reason anyone evem bothered to play this at all.

Titans

Titans are large, mechanical suits constructed for pilots to battle in. There are 3 basic chassis in which Titans can be built from. Atlas is the All-Around body, with a balance of both maneuverability and durability. The Ogre is a slow moving tank, able to take massive damage before going down. Finally, the Stryder is the fast-moving hit-and-run mech, able to dish out serious punishment, but is taken down easily with concentrated fire due to a lack of armor. Which you choose is up to you. Titans can also be custom-built to suit your playing styles with main weapons such as electricity-cannons and rockets, we well as abilities like nuclear ejection and temporary shields.

Overall Judgment

There's more to this game than I can personally fit into this review. To experience what Titanfall really has to offer, you're gonna have to play it yourself. The Game is available for Xbox 360, Xbox One, and PC This gives you a wide array of platforms in which to enjoy the title. Overall, Titanfall is a solid title that will give you hours of mind-numbing entertainment, but at the end of the day, what is does is cool, but not revolution. It feels like a recipe with all of the ingredients taken from other existing titles like CoD, Halo, MechAssault, etc. Still, it's fun to play, and that's what I truly value in a game.

FINAL SCORE: 8/10. Fun to play. Lack of campaign story and originality are drawbacks.

Rather than the deluge of Mountain Dew and Doritos filled Bro-filled shooters available for every console, Adr1ft aims to be everything Alien:Isolation was not. Rather than a horror-survival sim everyone expected A:I to be it still contained many action sequences that put a gun in your hand and told you to shoot your way out of a situation rather than building up the tension as Alien did. Adr1ft aims to change that by presenting space as it really is; A horrifying void of death and silence.

You start of in the shoes of a cosmonaut staring across space at the stars and of course the debris of your newly destroyed space station, this visually stunning opener is quickly forgotten as you make your way to the bulk of your once safe home through the eerily silent void of space with a pinch of dead friends scattered along the way. With the lack of communication and setup in play during the first few minutes of this game, it looks as if 505games have put a lot of effort into making this a proper FPX (First person experience) without the compulsive need to put a gun in your hand and slaughter waves of seemingly endless grunts.

The Aim of Adr1ft is to make it back to the surface in you EEV ( Emergency Escape Vehicle) While collecting canisters of oxygen scattered around to supplement your rapidly deteriorating supply in your broken EVA (Extravehicular activity) suit. All this combined with the eerie soundtrack should make for a powerfully frightening puzzle adventure game with the enough tension to keep you on the edge of your seats at all time.

Hopefully the visuals and soundtrack aren't there to distract from a lack of substance a large portion of games released onto next gen consoles seem be suffering with at the moment.

In USBB you have more range than up and down. You have full 360 degree movement along with the classic fighting power move. I'm not going to say this game is easy, though the more I played the game the more I felt like Esports master.

The game has ten characters to choose from, all with different stats and abilities. Just like Street Fighter, every character has a backstory on why they are at USBB which gives the player that desire to win to see the outcome of each character. You will not get bored trying to master your favorite few, or the whole roster.

I've seen USBB on sale a few times over the summer, so you might want to put this on your wish list for that next time you are looking for a fun game to play that may become the next Mario Tennis Aces killer.

But I can hear your clamor, "It has a seamless storyline, so what? It's a video game, there's more to it". I couldn't agree more my hypothetical straw-man gamer, but would you believe me if I told you that wasn't all there is to this game? Gamers of old had to have started playing somewhere, and if you were like me it was with Jumpman 'Mario' Jumpman; And if you remember playing that game, don't worry, we're not that old yet. The controls of this game are as clean and simple as they get, you can jump, you can dig and hit things with your shovel. Gathering treasure is still important to shovel knight apparently because there's a tonne of it wherever you go, and you'll want to pick it all up; because who doesn't .There's some extra power ups, but otherwise there are no combo's you need to memorize. It feels clean, plays like a charm on any platform (and every platform). Shovel knight has made it to pc on steam, to the 3DS, to OS X, Linux and will be coming to playstation 3, 4 and vita (I'm looking at you xbox one).

These days, platformers have made a return through indie games. A strong return too, as well as pixel art. So if you like that, this will blow your mind. The art is easily one of the games strengths. Each level is crafted with awesomeness, from the plague infested castle of the aptly named plague knight, to the icy landscapes of polar knight. It's glorious in all it's pixely splendor. The music on the other hand, is amazing. Every tune is beautiful, and the best thing is their collectible. They really set the atmosphere for every level, its like actually being there; and if you stayed for the retro art style then you'll stay for the chiptune goodness that is crammed into every second of this game. The music is easily my favorite aspect of this game and I think Yacht games hit this nail right on the head.

So if you find yourself with a couple of hours with nothing to do, and have an affinity for retro games and a flair for odd weapons. Then you'll love digging yourself into this game.

The game plays almost exactly the same as the God of War franchise so if you know how to play those games, you'll be able to pick up and play this one without much trouble. However, while the game is virtually the same as God of War in terms of gameplay, the environment and atmosphere is vastly different and where this game really shines. The music is one of the most atmospheric details about this game. It has a very demonic feel to it and it sends chills down my spine when it starts to crescendo at the right time and place. And don't get me started on the environment. The depictions of the various levels of Hell and the eldritch horrors that occupy them is extremely detailed and imaginative, ESPECIALLY with the fight against Cerberus. I have never seen such a unique interpretation of the 3-headed hellhound in my life.

In conclusion, I had a lot of fun with this title mostly from the atmosphere alone, but if you want to play it for yourself, I highly recommend that you get one of the console versions as the PSP version has quite a bit of content cut from it in exchange for a digital comic which really isn't worth the amount of game that was removed. But until then, I'll be seeing you.

Console Score

PSP Score

Story:

In Life is Strange you play as Max Caulfield. A socially awkward girl that has a passion for photography. While in her photography class, Max discovers that she has the ability to rewind time. but only so far. Max is the definition of socially awkward and is constantly shit on by other people who go to her school; which brings me to the first problem of the game.

Everybody is either a bully or a socially awkward victim. There is no in between apparently except for Max's friend Chloe who is introduced later on in the episode.

Writing:

It's blatantly apparent that the developers have no idea what real schools in this day in age are like. It genuinely feels like tumblr's idea of high school is. And unfortunately, that's what this game feels like. Tumblr: The Video Game.

Now, you could chalk this all up into "Maybe it's only this one school that is like this." Well if that were the case I wouldn't have a problem with it, but the dialogue is written so poorly that all the bullies' dialogue might as well have been written like "You're dead meat. I'm gonna pound you." And on top of that, the acting is just as poorly executed with the exception of one character. All the dialogue is acted out in such a stale manner. Like all the voice actors wanted to go home or something. Lip syncing is just as bad. Not one piece of dialogue matched up with any of the character's lips.

Decisions:

Just like in Telltale's TWD, Life is Strange, contains an actions and consequences element that happens through actions and dialogue. In addition to this, Max's rewind ability lets her change a decision she made on the spot. Saving you from a second play through. I actually like this because, more often or not, you're going to fuck up a timed event and with this you can save yourself the frustration of loading a previous save.
One problem I have with this actions and consequences system implemented is that so seem comical. Like, in one part of the episode, if you water a plant in your room you will get the notification that "Your action will have consequences." What's the worst that will happen? The plant hunts down and kills your mom for not watering it properly?

Graphics:

The graphics confuse me. Scenes like this one in the picture can look pretty pretty (?), but I still can't tell if the devs are going for a stylized approach like TWD or if they are trying to be realistic. It's like the developers stopped half way through making the decision and said "Fuck it. Just do both."

Opinion piece:

One thing I'd like to add that really bothered me (but probably wont bother you) is Chloe's step dad, David. Obviously this dude is going to be a huge antagonist further down the line and he's just a huge asshole the entire episode. Bulling people on campus and the lot. But it's his background and the way he's portrayed that bothers me.
David was in the military and is a huge asshole. Which I don't mind, but it's the way that his and Chloe's dialogue is written that bothers me. "I was in the military." "He was in the military." "You're paranoid." "War does that to you." It's like the developers are trying to imply really negative things about the military. And they just keep going on and on about how he was in the military and he's an asshole. But that's just me. So if that doesn't bother you, then more power to you.

Before I wrap up this review I'd like to talk about Max's friend; Delsin Rowe... I mean Chloe. Chloe's voice actress sounds like the only one in the entire episode actually trying. You can tell that she has some pretty intense demons under her tough punk exterior. She's genuinely interesting and I want to know more about her and her missing friend Rachel Amber.
Why the fuck aren't we playing a game about her?? Max is so stale and boring. It would be a lot more interesting to see Chloe change into the rebellious punk she is in Life is Strange. But that's just me.

I tried so hard to like this game. I really did. I brushed aside all the preconceived notions I had about it before playing and tried to get invested, but in the end I just couldn't. To me: the only one redeeming factor in this game is Chloe's character. I'm probably going to buy the rest of the episodes when they come out just to find out what happens to her.
Overall, it's lackluster to say the least. I was hoping for a deep story which game like from the likes of Telltale, but what I got was Gone Home meets The Walking Dead. Sound on paper, but was executed poorly. I wasn't going to recommend this, but given that it's only $5. So if you have the extra cash and have already bought every Telltale game; you should try it. Maybe you will get engrossed in it. Unfortunately, I didn't.
And if you want a numerical score: 6/ 10

*This review is written improperly because I originally posted it on FunnyJunk. The reason that I basically copied and pasted it from their is because I'm really proud of this piece. I've never had anyone else read my writings so constructive criticism is much appreciated so my writing will improve in future articles. I hope you have a wonderful day.

HOW IT LOOKS-

The game uses a much more realistic and dark style, and while Majora's Mask had dark themes mixed with playful imagery, Twilight Princess incorporates melancholy themes with dark visuals. The world is open, not necessarily big, but open to explore at your own pace, and as the story progresses it changes around you. The enemies all have similar dark looks, with twisted physiques and human like qualities, it only draws you deeper into the world. Graphically the game looks excellent, and playing it on the Wii helped to refine it. 

HOW IT FEELS-

Themes are important in video games. If The Last Of Us had inconsistent themes then it would be much harder to take it seriously. Twilight Princess incorporates Majora's Mask's time element in a much more subtle way. From the time you're introduced to Hyrule Castle you can see it off in the distance surrounded by a barrier. Having it there, since you start the game, is an excellent way to have it in the players minds while playing. The game keeps the strange characters that have become a staple of the series and makes them feel fresh and exciting. I mentioned that the world changes around you and I fully believe that. Although you may not see physical differences, the way you perceive the world changes while you play. You feel like you're making progress and the story drives you forward.     

The game feels like a combination of Majora's Mask and Ocarina of Time, (Ocarina's exploration and Majora's dark world).

HOW IT PLAYS-

As I am filth and don't own a GameCube I played the Wii version of the game. This was back when Skyward Sword's precise cutting wasn't around, so frantically swinging the Wiimote was just like mashing the attack button (although this became troublesome later). Moving and exploring is easy and fun. Combat is beautiful. Each enemy has it's own style of fighting and you have to adapt to fight that enemy. For example, there's this one enemy that, at certain points in the story, will surround you in a barrier and you'll be forced to fight it. If you don't know when this is going to happen it can be quite nerve racking. The only way to beat them is to transform into Link's wolf form. 

Every temple is fun. Yes, there is a water temple. No, it doesn't suck. Every temple in the game will make you think, and puzzle you. You'll need to go back and think hard about the puzzles. Every boss is unique and requires a special way to beat it. Even the "shoot it in the big glowing eye" boss still felt like a challenge, and added another level. I would recommend not touching a walk through for anything, because you will feel like you'll want it.

LINK'S WOLF FORM-

I honestly think this needs it's own sub-heading because it sounds really silly at first. Link is transformed into a wolf whenever he enters a Twilight Zone (haha). This restricts his access to items and forces you to solve puzzles, in a way that is unique to Wolf Link's ability's. I felt like this was a really cool part of the game, and once you're able to transform whenever you want the game felt like it had really taken it up a notch. Wolf Link's combat feels unique and he is necessary to complete most temples. 

FINAL THOUGHTS-

The game looks great and feels great. I remember getting really frustrated with Ocarina even though I love that game. I got frustrated while playing Twilight Princess but only because I was frustrated with myself. The game gives you everything, you never get confused unless the game wants you confused and it does this consistently. The world is so varied and interesting. Going to the desert for the first time is incredible and filled me with the kind of wonder that I don't really get any more. 

If you haven't checked out this game yet, please do. For your sake.

Have you ever completely failed to make a jump from one platform to another, again and again? Well Wings of vi will kindly reintroduce you to that feeling you get when you do. The game is no joke, supposedly opting for a complete 'skill based game play' over pixel perfect jumps and luck. If you have some serious focus and mad reaction speed then you'll do fine. If you're not a super human warrior, then you might find yourself having a struggle once in a while.

Mechanically this game is smoooooooooooth. It plays and feels like a glove, so there's very little input lag. Not that there's much to input. Akin to earlier platformers Wings of Vi has simple controls; up, left, right, down bound to their respective arrow keys. In addition to a jump, action and restart (or suicide) button. Getting used to the controls won't be tough, mastering them is another thing however.

If one thing can be said about Wings of Vi, is that they don't shy from fleshing out their characters (if ya know what I mean). Or the rest of the game for that matter. Another flashback to platformers of old is the pixelated art style that Wings of Vi sports. The style is akin to the megaman series in the way area's are designed and given filling. You won't be focused on whats around you most of the time however. The little angel sprites are cute, as well as the many other things you may come across (except the demons, not cute). One thing I might add as well is that you can customize your character; but if you want them, you'll have to work for them. Flawlessly beat that boss and maybe you'll get a hat to wear, who knows, it might look badass.

Recent years have been good to indie games, with recent releases like Transistor, Shovel Knight and Freedom Planet becoming more than just diversions from our big-budget entertainment; these games are now commonplace, and many see them as a breath of fresh air in an era of developers who, despite deploying decent products, might be playing things a little too safe. Risk is the key element to an indie game. A smaller development team means a more unified vision, and that means an indie game can take risks.

That brings us to a very niche genre of indie games: Dating simulators. Immediately, some people will groan. Dating sims are often associated with an exaggerated portrayal of perverted young men looking for an easy, vicarious solution to romantic issues. Distaste for this genre of games is not unwarranted, as dating sims go against almost every standard of gaming. 

In the mind of this author, most games are based around both escalation and reward. Escalation can come in the form of a growing world (sandbox games), increasing difficulty of levels (platformers), or character growth (RPG). The standard dating sim normally plays scene-by-scene, with little conflict other than the goal of dating (and potentially sleeping with) one or more romantic interests. Reward can be something as simple as beating a level or boss, but more and more games have a player's actions rewarded with in-game money, experience points, items, concept art, and so on. Dating sims, more often than not, do not reward the player with much more than what is expected (bow-chicka-bow-wow), and that is only gained by playing through the scenarios provided, which usually don't require more than a few dozen clicks of the mouse.

There have been two dating sims in recent years that have included both dynamic change and rewards for your troubles, and as such have earned their popularity among gamers who don't often play dating sims. Katawa Shoujo included escalation and reward in its story, in which the player must be cautious in what they say and do, seeing as only one love interest can be pursued, and every single one has a physical disability. Good players are rewarded with a sensitive and heartfelt story, while less successful players will meet a depressing ending. Another dating sim to break the mold is HuniePop, which makes escalation and reward part of its gameplay.

Nikki likes Talent (blue tokens) and dislikes Sexuality (red tokens). Better plan ahead.

The fact that HuniePop even has gameplay is one of the reasons it stands above most dating sims. While it is, at first glance, an average dating sim, it's actually a puzzle game, not unlike  Bejeweled and (Blargh) Candy Crush. In the game's dating portions, the player must fill their date's affection meter by performing matches of three or more of the same tokens. While that alone is simple enough, HuniePop manages to up the ante by cleverly integrating dating sim elements with the puzzle elements. For instance, each token represents a particular trait, and each girl you meet in the game has a most desired and least desired trait, giving the player incentive to match up certain tokens while avoiding others. Further, special tokens will earn the player sentiment points, which can be used as currency to give the girl a present. Every present gives the player a different perk, which can make the puzzle easier, making a successful date more likely.

What gives HuniePop an edge is that the player has to make a genuine effort to succeed. Between dates, the player is encouraged to get to know each girl on an individual level, learning about their daily lives, their goals, their occupations, and their personalities. These girls aren't cliched archetypes, either. While they aren't overly complex, HuniePop's roster of girls are three dimensional, some with surprisingly subtle traits that are fun to analyze (most of them, anyway). It's important for the player to pay attention, as they will be regularly quizzed for facts on each girl. If the player does well, they are rewarded with experience points called Hunie, which can be spent on upgrades for the puzzle segments.

Don't worry, Jessie is only twice as slutty as she looks.

It's a continuous cycle. The player must upgrade themselves to do better on dates, which become harder as the game goes along. Doing well on dates gets the player a higher money reward (ironically), which allows the player to buy food and drinks for the girl between dates. A well-fed girl can have more conversations with the player, and drinks can be used to earn extra Hunie, as well as a sentiment bonus during dates. The player has to summon their inner strategist to ensure they do well in HuniePop, and in doing so are rewarded with the necessary assets to do well in later gameplay. The ultimate reward for succeeding in repeated dates with a girl is, well... Let's just say it's a bonus round, and even those segments provide a reward. For best results, play the non-Steam version.

HuniePop is a winner because it takes risks with the dating simulator formula, without abandoning the qualities that dating sim fans love. It strikes a fine balance between fun puzzle gameplay and the thrill of getting to live out a romantic fantasy. Combining a form of escapism with gameplay that challenges the mind has earned HuniePop overwhelmingly positive reviews on Steam. As such, even if either puzzles or dating sims don't appeal to you, you should at least give this one a try. It's an example that many dating sims should follow.

I'm going to be straight with you, horror games are not for\r everyone. I've noticed that while people will almost indefinitely play out\r RPG's they are quick to give up on horror games after a few good scares, and\r while it's not proven (by any means), I suspect that this is because the\r average player cannot identify with many of the protagonists of horror games in\r the same way they can relate to the hero's and anti-hero's of other games. This\r is completely reasonable as much of a games enjoyability comes from the player\r being able to project aspects of who they are, or aspire to be, onto the main\r character. This is also why Among the Sleep stands out as a\r horror-adventure. In Among the Sleep you play as a young child who is searching for his mother. This is one of the most fascinating aspects of the game because everyone knows what it is like to be a child who is scared -and maybe a little lost. 

One of the first points that I'd like to make is this: the narrative in this game, while a little on the short side, is pretty good. Granted, it is nowhere as in-depth as say Amnesia: The Dark Descent, but it is fairly compelling despite its simplistic nature. As previously mentioned, you are a toddler, 2 years old to be exact, who has woken up in the middle of the night to find that something is amiss in your house. Like any scared child you stumble through the house (keeping your faithful companion, Teddy, close by) and eventually make your way to your mothers bedroom to seek comfort and reassurance that there are no monsters in the closet. Unfortunately, upon making it to her room you find her bed empty; this is where the story truly begins.

Playing through this Among the Sleep with the unique perspective of a child lends an added creep factor to the game. While on your quest you find yourself in various strange dark places; many of which appear to be distorted memories of the child protagonist that have been overcome by nature. The scenery in this game is an eerie amalgamation of unsettling and whimsical and works well as a metaphor for the themes of destruction and loss that are present though out the game. 

Some of the core game play is also driven by the petite stature of the playable character. Toddlers are not particularly adept at walking and so they occasionally revert back to crawling; in this game you can switch between the two at will. The two methods of movement also offer different benefits and weaknesses. While walking you are able to interact with objects and hug teddy (which provides a little bit of comforting light), walking, however, is slow and makes you more visible. Crawling, on the other hand, is fast and allows you to hide under things. You also have no way of fighting, well... what ever that thing is, you are only 2 after all.

Most of the "horror" that comes from this game is rooted in the environment, there is a thing eventually, and a few jump-like scares here and there, but ultimately it will be the little noises and movements that send chills down your spine. As a bit of a side note: this game is oculus compatible. I have not yet played Among the Sleep on oculus (though I might try to get around to it within the month) but I have played a few other horror games/demos on the oculus and I believe that this game would be infinitely better on oculus. The atmosphere developed through the maps is what really shines about this 

Overall this game is a great introduction to horror games. The puzzles are not overly complex, nor do you have to dedicate too much time to finishing the narrative. At $21.99 CDN Among the Sleep is a little bit expensive, considering the quantity of content (and I've never been a fan of characters body parts passing through walls either), but aside from some minor flaws with the character models the quality of this game is great and I would strongly recommend it to anyone, horror and non-horror fans alike.

As the title suggests, rupees play a very large part in the game's mechanics, so much so in fact that they also act as your health. Because of this, the standard shop system from the normal Zelda titles was removed in favor of a haggling system which punishes you for going too high or too low with your offer. An easy way to get large sums of rupees is to find a map and fill in the landmarks that are missing from it. Selling the completed map back to the old woman at the end of the town strip will net you some easy money. Extremely large sums of rupees are also needed as offerings to Uncle Rupee who will open up the way to Rupeeland and also gradually opens up the new areas of the world which contain progressively stronger and more annoying enemies and increasingly more difficult dungeons.

Now since Tingle isn't exactly a fighter (with the exception of Hyrule Warriors), he can't really defend himself effectively, so to protect his hide, you need to go to these taverns called "Salons" and hire a bodyguard to help you fight and collect treasures. Bodyguards range in 3 different sizes and 3 different AI patterns and as such, their fee for hiring them also differs significantly. Bodyguards also have unique abilities dependent on their size: Small ones can enter tight places that Tingle cannot enter, medium ones can open locked gates, and large ones can break boulders. Almost all areas that only a bodyguard can access usually guarantee a Rupee Good of which there are 30 to collect.

Now the combat system is extremely simplistic. You walk into an enemy to engage the fight and the entire ordeal is played out in a cartoon dust cloud. You can round up more enemies to fight and even your bodyguard for help while the battle is happening, but the way to win is to rapidly tap the cloud on the screen to help tip the scales in your favor. The more enemies you run into and defeat at once, the better your rewards are after the fight, many of which can be sold or used for cooking in Tingle's kitchen which in turn can be placed in empty jars for use on the field or to be sold for some extra cash later.

Now come the words of warning: This game was rated PEGI 12+ when it was released in Europe. The reasoning behind this is because of the suggestive and somewhat homosexual tone a small handful of characters emit. If this might damper your decision on getting the game, then I would suggest you watch Vinesauce's stream of the game on YouTube instead before you make a final verdict. If it is the region where it was released that is causing a problem with your decision, then I should probably note that Nintendo DS games are region free meaning they will play on any DS regardless of the country you bought it in. If it some other reason, then I honestly think you would be missing out because I had a lot of fun with this game and I think you all would have fun with it too if you gave it a chance. But until then, I'll be seeing you.

Game Score:

Returning from Super Smash Bros Brawl are the challenges. Challenges are in both versions of the game, but they are split up into three separate pages on the 3DS version with a total of 105 relatively easy ones to complete whereas the Wii U version has 140 moderately more difficult ones all on one page. Completing a challenge will give you a reward and a special picture to view as a little bonus.

Classic Mode also makes a return in these games as it always has since the series' beginning, but this time it has gotten a drastic overhaul. On the 3DS, you go through branching paths of varying difficulty (Blue = Easy, Green = Normal, Red = Hard) and it feels very similar to how Classic Mode has been in past games, but in the Wii U version, Classic Mode is more based on your actual skill level as there are multiple groups of fighters each with a varying number of opponents and the occasional rival and surprise ambush.

Now for the mode everyone knows about, SMASH MODE. This is the game's basic free-for-all versus mode in which you choose your character and beat the crap out of your opponent on one of dozens of different stages inspired by a game in Nintendo's MASSIVE repertoire of franchises. The types of battles that can be done include Timed, Stock, and Coin battles and each can be played in teams. Smash mode can also be played online in modes called "For Fun" which has all items on and uses every stage except for Final Destination, and "For Glory" which all items are turned off and the only stage available is Final Destination or a visual variation of it.

Stadium mode also returns from the previous games, but with some slight alterations. Break the Targets has been completely removed and a new mode called Target Blast has taken its place. The 3DS version only has one stage while the Wii U version has three and if you want an idea of what Target Blast plays like, think Angry Birds but instead of a slingshot, you're launching a large bomb with a character's smash attack. 15-Minute smash mode in the Stadium has also been replaced with a new mode called Rival Smash in which you have to knock out more opponents than a CPU controlled rival character. The Fighting Alloy Team from Brawl in Stadium has also been replaced with the Fighting Mii Team. I find this to be pretty humorous as the Mii's faces are taken from the system's internal memory (I have some pretty low brow ones on my systems).

Now, here is what is exclusive to each version.

Returning from Brawl are the Event Matches, but these are exclusive to the Wii U version of the game. Event Matches are special battles with very specific win conditions. Some examples would include defeating a specific character before a computer controlled rival, or even preventing a hoard of slowly falling enemies from landing of the stage. Each event also has a secondary win condition that will reward you with a special prize should you succeed.

Also returning from Brawl and are exclusive to the Wii U are the Masterpieces. Masterpiece are demos of classic games that last anywhere between 1 to 5 minutes in length. If you happen to like the game's demo by the time the timer runs out, you are given the option to buy the game from the eShop which is a very nice convenience.

New to the game and exclusive to the Wii U version is Special Orders mode. Special orders gives you randomized rules and opponents to fight with a guaranteed prize should you succeed. In Master Orders you pay a small sum of coins to take one of three challenges and the options reset with each win or loss. In Crazy Orders however, you can either pay a fairly high sum of coins or pay with an Orders Pass which can be won from Event Matches or from the roulette in Classic Mode. In Crazy Orders, you go round after round with most damage kept after each round until you feel like you don't have the confidence to continue any further. Whatever damage you accrued from the previous rounds will be then calculated into health for the final battle with Crazy Hand and any minions he may have helping him.

Now comes the verdict. The controls are tight and responsive, the music is fantastic, and everything else will keep you occupied for a very long time like collecting trophies and betting coins on the online spectator mode. If you're like me and enjoy playing games with other people in the same room, then get the Wii U version. Almost all the game modes in the Wii U version can be played in co-op mode with friend which is very nice. However, if you aren't the person who spends a lot of time playing TV games or if you travel a lot, then I would recommend the 3DS version as the game can be taken over to a friend's house for use as a controller for the Wii U version or you can play the 3DS exclusive Street Smash game mode when you encounter a random person with the game when out and about. I guess you could also get both if you have the money, but until then, I'll be seeing you.

3DS Score:

Wii U Score:

Brutal Legend is the criminally underrated game created by Tim Schafer and his development team, Double Fine, and published by Satan...or their preferred name; "EA". What makes Brutal Legend different from every other hack and slash game is it's Heavy Metal inspired themes and it's use of RTS in typical hack and slash gameplay.

Eddie Riggs is voiced and modeled after Jack Black. Eddie is such a damn good roadie that he is able to create just about anything out of thin air to help him and/or his allies. As well as being the greatest roadie of all time, Eddie, is also an extremely skilled guitarist that can play certain guitar riffs to kill enemies in different ways. He also acquires an axe early on in the game that serves mainly as a primary weapon. It also cuts stuff like an axe. Which is pretty neat.

As soon as Eddie is resurrected by Ormag√ɬ∂den he meets his love interest, Ophelia. Ophelia is just as metal as Eddie so, of course, he falls for her. She is voiced by veteran voice actresses, Jennifer Hale. Ophelia's role in the game seems so unimportant, like a forced love interest. That is until about 3/4 of the way through the game when things start to get even crazier, but all starts to make sense...kinda. 

            "Too much metal!"

                                                                                  "I claim this land for Ironheade!"

On top of Brutal Legend's hack and slash gameplay and RTS elements it is also and open world game. And a damn good one at that. While roaming around the world your main mode of transportation is " The Deuce". The Deuce is a hot rod Eddie builds at the beginning of the game to escape from The Temple of Ormag√ɬ∂den with Ophelia. Enemies clutter the land trying to turn the beautiful Heavy Metal inspired landscape into something more akin to Glam Rock. Glam Rock is the main enemy of the game with it being led by General Lionwhyte. A play on words of the band White Lion, a Glam Rock band. To defeat lower tier enemies, Eddie, must use a combination of The Separator, his axe, and his flying V guitar, Clementine. For more important battles and usually boss battles, Eddie must use his powers of RTS. Now the RTS elements in the game are something very strange for a hack and slash game and that's one of the reasons why some people passed on the game, but surprising they work pretty well. At first I hated the RTS parts of the game because I don't much care for RTS games in general , but like I said, they work.

Eddie is able to summon two types of allies to assist him on the battlefield during Stage Battles. Melee fighters and Ranged fighters. Stage Battles are pretty unique. You are tasked with taking back parts of the Heavy Metal land via a "Battle of the Bands" type showdown. Heavy Metal vs. Glam Rock. Eddie has to set up and defend "Merch" booths in the name of Ironheade whilst destroying the Glam Rock's Merch booths. Overall, the RTS elements work and have their place, but some people may be turned off by them.

Tim Schafer did his homework on the icons of Heavy Metal. I can not stress it enough that this game as a whole is just a huge love letter to the fans of the genre, but it also isn't afraid to joke around about some of the stereotypes of Heavy Metal without blatantly insulting it. Unfortunately, that's one of the reasons why the game flew under the radar is because fans of this genre of music were either not gamers or that the genre has been declining since the early 2000's. Some even regarded this game as a "Relic of another time". Sadly, there is truth to that statement. 

  Rob Halford as "General Lionwhite"

Lemmy Kilmister as "The Killmaster"   

In the end, it's sad to see just how under appreciated this glorious game was. Taking a tired old genre of hack and slash, incorporating some good RTS elements, and wrapping it all in a beautiful Heavy Metal world inhabited by the men and women who actually help define Heavy Metal as a genre. One good thing to come out of this though is that if you were to pick up this game now (on consoles at least) you can get it for dirt cheap. I picked up my copy for the PS3 about a year ago for $5! It's almost criminal to pay ONLY $5 for it. On Steam, Brutal Legend, is only $15 and even then that's a steal. There's enough content in the game to hold you over for about 9 hours at the minimum without doing really any of the side quests. So if you a fan of hack and slash games, RTS games, Heavy Metal music, or Tim Schafer and Double Fine games then do your self a favor and pick this one up.   9/10 

Alice: Madness Returns is what happens if Tim Burton had made a GOOD interpretation of Alice's Adventures In Wonderland. Madness Returns was developed by American McGee and his development team, Spicy Horse, and published by everybody's favorite publisher, EA. Alice: Madness Returns is a Third Person Action Adventure Platformer that puts a dark spin on Lewis Carrol's original source material. This is actually a sequel to American McGee's Alice originally released in 2000.

When Alice arrives back in Wonderland, the world, is bright and colorful, but the deeper she goes into Wonderland the more dark and sinister it gets. On her journey, Alice, is accompanied by the Cheshire Cat whom may or may not be a figment of Alice's imagination. In fact, the entirety of Wonderland may or may not be a figment of Alice's imagination and that is what Alice's story revolves around; her sanity.

After Alice's adventure to Wonderland in the first game she had been declared clinically insane and spent a majority of her life in Rutledge Asylum. Madness Returns takes place a year after her release at the age of 19 and she now resides in an orphanage under the care of a psychiatrist named Dr. Angus Bumby. The gameplay begins when Alice relapses into Wonderland.

The second story is Alice returning to Wonderland. Hence "Madness Returns". Wonderland is now falling apart. It is being destroyed by a mysterious train dubbed by the inhabitants as "The Infernal Train". Alice may be the only one able to stop The Infernal Train from completely destroying Wonderland, but is Wonderland as real as she believes it to be? I personally found Alice's story in the real world dealing with her sanity to be far more interesting and meaningful.

Out of combat, Alice: Madness Returns is a platformer. Again, not much new here, but at least it isn't flawed in anyway. Alice can now jump not once, not twice, but four times whilst in the air. She also will float if the jump button is held down to help guide Alice down onto a platform.

Though, there is one thing everybody seems to agree upon....

Alice: Madness Returns really is an underrated gem because it sets up nicely a sequel, but sales didn't meet their goals so it was cancelled which is a shame. There is hope though. In 2013, American McGee started a Kickstarter to fund a concluding chapter in the Alice series called "Alice: Otherlands". There was a catch though. It wouldn't be a game, but rather an animated mini series. The Kickstarter met it's goal and now Alice: Otherlands will be released some time this year. Again, there is more hope. American McGee still wants to make Alice Otherlands into a game, but it depends on the success of the animated mini series.

Alice: Madness Returns isn't perfect. The gameplay is pretty stale and the middle act has a lot of filler fetch quests, but I'd be lying to you if I said that I didn't like this game. I actuallygenuinely love this game. The art style, the story, the soundtrack, and Alice herself are all so well done that it is sad that this game isn't more well known. Do yourself a favor and pick this one up. You won't be disappointed. 8.5/10

Metro 2033 is where the bulk of the remastering went. It looks almost as if it were built from the ground up using the updated 4A Engine similar to that of Metro Last Light, but a more realistic idea is that the textures and placements of some objects were given a fresh coat of paint that still looks absolutely fantastic. Unfortunately though, the best comparison image I could find was a compressed YouTube image that doesn't do it as much justice as I would have hoped it would, but I think it still gets the point across. 

As well as a graphical upgrade, Metro 2033, also gets an upgrade to it's HUD and menus. Now it's exactly like Metro Last Light where you hold down a button or key that brings up all your tools. This is a million times more convenient than the older Metro 2033 HUD and menus though I can see why some people may not like it feeling like the same game, but i like it being two different games feeling like one huge video game ride. 

Some times you will be given a small side quest for money or a karma point towards the good or bad though it doesn't really matter because Last Light will always pick up after the bad ending. I can not say enough good things about this game. It's really more like an experience because even after you've finished the game you will never forget the experience you had with it. Since you can buy each game separately I give this game on it's own merit a 9/10. 

Metro Last Light picks up right after the bad karma ending to 2033 where Artyom launched the missle strike against the Dark Ones' nest, but only after it's revealed to him that the Dark Ones were actually good and mean't no harm to humans and actually wanted to help them rebuild humanity. Khan, from 2033, visits Artyom and reveals to him that one Dark One survived so now it is race to get the last remaining Dark One. You will fight against the Fourth Reich, the Soviets, and bandits as well as everybody's favorite mutated dog things; Nosalises. 

Artyom also gets a love interest named Anna whom the developers spent more time modeling her boobs than her face (you'll see what I mean in a minute). Anna actually goes through a bit of a character arch. She starts out as a real bitch to Artyom then through a set of events she respects and becomes attracted to him. Anna isn't given a lot of screen time though. She's at the beginning of the game then disappears for more than half the game to show up towards the end. Artyom still only speaks during loading screens and remains silent during gameplay which makes me wonder how he ever gets Anna. 

This is what I meant when I said that the developers spent more time modeling Anna's boobs than her face. I have to note that the breasts and nipples are the most realistic I've ever seen in a video game (which is warrant enough for a 10/10 amiright, guys??) The nudity is kind of strange in this game though. Both times it happens you are in a really intense fire fight then less than 5 minutes later you get boobs in your face. I'm not really complaining for that reason, but it did hurt some of the pacing for two really intense parts.

The first time you on a raft with another survivor fighting off mutated water monsters called "Shrimps" to get to a nearby station then you get a bare breasted lap dance. It is optional though. The second time you shooting your way through a metro station that is burning down and are trying to get to Anna because she was captured by the Soviets in the last mission. At the last moment the enemy breaks you gas mask and you are exposed to a biological weapon that the Soviets tested on the metro station with. You and Anna are then both saved and quarantined by Khan and his men because the biological weapon was Ebola. In the face of uncertain death Anna gets partially naked and Artyom and Anna make a baby. 

There are less side quests to do in most of the stations though. You'll still see your typical bum in the corner asking for a bullet and you can still give him one for a good karma point. Metro Last Light also has the ability to get a good ending and a bad ending except this time one of the endings implies a sequel to this game and the other ends the series. You'll see which is which depending on the ending you get. 9/10.

So, I'll stop gushing for a moment and get down to it. Metro Redux isn't flawless. Stealth is some times way too easy. There are some minor animation hiccups here and there. Last Light has minor pacing issues, but overall these games are amazing. The story is well told, the atmosphere is incredible, the gameplay is rock solid, boobs, and you get to kill Nazis. What more could you possibly want. Both Metro 2033 and Last Light have both been remastered and it shows (more in 2033). You also get both games for the price of one. I highly recommend you pick this one up on any platform of your choosing. I know that it should average out to about a 9/10, but I'm taking into account you get two games for the price of one. Overall I give Metro Redux a 9.5/10. It's that good. 

I have a bit of an unconventional taste when it comes to video games. I'll play almost anything as long as it plays well and how it looks is often unimportant. Yoshi's Story falls under that category. Sure, it looks like it was designed for younglings, but looks can often be deceiving.

All in all, I had a lot of fun with this game. While the music is overly happy and cheerful and the environments literally look like cardboard and felt, the gameplay is what really matters and I think it plays extremely well for what it does. If you want to legally play it for yourself, the game is available on the Wii's Virtual Console service. You may find that looks aren't everything as well. But until then, I'll be seeing you.

Score:

• Unite Hand can turn gears and ignite itself to throw fireballs
• Unite Sword can cut cables, unlock diamond shaped keyholes, repel lasers and act as a lightning rod
• Unite Gun can hit distant and unreachable targets
• Unite Hammer can pound switches, break floors and protect against arial fire
• Unite Whip can be used to swing from certain points and can rip spikes from their mounts
• Unite Claw can be used to scale walls, pry open doors and can occasionally freeze enemies
• Unite Bomb can temporarily slow time to a near standstill in a given radius

Now my favorite part, the Boss Fights. Each of these fights are unique and interesting, sometimes even being dramatically overdone to the point where it keeps trying to top its own wackiness. A couple of these fights even play homage to the Punch-Out!! series of games which amused me to the point of laughing. I just wasn't expecting anything like that at all. All of these fights also start with a cutscene of Wonder Red initiating his suit's Infinity Form which greatly increases his power and endurance for the duration of the fight. Whenever this scene happens, I always find myself mimicking Red's movements. It's just one of those things that made me feel like I was a kid again sitting in front of the TV watching Power Rangers and eating some sugary cereal.

All in all, this game has been an invigorating experience for me. The controls were great, the music was fantastic and each level was extremely well made and had something unique to offer from it. The camera's isometric view might cause some viewing issues during close up shots, but it can be zoomed out in some cases where that happens. Still, I highly recommend you pick up this game because this underrated title has been one of the most fun games I've played in years. But until then, I'll be seeing you.

Score:

Welcome to "Early Access Impressions"!

One of the great things about PC Gaming is the amount of games in Early Access.

For those not familiar with Steam's Early Access system, developers release their unfinished games at a reduced cost at both benefit to the user and the developer.

The user is essentially an In-Dev Tester(yes that means broken games) and they get the game once it becomes full release. This series will feature games in Early Access as I get to them. And there's a lot.

Onto the show!

Killing Floor 2 is a first person co-op shootin' wave survivin' gore fest.

Developed by Tripwire Interactive Killing Floor 2 is kind of like Left 4 Dead and Call Of Duty's Nazi Zombies had a Super HD and over the top cRazY baby.

The gameplay is solid. Running around the maps aiming down sights and blowing apart heads feels very satisfying. Teamwork is made very essential in KF2. While a solo mode is available I wouldn't suggest it, even on Normal difficulty, you're gonna have a bad time. These are very similar characteristics to the original Killing Floor although I'd say KF2 is a more fluid experience.

                                                                                                                                                                                    Visually this game is amazing. If you told me this was developed by a AAA developer I'd believe you. Above you can see me blowing apart the head of a Siren in Slow Motion. The picture really doesn't do it justice but the gore effects are very very nice.

The enemy types is something else to consider. At this point in the early access stage the game features the standard Zed, Scrakes, Fleshpounds, Sirens, Crawlers, Stalkers, Sirens, Bloats, Gorefasts, Stalkers, Ranged Zeds(who I cant find the name of) and  the newest addition, an end level boss.

Going by the name of Hans Volter, this is one boss you should not take lightly. Multiple times I've been blown up, shot or poisoned by Hans Volter. While difficult to defeat Hans is that much more rewarding a kill. The difficulty in KF2, I think, is just right.

After you and your team destroy those enemies that have spawned, after each round you are then prompted to go to head to the trader with all that Dosh you've earned. 

Weapon variety is something Tripwire definitely needs to work on. 

Being the crazy over the top gory shooter this game is, my commando class felt no love in the crazy weapon department. Although there is decent variety, it got boring very quickly knowing that every time i played I just had to save up enough Dosh for that SCAR-H to be destroying zeds effectively. Keep in mind, this is early access, so there's a very good chance more content is coming. Map variety also needs to be improved at this point in time.

Glitches?

I didn't see any. Other than the fact that the matchmaking doesn't seem to be 100% working yet (sometimes I'd get thrown into games outside my search preferences) this game is virtually glitch free. This is probably one of the first times I've looked at an Early Access release that is actually very stable. Good on ya' Tripwire!

Final Thoughts

-Killing Floor 2 is just great. As far as an early access release, probably one of the best.
 
-The gameplay is solid feeels great and offers enough variety in weapons and enemies at this point in time to be satisfying.

-It's visually amazing with great lighting very high quality water and gore effects that are all so shiny I couldn't wait until the next Zed exploded.

-I think what makes this game even more amazing is how impossible they made winning, without a team. This is a real co-op survival shooter.

If you are the kind of gamer who likes blowing apart zombie heads with shotguns or slicing them off with military shovels, Killing Floor 2 is a must buy. I would suggest getting it soon, as the price will only go up. Just pray Tripwire adds more content before the full release.

You can scavenge buildings for supplies and hunt animals such as deer for meat. This is essential because you can eat things such as candy bars and cans of beans the survive, but your dogs can't. They can only eat meat. You or the dogs can eat the meat raw or cooked and, just like real life, cooked meat is better for you.

The developer is also going to create a 4 player Co-Op mode later down the line. Finally, the game is currently on sale for $5.99, lowered from $9.99 until March 1st. (today being February 26th, 2015)

The Cat Lady is a point and click adventure game developed by Harvester Games and published by Screen 7. This is genuinely one of the creepiest games I've ever played. The atmosphere and art style are so spooky that this feels like one of those haunted games in Creepypastas. Most point and click games in this day and age are underrated, but The Cat Lady takes the cake for the most underrated point and click game.

The story is very well told and you a genuinely begin to care about Susan and the people you encounter on your journey. Though, some people may not be who they say they are; thread lightly...

Other developers really should take notes from this gem on how to tackle depression in video games. The Cat Lady is really an emotional roller coaster that will leave you in tears during more intense moments of the game. Two things I got from this experience was a new found appreciation for life and a stronger will to live. You know when a game can do that to you that it did something right. That wasn't until I had finished the game though so if you don't finish it quickly while you're depressed it may make you even sadder so head my warning.

The Cat Lady is unlike anything I've ever experienced. It manages to capture the horror atmosphere of the earlier Silent Hill games and what made point and click games like The Secret of Monkey Island. There really isn't another experience like the one found in The Cat Lady. Even if you aren't a fan of point and click games you will still get enjoyment from this game. Same goes for people who aren't fans of horror. Another thing to note is that there aren't any damn jump scares which is as rare as Gearbox making a good game that isn't Borderlands.

In the end, I can't say enough good things about The Cat Lady. Horror and point and click adventure games have never mixed together so well before. The Cat Lady is not for people with weak stomachs though. There are some pretty intense moments and imagery. That same, "What the hell am I looking at? All I know is that it's horrifying and I want nothing to do with it" imagery that you got with early Silent Hill games. Play this gem in the dark and with headphones. 9/10

Storyline/features:

          Mark of the Ninja is a 2D platformer that focuses on stealth and otherwise being ninja. The story is set in the modern day, where ninjas have perhaps become slightly outdated. You play as a ninja (go figure) who's clan was ruthlessly attacked by mercenaries. Your task is to strike back at the man who ordered the attack, and regain your clans honor. However, to do it you accept the burden of the mystical Mark, giving you mysterious abilities; but these powers come at a horrible price. The marks powers hail from a mysterious plant, who's origins I will later discuss. Besides giving you superhuman abilities, it turns whoever accepts it mad, in time. Turning on anyone and everyone, killing with the only intention to end lives. To ensure the safety of the clan the bearer of the mark kills themselves, turning themselves in before becoming to powerful to stop. 

        One thing that you catch on quite quickly is that the game strives to keep elements of the ninja authentic, point in case is that you don't know who you are. Your name, and anything about you is shrouded in mystery. Perhaps the only information you have is Ora, your companion throughout the game, and the name of your clan, the Hisomu. This approach to a character, especially a main character is not a common thing. Even in other games where the main protagonist is a ninja, it's more common that his/her name is one of legend (or infamy). However the fact of the matter is that the identity of a ninja was completely secret. So much so that it would be quite common that ninja's from the same clan would confront each other in battle (1). This was the case because ninja families were born to serve lords, for honor of their lords and clan.

      I will admit that the storyline is not the most complicated, nor is it a epic that spans several hundred hours; but for the narrative it tries to tell, it is well done. Not only from what happens during cut scenes, but during the game too. Now in most cases I don't really enjoy collecting, running every which way to find small things that give you an arbitrary 100% that don't really affect the game and its story. In Mark of the Ninja there are collectibles in the form of scrolls, and artifacts. Artifacts only give you points that count towards your final score, where the scrolls contain Haiku's. There are three a mission, and together they tell a short story about the clans history. Here's an example:

       On a starless night,  An unkindness of ravens,  Lands along a wall

Drunken, laughing guards ,  Spill outside with joy to meet ,  The eyeless faces

A thick liquid drips ,   Down a silken thread that hangs ,  Above a pillow

This particular set of scrolls tells of a mission. One that brought the Hisomu clan into legend. Reading through them really gives you an idea of how things were back in the day. When ninjas were feared, for the unknown power they wielded with deadly precision, and how it has all changed in the modern day. This is a major theme in the games storyline, and drives the majority of the plot. The death of the Baron, who ordered the attack on you from out of nowhere. To the well kept, dark secrets of the ink plant. These events simply act as a story, a children's tale. Because the whole game leads to its finale quite literally, and figuratively. 

       Throughout the game, it feels like you are alone in your mission to save the clan. Like you have been knowingly abandoned to your death, and the only 'light' is your one companion in all this. Ora, who is that companion seems to follow you through the thick and thin. Through the castles, deserts and back home. During development, it was decided that Ora would have a big speaking role. Which is hard to imagine in a game about stealth. So what you'll notice is that she only shows up at select times during a mission. Most often at the beginning and end, with some exceptions. So she's a constant factor in how you see the different situations, always lending a couple quips to give you some perspective. One thing I don't like, is that it's a narrative you have to listen to, and her reasons are never explained. All you know is she's a 'friend'. It feels like she has no other use in game than to push an idea. Thankfully, or at least true to the games varying gameplay, you make the finale decision. Figuratively and literally.

Game play:

Mark of the ninja is a particular game in the sense that its a 2D stealth platformer with emphasis on lighting dynamics. It uses a number of small mechanics to make the game play .It also uses sound quite effectively in its design. Stealth is often based on being able to see the mark and in some cases hearing them move, there are also some instances where you can sense the unseen. Mark of the ninja's game play makes use of them all. In general game play, not standing in a spotlight's or flashlight's gaze means you are in the shadows. 

       The lighting system is really interesting, and I'll explain. All light in this game comes from a source: lights, chandeliers, spotlights, floodlights, flashlights etc. Each has a one of a few 'gazes', as in it propagates outwards from the source in a particular way. Chandeliers give light out in about a ~150degree radius, and the light reaches as far as the outline shows. Flash lights have a smaller ~25 degree radius but can be shown anywhere the guard points, so are flexible in their direction of gaze. However if the guard is looking for you it's much harder to move around. So being caught out by them will happen more often. Another example of a source are the floodlights. They are similar to the the flashlight and ceiling light, in that it is staitionary and has a smaller AOE; but it has a protection from another small game mechanic, which i'll get too soon. Being able to skirt light sources is key in staying hidden, and you'll have too look out for a number of different types too. Because as soon as you step into the light you'll know. If you take a look at the photo to the side, paying particular attention to the to left you'll see a small icon of the ninja. This is your stealth indicator, and the icon will become lighter, as well as your character model if you step into the light.

       This is when you know you can be seen. Which is interesting because it doesn't mean you will be seen. The guards that populate each level have a small area in front of them that they can 'see'. This is indicated by a light outline that propagates out their eyes. If you come into this area they'll see you, and being sighted is its own little mechanic. You can in fact stand right in front of them, if your in the shadows, without being noticed. Get too close though and you'll be spotted out from the flashlight. So here two mechanics come together to create a game play experience. If you're standing in the light, and a guard happens too look towards you, he or she will instantly spot you. Which means a light source effectively extends the guards sight range. I think this is a really cool because of how it mirrors real life, as light tends to help you see stuff. In game play it keeps you on your toes, as just because there aren't any guards on screen to spot you doesn't mean one won't. As far as I know the range is pretty big, but not infinite. So avoiding lights becomes immensely important if there are guards around, especially if they are looking towards you.  

       The other way you can be found out is by sound. Being a ninja, you were trained to be as quiet as possible, so moving around generally makes very little noise. Running however will make quite a racket, and anyone nearby will hear it. In the first play through of the game you can see how far the sound travels out from its source. The game indicates this by a transparent white circle that moves outwards from the source. So its omnidirectional, but in a 2D space (if that makes sense); and I think it does because if you think about it, the idea feels right. It makes sense when you play the game and hardly needs explaining, it's easy to grasp. Which is a recurring theme around Mark of the Ninja's game play, and this why I think the game does very well.

       Now its all well and good that you can see the sound visibly, but how does it affect the game play? I'll use an example; in the image to  

the left. Here you'll see two guards, and our ninja protagonist perched on a hanging platform just above. By the feet of one of the guards is the source of the sound (I'll explain later what it is). Now you can see by the outline how far the sound went, and that the guard is in that area. The smaller yellow circle around the guard indicates that he has heard something, and the fainter yellow circle is where he thinks he heard it. So you can imagine how this works now. Using something that makes sound you can get a guard to turn away, so you can slip by, or murder him.

         One thing you'll have to remember though is how much sound you make, because if you noticed, the sound in this game travels through everything. Its one of the slight gripes I have with the game but its fairly minor, and actually makes game play better. In the picture above you'll see the outline goes into the floor. In another case perhaps its at a wall; the sound would go through it and into the next room for anyone to hear. Thus the real life physics of sound absorption is omitted (its not the only time this game does that). You'll find though that this has very niche but effective game play uses. For example getting the attention of a guard behind a door, so that he comes outside and you can sneak into the building without being spotted. Its a peculiar interaction, but its quite cool to think about.

       Now for actual gameplay, the how do I ninja bizz. Controls in Mark of the ninja are really quite simple, left analog for moving and right for looking around. A button for jump, X to punch/kick, and Y to use your tools (if you haven't noticed I used a xbox controller). Other buttons do things but i'll get to that in time. In the beginning of the game you don't have much, in fact you have nothing. So everything is 'vanilla' and as the game progresses more tools are added, more powers tapped, and techniques learned. Each level is story driven so there's no generic kind of mission, but I'll use the first level as an example. The first mission is to free your ninja brethren from the mercenaries, and is quite simple as most first levels are. In order to do so however you need to stay hidden, or you get caught and there's no one to free anyone else, logically. 

        So you have to hide, and there are a lot of places to do so. Much of each levels design is centered around how you can move through them. For example a hallway will have doors that you can hide behind. Allowing you to avoid detection by sensors and patrolling guards.  Simply done by pressing A next to one. There are many other things to hide in and on, trash dumps, garbage cans, pots, statues etc. For a normal person, hiding behind one of these isn't too hard, if whoever is looking for you isn't trying very hard. So a ninja with superhuman abilities should have no problems. 

      Suppose however you can't hide. There's a guard who just won't look away long enough, what do? In Mark of the ninja you have to often think about 'how can I get past this, and what can I use to do that?' In most cases your tools are immensely helpful. They allow you to distract and kill, depending on how you feel. Historically a ninja would not kill anyone but his/her mark, to avoid being caught; and it is possible to end every mission without killing anyone (save a select few). If you do choose to kill, there are many ways to do it. A wide variety of tools, and death blows are at your disposal. Assassinations are sometimes necessary, and they work like a combo. Input the combo correctly and the mark dies silently, but mess it up and whoever is dying will make a lot of noise.  It's oddly satisfying to flawlessly take down an entire task force alone. But it also comes at a cost. A cost to your score.

       Now it might be odd to think, there's a score system in a ninja stealth game. What the diddley doo for? To create balance, and options for the player. You could kill everyone and hide their bodies (for extra points, plus safety) or just leave them be. Not killing them is harder to do, if your plan is to stay unnoticed, but also gives greater reward. At the end of each mission your score is tallied, and the points come from how you interacted with the guards. Either he/she never noticed anything, got distracted by a noise or something you did, or died at your hands. For the system to be balanced, each has a different point value. Untouched give the most while dead give the least. Additionally extra bonus points come from not killing anyone, and distracting no one. They are much harder to achieve but are possible. 

      Most of the fun in the game play for me was being able to choose. It felt like I chose my own path. If a particular area was too hard to get by without killing, then I would go find a different way past. And my favorite thing about the games is its vast array of possible plays. There is absolutely no reason to play a level the same way ever, if you wanted to. It was also a lot of fun to be a ninja, in the way ninja's really were.

Audio + visual:

The game looks like a cartoon, there's no denying this. The visuals are bordered with a small out line to make it easier to see, which is nice in the relatively small amount of light. Only the foreground, and things you can interact with have these visible outlines. The rest of the scenery though is very much beautiful. Mark of the ninja makes use of multiple layered backgrounds, and I think its a cool way to depict a city. There are 5 different areas, with completely different visuals, and its a treat to just look at them sometimes. 

It's not generally a thing to do, but if you stop and look once in a while you can see how much detail goes into this game. Especially when you listen a bit. In a game with patrolling guards, most of their dialogue is simple and repeats over and over. In mark of the ninja the guards have a huge repertoire of lines, and they hardly ever repeat something you've heard before. I mean they don't exactly say anything that has any particular importance to the game, but its that level of detail they put into the little things that count.

     The music is also quite dynamic. Each level has some ambient music that's played in the background, but there are many occasions where it transitions out. For example if you get seen and the alarm goes off, the music becomes energized and really helps give that atmosphere of panic. And generally I enjoy the music, and how atmospheric it is.

      The art style in this game is amazing and is definitely one reason you should play it.

Final Thoughts:

      For me this game is amazing. There's so much option, and each play play through can be different from the last. There just so many small mechanics that just mesh together so well, and its clear the developers really spent a lot of time building the system. Plus the finale is just amazing, the atmosphere is just amazing.

     This game definitely for me deserves a spot in my top 10 favorite games, and I highly recommend anyone playing it regardless of whatever type of games you enjoy. 

If you asked me i'd give it a  9.5/10

Minecraft is a powerful sandbox video game that has really impacted gaming history.The game was conceived by a Swedish programmer by the name of Markus "Notch" Persson, who founded the game. The idea was to allow player's to build anything they wanted out of 3D textured cubes among neat things. The possibilities are endless,  such as slay zombies, ride pigs, make mansions, even make music. 

The game Is widely popular and very well known for its capabilities. Like fun with friends, real life building designs, and just to play when you're bored.  Some schools even use Minecraft as a way to teach kids about design and creativity. This game can and has been used for many different purposes.

There are many Blocks, items, and resources in this game, also including several modes that can be played. Survival mode is the most basic, that you can play.  The player will get a health bar, hunger bar and an experience bar where the player can level up and use those levels to enchant his or her weapons and armor. This help increase the destruction they inflict upon their mortal enemies. A key mechanic is the hunger bar, which slowly depletes as the player does actions such as running, mining, chopping, fishing, or even walking, all except for just standing still.  This can easily be filled back up by making food such as bread from wheat, steak from cooked cow, cooked pork chop from the pigs you kill, and many other wonderful dishes.

The next game mode is the Creative mode which was made for players who don't want to spend hours on end mining and collecting resources; and  instead want everything handed to them for easier and faster building.  The player also gets the power to fly and instantly break blocks which players do not get outside of this mode.  All this for the main purpose of testing designs and building things quick and easy.  But of course using this mode is less prestigious due to the fact that everything is just given to you.  

Lastly the Adventure mode where the player is in a survival type game but has many restrictions to their player.  This mode was made for the purpose of playing on adventure maps that other people have made such as Mario party in Minecraft, or an arena game, or perhaps some Zelda related games.  This mode helps give the player a lot more to do since they can experience.  More than just vanilla Minecraft.

Minecraft is a wonderful game in my own opinion and in the eyes of millions as well.  This game has grown from such a small place and has grown a long time into something so beautiful its almost blinding.  Overall this game is very fun and needs to be played, at least for the experience. Having played the game and seen what it can do, I give Minecraft a  9/10.

Scott Pilgrim Graphic Novel

Scott Pilgrim vs The World (Film)

Scott Pilgrim vs The World: The Game

Well, that's all I can say about this. If you wish to buy the books or the movie, you can get them from Amazon for pretty reasonable prices and if you wish to buy the game, you can download it to the PS3 and XB360 for about $15USD. But until then, I'll be seeing you.

Graphic Novel Score:

Film Score:

Game Score:

The controls for the game are fairly simple, but also complex enough to require a fair amount of skill to be good at it. B is Jump, Y is Shoot, A is Dash and X cycles through your weapons. Holding L locks the position of your gun in place so you can move without readjusting your aim. Hold R to use your shield and this is quite critical to know as your shield can block almost everything in front of you. If this control scheme doesn't suit you just right, you can change the controls in the options from the title screen.

All in all, while the game is hard, it is also very rewarding. Since the controls are tight and responsive, it is YOUR fault if you mess up, not the game's. Its music also gives the game a sense of actual accomplishment if you happen to do well. I personally felt very pleased with myself when I finally beat the game almost fifteen years after getting it as a child. So, if you want a difficult but rewarding game with tight controls and badass music, then Cybernator is your game. It is also available on the Wii's and Wii U's Virtual Console service. But until then, I'll be seeing you.

Score:

I've had the pleasure of playing some of the best games the indie gaming world had given us over the last few years. Edmund McMillen’s The Binding of Isaac: Rebirth + and The End is Nigh is what I started out with. Then I moved to Human: Fall Flat.

Human: Fall Flat is a rag doll, real world physics puzzle adventure simulator that lets you play any way you want; as long as you can do a leap of faith at the end of every level. It has been a lot of frustration with a overwhelming sense of accomplishment. Climbing walls, breaking glass with a 2x4, using a catapult to launch you over a castle fortress. With an E rating it's a great game to play with family and friends. Though it may seem straightforward; the games does have its challenges that a younger player may find very difficult.

I think this is a great game for a science class that is learning about the laws of physics and motion. With the way the joy-con controls are set up; local Co-op mode would be an interesting way for students to learn teamwork, along with scientific theories being tested in a fun and very safe (to the students) environment. I don't know if anyone has seen the educational value of the Switch yet though I believe with more games like this, and what Nintendo is do with the Labo series; I hope to see the console in more STEM classes around the world.

The one thing that is lacking in the game is being able to customize your controller layout. It seems to be the biggest downfall for a lot of the Switch games I have played over the last few months. I hope there is enough demand for this feature seeing it could easily be available with a small software update. Other then that I find this game a mix of frustration and fun. I look forward to what No Brake Games has up their sleeve next. I hope helps merge the gap between videogames, and education even more.

I have a soft spot for this game. Not because it's a Sonic title, but because of how unusually engrossing it was for a fighting game. It was fairly well balanced considering it was the first (and probably only) game of its kind and its lengthy story and addictive minigames kept me busy for hours on end. If you want to get this game for yourself, you can likely get a pre-owned copy of it for fairly cheap on eBay or Amazon. If you lack the money, then an emulator could also work, but I don't really condone that unless you have absolutely no other options. But until then, I'll be seeing you.

Score:

Monkey tries to get into an escape pod, but Trip takes it and ejects it with Monkey hanging on for dear life. After they crash land, Monkey wakes to find that Trip has fitted him with a slave head band that will inject him with a neurotoxin if she either dies or he tries to escape. Making him Enslaved. Monkey now must help Trip get home. The story is fairly simple and easy to follow. At first you dislike Trip, like Monkey, because she essentially makes him her slave, but as the story progresses you begin to care about her just as Monkey does. It's very similar to the likes of BioShock: Infinite and The Last of Us, but Enslaved did it before them.

....at least for about half way through the game. Then the developers completely forget about this interesting piece of gameplay and just stick to the hacking and slashing and shooting and covering. It's sad that the distraction part of gameplay eventually disappears because it's the only thing that keeps the gameplay fresh. Even the platforming is really scripted. Monkey can only climb on certain objects in the environment. It's definitely apparent after playing games like Tomb Raider and Uncharted. Enemies are also pretty stale. Just rush-in-and-melee mechs and annoyingly-shoot-from-afar mechs. There is a few boss fights, but they are only with 2 or 3 of the same bigger mechs.

After clearing out an area of mechs you can walk around the environment and see a once booming city now nothing more than dying buildings and streets. Even being 5 years old this game still looks pretty good. Obviously, it's not on par with games like Metal Gear Solid V and The Order: 1886, but it still looks pretty good. Especially when Monkey and Trip look off into the distance.

Enslaved: Odyssey to the West is very underrated. The story is good and the graphics are really good. It's a shame this game was overlooked because it sets up a sequel fairly properly, but due to low sales the idea was scrapped. Yes, I will admit that the gameplay was interesting at first, but about half way through they disappear in favor of VERY safe and rather stale gameplay. But overall, I still very much like this game. Andy Serkis and Lindsey Shaw give it their all and it shows because it is very convincing. You should definitely check this one out 8.5/10

Now because of how new this app is and because no-one knows whether or not more game demos will be added to it in the future, it's only really best used as a "try before you buy" type program, but you can't really "try" unless you have enough amiibo to unlock everything so you can play them "before you buy." All in all, it is only really good for people like me and have a large collection of amiibo to use. Maybe you'll get some amiibo yourself so you can use this app, but until then, I'll be seeing you.

Score:

Basis

Shadow Warrior is a wonderful ride through humor and gut wrenching fun where you play as the geeky lovable mercenary Lo Wang, working currently as one ofOrochi Zilla's right hand and reliable mercenaries' with his new side kick Hoji, a demon banished from his home world. Together combining both of Hoji's demon magic and Lo Wang's amazing katana mastery, they power their way through the demon hordes in this unlikely duo's journey for the Nobitsura Kage.

Game-play

Game-play in shadow warrior is quite fun. You can hack hack slash and shoot just about anything in the entire game and, yes the demons of course! you will obtain more weapons through out your adventure, such a the quad barrel shotgun. all of these attainable weapons all have upgrades to make these weapons even stronger than they already are but, be careful with your cash you will not be able to upgrade everything just like in previous games like Bioshock. When in combat your are scored for every move you make and how that move effects your enemy's body. So for example if you pull out your revolver and score a flawless head shot on a standard demon you shall be rewarded with more karma which is used to upgrade Wang's combat abilities (but not Hoji's demon attributes). Combat is broken down into;

• Small Encounters
• Large Encounters

  

• Boss Fights

1. Exploration
2. Scavenging
3. ADT (attention to detail)

Story

(This is where the very minor spoilers I mentioned are at)

Closing Statement

Overall, Shadow Warrior is a hell of a lot of fun and really deserves a lot more credit that what it has received over the course of all most two years since it's first release on PC. The game hits it all. Shadow Warrior plays with your emotions makes you laugh and could at times make you feel like an absolute badass and, I would STRONGLY recommend this game to any one who enjoys first person action with a deep and meaning full story with lovable and interesting characters. FINAL SCORE: 4.5/5

Before I begin, I'd like to explain that I previewed/played the Xbox One version of The Elder Scrolls Online: Tamriel Unlimited beta. So any and all problems I found within the beta may be resolved before the game's official release date of June 9, 2015.

That being said, I found the controls to be fine. I never found myself tripping over the controller trying to remember which button does what. You still use the left stick to move, the right stick to move the camera, Left Trigger blocks, and Right attacks. Those are the controls that need to stay the same to keep the game playable, and they are the same. 

I couldn't shake the feeling of how strange the first person camera feels. It feels....wrong. Like it isn't meant to be in the game. It's clear the developers put more time and polish into the third person camera, which works well.

The graphics for ESO on Xbox One can be very pretty at times, especially far off vistas. Standing on a mountain over looking Tamriel is a good example of that. ESO definitely has the look of a Bethesda Game Studios Elders Scrolls entry. The textures are a bit of a different story though. 

If you run up to an NPC or any texture in the world too fast then you have to wait a second or two for that texture to fully load. This is especially apparent when you run up to an NPC to open up dialogue and turn in a quest. And even with the texture fully loaded it isn't as pretty as the Elder Scrolls has been before. 

Though, I suppose this is excusable considering it is an MMO with a huge world and dozens of players with you at times. If ZeniMax Online tried to implement Skyrim level graphics into a game of this magnitude then it would more than likely run very poorly. Fortunately, ESO runs rather smoothly. One thing I have to commend ESO for is that there are no load times going into major cities. Similar to Morrowind. This was minor annoyance in Oblivion and Skyrim so it is nice to see it ironed out in ESO. The load times going into buildings is near instantaneous, which on console is a rarity so it's a nice touch. 

Magic also isn't as streamlined as it was in Skyrim. Your melee attacks are interrupted to use any magic attacks which are mapped to the face buttons. I found myself not using magic attacks at all really. Strangely enough, magic doesn't seem to be as important in ESO as it was in previous entries even though the game still encourages you to play with a magic style. Though, this didn't bother me very much because I rarely use magic in Elder Scrolls games; a lot of players still enjoy playing in the Mage class, but here it feels watered down.

In there attempts of being WoW, ZeniMax Online, have watered down the Elder Scrolls experience to the point where it, sadly, feels like a generic MMO with an Elder Scrolls coat of paint. 

Some things are strangely taking out of ESO that were in previous Elder Scrolls game. Like being able to loot all bodies, not in ESO. Only certain bodies can be looted. I suppose it's to help preserve the economy of the game so players can't farm the same types of enemies for hours. Not being able to read every book is gone too. Now, you can only read "lore books" which, yes, are still nice to read if you are into the lore, but there aren't many of those. Also, how is "The Lusty Argonian Maid" in ESO when it was written by an Imperial in the Third Era? I know this sounds like I'm really nitpicking, but it just furthers my concern with how canon this game is when the developers can't even get Bethesda's original lore right. 

You can't loot every object in the world either anymore. So no more stealing goblets and plates to sell for a few gold each. Strangest yet, no more sitting down on chairs and benches. Why this was taking out? I have no idea. Why couldn't the developers go for a more original experience rather than a WoW clone? It's the Elder Scrolls. It was one of the most original games back in the day.

If you aren't an Elder Scrolls fan, this isn't going to be the game that converts you. I am, however, a huge Elder Scrolls fanboy so I can still see myself getting lost in this game for hours upon hours when it officially releases despite these flaws. But again, like I said, this was a beta so everything I just said could be completely different when the final game launches. Maybe, and hopefully, all these issues and concerns are ironed out in the final product. 

I also recorded some gameplay if you are interested in watching the beta in action:

A big thanks to ZeniMax Online Studios and Bethesda Softworks for allowing me to participate in the limited access beta of The Elder Scrolls Online: Tamriel Unlimited for Xbox One.

Unturned is in early access. Normally I'd steer clear of that too, but this is a great example of how Early Access should be used. The developer is constantly updating the game and keeping the players up to date with what he's doing with the game and what tweaks he's making. Believe it or not, but Unturned is actually also free. So if you are at all interested you can get it on Steam.

Unturned's map is of decent size. Consisting of small towns, waterfronts, a military base, and airport. You can repair cars to travel to these locations faster. Items also respawn after leaving your game so it's really easy to farm for more important items to fight off zombies and other players. Unfortunately, because famous YouTubers have played this game on their channels, you will find an abundance of little kids running around killing everyone. But you can still find normal servers or you can play by yourself in single player.

Unturned also has a fatigue system so you will need to regularly eat and drink to stay alive. This seems a bit extreme in game though. You will constantly have to be looking for food and water because you character begins desperately needing them after only about 5 to 10 minutes with out eating or drinking. 

Unlike Minecraft, textures aren't very detailed. They are usually only one color; even on the highest settings. This is upsetting, but again, Unturned is in Early Access so that can easily change somewhere down the line.  Unturned also doesn't currently have in game music. You may or may not like that depending on your preference. Walking around in the complete darkness of night with no music of sound can be pretty atmospheric, but some dark and lonely music in a setting like that would have been preferable. But right now, the only music is the main menu music. 

Most computers shouldn't have a huge problem running it either. Unturned is very well optimized. You can customize just about everything in terms of graphics settings. There's even an option to enable a nifty little FPS counter to show you how many frames per second you are getting so you can change your graphics settings accordingly. 

Unturned also has a pretty good crafting system. Though it's mainly only used for creating structures like player made homes and forts. There isn't any in game recipes on how to create items so you will more than likely be consulting the Unturned wiki pretty often to make a basic house. 

Typically the best place to find any attachment is in the military base. So as soon as you find a map in game you should head there and stock up on guns and ammo.  Scopes are especially varied starting with improved iron sights to red dot sights to scopes that can practically see across the entire map. While guns with no attachments can still get the job done, it's still nice to have attachments to make the job easier.

While the game is free, there is a optional "Gold Upgrade" that gives you some improvements in game. They aren't anything that make the game insanely different or make you over powered, but they are noticeable. It's only $5 and a one time charge. I recommend that you get this with the game. Not for the upgrades, but to support the developer.  The developer of Unturned is a 17 year old kid and he's offering the game for free. In his own words when asked if the price of Unturned will ever change, “It will remain free, but the abilities provided by Gold may change. Nothing that will make the game pay to win, however.“

Unturned is a solid game that has a lot of potential and this potential may be realized since it is in Early Access. You have nothing to lose by checking this game out. 

I hope you all have a wonderful day :). 

All in all, PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale tries too hard to be something that it's not. The visuals and music are great, but that doesn't forgive the fact that the gameplay gets drawn out for too long due to the fact that the only way to knock out your opponent is with a finishing move. The game isn't great, but this doesn't automatically make it a bad game either. I enjoyed the time I had with it, but the novelty of the game started to wear thin after a while because it felt like it was desperately trying to be Smash Bros instead of trying to be its own thing. Overall, the game is pretty average, but that shouldn't stop you from playing it a few times in your life. But until then, I'll be seeing you.

Score:

Unfortunately, I can not say the same for the plot. It's the common consensus that nobody plays Battlefield games for their story. So I went into Hardline with my brain "off" to try and enjoy the story to it's fullest. Even that didn't work. Even with my brain "off" I still saw every twist and turn come from a mile away. I'm more impressed with how Visceral was able to fit every cliche from every crime drama into Hardline.

The main hero is a new goody-two-shoes cop, His partner and friend turn out to be dirty and both stab the main hero in the back, main hero tells captain cop but turns out that the captain is dirty too, main hero is blamed for all the dirtiness, now main hero has to team up with dirty friend and a criminal to take down dirty captain.

And that's just a brief synopsis. You should count just how many more cliches the story is riddled with. I'm not sure if this was intentional or not, but I wouldn't be surprised either way.

You can level up Nick, our main hero, by playing certain ways, though playing stealthily rakes in more experience points. There is even a neat feature that allows Nick to raise his badge, announce he's a cop, and arrest the enemy. This is vital if you want to arrest enemies with warrants for an XP boost. The gameplay is the best that I've seen in a Battlefield game to date. Take notes Battlefield 5 (or Hardline 2, which is inevitable.)

I was surprised how much I actually felt like a cop (aside from the Michael Bay explosions). You don't just feel like a guy running around shooting people that happens to have a badge. I also found it fun to use Nick's phone scanner to analyze evidence, put together clues, and learn back story on this fictionalized take on Miami and L.A. and the enemies with warrants.

Environments can be such a pleasure to look at, but these are mainly for scripted events. So that may be a turn off to some people. The games run at a pretty solid 60 FPS on Playstation 4 and Xbox One. It's the resolution that's different. On PS4, Hardline, runs at 900p and on Xbox One it runs at 720p. Whilst, Hardline runs at 1080p and 60 FPS on PC. But doesn't every game?

The graphics did have to get toned down a bit in multiplayer on all systems to accommodate the large maps and frantic action. It's not THAT noticeable it's to be expected with how chaotic the multiplayer can get. So I can't knock off points for that.

What you won't find is Battlefield 4's large assortment of weapons. Hardline trimmed the fat of the guns in BF 4's multiplayer, but at the same time made the selection of guns feel really restricted. You also can't use all of the same guns on each team (unless you get over 1,000 kills with each gun). Cops have their own selection of guns and so do the criminals. Only the primary weapon and pistol you start with can be used on either team. This is a huge let down for an otherwise extremely fun multiplayer.

The destruction also feels lacking in multiplayer. Other than a few small buildings that can be blown up, the destruction feels even more heavily scripted than Battlefield 4. You can blow up a giant crane in one map that crashes into a building and changes the map a little. Wow...whatever happened to the days where destruction felt dynamic and you really feel like you are blowing up buildings like in Bad Company 2?

Now some may argue that cops and criminals wouldn't be causing the same amount of destruction found in Battlefield 4, but Visceral and EA are marketing this as a BATTLEFIELD game. If it were just "Hardline" then I would understand,but gamers know Battlefield as almost a destruction simulator. Why take that out?

The story coulddefinitely use work. And I don't mind the crime drama cliches, just don't use them as the main story. Use them in an entirely new and unique story ironically. Also, if it couldn't hurt, drop "Battlefield" from the title. The game would be better without it.

I would not recommend that you pick this up at full price, but rather pick it up when it is down to around half that price or even cheaper. You will enjoy it for that much. 7/10

Warning: Side effects of this game are: insanity, anger, lack of sleep, depression, anxiety, and overall feelings of hopelessness.

The controls are simple, and I mean simple. Your mouse controls the direction and speed of the hammer. That's it. Yes, just like finishing the 100 m in QWOP, the goal is achievable. You CAN get over it, but good Lord is it frustrating. Lose your cool for one moment, and hours, HOURS, of work can be undone. In one particular part of the game, a single misstep sends the player spiraling down to the starting point...and into a state of irritable depression.

Our human/cauldron hybrid's name is Diogenes, named after the Greek philosopher who lived in a tub, which at first glance appears to be the only connection between the two, but upon closer inspection can also be interpreted as a message on Internet culture from Bennett Foddy.

Mr. Foddy's view on the overall culture and design of the majority of video games is that they have become too easy and unrewarding to their players, a far cry from the days of Metal Gear Solid and Ghost 'n Goblins. He even mentions it in the long string of dialogue, ramblings, quotes and speeches constantly playing underneath you while you attempt to focus on the game. (Whether this was designed to enrage or inspire players, I'm not sure. It certainly succeeds in doing the former.) Diogenes, the philosopher, was also extremely critical of his culture, arguing that "Wisdom and happiness belong to the man who is independent of society." He traveled to Athens and made it his life's goal to challenge established customs and values, similar to what Foddy has been doing for the past ten years. Of course, 4th century political activism is a little bit different than 21st century Internet activism, but the similarities are still there.

To give you a slight taste on what you are in for here is the official trailer:

That voice seems benign now, but I promise you, Bennett Foddy's lovely Australian accent slowly, but surely, begins to chip away at your sanity. In a string of good fortune, Mr. Foddy gives you an option to turn off his commentary in the menu, a small reward, silencing that calm voice that seemingly taunts you at every fall.

As opposed to unlocking heroes, Getting Over It delivers a real sense of pride and accomplishment to the players upon completion. Overcoming many, seemingly insurmountable obstacles in a game likes this can give hope to people undergoing real life scenarios. As silly as it sounds, video games, sports and other interactive events that you have an active hand in, can really positively affect a mindset. Maybe I can pass the LSATs, rent my own place, get that job, etc. Getting Over It's underlying lesson of never giving up is not fully appreciated until Diogenes disappears from your screen.

Plenty of streamers and Youtubers have already lost their collective minds during this game; will you do the same?

• Shooters: Continually sprays ink as long as the fire button is held down. Comes in several different varieties that have different firing patterns and effects.
• Chargers: Long range weapon that fires further the longer the gun is charged from holding the fire button. Some of these also come with scopes for more accurate aiming.
• Rollers: Paints the ground with ink as you run as long as the fire button is held down. Can also throw ink a short distance in front of you so you can get higher platforms.
• Sloshers: Hurls large quantities of ink in an arcing pattering an average distance in front of you. Can be used like a mortar to aim over barriers that an opponent is hiding behind.
  
• Splatling: A gatling gun type weapon that rapidly fires ink an incredible distance in front of you after a short wind-up period. Not all that effective at spreading ink, but very useful for crowd control.
  

• Splat Bombs: Tetrahedron-shaped ink grenades that explode shortly after landing.
• Burst Bombs: Ink filled water balloons that explode on impact.
• Ink Mines: Explodes when in close proximity to an opponent.
• Disruptors: Hinders the speed and abilities of the affected target.
• Point Sensors: Tags an enemy with a tracking marker for a short time.
• Splash Walls: Acts as a wall and shield that only you and your teammates can pass through unaffected.
• Seekers: Can lock onto a target and chase them down trailing ink of your color behind them.
• Suction Bombs: Works similarly to the Splat Bombs, but can latch onto walls and ceilings with its suction cup.
• Squid Beakons: Gives you up to three one-time-use jump points so you can quickly get back into the fray.
• Sprinklers: Sprays a small area around it with ink until it is destroyed or until a new one is thrown.

• Bomb Rush: Allows you to throw bombs repeatedly without spending ink.
• Bubbler: Activates an impenetrable shield that can be shared with your teammates if they touch you.
• Echolocator: Tags ALL opponents with a tracking marker no matter how far away from each other they are.
• Inkzooka: Powerful rocket-launcher type weapon that fires mini ink tornadoes that plow through multiple targets.
• Killer Wail: Spreads no ink, but obliterates any opponent in a straight line in front of it.
• Kraken: Transforms you into the invincible Kraken which lays ink behind it as it swims and changes its jump into a strong attack.
• Inkstrike: A powerful nuke-like weapon that creates a towering cyclone of ink at wherever you tap on the Gamepad's screen.

• Regular Battles (For Fun)

1. Turf War: The purpose of this game mode is to cover the ground with as much of your own color of ink as possible in three minutes. Any ink sprayed onto walls and any opponents knocked out do not count toward your final score and your win/lose ratio is not recorded at the end of the match. This game mode is also the primary way to gain money for purchasing clothes and weapons, and experience that levels up your currently equipped clothes and your character allowing you to equip higher-leveled weapons.

• Ranked Battles (For Glory)

1. Splat Zones: This game mode is much like a territories match where you and your teammates try to take control of an area (or two) by spraying the enclosed area with ink and keeping control of it until your timer runs out or whoever has the least time left when the match timer runs out. Losing control of a zone to the enemy team adds a penalty timer onto your main one and it must run out before you can start lowering your time again.
2. Tower Control: This game mode is more like King of the Hill, but with a twist. You need to take control of a tower in the center of the map by standing on top of it, but once you gain control of it, it will start to slowly make its way to a location near the opposing team's spawn point. You win once the tower reaches its destination, or whoever got the tower closest when the time runs out.
3. Rainmaker: A Capture the Flag style game mode where you need to free a powerful dragonfish shaped weapon called the Rainmaker from an orb in the center of the map and carry it to a designated platform near the opponent's base. As long as you are carrying the Rainmaker, you cannot super-jump, your running and swimming speed are reduced, and you are visible while swimming. You are also subjected to a sixty second timer in which if you fail to deliver the weapon to the opponent's base before the timer runs out, you will explode in the opponent's ink color. However, you can use the Rainmaker like a stronger, chargeable Inkzooka to help you get to the opponent's base a little more easily. Secondary win conditions are the same as in Tower Control.

Two maps for each mode are only available to play at any one time and are rotated out every four hours according to an online clock that the game pings when connected to the internet. While the Regular Battles are a lot of fun to be had, the Ranked Battles (which can only be played after you reach level 10) are more geared for hardcore players as your rank will go up or down based on your wins and losses. The cash and experience you receive if you win the match is based on your score in the match and much better than in the Regular Battles, but if you happen to lose, you receive absolutely nothing. This game mode would probably best be played after you max out your inkling's level and equipment so you would have less to ultimately lose. Also, once your level reaches 20, you can add more bonus slots to weaker pieces of clothing that you like by talking to Spyke and paying him 30,000 in cash, or with a Super Sea Snail that you can win from Splat Fest.

Overall, Splatoon was a very nice surprise from Nintendo. They don't make many new big-name IP's any more, but when they do, they never seem to fail. Everything about the game is so perfectly polished and well designed. The gameplay is easy to pick up, the music is unique and fun to listen to, the game modes are varied enough that it rarely gets stale, and in order to improve the pacing and to artificially inflate the length of the game, content locked away on the disc (like new weapons and stages) gets released for free at specific dates along the game's lifespan via an online calendar. While this is a bit unorthodox, it is a smart way to keep the game from getting stale early in its life. SO, now I have one final question to ask you.

ARE YOU A KID, OR A SQUID?

But until then, I'll be seeing you.

Score:

Developer: Lag Studios
Price: FREE
This game will cost you nothing, so why not try it? If you want to know what you are getting into, read on

(Spoilers Probably)

Spooky’s House of Jump Scares is exactly as it’s name states. This indie horror game throws you into a retro styled mansion, with a graphical style that reminds me of Wolfenstein 3D. Your objective, to get to the farthest room you can. The game is advertised as having 1000 rooms, I was only fortunate (and brave) enough to make it to 200.

The game begins with the main character, Spooky herself, talking to you and challenging you to traverse her house. Once inside the narrow corridors and creepy music don’t seem like your typical horror game.

Before I mention Gameplay, this game has some weird resolution issues. I usually screenshot through steam overlay but this causes weirdness. Being early access it’s fine to have technical issues, I just hope they do get fixed. Technical issues, especially getting resolution correct, is very important. In this version of the game there is a fix resolution option in the settings that you need to activate every time you play.

As you sprint down the halls little cardboard cutout ghosts, skeletons and other creatures unexpectedly pop out from the walls accompanied by cute sound effects.

It’s scary I swear.

Controlled with mouse of keyboard feels fine in the first person perspective. As you run through the rooms and are eventually chased by monsters, you will find challenge in having to manage your sprint and being aware of your health. There was one situation where I had to take a hit to make it through a room.

Even though some may find traversing hundreds of small rooms lackluster, I found the story and the mystery of why things are the way they are enough to keep me going.

For example there are random notes scattered around the house, from an unknown source who, in the past took the same path as you. Additionally, there is a random chance for little arcade machines to generate which feature 2D arcade games to play.

Below is one of the arcade games, where you play as Spooky herself and stab shoppers in a mall.

The variety of rooms and the way the gameplay changes is enough to keep me interested. Some of the different rooms feature blindingly white environments with audio puzzles while others are dark paths falling into darkness.

One of the things I cannot capture in writing is the sound. This game has fantastic sound design. While the voice acting of Spooky at the beginning is poor at best, the rest of the game sounds great. The monsters moans and screams and this one demonic track you are going to fear, as it just unsettles you and lets you know of danger being near.

Final Thoughts

Spooky’s House of Jump Scares is good at what it does. One second you’re laughing at the cutesy art style and the next you’re running for your life as demonic music plays.

-Its got a great graphical style
-Fantastic(and spooky) sound design
-Interesting backstory
-Surprisingly lots of gameplay variation

-Needs to fix resolution issues and steam overlay issues though

I suggest trying this game out!
Beware, this is not for the faint of heart.

Video Game

This game is fantastically good and a helluva lot of fun, even if the difficulty on the Normal setting is a little unforgiving. The music is fantastic as well and the character and enemy designs are extremely creative and fit the theme of the game superbly. The story can be a little confusing at times, but it all comes together nicely in the end. However, depending on which version of the game you get, it can be either an extraordinary experience, or torture for the eyes. If you decide to get the game, go for the Xbox 360 or Wii U version of the game as the PS3 version is plagued by terrible frame-rate issues making it look awful to watch, let alone play. Plus as a bonus to those that get the Wii U version, Nintendo themed costumes for Bayonetta are also available which alter some minor aspects about the game without affecting the gameplay. All in all though, just avoid the PS3 version.

"The Eyes of Bayonetta" Artwork Book and DVD

Now despite how interesting and informative the artwork books was, the "Making of" DVD actually was what I more interested in. The development process was quite a sight to behold. As it turns out, the main character, Bayonetta, was designed by Mari Shimazaki with the only instruction that she should look feminine. Needless to say that this gave her a lot of freedom and she rolled with it. She wasn't the only one that was given a lot of freedom in her work, just about everyone involved in the game's creative process was allowed to let their imaginative juices flow freely. The way everything meshes together really shows that love and care was put into the game's creation. The DVD is definitely well worth the watch; the dev's personalities show in both their commentary and their work.

Animated Film

Closing Statement

No matter what medium you enjoy Bayonetta in, this first entry in the series definitely had a very strong impact. Bayonetta as a character is probably my favorite female protagonists of all time as well. She is strong, independent, knows that she's sexy and casually exploits that fact in her work, which she also enjoys. If you can get any of these things, definitely go for it, just remember to avoid the PS3 version of the game due to a very shoddy porting process. But until then, I'll be seeing you.

Game Score

Book Score

Film Score

So you've got no money. Your Steam library is crying out , "Gimme a new game pleaaassee". Well, I've got a free to play shooter like no other. These guys took some simple parkour, great shooting and a fair model and have created what I think is one of the best free games you can play right now.

The game I'm talking about is Dirty Bomb. At the time of writing this Dirty Bomb is in Open Beta. Which means that everything I say may not be representative of the final product. I however find the game finished enough to get a good impression of it. Any drastic changes at this point would make no sense anyway.

Played from the first person perspective, Dirty Bomb is a fast paced objective based shooter. 

The game features different Merc classes which are pretty traditional as far as team shooters go. Characters like the Commando, Sniper and Medic should feel familiar. All with their own abilities each one can turn the tides of battle in different situations. For example Skyhammer has the ability to call down an air strike which can effectively wipe a team if placed correctly. He can also resupply allies with ammunition when need be by throwing down an ammo bag.

This is the main screen when you get into the game. It shows your progress along with daily quests as well as whatever is going on in the world of Dirty Bomb. At the time of reviewing the Phantom was the featured Merc and is sold for real money. This is probably a decent time to talk about the game's Business Model. Dirty Bomb is built around classes which are represented by different Mercs. To start there are a couple free Mercs to let you play and then one can either invest time to earn in game money or spend real world money to acquire other Mercs. Frankly quite a fair model considering the amount of content you get for no cost. Additionally you will not be at a significant disadvantage playing the game without paying money, the characters are quite well balanced.

Once you've bought your Mercs and played a few games you will come into contact with cases which contain random load-out cards. Sorry there are no customizable load-outs. This system however works well and motivates me to play even more. After playing a fair bit I feel the need to get golden load-outs and get better guns for my Mercs. Also the suspense of opening a case is a feeling I can't describe but thoroughly enjoy.

Combat is fast and bloody, shooting can be long distance or close up and accuracy is rewarded. A few successful headshots will take down enemies quickly while body shots will prove almost useless in a lot of cases. Additionally enemies are only put into a crawling mode after initially taken down, they need to be damaged more to be actually killed. This allows time for allies to bring them back into the fight or for the medic to use her instant revive ability. 

 Here I am playing the Fragger class, who brings a heavier weapon to battle along with 2 grenades. He is used mostly for defending objective as throwing a grenade into an enemy diffusing your bomb will probably help a bit. Ill be honest, haven't played a lot of the other classes, mostly because I haven't purchased them or they aren't on the free rotation but also due to the attraction to blowing stuff up. I've also unlocked a gold class for the Fragger, so it can be cool to show that off in lobbies.

Unfortunately, Dirty Bomb isn't always great, it's something they need to work on. 

Remember how I told you about the free rotation of Mercs? At the time of writing the least balanced class(the phantom) is only available via purchase.   Now while the paywall makes it so that the character isn't super common in matches the fact that you can be an invisible sword wielding maniac is kinda OP. Imagine combining the Demo Knight's damage and the Spy's invisibility. Yeah, it's crazy. On another note the menu can be randomly glitchy at times. Now remember this is still a Beta build, but sometimes while matchmaking I will get booted from the screen even though I'm queued to join a server. 

Overall, I really like Dirty Bomb.

This twitchy tactical FREE shooter is the kind of thing I'm into. The collectability of cards and the leveling system motivates me to play while the rewarding gun play keeps me amused in games. While Dirty Bomb definitely isn't perfect(due to a few glitches and the business model being close to the best ever in free games) but i can look past all it's flaws for the combat just feels too dang good. The free experience as well, just rocks. I have spent no real world money at this point in time and I honestly don't feel like there is anything to be sought after(except maybe playing the temporarily OP character).

So yes, I am suggesting Dirty Bomb. Go play it. It's free of course. Put a few matches in, see if you can get friends to play or at least randoms who communicate and the experience is amplified by a lot.

Just remember to play the objective and all will go well!

Submerged is minimalistic "relaxporation" adventure developed by Uppercut Games that puts you in a post-disaster world where you mosly scavenge for supplies to save a dying boy's life. Submerged is completely combat free and, instead, focuses all it's efforts on story and gameplay. With the post-apocalyptic art style of Enslaved: Odyssey to the West and the beauty and relaxed gameplay of Journey, will Submerged sink or swim?

Submerged begins with Miku and her wounded brother, Taku, arriving in a flooded and abandoned city in order to find supplies to keep Taku alive from his injuries.

The story seems simple enough and it remains that way until you begin finding story art cards that provide backstory on Miku and Taku before arriving in the city, and the flooded city as well.

I never really found myself caring all that much about Taku, but I did find myself very much caring about Miku and the city itself. I cared more about Miku's safety than Taku's, but that's probably because Taku spends the majority of the game lying on a bench and not doing anything. Though, to be fair, he is dying, but Miku's safety came first in my eyes.

The city's story and what happened to the people is also quite interesting. It's also quite interesting with how these stories unfold. You have to boat around the ruined city and collect story art cards that piece everything together, but you won't find them in order of story events. The story won't become completely clear until all the story cards have been collected.

Also, the developers created an entirely new language to further emphasize just how far society has fallen. If that's not impressive then I don't know what is. Though, I do have a gripe with the story. (The next tidbit isn't REALLY a spoiler, but rather, a broad statement with no specifics.) [spoiler]Over the course of Submerged, the game, begins heavily implying that there's going to an emotionally devastating ending that will leave you in tears, but there's a complete cop out. I wish it had gone with the course it was going because it was shaping up to be one of those endings you're going to remember forever; like Telltale's The Walking Dead and The Last of Us.[/spoiler]

Made with the Unreal 4 engine, Submerged, can look downright beautiful. The beauty is especially realized when the day becomes night and rain begins to pour down.

It's clear the developers knew just how beautiful the game is because there's a "Make Postcard" option that allows the player to stop time and rotate the camera around Miku and create absolutely gorgeous screenshots.

Allow me to put it like this: Submerged is so beautiful that I ended up using the "Make Postcard" option to take beautiful screenshots every time I was in game. Every time I started up the game; I saw something new and beautiful. Unfortunately, though, the graphics aren't perfect.

Upon closer inspection, some noticeable textures seem blurred and a bit dull. The framerate will even drop quite frequently and, seemingly, out of nowhere. At one moment, the framerate dropped so low that the entire game stopped and I thought it had crashed but, fortunately, it came back in a split second.

The gameplay in Submerged mainly consists of climbing and navigating the city streets with your boat. This creates a strong sense of relaxation.

Watching waves roar around as whales and dolphins swim by feels so relaxing. From an artistic standpoint, it's great, but from a gaming standpoint; not so much.

Sadly, the gameplay in Submerged gets redundant pretty quick. Gameplay in Submerged can be summarized in this order: boat, climb, collect ration; rinse and repeat. This was something I was afraid of and my fears were realized.

At first, I didn't think this would be an issue, but it slowly began feeling tedious and I realized that I wanted to do was sail around and admire the beauty. You can do just that, but you have to boat, climb, collect ration to progress the story. Once you complete the game, you unlock an "Explore" mode that allows you to explore the game world and collect missed story cards and boat upgrades free from distractions. This was my favorite aspect of gameplay.

The soundtrack is where Submerged REALLY shines. Composed by BAFTA-Award Winner Jeff Van Dyck, Submerged's soundtrack is hauntingly beautiful and intensely elevates the sense that you are alone in this post-apocalyptic world.

From somber melodies to more uplifting tracks, Submerged's soundtrack is one I hope to purchase and listen to whenever. It's quite amazing to stand on the edge of a decaying ruin with nothing but the wind and a quiet song playing evoking many emotions.

Submerged is just one of those games that help further the proof that video games are capable of becoming high art, but the redundant gameplay and weak ending hold Submerged back from realizing it's true potential. This beautiful apocalypse accompanied by gorgeous visuals and a haunting soundtrack makes Submerged an experience I won't soon forget.

If you care for the artistic nature of Submerged then I highly recommend it to you, but if you don't care about any of that then this may not be for you. Otherwise, Submerged is an experience worth checking out.

Gameplay

The Pokemon Rumble games are somewhat unique to the Pokemon franchise. Unlike their predecessors, they do not use the traditional Pokemon gameplay mechanics. For those of you who are unfamiliar with how the classic Pokemon games are laid out (you poor souls), the traditional game always has you play as a brand new Pokemon trainer who must choose their very first Pokemon and set out on a grand Pokemon adventure. During your adventure you must capture and train your Pokemon and then use them to defeat gym leaders, crime syndicates, and eventually The Elite 4. Pokemon Rumble World, on the other hand, is essentially nothing like this. Instead of playing as the young hero of the Pokemon world you will be playing as your Mii, as well as a variety of wind-up toy Pokemon. In Pokemon: Rumble World you will have to unlock hot air balloons in order to explore new and exciting dungeons, most of these balloons are purchased with poke Diamonds that can be obtained in game or by purchase with real money. Once you have traveled to a dungeon you will use A and B to hack, slash and bubble beam your way through hoards of Pokemon, this is quite different from traditional Pokemon games which utilize turn based combat. There is also a dramatic change in how new Pokemon are acquired; instead of throwing a Pokeball at that lowly weakened caterpie you will have to rely heavily on luck and a little bit on timing to put it into a "wobbly" state and then KO it. You are only able to befriend Pokemon that have been knocked out while wobbling or sparkling. Aside from the dungeon crawling aspect of this game, there is a King who will provide you with daily quests. These quests vary, and they range from more dungeons with a boss that must be defeated to an arena style match where you must defeat all of your enemies in a limited amount of time. By completing the Kings quests you can earn diamonds which can then be used to purchase hot air balloons. One of the more unfortunate aspects of this free to play Pokemon game is that it is entirely funded by micro-transactions and this, as a result, heavily influences the pacing of the game. For example: the hot air balloons have cool down periods, that range from a couple of minutes to over an hour, during which they cannot be used, unless you use diamonds. Once you have used your hot air balloon you will be randomly placed in one of several levels, each of which have unique Pokemon, but it is often the case that you will play every level except the one you want, possibly several times (this becomes incredibly frustrating with the cool down times that are over an hour). In the non-free Rumble games levels can be selected, this is likely because they do not utilize micro-transactions in the same way that Rumble World does. The online features in this game are also minimal. Streetpassing with players who also play Rumble World will generate the passed players Mii in a dungeon, you will then have to complete the level while keeping the rescued player alive. Once the level is complete you will see the rescued Mii's in the kingdom where you can then talk to them, sometimes they will offer to take you to a specific stage for a small amount of in-game currency. You can also set rescued Mii's to play the roles of the characters in the kings quests. The short and sweet of the gameplay for Pokemon: Rumble World is simple but addicting. 

Story

There is a minimal amount of story used to progress Rumble World, the biggest driving factor that will keep a player going is their desire to collect as many Pokemon as they can. Non-collectors will grow bored of this game quickly. At the start of the game you will be introduced to a king, who's only Pokemon is a pikachu, and basically this king is jealous of a magician who has more Pokemon than he does and so he asks you to upstage the magician by obtaining a bunch of Pokemon. The rest of the quest narratives are of a similar nature.

Aesthetics

All in all this is a good looking game for what it is. Now we can't expect Witcher 3 quality graphics from a free to play Pokemon game, but given the context the visuals work well. While I was playing through Pokemon: Rumble World I got the sense that this was a playful game that did not want to be like other Pokemon games, and instead of trying to address deep questions like whether or not forcing Pokemon to fight was ethical or not (Pokemon Black/White) it simply wanted to be fun, cute, and a little bit whimsical. During my play through I was brought back to my childhood and the games I used to play with my little Pokemon figurines, and I believe that this is what the developers of this game intended. As for the dungeons, I found the map layouts to be fairly simple, but the maps looked good for a free to play game.

Overall Impression 

Overall there are some less than amazing aspects to this game. The story is lacking and the game play is simple. There are some redeeming qualities however. I personally enjoyed the cutesy sprites and the simple levels. One of the biggest turn offs for me was the waiting in between balloon uses, but I am also the kind of person who likes to binge watch/play/read just about everything. Despite its flaws I did enjoy Pokemon: Rumble World enough to play for over 10 hours, and enough to consider buying other games in the Pokemon Rumble series. This is not a game for someone who is looking for a heavily detailed narrative, this is not a game for someone who needs complex gameplay to enjoy a game, this game is for someone who has a Nintendo 3DS and no money who really wants to catch all of the Pokemon. 

When I first opened up the box, I noticed that the console itself is extremely lightweight; it feels like it could break very easily. Although, it looks very nice with its glossy sheen and it is well put together. The controller has a very unusual design however; it doesn't feel quite right in my hands and it has a digital joystick instead of a standard directional pad. Now as I went to boot up the system, I found that the controller wasn't synced with the console by default. Luckily I had a spare SNES controller that I could use to access the menus which allowed me to sync up the controller that came with it. After syncing, I browsed the menus and discovered that the system could be updated with a new version of the existing firmware. So, I grabbed an SD card, plugged it in to the back of the console, followed the onscreen instructions, took out the card, went to the official site, downloaded the update onto the card, put it back into the Retron 5 and finished the update. THIS is an egregious flaw in the system's design as this could easily have been done via WiFi. That being said, this tediousness was the biggest problem with it and everything else flows a little more smoothly.

The first game I decided to test on this thing was EarthBound for the SNES. Everything worked really well and the controls did what they were supposed to. Plus the system saves a state the first time you start a game up. So I played for a little while until I got far enough to save my progress and I discovered that the system has the ability to save a backup of your progress to the internal memory or the SD card if you so wish. So I did, and quit the game, but this is when I ran into my second problem: the Retron 5 doesn't have an eject switch for any of the five cartridge slots. While this usually isn't a problem in and of itself, but it was in this case because the console had one helluva death grip on my game. I'm sure that if you need to use excessive force in order to remove a game from its slot, then that is an indication that an eject button would have been sorely needed. It wasn't until later when I found out that the games come out more easily when you gently pull them out from one side at an angle.

Now because of how much force it took for me to remove my game from the cartridge slot, I feared that I might have damaged my precious copy of EarthBound. So as a second test, I tried out the game again on my SNES, and (unfortunately) I saw that my save file had been wiped clean. This pissed me off until I remembered that the Retron 5 saved a backup of my save file. So I reluctantly put the game back into the system and had the Retron rewrite the file onto the cart. Then came the moment of truth; I CAREFULLY removed EarthBound from the Retron 5, booted the game back up in my SNES and lo and behold, everything was all peachy-keen. Despite the problems I had, this is an extremely nice feature that I think all future cartridge-based consoles should have.

Next thing I tested was the built in Game Genie with the NES game Little Nemo: The Dream Master, at least, that's what I would like to say. As it turns out, the Game Genie codes had to be downloaded separately from the firmware update. I had to do all of that downloading crap again and it doesn't even work when there are too many cheats active at one time. There were some games that weren't even compatible with it as it was an early version of the list. At least the process is much more user-friendly than the firmware updates. The last thing I tested was the screenshot tool with the Famicom game Summer Carnival '92 RECCA. Not really much of big feature, but it is nice to able to save screenshots as a jpeg or png file.

Now I bet you're wondering, "This sounds a lot like a glorified emulator that can play cartridges," and well, you'd be half right. While it does emulate the console specs of the NES, SNES, Famicom, Sega Mega Drive and Game Boy Advance (and the Sega Master System with the help of Sega's Power Converter), it CANNOT play ROM files of any kind. "Then what's the point when I can just download an emulator and connect it to my TV?" you may ask. Well, my valued readers, let me ask you this: Can you backup your cartridge data from an emulator? Well no, but honestly, that feature of the Retron 5 (while nice) really isn't all that worth it since it can't even use any hardware features that might be built into the cartridge. If you get it as a gift, great. If you buy it with your own money though, don't spend more than $100 on it. I guess the new firmware update that allows you to patch games with ROM-hacks or translations might be nice. I would need to test that first though, but until then, I'll be seeing you.

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