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.

(Please keep in mind that my opinions may or may not reflect your own, this list is entirely biased)

The BFG 9000 from the DOOM series

With a name that is literally an abbreviation for "Big Fucking Gun," you can just imagine the kind of sheer force that is expelled from the barrel of this monster. The BFG 9000 fires highly concentrated bolts of plasma that explode into an immensely powerful concussive shockwave vaporizing anything unlucky enough be to within range. The BFG also appears in the DOOM film that was released in 2005, but it was renamed as the Bio Force Gun.

The Aperture Science Handheld Portal Device from the Portal Series

While not a weapon per say, the Aperture Science Handheld Portal Device, otherwise known as the Portal Gun (or as I like to call it, the ASHPoD) is used primarily for opening miniature wormholes to get you from point A to point B much faster. This also makes solving the puzzles issued by the psychotic GLaDOS during her little "tests" much easier as just about all of them need the Portal Gun in order to complete them. Plus if you happen to know a thing or two about physics, you could turn all of those cubes that you have to lug around into catapults using gravity alone.

The Needler from the Halo series

Unlike most people, I happened to like the Needler from the first Halo. If used properly, the weapon's explosive glass needles would deal a ton of damage against whoever was unfortunate enough to be on the receiving end. I suppose the only real downfall is the fact that its shots moved through the air at a snail's pace, but in my opinion, the homing feature makes up for that. Plus it can be dual wielded in Halo 2, doubling the amount of explosive crystalline fury at hand.

The Super Scope accessory from Nintendo

Unlike every other gun on this list, the Super Scope was a real accessory that was made by Nintendo for use with a small handful of games on the SNES. It was calibrated with a sensor that was placed on top of your TV set and was powered by six AA batteries. Because of the impact this particular weapon had on the gaming community (and because of how cool it looked), this weapon was revived in the Super Smash Bros series, but instead of it being a harmless toy, it instead fired bolts of light that could be charged up for extra power.

The Scarborough Fair from Bayonetta

While this weapon is technically four separate handguns by the names of Parsley, Sage, Rosemary, and Thyme, the Scarborough Fair instead feels like one gun as they are part of Bayonetta's fighting style called Bullet Arts. She grips one gun in each hand and the other two are strapped to the heals of her boots. They are made of a demonic alloy that makes them virtually indestructible and are used for killing angels due to a contract she made with a demon called Madama Butterfly. These guns are replaced by a blue variant called Love is Blue in the sequel, but I think these guns are more cleverly named and look much better as red.

The R.Y.N.O. from the Ratchet & Clank series

Bought by a shady looking merchant at the end of an alley on a distant planet, the R.Y.N.O. is a portable auto-targeting rocket launcher with multiple barrels making it obscenely powerful, especially considering that "R.Y.N.O." is short for "Rip You a New One." It also changes its appearance in each game, but that doesn't diminish its power in the slightest. It's just too bad that it is the most expensive weapon in the series, often costing millions of bolts to purchase.

The Morph Gun from the Jak & Daxter series

This gun, which is given to Jak by Krew as payment for an important delivery, has the ability to be quickly modified on the fly into one of 12 different weapon styles. These include a close range shotgun, a rifle with a laser scope, an arc cannon and even mini nuke launcher. This was one of the best and most versatile weapons in any game I've ever played, and the games were also good enough to back that claim up.

The Crossbow from Oddworld: Stranger's Wrath

This is probably one of the most unusual firearms I've encountered, but also one of the most unique. This crossbow was custom built to be used by a bounty hunter known as the Stranger and is mounted on the back of his right hand. The crossbow itself is nothing special on its own, but the ammunition it uses is very unique to be sure. Unlike most crossbows that use arrows or short bolt-like darts, this one uses creatures picked up by the Stranger as he's on his hunts. Some of these creatures are zappflies, stingbees and fuzzles and each one is unusually dangerous despite their names.

The Peanut Popguns from the Donkey Kong Country series

These wooden handguns first appeared in Donkey Kong 64 and are wielded by Donkey Kong's nephew, Diddy Kong. Despite the fact that they are made of wood and their ammunition is peanuts of all things, they are surprisingly powerful and have left quite an impact on the series as they reappear in later Donkey Kong Country games whereas the weapons of the rest of the DK crew didn't. They are even used by Diddy Kong again in the Super Smash bros series where the ammunition will sometimes drop shelled peanuts that can be eaten to regain health.

The Blazefire Saber from Final Fantasy XIII

Okay, I'll admit this is cheating a little bit, but the way I see it is that even though it is technically a sword, it can still fire live rounds which effectively makes it a gun. This weapon (and variations of it) is used by Lightning in the Final Fantasy XIII saga and in Dissidia 012. Because it is also a sword, if it happens to run out of ammo (which never happens in the game), you can still use the blade for melee strikes. This gun also appears in the game The 3rd Birthday as an unlockable bonus.

Well, that's my list folks, if you disagree with my choices, tell me why in the comments and what you would have chosen instead. Until then, I'll be seeing you.

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.

Well, with The Last of Us 2 being accidentally confirmed, it seems only fitting that some analysis be given to the original. There's a lot to analyze about Naughty Dog's post-apocalyptic shooter, but in this case, we're gonna look at what makes the ending of the game so damn powerful. But first, let's talk about the game itself. Needless to say, spoilers galore. Stop reading now if you haven't played or beaten the game yet.

The Last of Us ruined the post-apocalypse genre for me. Not just in games, but in all forms of media. I don't care how good The Walking Dead is. I don't care how fun Left 4 Dead is. The Last of Us did everything you could possibly do with a post-apocalyptic setting, and did it right. The biggest thing it did right: showing an unadulterated sense of humanity.

I've described this game to my friends as one of the most human games ever made. It's completely fantasy free. The infection is based on a real fungus. There are no big action setpieces. It's free of contrived Hollywood elements... mostly, and every line of dialogue feels real.

What makes the game 'human', though, is its characters. They aren't part of roaming bands of freedom fighters or bandits or post-government oppressors. This ain't Fallout. They're just people, trying to do whatever they can to survive. We see all sides of what an apocalypse can do to a human.

We see those who shut out emotions and personal feelings to avoid being hurt.


We see those who adapt.


We see those who try to hang on to a sense of normality.

We see those who scrape for any sign of hope.


We see those who were worn down by despair and violence and became something horrible.


Most of all, though, we see Joel. We see how he was hurt, how he copes with the decaying world around him, and how he becomes so desperate to have an anchor, to stay sane, that he does the most selfish, selfless thing anyone could do in his situation.

Throughout The Last of Us, Joel's only constant companion is Ellie. Thanks to some smart programming and perfect writing, Ellie oozes charm and depth, and quickly becomes an emotional crutch to both Joel and the player. It can be easy to forget that the endgame is to deliver her to the Fireflies. For the long journey, you might forget that there was even a destination at all, until you reach the hospital.

The Fireflies take Ellie away from Joel, with the intent of extracting a cure from her brain. Unfortunately, that means she'll die, and Joel will be left alone. In the twenty years that he's survived the infected world, Ellie is only thing he loved, and now she has to die. Joel is... not well. Yeah, he's stable, he's collected, he can hold his own in a fight, he's a survivor. That's why he's scary: give him something to fight for, and he'll get it. Until now, all he had to fight for was his own life. Now that he's fighting for someone else, he kills fully armed soldiers to get to her. Worse, if you allow it, he kills doctors. How many doctors do you think are left in this mad world?

As he escapes, Marlene tries to reason with him, saying that killing Ellie to get the cure for the infection would be the best possible ending for her. Given what Ellie witnessed and experienced during the journey, Marlene's arguments have credence.

But here's what we don't know: What do the Fireflies intend to do with the cure? They openly hate the government. They're distrusted by just as many people as those that worship them. Who's to say they wouldn't keep the cure for themselves? And that's assuming a cure can even be made to begin with. We don't know. That's the key. Joel kills Marlene anyway, so we won't ever find out.

So, where's the morality on this? Who was doing the right thing? That answer becomes even more ambiguous when Joel outright lies to Ellie about what happened. And we don't know if she fully believes him. Still, what was he supposed to say? "You remind me of my dead daughter and I love you, so I doomed humanity just so I could be happy" ? That would push Joel straight into villain territory. But he's not a villain. He's just a man trying to survive, and Ellie is his survival.

The beauty of The Last of Us is given form in these last moments because how much we don't know. We don't know what's going to happen next, who is the moral victor, and how this is going to affect Joel and Ellie's relationship. All we do know is that humanity is fucked, and it's either one man's fault, or nobody's fault.

Games usually have a goal. Whether it be to reach a high score, beat a series of levels, defeat certain foes, complete missions, and so on. Your mission in The Last of Us was initially to deliver Ellie to the Firefly hideout. But it wasn't long before you might have forgotten that. Soon, your goal was simply to protect her, because so long as she and you were together, you were happy.

Now, let's assume that a cure could've been made from Ellie's brain .When you, in control of Joel, took her away from the Fireflies and destroyed humanity's last hope, you fulfilled your self-assigned mission. You protected her. Humanity will die, but you protected her. Congratulations.

A winner is you.

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.

Now listen. I know what you're thinking. But seriously, the Wii U Is just about the sickest thing to be sitting in my living room since my elderly grandma (Love you Gran, get well soon xx). 

And I'm not just saying this because I got it back when it was still like $600. Since getting the Wii U, I've accumulated a fine assortment of games; Shovel Knight, Mario Kart 8, Super Smash Bros.Brawl, Lego City Undercover, Lego Hobbit, Just Dance 3 etc. 

While playing these on and off I got my PS4. I love the PS4 and love . . . most of the games I have for it. . . Around the same time my neighbor got an XBOX ONE. But as many people who got an Xbox or a PlayStation know, the launch title games weren't all that great . . . A lot of issues and a lot of disappointment. Ryse: Son of Rome? More like 'Son of the Bargain Bin'. Watch_Dogs? More like 'I'd rather be Watching my mum get eaten by Dogs'. Sure a lot of people love these games (I myself love the look of Ryse and think it's a pretty groovy game) but the general consensus seems to be one of disappointment. Assassin's Creed Unity, The Master Chief Collection it feels like every game coming out is being disliked by heaps of people.

Here's where the Wii U comes in. Mario Kart 8: Straight upgrade, no complaints. Bayonetta: More of what everyone loves. Lego Hobbit: Great Lego game, open world, fun for all ages. That's one of the things the Wii U has going for it, it's a console for all ages. From Skylanders to Resident Evil, gamers of all ages and skill levels can enjoy it.

The games coming out are so hype. The new Zelda, new Yoshi, new Kirby, XenobladeChornicles and even a new Starfox! This is so fly. Now of course I'm hyped for games like Bloodborne (Sorry Xbox owners) but the Wii U's track record for rad games is consistent. Captain Toad is such a basic idea but it's done so well and it's a heap of fun! Amiibos are fresh to death (even if they're getting a bit costly). I'm getting butterflies in my stomach just thinking about how sweet all this new stuff for Wii U is, and I just don't get the same feelings for many of the games coming to PS4 and Xbox.

Keep in mind I am still plenty excited for a lot of PS4 and Xbox games (I'm sure my neighbour will continue to let me use his Xbox), and this is all just my opinion but the evidence is there. This war is over. N1nt3nd0 izthasikest.

(Inb4 PC Master Race)

Following the popularity of Aeon of Strife, WarCraft III's release in mid-2002 brought the creation of Defense of The Ancients, or DoTA for short, thanks to a modder by the name of Eul. The new developer of Defense of the Ancients incorperated much more complex systems into his creation, adding in a "jungle" between the lanes filled with more powerful, yet rewarding monsters that spawned every minute, and items to pick up and buy from a store at the very back of either team's base. Shortly after DoTA's creation, Eul decided that his own work was done, and left the modding scene for good. As Eul had left no legacy, or people to assist, modders came from all around to try and create their own evolution of Defense of the Ancients, dozens of different and tweaked versions popping up all over the place. After the release of WarCraft III's expansion, known as "The Frozen Throne", a person known as Meian made a variant that, although closely resembling Eul's original map, featured the best community made heroes of the time, and was named DoTA: Allstars. A few months following, Meian left as well (Yeesh, reported for AFK), however, unwilling to repeat Eul's mistake, granted the rights to DoTA's legacy to Steve Feak, also known as Guinsoo.Guinsoo had his own batch of changes for the ever-changing game, and helped proper the popularity of DoTA even further.

Guinsoo spent over a year adjusting, recreating and making the game the best that he could, as well as vastly re-imagining the map's layout, before finally stepping down, handing over development to a good friend of his, by the name of Neichus. After barely a few weeks, Neichus felt unworthy to carry the torch of DoTA's already popular legacy, and stepped down to hand development over to a modder named IceFrog, who changed nearly everything about DoTA: Allstars excluding the heroes, editing the mechanics, complexity, item diversity, as well as other factors. (At which point during development the pinnacle of difficulty and complexity, Invoker, was spawned, I can not say, but he's a real monster to try and play - trust me.) IceFrog's changes made him quickly loved by the community, and, with the creation of a DoTA forum and website, active users were reported to have reached above the one million mark. One. Million. People. All playing the same mod.

2008 marked the true beginning of the MOBA genre, with Gas-Powered Games releasing a full-priced game known as Demigod, featuring both player-versus-player combat and offline play against the computer. A free flash game called Minions was also released, instead focusing on simplistic visuals and a much easier gaming experience. However, neither of these could even get close to DoTA's near-total domination of the genre at the time, Demigod being rife with bugs and glitches to hamper the gameplay experience, and with Minions lacking the deep complexity and variation that DoTA had, with a mere six heroes, or eight if you bought an additional pack.

Heroes of Newerth was also developed to completion in 2010, developed by S2 Games as a almost entirely faithful adaptation of DoTA: Allstars. However, due to sale concerns, the game was shifted to the free-to-play model which is so prevalent in MOBA games today. Other heroes were added by S2 Games, making Heroes of Newerth it's own beast entirely.

Competition only heated up in 2009, with Riot Games' (founded in 2006 by Brandon Beck and Mark Merrill League of Legends finally showing up on the scene. This project was headed by Steve Feak, also known as Guinsoo, who had his own hands in DoTA's production. Riot Games themselves coined the term MOBA as the genre, short for Multiplayer Online Battle Arena. In the same year, Valve hired the stillambiguousIceFrog to work for them and help create a sequel to DoTA: Allstars.

League of Legends was a breath of fresh air into the MOBA genre, myself logging a rather disgusting amount of hours played in the few years I myself picked the game up for(2556 hours, according to a stat-tracker. I should really get a life). League of Legends was made with much less complexity than DoTA, but still managed to keep the fun and steep learning curve that DoTA prided itself upon. League of Legends has a new champion added roughly every month or so, and is as ruthlessly addictive as you might expect from a MOBA. DoTA 2, however, had finished completion in 2013, first announced in 2010 by GameInformer's website. (The resulting interest in the sequel's announcement crashed GameInformer's website - talk about a loyal fanbase!), and DoTA 2 was completed with Valve's insane level of polish and attention to detail, even enlisting Eul (the one and only) to help out with development. Between Valve, IceFrog and Eul, DoTA 2's creation was widely accepted, and the two titans of the genre have butted heads ever since.

Both League of Legends and DoTA 2 have a fierce fanbase, who constantly seem to wish to remind the other party of which game is better. In all honesty, which game you prefer is entirely up to you. There is no true better game, and which is better for you is entirely determined on your own tastes. I personally play both DoTA 2 and League of Legends on a regular basis, and greatly enjoy theseparateexperiences of both games. DoTA 2, League of Legends, and Heroes of Newerth are absolutely free to play, and are a blast to play once you get used to them. The MOBA genre is great fun, and you're thoroughly missing out if you don't play one of these in your lifetime.

This is hopefully the first of many articles for "Zerg Rush!", a weekly article not just focusing on the background of genres, but the reasons for their popularity, fanbase, and overall sales values, as well as poking a bit of fun at the gaming community if given a chance. MOBAs are pretty great, guys.

\r

OtherSide Entertainment also went to Twitter and stated the following:

"Keep your eyes peeled here over the course of the next week...
https://t.co/YD35I1hil"

OtherSide Entertainment is a more recently formed development team that consists of many of the creative team members of Ultima Underworld. Most notably, OtherSide co-founder Paul Neurath worked on System Shock 2 at the now defunct Looking Glass Studios. It's also worth noting that the art director of BioShock Infinite Nate Wells also joined OtherSide Entertainment.
For those who do not know or need a refreshing, System Shock and it's sequel are first person RPGs set in a futuristic cyberpunk world. The first System Shock followed a master hacker as they try to stop the evil plans of a rogue artificial intelligence named SHODAN. System Shock 2 follows a soldier as they awake from cryosleep aboard a massive star ship called the Von Braun amidst an outbreak of a genetic infection.

If the word "Shock" in the title of a game sounds familiar to you, then you may know of System Shock's spiritual successor BioShock; which was also developed by System Shock 2's co-developer, Irrational Games.

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. 

So then... How does a gamer who takes pride in his real life analyst skills write a weekly article when he takes\r more pride in a single character design (bio type stuff) than anything \r worth money? Well I got thinking and I'm good with weapons and stuff... I\r figured out how to build a Metal Gear and several weapons crossovers \r along with knowing many key vitals on the human organs. So why not look \r at just that. Weapons and characters. Stuff like did Sephiroth kill Aerilth. So, to make it easy I'm \r using weapons that "don't work" in real life so no guns and I may \r explain staves however magic is hard to cover as some spells are \r impossible.

I\r am going to place a note at the beginning here... I'm working around two \r "bases" for the weapons. My physical structure as it is something I can \r work with for using weapons, however I'm also gonna\r use world records for weight lifted and similar aspects. This should \r give a range of most people so because I say I can lift it with \r difficulty don't mean you will struggle. That said I'm male and I'll be \r using male records for consistency but will adapt for female weaponry

All the formalities covered I need a weapon...Metal Gear, Rail-Gun's, HF blades... What's the best to start with? Well... I'm gonna\r look at the HF blade as I like the concept, so what is a high frequency\r blade Its based on real stuff as a blade vibrating fast enough can cut \r anything while moving slow making it look good so far since its had high\r frequency vibrations sent through the blade however this don't work in \r practice. As either the blade would shake too much from needing constant\r vibration or it would cause your hand to go numb.

The\r issue is animals like ants that use similar techniques work because of \r the size and there is a constant source unlike in the games causing \r issues in implementing the theory to reality. However hypersonic \r technology may be a nice work around. The vibration from these is enough\r to help remove the drag and cut objects easier... We have an issue with\r the hand going numb though. You may be able to direct the vibration \r away from the hilt and into the blade however it would be a larger \r hand-guard and may break the blade if you are nanometres out.

It's\r a plausible weapon if done correctly however may need some work and \r bulky blades to be effective on anything without melting your hand. Or \r shaking bolts loose (not a hint for my next article at all.) Leave \r suggestions in my email (addavenye@live.com or gmarshall1996@gmail.com)

While the departure of Alan Wake is upsetting, Remedy Entertainment have also announced that on Saturday May 13th Alan Wake and its sequel Alan Wake's American Nightmare along with every piece of DLC will be 90% off on Steam for 48 hours until it is officially removed. Alan Wake's American Nightmare will not be a part of this remvoal. This will probably be the last chance to purchase everything from the original Alan Wake entry for the foreseeable future.

In other news, it was recently announced that 505 Games would publish Remedy Entertainment's newest multi-platform IP codenamed "Project 7." Developer Remedy have stated that their latest IP will be set in a "new Remedy-created universe," and features "an intriguing story and a game structure offering a long-lasting experience" and also "contains the deepest game mechanics yet in a Remedy game." More details on Remedy's latest project will be revealed in the coming months.

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?

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.

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.

For putting Metal Gear Solid disc 1 in Monster Rancher 2, you got a Gaboo with a headband and camouflage, being an obvious throwback to Solid Snake.

Training consisted of choosing an activity to enter your monster in to train a specific stat, resting, battling, or going on adventures that tired your monster out, but had a big stat payoff. The game runs on a weekly basis, and you choose what to  train in for that week, for every four weeks, until you have to feed them again at the start of the next month. More often than not, your monsters would pass the training, but there are certain times where they'd go above and beyond expectations, cheat to pass, or just fail completely. During these times, you are given options to scold and praise your monster accordingly. It was always up to you to figure out when to scold or forgive, because letting them off the hook will only increase their cheating and failing ways. If you were too hard on your monster, however, they could run away. They could be gone anywhere from a mere week, up to a few months. Growing up, this weighed on me a lot, and I'd constantly check to make sure I wasn't accidentally pushing my monster away when I meant to hone their skills. Resting is lets your monster take a week off to recover from training or battling, to get them ready for another round. After months of training, you'd be ready to enter your monster in some battles.

Here you can see a Hopper at the ranch on Monster Rancher 2.

A battle taking place on Monster Rancher 2

A picture of an adventure, from Monster Rancher 2.

If you played Monster Rancher in the past, leave a comment letting me know your thoughts on it.

The Technomancer

Actual RPGs are hard to come by these days. Many people mistaking label leveling up a skill in a linear corridor shooter as an RPG, but developer Spiders know the truth. The Technomancer is an open world cyberpunk RPG set on Mars with a heavy emphasis on storytelling and unique melee combat. The Technomancer is also a spiritual successor to the severely underrated Mars: War Logs. Spiders have a proven track record when it comes to developing a proper RPG with compelling story aspects, so we're excited to see if The Technomancer can keep Spiders' track record polished.

We Happy Few

If you thought the underwater city of Rapture from BioShock wasn't fueled by enough fictional drugs, We Happy Few is for you. We Happy Few is a psychological horror game set in an alternate 1960's England where all citizens are required to take a drug called "Joy." More about the game will be known once it is released to Steam early access and Xbox Game Preview July 26th.

Cuphead

Cuphead is a 2D platformer with the artstyle of a 1930's cartoon. At the beginning of the game, the player loses a bet with the devil and spends the rest of the game attempting to repay the lost bet. Recently announced for Cuphead were more platforming areas to compliment its brutal boss fights. One of Cuphead's hooks is its punishing difficulty. See for yourself.

Vampyr

From the developers that brought you Life is Strange... comes Vampyr. Vampyr is a third person RPG that casts you in the role of a doctor turned vampire as he deals with the duality of saving lives and taking them. The video game industry has been absolutely starved for a good vampire game since Vampire: The Masquerade - Bloodlines. Let's hope that Dontnod Entertainment can revitalize this undead genre.

Yooka-Laylee

Banjo-Kazooie fans rejoice! No longer are you trapped under the mighty boot of Microsoft. After a very successful Kickstarter, many of the original Rare Ware developers were able to fund the Banjo-Threeie that we never got. Yooka-Laylee is a third person platformer that takes more than a few pages from Banjo's playbook. The colorful, cartoony visuals are back, as well as the collect-a-thon gameplay that gamers from the early 2000's know and love.

The 3D is actually good now.

If you're like me, not needing weird 3D glasses to experience Link beating your ass all over Final Destination in 3D was like living in the future. Then you realize it's pretty bad, you have to keep your face directly in front of the screen to see the 3D, which makes it not so much fun to play games in 3D. So why is it good now? Because you can face the screen from all the angles, and still get that sweet 3D. 3D for days son.

C-stick, It's back baby.

If you played on ye old Nintendo console's you'll know what the C stick is, and what it does. Otherwise its just another joystick, that'll do new stuff. Get that vitamin C-stick.

Aren't there enough buttons?

No. Two shoulder buttons? Does 4 sound good? Because you'll get 4.

But first let me take a 3D selfie.

If you have a 3D then you'll know that the camera is pretty weak, your phone probably has a better camera. But with the new 3Ds Nintendo promises that it'll be better much better, muuuuuuuch better. So get ready for some sweet 3D photos. (inb4 3D nsfw)

It'll play new things.

The new 3Ds boasts increased power, with newer and faster CPU's and GPU's. Which means it'll play old games smoother (I'm looking at you Pokemon X/Y in 3D mode), and it'll play newer more power Intensive games. Like Monster hunter 4, and other titles. However that also means that these new power intensive games won't run well on the older system. Which means new games for the new 3Ds won't play on the 3Ds. It's annoying, especially for everyone who still think the 3Ds is a newish system, and don't exactly have the dosh to get another. 

More bang for the same amount of buck.

Unless you bought the first 3Ds then that statement is true. The price for the new 3Ds is about the same with the first iteration, the compact $151 and the XL for $174 .So for the same price you get a butt load more, and if you do wanna shell out for the new system regardless, I'd say worth. Unfortunately for the US only the XL will be available, and the systems will still be region locked.

D-Day, when's it gonna drop?

It already has... in Japan and Australia. In the Eu and the US you'll have to wait till February 13th, 2015.  

All in all, its annoying as hell that they bring a new system so soon. But for what it brings, i'm looking forward to it, most definitely.

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

Animal Crossing

Banjo-Kazooie

Bayonetta

BioShock

Castlevania

Chibi-Robo

Crash Bandicoot

Donkey Kong

Doom

Final Fantasy

Fire Emblem

F-Zero

Game & Watch

God of War

Golden Sun

Halo

Jak & Daxter

Katamari Damacy

Kid Icarus

Kirby

The Legend of Zelda

Mario Kart

Mario Party

Mass Effect

Mega Man

Metal Gear Solid

Metroid

Monster Hunter

Mortal Kombat

Mother/EarthBound

Okami

Pac-Man

Phoenix Wright

Pikmin

Pokemon

Professor Layton

Punch-Out!!

Ratchet & Clank

Rayman

Rhythm Heaven

Shantae

Sly Cooper

Sonic the Hedgehog

Spyro the Dragon

Star Fox

Super Mario Bros

Super Smash Bros

Tetris

Warioware

Yoshi's Island

Thanks once again for your continued support and I hope you all will still be reading my articles even after I reach 100. But until then, I'll be seeing you.

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.

(Please keep in mind that my opinions may or may not reflect your own, this list is entirely biased)

The Revolver Gunblade from Final Fantasy VIII

Squall Leonhart's weapon of choice, this kick-ass blade is basically a single-edged broadsword with an over-sized 6-shooter revolver as the hilt. If you pull the trigger on it, it sends a shock wave up the blade making it vibrate which inflicts a more devastating cut. This weapon makes the most impact in the opening cut-scene just before you are given the option of naming your character.

The Valiantium Blade from The Wonderful 101

Said to become even sharper every time it slices into its enemies, the Valiantium Blade can act as a lightning rod to divert electrical currents, reflect lasers back at their sender, cut the thickest steel construction cables and can even be used as a key to unlock blast doors in certain locations. The only real flaw it has is its wielder as he is a hot-headed, arrogant jerk that only cares about his own selfish goals over the safety of his comrades. He eventually learns his lesson, but not after putting his entire team's lives in peril to chase after his own personal vendetta. Remember, a sword is an extension of its handler and is only as good as the person who wields it. Oh, and here's a little Easter Egg, the Valiantium Blade is also in Bayonetta 2 as the main weapon of the angel Valiance albeit in a different form.

The High-Frequency Blade from the Metal Gear Solid/Rising series

A technologically advanced Japanese katana made by the government that can cut the most durable of alloys due to it being able to resonate at a frequency so high that it separates materials at the molecular level. This blade has actually been in the possession of two previous owners before it finally found its way to Raiden, A.K.A. Jack the Ripper, and it is his weapon of choice during the events of Metal Gear Solid 4 and Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance. The blade is incredibly powerful and can be seen cutting an unmanned Metal Gear RAY unit completely in half during the prologue chapter of Revengeance, but while it is very strong, it kinda plays second fiddle to Gray Fox's Fox Blade which could be only obtained in the game when you pre-ordered the game at GameStop. Never really liked pre-order DLC bonuses because of that.

The Z-Saber from the Mega Man X/Zero series

The Keyblade from Kingdom Hearts

Destined to be used by the one who will save the worlds from the Heartless and the Nobodies, the Keyblade is a sword of great power that can change its shape depending on what kind of keychain is clipped onto its pommel. Because of its ability to lock the door to the heart of a world, it plays great importance and a very heavy burden on its wielder, Sora. In reality though, there are actually many keyblades all which now rest at an old battlefield called the Keyblade Graveyard where a large scale war once took place.

Soul Calibur and Soul Edge from the Soul Calibur series

Now, I know that they are technically two separate swords, but because of them both being pretty equal in power and magical influence, I have little choice but to consider them the same weapon (Especially considering the fact that they were once one blade at one point in their history, picture on the left). These two swords are basically two sides of the same coin, one is of light and the other of darkness. This is also reflected by the fact that the ones who wield them are good and evil variations of the same person. Soul Calibur is the weapon of choice of Siegfried and his demonic alter-ego Nightmare uses the Soul Edge in battle. "Transcending history, and the world, a tale of swords and souls eternally retold." Ahh, I'll never get tired of hearing that phrase.

The Energy Sword from the Halo series

As the name suggests, this is a sword made of energy, but the symbolism the sword represents within the Halo lore is actually quite fascinating. It states only the highest ranking elites can wield these blades. While these specific Elites are not allow to marry, they have the privilege to mate with any female they want regardless if they have a spouse or not. This is so they can preserve the lineage of sword wielders for as long as possible. Lore aside, this weapon is also very powerful as it can one-hit-kill any enemy as long as it is a sneak attack in the back. Seems a little cheap, but it gets the job done.

The Blades of Chaos from the God of War series

These weapons of mass bloodshed are wielded by everyone's favorite screaming Spartan, Kratos, but he doesn't use these swords by choice. When he pledged his loyalty to Ares, the God of War, he painfully chained the two blades to Kratos's arms. This gave him the power he needed to destroy his enemies with ease, but he was cursed to be Ares warrior-slave until the day he died. These swords are brutal, jagged, unholy weapons meant only to be used to kill and they certainly do their job without fail.

The Master Sword from The Legend of Zelda series

The all powerful "blade of evil's bane." This sword was forged with the power of the gods with the intent of being the weapon of choice for the Goddess Hylia's chosen hero. This masterfully crafted one-handed longsword also housed the spirit Fi, a calculative construct whose sole purpose was to serve the chosen hero until he completed his task. The blade strikes fear in all of the evil beings of the land and the only one who dared to fight its power was the Demon King Ganondorf and all of his reincarnated forms across the space/time continuum.

The Monado from Xenoblade Chronicles

Well, that's my list folks, if you disagree with my choices, tell me why in the comments and what you would have chosen instead. Until then, I'll be seeing you.

1. MAX PAYNE: I DREAMED A DREAM.

Being a gamer, it's not easy to dodge the discussion of Max Payne. Before going under the wing of Rockstar, Remedy's initial 3D run-and-gun had something that most shooters lack; good story, great atmosphere, and interactive disturbing shit that made you freak out. It wasn't all rooty tooty, point and shooty.

Still more emotion than Kristen Stewart, hardy har.

What really makes this one of the top three is simply put; interaction. Unlike other games where we're thrust into a prologue, the gameplay takes place after a turn of events, we witness the horrific murder of Max's wife and child up front. You examine the house, you pull the gun out, you shoot the people crazy enough to step up to Max Run-and-Gun Payne, and then you walk in to find this:

Baby blocks with reverse numbers on them; haunting, truly haunting.

 A game that starts out like this means to go on so. It isn't all go here, shoot there, right, RIGHT?

Wro--right! One of our top three is the dreaded dream sequences set in Max Payne's head. These had everything; long winding hallways, the demented sound of demonic laughter against the crying pleas of your dead baby, blood-soaked nurseries, and who could forget the blood in the dark? Precisely why this hits home with a top What The Fuck moment!

2. FALLOUT 3; Dun, dun, Dunwhich!

Fallout 3 was a brilliant achievement by Bethesda Studios. Something that it mastered was its ability to throw us into a world we knew nothing about. From there, it was your choice whether to be the prodigal white knight, complete with Geiger-counter and an unwavering trait of volunteering for everything, ever while everybody thinks you're the tightest shit out there that can get stuff done. Since daddy went missing you have a choice to follow him in his footsteps or make a left turn into nowhere and live your life away from the responsibilities of being a sacrificial dummy to save the world. Sometimes the game just straight up discarded logic : 

"You must go in there and get radiation poisoning so I can pull you out for the $5.99 DLC!"

One of Fallout's greatest additions comes in the form of The Dunwhich House. In a far corner of a map, away from any settlements, the Dunwhich house looms over the dead area. There are so many What The Fuck  moments that I'm counting the whole experience as one; from ghost flashbacks, to moving objects, to demonic backstories, and a looming mythology of H.P. Lovecraft.

I traded in all of my caps for a big ol' bag of NOPE.

3. SPEC OPS: THE LINE: EVERYTHING'S GONNA BE ALL WHITE.

Bu--but...how could anything American soldiers do be wrong?

 It isn't the act itself which makes us freak out here, but when we're sent to examine the remain, our protagonist walks through the charred and frozen remains of the enemy and discovers something bleak, and horrifically disturbing:

It turns out the orders were wrong, and the protagonist has just horrifically eviscerated a large group of civilian refugees. All's good in love and war, right? Am I right? 

Spec Ops: The Line was made to mimic such works as Jacob's Ladder and Heart of Darkness. Where once military shooters cared more for the run and gun rambo hero with the enemy's head on a stick routine, you constantly question your ethics and morality as a soldier in this game. And of course, with this What the Fuck moment, it's shown to be a very emotional, and classic game.

"Don't look, sweetheart." 

Do you agree with my choices? Are there any moments out there that you think tops these? \r

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.

So real life hit me over the past few weeks and i've been unable to type my cybernetics weapon thing i decided to do... so i shortened it and done magic briefly (in prep for the third thing) so enjoy this short analysis and ill upload these as possible..

So\r I have a friend who designed a robotic arm for when / if I lose my arm \r building or testing his weapons and how dangerous some were I felt \r inclined to look into it... And its too easy too look into the workings.\r Nerve endings trigger movement by sending elecro-chemical signals and then its motors and hydraulics' kinda the basic stuff for me... And its been done... Sadly im\r not looking at speed of it just making it work and it exists already so\r I need a new weapon too look at... So from my spiritualistic point of \r view (basically souls being a part of a person AND souls having an minor\r influence on our world and the people in it) does magic have any \r validity to it? 

Now\r magic is the manifestation of energy and a soul is energy which is you \r so what can a soul do? Now I can say 2 things for definite the first is \r that each person has different spiritual abilities l can identify \r spiritual traits to a degree and read specific aspects of a soul... \r There are moral issues so simply put it takes time to look at a soul as I\r cant look when I don't truly know someone and then I avoid personal \r stuff so it can take weeks to look at aspects of a soul... It takes \r weeks to look at a soul you with the 6/7 years of training in this ive had it gives me the magic stuff some ground.the rest will be covered in the next few weeks as magic is a difficult topic

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.

What if it turns out all those checkpoints were really dead though?

Bioshock Infinite places you in the role of Booker DeWitt, an ex-pinkerton agent sent to the angelic, ludite spawned, racist city of Columbia. This wonderful floating palace is home to the rich, the poor, the blacks, and the normal people. Ahem...Booker is tasked with saving Elizabeth, a princess locked in a tower, guarded by a massive bird which likes to fuck with you at every turn. Elizabeth, however, holds a secret. With her magical pinky-less hand she can manipulate time and space to create tears in the fabric of time, allowing her and Booker to escape to infinite dimensions of Columbia to escape the evil clutches of her sermon-spouting religious father; Father Comstock. 

The game sports a great story, with you dodging massive flying mechanical birds to zipping through time like some inter-dimensional Indiana Jones with a penchant for drinking strange liquids from bottles and throwing spinny hooks into people's faces! Starting off with a crazy entrance to Columbia and a strange baptism for Booker, almost killing him in the process, we begin Bioshock: Skyhook everything with a fucking pulse. 

Seems like Booker was hooked from the get go. Eh? EH?

After a long and arduous journey of escaping Comstock, fending off rebels against Comstock and finally fighting your way to him, Booker does what game protagonists do best and bludgeons Comstocks head on a holy water bowl. Symbolic as Hell, right? So here's where the twist comes in! Elizabeth is captured and Booker is launched through a separate dimension of Columbia. After returning to safe Elizabeth, it is alluded that Booker has been gone for a long time, and as such Elizabeth has managed to figure out the story, and all the little tidbits. SO!

Booker and Elizabeth plan to escape to Paris finally, but it turns out that that ain't on the cards for Booker. No baguettes and pencil mustache for him, non, non! Elizabeth leads Booker through a series of portals into the place where ALL other Bookers and Elizabeths from separate portals meet in an ocean of lighthouses. Elizabeth remarks: "There is always one man, one lighthouse, one city." 

Now that's just bullshi--

GOD, DANGIT, LEVINE.

So in the end, Booker and Elizabeth escape the lighthouse ocean and then here comes the kicker! 

COMPLICATED SPOILER AHEAD, DO NOT READ UNLESS YOU WANT HEAD TO IMPLODE:

Booker is taken to a similar baptism that he goes through in the beginning of the game. It is then alluded that Booker took a similar baptism many years before, but opted out of it because "dousing yourself in water doesn't absolve your sins." Booker becomes a gambling drunk, loses all of his cash, and realizes he must go to Columbia for a job to absolve his debts. HOWEVER. It turns out that YOU, Booker DeWitt, are in fact ZACHARY HALE COMSTOCK and that Elizabeth is Booker's legitimate daughter who Zachary Hale bartered with him over giving her to him as to erase his debts. HOLY FUCKING SHIT, KER-AZZY RIGHT? 

The explanation goes like so! Booker DeWitt lives in an infinite number of dimensions. Each dimension is created when a decision is made. For example, if I drink coffee in this universe, another universe splinters off where I drink water, or coke, or piss, yum yum. The baptism that Booker goes through forked off in two ways. Booker refused it and stayed as Booker, the war-hero, and another in which he became Zachary Hale Comstock, founded Columbia, and mastered inter-dimension travel (hence why he's old as Gahndi's nutsack). In the end, Booker realizes that in order to fully kill Comstock, he must die, and with an army of Elizabeth's, he is drowned under the water and one by one the Elizabeths from Comstock's universes are erased from existence. 

Or are they?

2. KoTor: Knights of the Old Republid: I AM YOUR FATH--YOU, I MEAN.

Knights of the Old Republic was a crowning achievement of Bioware. Sporting a control system similar to Mass Effect, it put you in control of one of the Old Republic's soldiers, an adept character who is tasked with stopping the evil agenda of Darth Malak, the apprentice to one of the most evil Sith lords in all of Star Wars continuity; Darth Revan. You spend a large portion of the game trying to fight you way through to Malak, learning about the characters, and your link to Bastila, a sexy jedi with a double lightsaber, a British accent, and a badonkadonk as round and hot as Tatooine itself.

Oh, I'mma use the Force alright, girl.

So you're working with a ragtag group of people to stop an Empire of evil. Bastila Shan was revealed to have killed Darth Revan in a large battle before the events of the game, however, this is the kicker:

YOU ARE DARTH REVAN

It turns out that Bastila only knocked him out and using the force, the Jedi council brainwashed Revan and wiped his memory and any trace of his actions as Darth Revan, thus returning him to his previous state of super-duper jedi hero. It was a twist that was delivered through hours upon hours of gameplay. But don't worry, it all ends well for our hero who saves the day and nothing bad ever happened to him again after that. He settled down and lived happily ever after and wasn't used to boost the sales of a dying MMO or anything.

The Old Republic what? 

3. SILENT HILL 2: 100% EGYPTIAN COTTON

Silent Hill has been a franchise which has slowly sort of began to rot like the skin-walkers that populate the foggy town, apart from the Norman Reedus reboot cause that looks flash as fuck. However, going back it's roots, Silent Hill 2 proved to be a formidable, atmosphere masterpiece from Team Silent. 

The story goes like this: You are James, a man who has lost his wife. After receiving a letter from her, telling you to meet her in Silent Hill, it becomes abundantly clear that that is where you're going. The game is like any other Silent Hill art, a worthy horrific endeavor choc-a-bloc with crazy characters and psychosis inducing horror.

Hahahahahaahahahaeeeeegugug OH GOD OH GOD OH FUCKING GOD.

The problem with Jame's wife is that she kicked the bucket a long while back thanks to the Big C. This meant two things; either it's a fake by some sick prankster, or it's the demonic spawn of Satan sitting in a rusted out warehouse, chopping up bodies and fucking leg-people waiting for you to show up. 

The smart money would go on prankster, but this isn't smart.

James spends the whole game jumping through demonic hoops, from fending off Toblerone-man, to going through a demonic hospital with faceless nurses. After shooting and killing his way through an army of the undead, he finally makes it to his wife. 

THE KICKER: Jame's wife has been dead all along and James murdered her out of some sick kind of euthanasia with a pillow.

Silent Hill has always been a game that looks in to its characters for their flaws, and the land has always been sort of a punishing, surreal world in which characters guilt mixes with the trans-dimensional horror, allowing the people to go in and out with some sort of dramatic change, except this time, that doesn't happen. The endings all come to a halting, depressive end in which your choices range from James driving his car into Toluca lake out of guilt, to saving the doppelganger of his wife, Maria, who ends up coughing like Mary did when she first started to get ill.

Isn't the world a happy place?

Those were the three biggest twist of gaming, for me at least. Watch this space for more articles. 

If you can make a movie out of a video game plot, you have done it wrong. Although games like Resident Evil, Beyond Two Souls, or  Dead Space have well written plots for the most part, they don't fully utilize the medium they are placed in. They could have done as well if they were a movie, although heavily edited to better suit it. It's because the plot is straight forward told to you. You don't need to explore much to find any missing parts of the plot. They are just as good of a game as the rest (except Beyond Two Souls), but the reason behind this linear storytelling is because they were written like a movie, this isn't a bad thing since it works for movies, but it fails to fully embrace the medium it's in.

An excellent example of video game storytelling is Bioshock by Irrational Games. You have the "driving plot" pushing you through the game, but what makes it really shine is it's "hidden plot." The game rewards you for going down every hallway. When you do you can find supplies and audio logs to listen to. The audio logs provide you with the hidden plot, something that movies could never hope to accomplish. In a movie you can't hide audio files lying around the scene, the idea is absurd, but in Bioshock the plot is intentionally hidden away from you. You have to search for it in order to know why there is a city at the bottom of the ocean, something the driving plot won't be bothered to tell you. Bioshock also has hidden plot found around the world in the form of posters, blocked off doorways, blood spatters leading to a last word audio log from beneath the skeleton. These environmental hints are just as important to unravel the lore of the world as the audio logs. By giving the player the freedom to view the world freely and at their own pace you can put so much more detail into everything to tell the better story that movies couldn't hope to enjoy.

Another excellent example is Dark Souls by FROM Software. The driving plot is almost non-existent, and everything is told through the hidden plot which takes the form as difficulty, environmental hints, and flavor text. If you lack the skill to get to the late game you won't be able to experience the hidden plot. By doing this every late piece you unlock is rewarding. Getting a weapon from the boss you just defeated and get to read the flavor text to figure out what he added was to the plot. Nothing is more satisfying.

The reason why the story in so many games fall flat is because storytelling in games is relatively new. It hasn't be around as long as movies to learn all of the quarks of the medium. Although we have learned a lot about it such as when telling a story you need to reinforce it through the game play. The story should never be at the expense of the mechanics, and it should be working together flawlessly with it. You need to have a solid driving plot with an interesting hidden plot that gives reason to the players agency. We have the ability to tell the story in a piece-wise way that no other art form can, but as time goes on we will learn more about how to tell a good story, and we will create plots that can rival any story made in existence. Because games are the ultimate art form.

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:

As always, if you are pressed for time, I will give you all of the juicy details and recap all of the news regarding the presentation to the best of my ability. So let's get started.

• The system will launch globally and simultaneously on March 3, 2017 with a price of 29,980 Yen in Japan, $299.99 in North America, and a varying price in Europe depending on the retailer.
• A new paid online service was revealed with a free trial period lasting until Autumn.
• Switch software WILL be region free.
• The system's battery life will vary by the game that's being played, but the general range is anywhere between 2.5 and 6 hours of continuous play. It will also come with a USB Type-C cable for recharging purposes.
• The screen is a capacitive touch screen.
• Up to 8 Switches can connect wirelessly to each other during local play.
• The Left Joy-Con was shown to have a "Capture" button which is used for taking screenshots (and eventually video footage) of the game you are currently playing.
• Two buttons on the interior of each Joy-Con were shown to be how the controllers lock into the console and also double as the L & R buttons for each player.
• Joy-Cons will also be available in other colors with the first 2 being neon blue and neon red.
• Each Joy-Con also has an IR camera at their bottom half which apparently is sensitive enough to detect the difference between rock, paper, and scissor hand gestures or varying distances from the screen.
• The brand new HD Rumble feature was shown off that somehow has the ability to mimic changes in shifting weight making for a more immersive experience.
• Two new games were shown off for showcasing the Joy-Con's features, one being 1-2-Switch which is a multiplayer party type game, and the other being Arms, a strange boxing game featuring characters with long spring-loaded boxing gloves. 1-2-Switch will launch along side the console and Arms will launch in spring.
• Splatoon 2 was announced which showed off many new features such as duel-wielding, dodging, and a bunch of new special weapons. It is planned to launch this summer.
• Super Mario Odyssey was revealed and showed Mario in a plethora of new areas all based around different parts of the world and showed of a new gameplay mechanic revolving around throwing his hat. It unfortunately won't be released until the holiday season.
• Two new games were then revealed after the reveal of Super Mario Odyssey. These games were Xenoblade Chronicles 2, and Fire Emblem Warriors.
• Dragon Quest X, Dragon Quest XI, and Dragon Quest Heros I & II were announced for the system, but currently only for Japan.
• A new Shin Megami Tensei game and a new Square Enix game tentatively called Project Octopath Traveler were shown off in addition to Skyrim Remastered.
• What possibly might be a brand new No More Heroes game was revealed to be in development by Suda51.
• A brand new Fifa game was revealed to be coming to Switch with a 2017 release window.
• The complete package for the Switch was shown which includes the console and Switch Dock, a Left and a Right Joy-Con (either both gray or one of each neon color) with matching wrist straps, the Joy-Con controller dock, an HDMI cable, and an AC Adapter. The Pro Controller will be sold separately.
• And finally, The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild was revealed to launch along side the Nintendo Switch on March 3, 2017 with both Special Edition and Master Edition bundles also available at $99.99USD and $129.99USD respectively.
• Now outside of the presentation many other games were shown off such as Mario Kart 8 Deluxe which has new items, new racers, and a PROPER battle mode in addition to the possibility of having all DLC pre-installed on the cartridge.
• Super Bomberman R and Puyo Puyo Tetris were shown off in addition to the reveal that Sonic Mania would also be coming to the Switch.

I tell ya, this was one helluva presentation. While they didn't show off what the system's specs were, I still can't wait for the system to launch. March 3rd can't come soon enough. And as for the games, I am truly excited for many of the new games that are coming out for it (especially for Zelda, Mario, and Splatoon 2), and the fact that the system is only $300 is just icing on the cake. Granted the lack of launch games for the system is a bit of a letdown, but I'm sure the Switch is bound to thrive after the unfortunate failure of the Wii U. Only time will tell if it will last long-term, but until then, I'll be seeing you.

One hazard to avoid is if the book is just a retelling of the game because more often than not the author didn't fully play or understand the game before writing. The best route for video game books are if they are a prequel, a midquel, or a sequel/epilogue to the events of the game.

BioShock and BioShock Infinite

BioShock is definitely a universe that can and should be expanded. The first book is BioShock: Rapture. BioShock: Rapture is a prequel to the first game that that takes place after World War II. The book focuses mainly on Andrew Ryan as he begins to create his underwater utopia of Rapture and Ryan's relationships with Sullivan, Frank Fontaine, and Atlas. A problem with the book though is that with some of the explanations of some of the events in BioShock Infinite and it's two expansions, Burial at Sea Episodes 1 and 2, this book may not be canonical.

The next book is BioShock Infinite: Mind in Revolt.Though I hesitate to call this one a book because it is only about 35 pages long that you can finish in a little under an hour. Mind in Revolt is still definitely worth the read though. If you are a fan of the game you will appreciate the further insight into Daisy Fitzroy and the city of Columbia itself. Columbia isn't the utopia it makes itself out to be and Daisy isn't the saint her people make her out to be.

The Last of Us: American Dreams

This one isn't a book in novel form like the rest of the books in this article, but rather in comic book form. American Dreams is a mini series that ran for 4 issues and is a prequel to The Last of Us. This mini series focuses on the start of Ellie and Riley's friendship that leads into the story DLC for The Last of Us: Left Behind. American Dreams takes roughly one year before the events of The Last of Us and follows Ellie when she is first introduced to Riley whist in her Military Boarding School.

The art style is quite appareling and isn't like how it is shown on the cover. American Dreams was co-written by Neil Druckmann so there's no question of whether or not it's canonical. The mini series was released periodically, but now can be purchased with all 4 issues in one big comic book. This is a must buy for any fans of The Last of Us.

Metro 2033 and Metro 2034

Metro 2034is still a sequel to 2033, but instead of focusing on Artyom the perspective is shifted to Hunter, Artyom's man crush from the first game and book. It shows most of the events of 2033 through Hunter's eyes and new events he himself has to battle through. Hunter's character arch is actually pretty interesting and playing a game of his story would be amazing. Hint hint 4A Games for (hopefully) the next Metro game.

Mass Effect

The Mass Effect books have actually been treated fairly nicely with the three I like the most being written by Drew Karpyshyn, but there are others written by another author named Marc Walters that I like as well. All the books act as prequels, midquels, and sequels. Most of the fan favorite characters make an appearance or brief cameo in at least one of the books adding to the complexity that Bioware already put into them in the games.

Though, just like with BioShock: Rapture, there's no confirmation that these books are canon. I can confirm to you right now that one isn't though. Mass Effect: Deception. Not only is this game factually incorrect to the game's lore it is also not a very well written book. It really is a stain on the Mass Effect legacy. At least one part of Mass Effect 3 was really bad. Just imagine an entire book like that AND the author couldn't even bother to get the lore right. That's Mass Effect: Deception. I had to go into paint and color over it. It doesn't deserve to sit with those other books. Avoid it at all costs.

Out of all the books I've talked about and going to talk about, the Mass Effect universe, needs to be expanded on. We know Bioware are working on Mass Effect 4 (or the next Mass Effect or whatever they are calling it) and these books can not only help explore and expand on already established lore, but also hold us over until the next Mass Effect game. There's so many secrets and mysteries hiding in this universe. Why not expanded on it?

I'm a pretty big Mass Effect fan and I can safely say that all the Mass Effect books that aren't Mass Effect: Deception are pretty good. If you are a fan of the games you should check these out. Even if you want to you can read these at a library. They aren't a tough read, but if I were to pull one negative from these books; it's that you will have to have played all the games to understand everything being said. But if you interesting in reading these you've probably already played through them all.

The Elder Scrolls

Right next to Mass Effect on a list of "Games That Need Their Universes' Explored More" would be The Elder Scrolls and we get two original books to help fit that fit that category. The Infernal Cityand Lord of Souls. The Infernal City takes place 40 years after the Oblivion crisis (The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion) and Tamriel is once again threatened by an evil force. This time by a floating city that casts a shadow and where ever the shadow is cast people die and rise again as a kind of zombie. With a premise like that you may or may not be turned off, but the book is actually pretty well written and feels like a good adventure worthy of The Elder Scrolls name.

Lord of Souls takes place directly after the events of The Infernal City. Though, I must admit that I haven't finished this one yet. I'm still recommending it though because so far it's even better than the first one and reviews for it say the same. If anything, check out the first book and if you enjoy it get the second one. They are both still better than The Elder Scrolls: Online.

Uncharted: The Fourth Labyrinth

Uncharted: The Fourth Labyrinth is a prequel to Uncharted: Drake's Fortune written by Christopher Golden. I'm a pretty big Naughty Dog fan starting from Jak and Daxter so I was both excited and skeptical when I heard about this book. Here we have your standard Uncharted globe trotting story following Nathan Drake and Sully as they look for a fabled treasure within a mythical Fourth Labyrinth, but with a murder mystery added to it.

This time time Nate and Sully are accompanied by the murder victim's daughter, Jada Hzujak. The "who dunit" aspect gives the standard Uncharted story a more fresh take. The author, Christopher Golden, was also able to emulate Nate's and Sully's personality's almost down to a T on paper. Nate's still the lovable jerk and Sully is still that really cool grandfather you've always wanted.

As good as the book is it still isn't as good as the main Uncharted games. The only game it's better than is Golden Abyss, but that wasn't developed by Naughty Dog. The book is missing a certain "je ne sais quoi" that you only get with Naughty Dog. But in the end I still recommend that you pick this one up if you are an Uncharted fan it's still pretty good.

So in the end: video game books are pretty good, but if you want the REAL experience I'd advise you to play the actual game. Trust me. I'm a doctor man with a PHD in Video Games. If you want to read more into the lore of video games then you can safely bet on these books.

Have a good day :).

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:

I'd like to start by stating that I have not personally played any of the games on this list. These are simply games that, for various reasons, have captured my attention. If you buy any of these games and they turn out to be terrible I take zero responsibility for your lost funds (but if you ask I'll apologize, I'm Canadian and super good at apologizing.)

1. Dwarf Fortress

Ok, I'm not going to lie, this game might be a little bit overly ambitious for this list. Dwarf Fortress is a deeply complex strategy game in which you control a dwarven outpost. There are no real objectives in this randomly generated world, and crazy and absurd events are likely to occur. This game was recommended to me by a good friend who is very much into this game, he has played numerous games and restarted countless times, but he assures me that it's worth it (for reasons other than Dwarves beating off enemies with severed limbs amongst other bizarre happenings).

-Screenshots from Dwarf Fortress.

One of the main reasons why I have not playedDwarf Fortressyet is that it seems to be very complex, and so much so that I am unsure of how much time I would need to dedicate to learning how to play. There's also the graphics; they are not exactly cutting edge, but I think with a little bit of imagination the narrative provided could easily make up for the lack of traditional visuals.

Dwarf Fortress is a game that I believe would be well suited to players who have enjoyed games like Rimworld. Both revolve around a randomly generated world in which the player is responsible for overseeing the activities, happiness, and lives of individuals in a colony, and as the friend who recommended this game once said to me "Rimworldis essentially just babby's first Dwarf Fortress."

From what I've been told the depth and unimaginably complex situations that are generated in this game are essentially never the same from one play through to the next and this is whereDwarf Fortressshines. Fair warning though, the learning curve steeps backwards before platueing.

2. Orcish Inn

This is a fairly new Steam Greenlit game and it's fairly simple. You are an orc. You run an inn. Your patrons want beer. You brew beer. Now you also have to grow barley and worry about whether or not your brew is too hoppy for your patrons, but aside from that it's seems like it will be an easy game to pick up.

I have watched a few youtubers play around with Orcish Innand initially it seems to be something betweenHarvest Moon and Terraria.

Currently Orcish Innis in alpha, but from what I've seen it's designed beautifully and there will hopefully be many new features to look forward to in the future. And hey, it's free, so you might as well give it a try!

3. Besiege

Once again, this game makes the list because I believe it would be simple to pick up, and deliver on the fun while not taking up a huge amount of time.

The singular goal of Besiegeis to build an ransacking vehicle/contraption/apparatus/thing that is capable of destroying a set target. The only real limitation is a modest height restriction, your imagination, and surprisingly good in game physics.

Like Orcish Innthis game is in early access alpha and is currently a little lacking in terms of the volume of content available, but if the alpha is an accurate indicator of what we can expect from the final product I think this game will be well worth themodest price tag of $7.79 CDN. There is really nothing more to be said about Besiege. If you like building, and you like destroying, you'll like Besiege...probably.

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 

Please come back next time when I cover more secrets and Easter eggs that I've found over the years. I don't think I can find them all by myself, but I can sure as hell try. But until then, I'll be seeing you.

Luigi isn't in any way perfect. He's a coward, he resents the brother he looks up to, and he is often the subject of ridicule. But I like Luigi all the more for it. Adversity builds character, and if The Year of Luigi is evidence enough, he may someday become even more popular than the brother he holds in such high regard. But until then, I'll be seeing you.

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

Super Mario Bros.

There is also a way to continue after a Game Over. At the Game Over screen, hold A and when the Title screen reappears, press Start. Do not release the A button during any of this or it won't work.

The Legend of Zelda

There is a way to start the game's Second Quest right off the bat. All you have to do is enter ZELDA as your file name. If done correctly you should see that Link is now holding the Magic Sword. Word to the wise, the Second Quest is not easy, so be prepared for the worst.

In The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past, there is a hidden chamber under the castle that contains a large sum of rupees, but you cannot access it by normal means. What you need to do is start at the Sanctuary and use the Pegasus Boots to get to the bush that covers the hole that you entered near the castle at the start of the game as quickly as humanly possible. If you were fast enough to get there, you will enter a cave by falling in from the ceiling. A stone tablet in the back of the room will tell you that the room belongs to Chris Houlihan and asks you to keep it a secret. I guess the cat's out of the bag!

Donkey Kong Country

Quite a few cheat codes were programmed into the game to give you a much easier time with completing the game or just for fun. Most of the codes are entered on the file select screen when "Erase Game" is highlighted. They are as follows:

• Down, A, R, B, Y, Down, A, Y (activates sound test, press Select to cycle though them)
• B, A, R, R, A, L (start the selected file with 50 lives)
• B, A, Down, B, Up, Down, Down, Y (allows you to hijack control in a 2-player co-op game)

A couple stages also have secret shortcuts that let you bypass most, if not the entirety of the level. In the first minecart stage, if you can manage to jump over the barrel cannon and land in the pit close to the cliff wall, you will be launched out of a hidden cannon and transported to the end of the stage. There is also a shortcut in Stop and Go Station. Just head left through the entrance to be warped to the end.

Well, that's it for now. If I find more tips or codes, I'll be sure to let you all know as soon as I can. But until then, I'll be seeing you.

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:

Reason 1: Value

Reason 2: Free Online Play

Once again, if you are on a budget, this is a great alternative to XBox Live and PlayStation Plus/Now as there are no online subscription fees. However, while there aren't many games on the Wii U that use online gameplay, the ones that do are very good and are (for the most part) stable with little lag or connection drops. (Keep in mind this still does happen regardless of which console you choose.)

Reason 3: Backwards Compatibility

Out of the three current gen consoles, the Wii U is the only one that can play the games of its predecessor without the need for modding. And because you can transfer your all of your Wii Shop Channel purchases and save files from the Wii to the Wii U, you could move all of your data onto the new Wii U and sell the Wii at GameStop/EBGames or on eBay for some quick cash to help cover the cost of the system.

Reason 4: Exclusive Games

When it comes to games, exclusivity is what usually sells a console, and out of the three, the Wii U has the widest and most fun selection of games you could ever ask for. Here are some examples:

• Super Mario 3D World
• Bayonetta 2 (Includes Bayonetta 1)
• The Wonderful 101
• Super Smash Bros for Wii U
• Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker
• Pikmin 3
• Nintendo Land
• Hyrule Warriors
• Mario Kart 8
• Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze

Reason 5: Amiibo

Reason 6: Off TV Play

Say you're the kind of person that lives in a house with other people (terrifying I know) and they want to watch a show or movie on the TV you're using, but you're playing games and don't want to give up the remote because you just got comfy. Well because of the Wii U's GamePad, most games for it have the ability to play the game with the TV on a different channel or even completely off. This even applies to the TV streaming apps on the system as well. No more fighting for the remote!

Reason 7: Miiverse

Most gaming forums are usually pretty boring and lackluster due to a lot of them being run by a small handful of people in their spare time, but since Miiverse is run by Nintendo itself, there is an air of family friendliness which is a nice alternative to the many other forums I have found to be uninviting. Also, if a game supports Miiverse, you can post screenshots of your achievements or if you're stuck, you can ask for advice in game specific communities. Plus every once and a while, Nintendo's employees will post updates on news, contests and various other activities which help to mix things up a bit.

Reason 8: Local Asymmetrical Gameplay

Reason 9: No More Friend Codes

Assuming you were like me and hated the Wii's constant use of friend codes in any game that had online, then you'll love the fact that Wii U has abandoned that feature entirely in favor of a Nintendo Network user ID. Plus it also gives you the ability to send friend requests instead of the stupid and tedious act of registering each other's friend codes and hope that it worked.

Reason 10: Unique Single Player Experience

Single player games that put emphasis on use of the GamePad are often the most entertaining to play as the second screen provided by the GamePad is frequently put to good use. Usually it provides easy access to a map or your inventory, but there are a few games that offer a more unique experience by using the GamePad in conjunction with the TV. It just feels innovative and fresh.

Hopefully these reasons will help sway you into buying a Wii U the next time you have some extra cash to burn. But until then, I'll be seeing you.

• 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)

I love golf games. I love Kirby games. But the question is, would a Kirby golf game be any good? I think the answer would surprise you. Originally released on the SNES in 1995, Kirby's Dream Course combines the ascetic of Nintendo's Kirby series with gameplay that combines the elements of golf and billiards. This fusion of styles may sound a bit strange, but it works astonishingly well.

Now when the Wii came out, I started to notice a trend in some of the games that Nintendo developed. More and more titles that Nintendo released for the console had 8-bit sprites of Mario and company hidden in the environment. An example would be in Wii Fit and Wii Fit Plus where both had Mario sprites hidden on the running trails. Alone, this would just seem like a simple Easter egg, but there is more to be found.

With the fact that now even ONE pixel character has been officially named within the games, I propose that one of two scenarios will happen in the future. Either A: Nintendo will retcon the old arcade and NES titles to being set in the Flat Zone and ignoring Mario's past life living in Brooklyn, New York with Pauline and his pet ape Donkey Kong; or B: Nintendo is planning a new game in which the denizens of Flat Zone invade and have taken on the forms of the first people they see being Mario, Luigi and the people of the Mushroom Kingdom. Personally, I think the former theory holds more merit, but until then, I'll be seeing you.

Reason 1: The Story

Reason 2: The Director

Many of you know that who directs the film can either make it or break it depending on how they interpret the source material. A good example would be Joss Whedon when he directed The Avengers, whereas a bad one would be M Night Shyamalan when he directed that godawful film, The Last Airbender. Now the director that has signed on for this film is Roy Lee of Vertigo Entertainment who has directed the fantastically scary films The Ring and The Grudge which both follow under the same kind of psychological horror that Five Nights pulls of quite well. If anyone can make a good film based on that game, it'll be him.

Reason 3: The Original Creator's Involvement

"The story really lends itself to being a movie and it taps into a largely unexplored niche of horror that a lot of people will be able to relate to."

I am also excluding games that are already getting movies so I apologize to games like The Last of Us, Uncharted, Half-life, and Portal. The games on here aren't obscure by the eyes of us gamers, but not many of them have been considered for a film adaptation. So you may not see the games you wanted on here.

Hotline Miami

Clearly the developers, Dennaton Games,were at least some what inspired by Drive (2011) starring Ryan Gosling. This bloody, pulse pounding game could transition fairly well to the big screen. I believe it would be important for the actor to play Jacket to not speak, but rather show his emotions through his actions. It would keep the air of mystery around him like in the game.

The soundtrack is one of the best you'll ever hear in gaming and would work for a film adaptation. The story is very well written and is a damn good one at that. It would be preferable that the combat/fighting scenes are as smoothly choreographed as the fight scenes in The Raid and as stylish as the fight scene in the nightclub in John Wick.

Do you like hurting other people?

The Cat Lady

It's no secret that I love this game, but The Cat Lady would still work as a emotional psychological thriller movie. The point and click gameplay that helped make the game unique doesn't necessarily need to be in The Cat Lady to keep the intriguing story and spooky atmosphere. It would basically be the proper Silent Hill movie since Hollywood screwed that up twice.

The actress that would play Susan can not be attractive, or at least can't be extremely attractive like most actresses since Susan is depicted as being unattractive. The overall mood and atmosphere would also have to be perfectly recreated down to a T. Let the scenery do the talking rather than the actors. Though Susan would have to talk, unlike Jacket from Hotline Miami.

Nekopara

Now hear me out.....this explanation could go a few ways so let me explain. I am not a weeaboo. Hell, the only anime series I've ever seen was Pokemon when I was a kid, but the Nekopara Vol. 1 visual novel was very well made. I can definitely see it as either a movie or an anime series. The hentai and other stuff aside, the story was pretty convincing and you do end up caring for Chocola and Vanilla.

Who would play Chocola and Vanilla would be anyone's guess. The humor and drama were well handled..and yes the sex scenes were too, but those probably wouldn't be in a movie or anime series. Maybe a hentai series which would be...interesting. Anyways, Nekopara still has a good convincing that you should definitely check out.....but for the "full" experience you need to buy the 18+ version off of the developer's website. Just a suggestion.

Alan Wake

If you haven't played Alan Wake then shame on you. Just kidding. Alan Wake is a game set up like a T.V. series. Even to the point of having a "Previous on Alan Wake.." narration between chapters. If you've played the game then you know that it has an absolutely amazing story. Obviously taking inspiration from Stephen King. Alan Wake even references him as an inspiration.

It would be fairly easy to adapt Alan Wake into a movie. The model of Alan Wake is based off Ilkka Villi and voiced by Mathew Porretta, whereas Alice Wake's model is based off of Jonna Järvenpää. Having Ilkka play Alan Wake in a movie would be the preferable option andJonna Järvenpää as Alice Wake. The dark and spooky atmosphere of the game would make this film a great psychological thriller. Check out this awesome music video from Poets of the Fall to get a taste of an Alan Wake movie.

Max Payne

Okay, okay. I know that this one shouldn't count, but holy hell, the actually Max Payne movie was so awful. Like really?? Mark Wahlberg as Max Payne?? Nothing against the guy as an actor, but as Max Payne? That was a horrible idea. Max Payne's story is so tragic, but the way he goes on a war path, in the games, for revenge is stylish and awesome. This shouldn't have been a screw up of a movie, but it was. So why not a reboot?

Remedy, the developers of Max Payne 1 and 2, did the same thing with Max's character model as they did with Alan Wake's; they based it on a real actor. He even voices Max in the game. James McCaffrey is the definitive Max Payne and should have played him in the movie. So in a reboot, James,should play Max. With Courtney Cox as Mona Sax since they look alike. The dark noir tone of the Max Payne games would work beautifully on the big screen.

Obviously, I wasn't able to put every game that would work well as a movie on here. Which is why I'd like you to comment on this with your suggestion of a game that would be a cool movie. Hopefully, I can make an updated list with all the suggestions. Until then have a good day :)

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

The troops are your main means of getting a large bronze bell from your side of the field toward the back gate so you can proceed to the next stage. Once again, by itself, this sounds fairly easy enough, but you also have that big freaking cannonball to worry about, and it CAN kill your soldiers if you aren't paying attention. However, if you can find it, there is a power-up that can help with this. If your odama is glowing green, not only will it not flatten your army, but it will also turn any enemy soldier that you crush over to your side. This is often necessary as adding more troops to the field will raise your army's morale making them more likely to follow the orders you will eventually and inevitably scream into the microphone.

If it wasn't already hard enough that these two gameplay elements were clashing head to head with each other, there is one last one that pushes the difficulty over the threshold from being reasonably fun and challenging to being a hair pulling nightmare. Each and every level in the game has a VERY strict time limit that results in an INSTANT loss regardless of how many odamas you have left. This time limit bullcrap is the reason why I was unable to legitimately get past the eighth board, otherwise known as The Spider Temple.

While this game is extraordinarily hard, I don't at all hate it. Its challenge is excruciating, yes, but it more than makes up for its short length. It reminds me of those old NES games that were short but had enough challenge to make it worth it. All in all, I suggest you try this game out if you're looking for a legitimately challenging game that is guaranteed to make you rage. But until then, I'll be seeing you.

Score:

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.

The Pip-Boy app allows you to sort your inventory from anywhere, both in and out of the game. The release date for the app was not revealed.

Todd Howard said that he was not a fan of collector's editions, but referred to the Fallout 4 Pip-Boy Edition as the "best fucking one I've ever seen."

The price for the Pip-Boy Edition is set at $119.99. You can watch the Bethesda E3 Conference stream with commentary from halomike, Jolgier, and myself here:http://www.twitch.tv/halomike/b/669190029

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

But as always, if you're pressed for time, I'm here to condense all of that information into bite-sized chunks for easy digestion. Here's what they showed off.

• They started with 3DS games first and showed off Hey! Pikmin which will launch on July 28 along with a band new Pikmin amiibo.
• More light was shown on Ever Oasis. It will launch June 23.
• Monster Hunter Stories was confirmed to be coming stateside this autumn.
• A definitive version of Yo-Kai Watch 2 was announced with the subtitle Psychic Specters. It will also launch this autumn.
• Culdcept Revolt was announced for the series 20th anniversary. It will be released August 29.
• RPG Maker Fes was shown off and will be released June 27.
• Miitopia, an unusual Mii-based RPG, was shown to be getting a localization this year.
• Fire Emblem Echoes was revealed to be getting DLC with some of it being free and some of it being paid. A season pass was also shown as an option.
• Kirby was shown to be getting a lot of love this year to celebrate the series 25 anniversary with the games Team Kirby Clash Deluxe (out now), Kirby's Blowout Blast (summer), and a currently unnamed multiplayer action game (holiday season).
• The final installment of the Boxboy series called Bye-Bye Boxboy! and is out now.
• 3 new 30th anniversary Zelda series amiibo (Majora's Mask Link, Twilight Princess Link, Skyward Sword Link) were revealed for a June 23 release.
• The Smash Bros amiibo series finally revealed amiibo for Cloud, Corrin, and Bayonetta and each character will have a retailer exclusive variant. They will launch July 21.
• A ton of info was revealed for Nintendo's new IP ARMS for the Switch. Character customization is a big feature of the game's main combat mode. A new character, Min Min, was revealed who's left arm is a powerful dragon. Character specific abilities were shown like Spring Man's ability to stay permacharged when his health drops below 25%. ARMS will launch June 16.
• A new Joy-Con color was revealed to launch alongside ARMS; Neon Yellow. Joy-Con battery extenders were also revealed.
• Nintendo showed off some of the online features for Mario Kart 8 Deluxe which will launch April 28.
• Ultra Street Fighter II was shown off and will have both classic and HD graphics and two new characters: Evil Ryu and Violent Ken; along with a brand new game mode where you throw Hadokens with the Joy-Cons. It will launch May 26.
• Minecraft will becoming to the Nintendo Switch on May 11 and will include the Mario Mashup texture pack.
• More Neo Geo arcade classics are on the way to the Switch's eShop with Samurai Showdown IV being release on April 13.
• Sonic Forces showed off some of Classic Sonic's gameplay and teased a potential third character to play as. The game will launch this holiday season.
• In addition, Sonic Mania will launch this summer.
• A new competitive action party game tentatively called Project Mekuru was revealed where you stomp on tiles to claim them for your color. This eShop exclusive will launch this summer.
• Fate/Extella: The Umbral Star was shown off a bit and will launch on July 25.
• The definitive version of Disgaea 5 will launch on the Switch May 23.
• Puyo Puyo Tetris's release date inches closer and to prepare fans for the release in the coming weeks released a demo of the game on the eShop.
• The famous board game Monopoly was shown to be coming to the Switch this fall.
• A definitive edition version of Rayman Legends was announced for the Switch and will launch later this year.
• A shooter game called Sine Mora EX, which is being developed by Grasshopper Manufacture, was shown off and will be released this summer.
• A Battlechasers game based on the comics of the same name was announced for the Switch and will launch later summer.
• PayDay 2 is being ported to the Switch later this year.
• Namco Museum will be coming to the Switch's eShop this summer.
• You will be able to purchase additional Nintendo Switch docks starting on May 19.
• A Nintendo sponsored tournament for Splatoon was announced for the original Splatoon on the Wii U for a limited time.
• New Splatoon 2 info was revealed such as a new game mode called Salmon Run, a co-op survival mode where you and a team of three other individuals go to a run down island and fight a hoard of hostile salmon-like monsters to collect power-eggs en mass. Three new Splatoon amiibo were also announced which can be used to save outfit data and can be summoned in Inkopolis Square to have a companion for your character. Both the game and the amiibo will launch on July 21.

Well that's it for today. Needless to say, my wallet is going to be bled dry this year. I'm particularly excited for the new Smash Bros series amiibo. Getting cheap Bayonetta figurines have not been easy for me. So until then, I'll be seeing you.

What is really unique about this game is that it is played with a special controller called the DK Bongos. Each respective drum moves DK left or right, rapidly drumming will make DK run and both drums at the same time make DK jump. Clapping your hands (or ANY loud click, snap or tapping noise) will make DK clap. This is how you engage in combat with larger and stronger enemies, grapple onto vines, and how you grab bananas. This control scheme works extremely well for how the game is laid out, especially when considering that the game was likely made with the DK Bongos in mind. The control scheme that would have been required for a normal controller would have been very unintuitive and extremely difficult to use.

All in all, this game is probably one of the most fun and unique platforming games I've ever played. It has great visuals which rival even some current gen consoles, the music is fantastic and gets even better when you start to rack up a high combo, and the gameplay is well suited for the controller that was made before it. Definitely worth your time and money, assuming you can find a working pair of bongos. But until then, I'll be seeing you.

Score:

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?

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

Graphics

Now the DS version released in late 2007 was much different as it has fully polygonal characters, enemies, and environments which made everything feel much more alive and vibrant. Plus it allowed for much more detailed character animation which was shown quite prominently from the game's many dancers scattered around the world's many towns and kingdoms (I'm quite partial to the City of Troia myself). Overall, the DS version a much better visual treat than the SNES version.

Music

If Final Fantasy's spinoff series Theatrhythm has shown anything, then the music is just as iconic as everything else in the game. The music in the SNES version is especially good, ranging from atmospheric, to intense, to melancholy and even climactic. It certainly does its job considering the hardware limitations imposed by the console's specifications.

The DS version however is honestly not much different. Aside from having some slightly better audio files for the game's midi tracks, the music is virtually identical. There are a couple of songs in the game where the music is noticeably higher quality than its SNES counterpart (Most noticeably Fabul Castle) which is I guess a pretty nice bonus if you happen to remember what the orginal sounded like. All in all, I'd say the DS version wins this category, but not by much.

Translation

Now because the DS had a much more memory, a more accurate and faithful translation of the original story could be used in the game allowing for a much better understanding of the plot which was also accompanied by cut-scenes with stellar voice acting. In addition to this, more of the story that had been left on the cutting room floor during the SNES version's development period was able to be re-added allowing for even more back story to be told on the game's antagonist, Golbez. Gonna have to give the scoring point to the DS version here.

Gameplay

Now if you want a REAL challenge, the DS version is where it's at. The enemies are much more threatening and items and characters can actually be customized further to better suit your needs. The boss battles are also require much more thought involved as well as many of them either counter half of what you throw at them, or they they are immune to everything else. Also, exclusive to the DS version are special side missions with Namingway, and a special little Eidolon that you can also customize and have fight in place of your summoner, Rydia. This Eidolon can be trained to become stronger through minigames that are played with the touch screen and can also be used in a special one-on-one battle mode with another player a la Pokemon. The DS version is definitely the way to go here.

Overall

The DS version is hands down the winner of this contest. It just has so much more to offer than the original and it really shows. While the SNES version has a special place in my heart, it just can't hold a candle to this exceptionally well made remake. Plus, since it is a DS game, it can be played on 3DS systems without any problem. Don't have a 3DS either? Well there is also a PC version available that is basically the same version as the DS one, minus the special Eidolon and the associated minigames. Not really a big loss, but I like to have my games with as much content as possible. Maybe you do too, who knows? But until then, I'll see you next time.

SNES Score:

DS Score:

In February of 2014, Sega announced Sonic Boom: Rise of\r Lyric, which was to be the first game in a sub-franchise of the ever-popular\r blue blur, tying in with a toy line and a new cartoon. The game was to be made\r with the Crysis Engine, boast beautiful visuals, and provide a gameplay\r experience not unlike classic sixth console generation platformers. The game\r was developed by Big Red Button, which was comprised of experienced developers\r who worked on Uncharted, Jak and Daxter, and other beloved series.

Well, that could have gone better. The game was released with poor sales, critical panning, and scalding reception from fans.

This rough reception sounds awfully familiar, doesn't it?\r Let’s rewind about eight years, to when the Xbox 360 and Playstation 3 had just\r hit the market, and Sega was developing a Sonic game that would take full\r advantage of these new consoles. Sonic the Hedgehog (often referred to as Sonic\r Next-Gen or Sonic 2006) was marketed with an epic story, a day to night system,\r and a massive world to explore.

Whoops.

If the Sonic franchise is a classroom, then Sonic 2006 is\r the butt of all jokes, the student with minimal talent, a grating voice, and many\r bugs. People still mock that student to this day, even though he has long since\r left the classroom. At the very least, he was musically adept.

In a franchise as saturated as Sonic’s, with many different\r games spanning a variety of genres, Sonic 2006 has been the laughing stock of\r the franchise, with fans and detractors of the series alike never forgetting\r its massive faults, regardless of the quality, good or bad, of any game to come\r out since then. To a critic, this can seem like an unusual perception. To a fan\r who was disappointed with Sonic 2006, it’s as though the game’s poor quality is\r a residue that has splattered onto every Sonic game to come out since then. It\r is justified to find this unusual. In the mind of this critic, the quality of\r one product does not represent the quality of a franchise as a whole.

The Sonic franchise does not have the luxury of being seen\r this way, as it has far more games than most franchises, and has been a beloved\r part of many gamers’ lives. As such, it can be difficult to look at the series\r objectively. One’s emotions can easily get in the way. This way of viewing the\r series has lead fans to blind themselves from enjoying other games in the\r franchise.

Sonic 2006 and Sonic Boom: Rise of Lyric’s similarities are\r clear. They’re critically panned, hated by the fanbase, and are both made fun\r on a memetic level. So what are the differences in their failures? What\r separates Rise of Lyric from Sonic 2006 comes down to their development periods.

Rise of Lyric was developed by a third party\r company, Big Red Button, whereas Sonic 2006 was made by Sonic Team, Sega’s go-to developer for Sonic games. The rumors as to what went wrong during Big Red Button’s development\r of Rise of Lyric have been piling up since the game’s release. Supposedly, most\r of Big Red Button’s staff was fired during development, causing the game to\r suffer. The game was riddled with even worse glitches than Sonic 2006, including a means for finishing the\r game within a half-hour. Further, the Crysis Engine did not work well with the\r Wii U’s hardware, resulting in a significant difference between the game’s\r promotional trailers and the final product (Mind that the HD version of Sonic\r Unleashed, a game with Pixar level visuals, was released on consoles less powerful\r than the Wii U).

The nail on the coffin was that the game did not fulfill any\r of the promises that were made before its release. The proposed character\r development that Sonic was going to go through did not happen, several plot\r threads are alluded to and dropped, returning and new characters alike serve\r little to no purpose, and in the end, little is accomplished to justify this\r new Sonic universe’s existence. Not a good sign for Sega, let alone Big Red\r Button, who might have Rise of Lyric as their only game.

Sonic 2006’s poor release can be attributed to Sega wanting\r to rush the game out to store shelves in time for Christmas, therefore leading\r many game elements to be left on the cutting room floor. Quality control was\r almost nonexistent. The game’s disc didn’t even have hacker protection. It\r wasn’t the first game to suffer from a rushed release. Suffice to say, it won’t\r be the last.

Whether not Sonic Boom: Rise of Lyric has the same negative\r impact on the series as Sonic 2006 has yet to be seen. But it shouldn't.

Sonic 2006 represented a problem with Sega’s treatment of\r their flagship franchise, and they would later go on to rectify these problems\r with later games. While opinions vary on games like Sonic and the Secret Rings,\r Sonic and the Black Knight, Sonic Unleashed, and Sonic Lost World, they were\r much more well-received than Sonic 2006. Sonic Colors and Sonic Generations are\r especially praised for appealing to Sonic fans both old and new, as well as being\r quality games in general. Rise of Lyric’s failure does not represent anything.\r It is a bad game developed by a third party company, and that is the extent of\r it.

It seems that the mood of the Sonic fanbase, as well as\r outsider opinion of the series, depends on the objective quality of Sonic's\r most recently released game. Sonic Boom: Rise of Lyric has left the fans\r disappointed, turning them somewhat bitter, and there is no doubt the game will\r be used as ammo against Sonic Team's next product. The fanbase should find\r solace in the positively received Sonic Boom cartoon series (Saturdays on Cartoon Network), and Sonic's more beloved recent games. 

If any lesson should be taken from this, it's\r that even a poor product can lead to a positive outcome. Sonic Boom: Rise of\r Lyric, like Sonic 2006 before it, may stand as a memetic failure in a franchise\r with many ups and downs, but it should be nothing more than that. Only time\r will tell if the fanbase will allow it.

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

The first DLC pack came out in November, and it was a welcome treat, as well as a good reason to hit the track once again. Now the second DLC pack is fast approaching, releasing on April 23. Just today, Nintendo of Japan released trailers that show off every track in this upcoming pack. Have a look below. Note that this is not the exact order in which these tracks are listed in-game, and some of the new tracks are not named as of yet.

Returning Tracks

Ribbon Road (Mario Kart: Super Circuit)

"Andy's coming! Finish up the race!" This was one of the more memorable tracks from the otherwise forgettable Mario Kart: Super Circuit on the GameBoy Advance. All it really had to its name was its aesthetic, and Nintendo played that aesthetic up to 11, with some extra features that couldn't have been done in the original.

Baby Park (Mario Kart: Double Dash!!)

If your friendship survived up to this point after a long session of Mario Kart, then Baby Park is the final gauntlet that tests how much you can take before you tear the plug out of the wall socket. This track is 7 short laps of pure mayhem, blood, sweat and tears. But have fun, y'know?

Neo Boswer City (Mario Kart 7)

It's time to have a race IN THE FUTURE! Take those tight future turns, throw your future items, jump off those future ramps, pull off some future tricks, and win future first place! IN THE FUTURE!

Cheese Land (Mario Kart: Super Circuit)

You'd gouda be kidding me. I feta brieng some extra green shells, in queso emergency. There's no whey I'm not playing this edam track on day one, because it's looking grate!

New Tracks

Animal Crossing

"I gotta win this race. I put down 10,000 bells on myself. If I don't win, I won't be able to pay Tom Nook and he's gonna have the Nooklings adorably break my legs!" In all seriousness, though, this track actually has four variations, one for each season. However, there is not a dynamic clock system, which would be impractical anyway. Who would want to wait a year just to see the winter version of this track?

Subway

Where the hell is my five dollar footlong? Oh, right. This track seems to have an aesthetic based on the London Underground. Expect a lot of tight corners, small corridors, and hectic item battles in this cramped course.

Woods

Wood you kindly not burn the forest down while you have your race? Kay thanks. This track seems to have a Shy Guy theme, which would coincide nicely with previous tribal iterations of the character from games like Paper Mario or Yoshi's Island. It's very vertical, with a lot of high-flying jumps involved. In truth, it reminds me of the wooded tracks from the original Sonic Riders. Am I the only one? ...Yeah? I... I liked that game... Oooh, speaking of futuristic racing games!

Big Blue!

Jiminy Cricket, Nintendo! The only way you could show more love for F-Zero would be for you to actually make a new F-Zero game! This appears to be one more addition to the game's few linear tracks, consisting of three segments rather than three laps. Like Mute City before it, this track takes full advantage of the gravity mechanic, providing some of the sickest jumps and viewpoints in Mario Kart history. I think Nintendo is just laughing at us at this point. Or perhaps they're getting us hyped up for something special in coming times. We'll just have to wait and see. Anyway, see you all on the race track in a week!

Guitar Hero was put on an indefinite hiatus back in 2009 when sales weren't meeting expected goals. Guitar Hero was also beginning to leave the eyes of gamers until February 2015 when rumors of a new Rock Band and Guitar Hero game surfaced. As of today, April 14th 2015, Activision has officially announced the reboot of the Guitar Hero series.

Many aspects of the familiar Guitar Hero formula have been changed for better or for worse depending on your opinion. Most notably are the changes to the guitar controller and the game's visuals. 

The crowd is live action as well and their reaction is determined by your guitar playing abilities. If you're good, then they will rock out. If you aren't, then they will make that known and begin to boo. 

Your band mates will also let you know if you need to start preforming better by doing things like glaring at you for hitting the wrong notes.

Now the controller has six buttons on the fret board. Three on top and Three on the bottom. The three on the top are all black and the three on the button are all white. 

The new fret board is actual a much better representation of an actual guitar than the previous Guitar Hero controllers. It seems the new developers are going for a more authentic and personal experience in the music world through Guitar Hero Live.

Guitar Hero Live will be coming to PS4, Xbox One, Wii U, PS3, and Xbox 360 Fall 2015. 

Now since we are still in this current generation of games, only time will tell if gamers will eventually reconcile their differences and focus more on what the future of video games has to hold. With the Oculus Rift, mobile games, and indie games being funded by Kickstarter, we can only hope that the future will shine. And come rain or shine, sites like novoGamer.com will provide info on games old and new. But until then, I'll be seeing you.

Rejoice Fallout fans! Because Fallout 4 may have been indirectly confirmed through a few sources. But, as always, this should only be seen as a rumor or speculation unless otherwise confirmed by the developer (here; Bethesda Game Studios). So let's start from the beginning:

A freelance 3D artist (who's name will not be revealed because he's probably already in huge trouble) who's previously worked with Mirada Studios, Blur Studios, and Microsoft Games posted his job experience and for what game and studio [As seen on the right]. His experience includes cinematic work on The Avengers, The Elder Scrolls, Forza Motorsport 5, Far Cry 4, and something rather odd... He claims experience on a "Fallout 4 cinematic trailer" which he claims he worked on for 4 months.

Did he actually work on said Fallout 4 cinematic trailer? Let's dig a bit deeper. Soon after people began discovering this bit of information, the Fallout community started getting very excited. Then an unconfirmed party forced the freelance 3D artist to remove the Fallout 4 cinematic trailer from the public view of his experience.

Now the last piece of evidence comes from game journalist site, Destructoid, where they were one of the first to run this story. Mirada Studios (supposed studio behind the Fallout 4 cinematic trailer) reached out to Destructoid and demanded they pull the story due to a break in a non-disclosure agreement. [As seen below].

What are your thoughts on all of this? Is Fallout 4 confirmed? Or is this nothing more than a simple mix up and it isn't confirmed?

• 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:

(Please keep in mind that my opinions may or may not reflect your own, this list is entirely biased. It should also be noted that many of these entries spoil story elements from the games they are from. You have been warned.)
\r

The Ride Armor from the Mega Man X Series\r

Let's start with something simple first shall we? The Ride Armor is a series of small multi-purpose mechs that are are deployed to areas of interest to help the Reploids and/or Mavericks in their war against each other. While there are many different varieties that are designed for specific battle scenarios, my personal favorite from these games is Vile Mk. II's Goliath Armor from Mega Man X3. It is heavily armored, fast, and is equipped with spiked fists and a chest mounted buster cannon. It's only real flaw is that it can only be ridden by Vile, which I personally find to be a bit unfair, but I guess it's alright since X gets four of his own to ride in that game.

The Platinum Robo from The Wonderful 101

The greatest weapon devised by Mother Platinum in order to repel the invading alien force known as GEATHJERK; the Platinum Robo is a massive mech aligned with the CENTINELS and created to aid the Wonderful Ones. It is roughly one hundred meters high, has the combined abilities of all of the Wonderful Ones, and it can also utilize the weaponry of both the CENTINELS' Virgin Victory and the enemy Cough-Foon ships. It is also theorized that it may be the reincarnated spirit of its creator (and Luka's mother), Professor Margarita Redgrave, but that has yet to be proven.

The Drill Dozer from Drill Dozer

I bet you're thinking "How can this tiny thing possibly be considered a mech?" Well, it has legs, and that's one of the primary prerequisites for it to be classified as one. The Drill Dozer is a compact, one-ton mech that can drill through hard earth and stone like it's nobody's business. It can also use its drill like a screwdriver and use it to turn screws, bolts and gears to help its pilot Jill get to her intended goal, which is usually a treasure or jewel of great value. Not a bad vehicle to get the job done if you ask me.

The Tinker Tank from Shovel Knight

This mech in particular is probably MUCH more advanced than the technology of its time would allow, but it's freaking awesome so I'll allow it. The Tinker Tank is a massive wood and iron medieval themed mech made by the rather diminutive Tinker Knight in order to compensate for his stature and overall poor strength against Shovel Knight. It is equipped with a colossal drill lance, rocket launchers and a massive cannon that can fire both missiles and bouncing grenades. Plus if that isn't cool enough, at the end of the game it is revealed that Tinker Knight started to make little toy versions of that mech for the village kids to play with. Please make these real Yacht Club Games!

The Magitek Armor from Final Fantasy VI

This magic-powered piece of machinery is the primary mode of transportation of Emperor Gestahl's army, and Terra for the first area of the game. It is surprisingly durable considering that its coloring suggests that it is made out of bronze or copper, and it is equipped with many pieces of magic-based weaponry like beams of lightning, ice and fire, and more advanced tech like missile launchers and a fogger that sprays dangerous microorganisms. This excursion is short-lived though as they are can only be piloted in two small segments in the game, but I hear that they made a comeback in the new expansion for Final Fantasy XIV. That makes me a very happy camper indeed.

The Anthropomorphized Battle Engine from Codename S.T.E.A.M.

This is a bizarre entry for sure, but it is very cool nonetheless. The Anthropomorphized Battle Engine (AKA The A.B.E.) is a giant steam-powered combat mech built for the sole purpose of fighting off the invading alien menace known as the Shoggoth, but if that isn't weird enough, its appearance is modeled after President Abraham Lincoln and it's piloted by him as well. When engaged in combat, it has the ability to use its internal steam to propel its fists forward at rocket speed, or to power the mech's wrist-mounted Gatling gun. This is probably the most absurd entry on this list, but I can't help but smile when I play as it in the game.

The Glastonbury from No More Heroes 2: Desperate Struggle

Commissioned by Travis Touchdown and built by Dr. Naomi, the Glastonbury is a gigantic mech modeled after the mech from Travis's favorite anime series, Pure White Lover Bizarre Jelly. In classic anime fashion, this mech is armed with a giant energy katana (in the shape of a guitar no less), laser cannons, and a devastating attack called "Anarchy in the Galaxy" which completely vaporizes everything in the surrounding area. However, Travis doesn't get to use it for very long as it confiscated shortly after the battle ends because it is described as a "public nuisance." Imagine how much money was lost on the construction of that thing only for it to be impounded ten minutes after its first test run.

The Umbran Armor from Bayonetta 2

Built over five-hundred years ago by the Umbran Witches to help them in the great war against the Lumen Sages; the Umbran Armor is a large and powerful magic-fueled suit of armor that greatly improves the abilities of its pilot. While it is similar in design to Final Fantasy VI's Magitek Armor, its abilities are vastly different. Instead of magic-based attacks and abilities, the Umbran Armor's weapons are much more technology-based with machine gun mounted arms, shotgun mounted legs, and a powerful jet propulsion system allowing it to skate along the ground or even take flight. Even though the chapter you play it on is short lived, you can get a trinket afterwards to allow you to use it as a modification to Bayonetta's Umbran Climax ability. This is very cool and helpful power-up to be had.

The Great Sacred Treasure from Kid Icarus: Uprising

Built by Dyntos, the great God of the Forge, and given to Pit after he completes his "three" trials to see if he is worthy enough to us it, the Great Sacred Treasure is a fantastically powerful mech made from the most durable and magical metal known to man: Orichalcum. This mech is capable of changing into several different forms to better fit the situation at hand and is equipped with a gatling turret, arrows of light, ring lasers, an energy sword, and a massive divine cannon that can devastate even the vindictive god Hades. It doesn't last very long though as it is only used in the final chapter and is slowly destroyed by Hades as you fight him. It's too bad though, Pit had so much fun using it before the fight.

The Mechonis from Xenoblade Chronicles

This is by far the most massive of any mech I have ever seen. One would initially assume that the Mechonis, the colossal titan that killed (and was killed by) the Bionis would just be a simple relic of times long past, but about half way through the game you find your way from the Bionis to the behemoth corpse on the other side only to find an entire country within its body and a control deck inside its head. It started to move again after Egil in the Yaldabaoth took control of it in the absence of its goddess Meyneth and nearly destroyed all life on Bionis in the process. He would have succeeded too if Shulk and his friends hadn't intervened.

Well, that's my list folks, if you disagree with my choices, tell me why in the comments and what you would have chosen instead. Until then, I'll be seeing you.

How The Know obtained this information was not revealed. All they stated was that it came form an "anonymous source".  From Software also has yet to comment on this supposed leak.

Until official confirmation from From Software themselves, this information should be taken with a grain of salt (though it seems very likely).

 The alleged release window for Dark Souls III is 2016 on PlayStation 4 and Xbox One. A PC port has been stated as being "negotiable".  According to the leak, the player count will be 1 - 4. Though whether or not this player count is for co-op or PVP has yet to be revealed.

It is also said that there will be 10 playable classes, all of which will be available from the start. There will also be 45 new enemies and 15 new bosses. The Know go on further to state that characters and enemies from the previous games are not counted in those numbers. The same goes for weapons and armor. 

Bosses in the game will also "Heat Up" due to "undescribed factors". This will more than likely make the boss even harder to beat.

To join another player's game you will have to drag a body around and perform a "sacrificial ceremony", but this will mark you and make you a target for other players in that game. These "sacrificial ceremonies" can also create a new bonfire to rest at or have other players join your game. 

Dark Souls III is also said to feature around 12 areas, The Know state that this is to make it more akin to the original Dark Souls. The game will also feature "Sword Fighting Arts".  Not much is said on this feature, but it sounds to be special fighting moves your character will be able to do after you choose them. Two other features will be "Rush in" and "Circle". Rush in will allow the player to dive into a fight and take damage, but deal a tremendous blow to the enemy. Circle sounds to be a dodge move, but it also said to be a retreating move to get away from a fight. 

The final piece of information from this anonymous source is that Dark Souls III will debut at E3 2015. So keep your eyes peeled.

Have a lovely day :).

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.

(Please keep in mind that my opinions may or may not reflect your own, this list is entirely biased)

Alex Kidd in Shinobi World

Mario Sports Mix

Injustice: Gods Among Us

Mortal Kombat Series

Poker Night at the Inventory

Wario Blast

Pokemon Conquest

Battletoads & Double Dragon

Disney Infinity

Project X Zone

Samurai Warriors 3 (Wii)

Mario Kart Arcade GP Series

Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate

Fortune Street

Street Fighter X Mega Man

Dissidia: Final Fantasy

Kingdom Hearts

Capcom's "VS" Series

Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games

PlayStation All-Stars battle Royale

Soul Calibur Series

Kratos from God of War

Professor Layton VS Phoenix Wright

Sega Superstars Series

Super Smash Bros. Series

Well, that's my list folks. It has been a long road to get this far and I really appreciate you reading the entirety of this article up to this point. Thank you for your continued support, and until next time, I'll be seeing you.

After YEARS of waiting, Fallout 4 has finally been officially announced and WILL BE shown at E3 2015. Get hyped Fallout fans!

Original article is as follows:

With E3 2015 just around the corner, novoGamer has compiled this list of confirmed games that will make an appearance. This year's E3 looks to be one of the best in some time. Hopefully it will live up to our expectations and we can have a year of fantastic games. 

Confirmed Games:

Rumored and Unconfirmed Games:

Have a lovely day :)

After all this time... could it finally be happening?

THE ANSWER IS YES. IT'S FUCKING HAPPENING. BETHESDA GAME STUDIOS HAS FINALLY OFFICIALLY ANNOUNCED FALLOUT 4.

On June 2nd of 2014 Bethesda Game Studios posted a link on their Twitter that led to a very familiar screen with a timer.

Now, for fans of the series this was an obvious hint at something Fallout related.

When I saw it I had my doubts. I mean we all remember thesurvivor2077 hoax that raised our hopes and dashed them so extravagantly. But this was the real deal.

When the timer on the site reached zero, this time God smiled upon the fans. An official teaser trailer featuring game play was released and by god. It was beautiful. Being an avid Fallout fan, it was like pure concentrated Viagra and every other stimuli to me. I immediately went into an insane babble and started throwing things on the floor when I saw the amazing graphics, bustling cities, and prewar cinematics that I've been wishing for as long as I've been playing the game.

For now there isn't much information on the game except for the minor script leaks pictured above, and that the location of the game will be set in Boston after Fallout 3 takes place. But rest assured when more info is released, my fellow novoGamer pals or me will continue to keep everyone updated. Till then I'm gonna go watch the trailer fifty more times.

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

https://pcpartpicker.com/user/Darklight249/saved/P...

We'll start with a "Gamer" tier AMD PC. It's powered by an AMD FX-6350 clocked at just under 4 Ghz and has 6 cores. It's cooled by the tried and tested Cooler-Master 212 EVO. I run one of these in my toaster of a PC and it hasn't failed me in years. Next we have two 4GB sticks of Corsair Vengeance RAM with a speed of 1600mHz. With all this gear, we need something to mount it to and that would be the MSI 970 Gaming Motherboard. With support for up to 32gb of DDR3 RAM (more than you'll ever need) and crossfire support this will work great for small upgrades. Making our games look bad-ass is an XFX R9 380 video card running at 990 mHz and 4gb of GDDR5 Memory this will be more than enough for most current games to play with decent frames on the higher settings. For the operating system and basic software we have a SanDisk Z400s 128 GB SSD, with its blazing speeds and decent storage at this price point it is perfect for a $750 build. And, of course, for all your games, music and 100% legitimately bought movies is a trustworthy and reliable WD Blue 1TB hard drive at a speed of 7200 RPM. To power all of this is a Corsair RM 650W 80+ Gold Certified Power Supply, and with modular cables your PC will be easy to manage and nicer to look at, and finally holding this all together is a Corsair SPEC-02, with plenty of space for upgrades and compatibility with corsair all-in-one water coolers and multiple other company coolers this will work perfect for multiple upgrades to come, and all of this for just $740!

"Paladin" - Intel and nVidia $900 USD Build

https://pcpartpicker.com/user/Darklight249/saved/Z...

Next is the "Gamer" tier Intel/nVidia build I dubbed the Paladin, as to contrast the AMD Devil and to make the point that this thing is really really white and nice looking. Seriously, with its' blindingly white and highly modular NZXT H230 and it's equally blinding but super-reliable 8GB of Kingston HyperX Fury Memory this thing lives up to its title. The i5-4690 from Intel runs this beauty at 3.5 Ghz and 4 cores your computer will run like a breeze. Talking about a breeze, keeping this cool is the Cooler-Master 212 EVO once more. This cooler is just too good to ditch, with its' great price and reliability it will keep your CPU from melting under some of the most intensive conditions (assuming you don't overclock it). Holding this all together is a MSI Z97S SLI Krait Edition Motherboard, and other than its' stunning color scheme it blows the competition away with SLi capabilities and support of up to 32 GB of DDR3 (once again, more than you'll ever need). An MSi GTX 960 OC Edition is the video card of choice with this build, with 3.5GB of GDDR5 Memory and a core clock of 1.1 GHz this will run most games at high without a problem. Holding your OS is a 120GB A-Data Premier SSD and your precious, precious library of cat memes and steam games is the WD Blue 1TB HDD once more. And now, finally, powering this thing with juice is a 500W Silencer Mk III from PC Power and Cooling, with a 80+ Bronze certification this thing won't literally toast the components of your build. At $907 USD, this PC costs more than the Devil, but with the undeniable benefits of NVidia software and smoother sailing with an intel CPU, to some the extra $150 is worth it.


"Toaster" - mATX $1650 USD Build

https://pcpartpicker.com/user/Darklight249/saved/f..

Now, despite the hot name this thing is anything but a toaster, with a Antec KUHLER H2O 650 Liquid Cooler to keep the 4 GHz Quad-Core i7-4790k processor from melting and a water-cooled XFX Fury X and its' 4GB of cutting-edge HBM Memory to keep it chugging along at 1.05 GHz nice and smoothly. Connecting the dots is the \r \r \r \r \r Asus H97M-E motherboard with support for 32 GB of DDR3 (still, more than you'll ever need) and basic CrossFire/SLi capabilities. Two 8GB sticks of Kingston HyperX FURY Memory running at 1600 mHz keep the machine running smoothly even with Google Chrome open, and with a 120gb Intel 530 Series SSD for the OS as well as the reliable and sturdy WD Black 1TB HDD you will never lose data again. A 550W Fractal Design Tegra M is what powers this box of goodies and to hold it all together the small but sturdy and highly modular \r \r \r \r \r BitFenix Prodigy M. With a total cost of $1650 this is for the gamer/enthusiast who really wants a great portable monster of a PC.

This is only the first part of two, be sure to come back see the enthusiast builds and the almighty BEAST!

Fallout 4 will be released on November 10, 2015.

This release date is not too far off from The Great War date in the Fallout universe, which was on October 23rd.

Todd Howard also revealed a collector's edition of the game.

You can watchthe Bethesda E3 Conference stream with commentary from halomike, Jolgier, and myself here:http://www.twitch.tv/halomike/b/669190029

This app will allow you to be the overseer over your very own custom vault. You can manage the Vault Dwellers to keep them in high spirits and send them out to scavenge for supplies. You can also breed them and defend your vault from internal and external threats like, radroach attacks, vault malfunctions, and raider attacks. You can collect special lunch boxes to win prizes and items to supply your vault. This app is FREE to download and there is no "freemium" elements. The only thing you'd need to sink your money into is the special lunchboxes to get a little extra supplies every once in a while. 

Once again this is free to play and download, and available now on iOS. The Android release is sadly a bit late, but hopefully they release it soon. 

New DLC characters in the form of Street Fighter's Ryu, Fire Emblem's Roy and Mother 3's Lucas were released for Super Smash Bros for 3DS/Wii U along side two new stages (Dreamland N64 and Suzaku Castle) and a handful of new costumes for the Mii fighters. In addition to this, several new compatible amiibo were also confirmed for the game:

• R.O.B.
• Duck Hunt
• Mr. Game & Watch (Customizable)
• Falco
• Mii Brawler
• Mii Gunner
• Mii Swordfighter
• Ryu (In development)
• Roy (In development)

Also released along side the new Super Smash Bros content was EarthBound Beginnings for the Wii U Virtual Console. This game is actually the finished, yet unreleased NES prequel to the cult classic SNES title EarthBound. You can buy it now from the Wii U eShop for $6.99USD.

A new Chibi Robo game called Chibi Robo: Zip Lash has been confirmed and was shown to be a 2.5D platformer with an emphasis on action and puzzle solving. In addition to this, it will be packaged with a special Chibi Robo amiibo that can be used with the game. This game will be released this October for the 3DS.

I'm sure Skylanders: SuperChargers is no surprise to anyone that knows of the series, but what is certainly shocking is that the Wii U and 3DS versions of the game have exclusive content coming to them in the form of special Skylanders that double as amiibo. These new characters come in the form of Turbo Charged Donkey Kong and Hammer Slam Bowser, and both have a unique base that doubles as a switch allowing it to be used as both a skylander for those games, and as an amiibo for other compatible games. They will come packaged in the game's starter sets in the Nintendo versions of the game and will be released September 20.

Nintendo and Sega have confirmed that Mario & Sonic would return once again for the 2016 summer Olympics at Rio De Janeiro and different sports would be in different versions of the game with American Gridiron Football being in the Wii U version and Golf being in the 3DS version. As of now, the release date is still unconfirmed.

Now I don't know much about this series other than the fact that Fatal Frame: Maiden of Black Water is a survival horror game in which you defeat hostile ghosts by taking pictures, but from what I've seen, it looks to be a very interesting entry in the series as the Gamepad is used as your camera for this installment in the franchise. A release date hasn't been announced yet, but expect it by the end of the year.

Genei Ibun Roku #FE is the official Japanese name of the crossover title featuring the Shin Megami Tensei and Fire Emblem franchises. With a lot of heavy influence from Japanese music and pop culture, this is probably going to be a very unusual game, especially when you add characters from the Fire Emblem series into the mix. It is currently unknown if the Japanese title will be changed when it is localized, but expect it to be released some time in 2016.

Speaking of Fire Emblem, the newest installment on the 3DS has gotten an official English subtitle under the name Fire Emblem: Fates. You can expect this title around 2016 as well.

New info for Animal Crossing: Happy Home Designer had been announced with a new video showcasing new gameplay features in the form of outdoor decorating and being able to put a villager's house where ever you want on the map, assuming it's on solid ground. Amiibo cards will be made to go along with this game and may be needed to fully enjoy it. This title will be released late September this year.

While we're on the subject of Animal Crossing, a new gameboard party game featuring Animal Crossing characters has been announced for the Wii U and will use the eight new Animal Crossing amiibo figures (Mabel, K.K. Slider, Tom Nook, Isabelle, Digby, Cyrus, Reese and the new character Lottie from Happy Home Designer) as your game pieces in the same fashion as in Mario Party 10's amiibo Party game mode. Expect Animal Crossing: amiibo Festival to be released by the end of the year.

A new Zelda title that I'm sure no-one was expecting was announced in a multiplayer compatible game in the form of The Legend of Zelda: Tri Force Heroes. Unlike the Four Swords games which were more competitive in design, this title appears to be more focused around co-operative play and the number of Links is reduced from four to three. There is also a single player mode for those that like to play alone, and online multiplayer for those that aren't near anyone that own the game. Expect this game for the 3DS in the third quarter of this year.

While we're on the subject of Zelda, Hyrule Warriors is also coming to the 3DS as Hyrule Warriors: Legends. This version of the game will include all the DLC that was in the Wii U version plus two new characters in the form of Tetra and The King of Hyrule from The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker.  This game will likely be released early next year.

Yo-Kai Watch had been hinted at for quite a long time, but now it appears that it is finally getting localized outside of Japan. Expect this Pokemon-like RPG to be released by the end of 2015.

I'm sure all of you wanted a new Metroid game to be announced at this year's E3, but how many of you were expecting THIS of all things? From the information I've gathered, Metroid Prime: Federation Force is MULTIPLAYER ONLY and will have gameplay elements similar to Metroid Prime: Hunters. In addition, it will also include a mini game called Metroid Prime: Blast Ball which is like a futuristic take on Soccer, but with mech suits and power-ups. While I mostly agree that this is not what anyone wanted when we wanted a new Metroid game, I for one will be giving this game a chance when it is released next year. Hopefully the negative reactions were unjustified.

There were a few new Mario games announced during E3 and one of them was Mario Tennis: Ultra Smash for the Wii U. A new addition to this series appears to be the ability to grow to gigantic size with the help of a Mega Mushroom. Expect it to be released by the end of the year.

Now THIS was a nice surprise. This new entry in the Mario & Luigi series titled Mario & Luigi: Paper Jam has Mario & Luigi teaming up with Paper Mario in a rather unique crossover experience. This will likely be much better than Paper Mario: Sticker Star. Expect this game to be released sometime in the first half of 2016.

Yoshi's Woolly World has been on everyone's minds since was announced two years ago. No new info has been announced for the American release dates for the Yarn Yoshi amiibo, but I'm assuming that they'll be released along side the game on October 16.

Super Mario Maker is the new name for Mario Maker that was announced for the Wii U and more details have also been shown. The game is apparently going to be compatible with many different amiibo and a special 30th Anniversay amiibo of 8Bit Mario will be released along side the game. It will be released on September 11 of this year.

No new info was announced for this game other than a release date. Xenoblade Chronicles X will be released on December 4 of this year.

Now for the game that everyone was hoping to see footage of, Star Fox Zero. Shown in the footage is a ton of new gameplay elements like the ability to see from the cockpit of the ship on the Gamepad and the ability to change the shape of the ship your piloting. Co-developed by Platinum Games, this title will be released some time late this year.

Many indie titles will also be released periodically throughout the year like Shantae: Half-Genie Hero and nine specific ones will also be available as special limited time demos on the Wii U eShop:

• Forma.8
• Lovely Planet
• Runbow
• Typoman
• Extreme Exorcism
• RIVE
• Mutant Mudds Super Challenge
• Soul Axiom
• Freedom Planet

I will be trying every single one of these demos, and if you own a Wii U, I encourage you try them out too. But until then, I'll be seeing you.

(Please keep in mind that my opinions may or may not reflect your own, this list is entirely biased)

Bravely Default is a newer game for the Nintendo 3DS made by JRPG genre veterans Square Enix and follows in the footsteps of Final Fantasyby having many of that series staples like a team of four, job classes, and turn-based combat. Unlike that series though, it has two features called Default (an action similar to defend in which you give up that character's turn to store one point for future use), and Brave (an action in which you use up that character's saved Default points to attack multiple times in one round). This made battles much more strategic as you had to think of the best times to use these commands in order to win, especially in more difficult fights.

EarthBoundis the second game in the Mother trilogy of role playing games made by Hal Laboratories and APE inc of Nintendo. Going outside of the tradition of having games of this genre set in a medieval setting, EarthBound breaks that trend by having the game set in a modern setting more analogous to the United States set in the mid 90's. Another feature that made this game stand out was its health bar system. Whenever a character got harmed, their health would slowly roll down like the numbers on an odometer. This caused a level of tension and urgency that was not common in turn-based JRPG's of that time and it was a nice way to change up the tired formula.

While this series originally started off without this feature, it eventually became a series staple when Final Fantasy IV came onto the scene. This battle mechanic made it so that turn-based combat was completely phased out in favor of performing your action when your turn meter is filled. Enemies could also do this and attack before your turn can begin making battles much more tense as your character could potentially die before you get a chance to finish casting a spell or using an item. I've always been more partial to normal turn-based battles, but this is a nice change of pace.

Pokemon is probably the biggest cash cow that Game Freak and Creatures inc has created for Nintendo. It has literally hundreds of monsters that you can recruit and train for battle against other monsters that have been trained by the opponents you will face in the game. Now because you can literally make your own team of six of these beasts, they had to be designed with unique qualities about them. These qualities, called "Types," causes them to resist or falter against attacks of specific types that clashes with their own. Since each pokemon could have a mixture of any two types, it creates a large array of strategy that made the turn-based combat very interesting, especially since attacks got a power boost when they were used by a pokemon of the same type as the attack.

This game is a rare gem. The entirety of the game is focused around time travel and the exploration of two separate timelines created by the main character early in the game, but that's not what I'm going to be focusing on. This game had a rather unique battle system where all the enemies were placed on a 3x3 grid and could freely move around in the space that they had control of. Now because a lot of your attacks would be AOE-based instead of just attacking an enemy straight on, you could push, knock aside, or grapple enemies so they would all reside on the same square so you could attack and finish them all off at once. This made battles much more involved as it made the player think of strategies that could vanquish foes as efficiently as possible.

Paper Mario: The Thousand Year Door hold a very special place in my heart for its fantastic story telling and surprisingly engaging battle scenes, plus it had clever ways of implementing the game's art style into the gameplay which hadn't properly been taken advantage of since then. My favorite things about the battle scenes though would probably have to be the Stylish Commands. These actions could be performed at specific times during attacks, but because a prompt doesn't show up for the right time to perform them, they are often overlooked and difficult to time correctly. Successfully pulling off a Stylish Command however excites the audience and gives you more stage appeal which charges your special meter much more quickly. I had a lot of fun with this feature.

Chrono Trigger is masterpiece among the JRPG genre. It had a fantastic story that flowed naturally and had organic character development for its time. Even the music was perfect for setting the atmospheric tone of each area and time period in the game, but the gameplay was rather unique among JRPG's around the same time. Instead of the standard four party members on one side of the screen and the enemies on the other side, you had three party members that could stand anywhere on the field assuming there was solid ground. This was also featured in a few other JRPG's around the same time, but no other JRPG (at the time) had the Tech system that Chrono Trigger had. In addition to each character having their own special attacks that use up Tech Points, characters could also team up and unleash Dual and Triple Techs that would be far more useful that the sum of their parts. This made battles much more interesting and had a very unique strategy about it.

Golden Sun hearkens back to the golden age of JRPG's when they were just starting to get popular. It has a simplistic combat system and a story that was compelling, but easy to understand, but the customization with the game's collectible Djinns was what made the game interesting. In each of the three games, there was a multitude of small creatures called Djinns that you could find and equip onto each of the characters in your party. Each one would boost the stats of the character that it was applied to and would also grant them access to certain spells. In addition, while in battle you can activate one (or many) of the Djinns at the cost of the bonus stat boosts they offer and it will perform an action like attacking the enemies or healing your party. This gave combat a very nice risk/reward mechanic that I wish would be implemented in more games.

Now this is an interesting title. Pier Solar and the Great Architects is a much newer game made in the style of JRPG's from the 90's and released physically for the Sega Genesis (Mega Drive) and Sega Dreamcast, and digitally for many modern consoles. It had the same tropes of JRPG's of that time like turn-based combat, element-based spells, and random enemy encounters, but what made this game stand out was it Gather command. This ability, that all party members could perform, caused the character that used it to gather energy for increased power or to use specific abilities, or to transfer to another party member so they can use a specific skill earlier. This strategy of saving and sharing power among teammates gave the game a much better appreciation toward the characters as a whole as they all play important parts in battle and would help each other to get the job done more efficiently.

This game was an unusual one, and probably a little overlooked as this was the only game from this series that was released overseas. Magical Starsign was a space themed JRPG for the Nintendo DS with heavy emphasis on the use of magic spells. Tapping the character that just cast a spell at the right time increased its effectiveness, and spells act in accordance to an element wheel that is similar to Rock-Paper-Scissors. But what really made the battles interesting and fun was the mechanic that caused the spells to change their area of effect depending on whether the character that cast it was in the front or back row. Spells cast from the front row would only target one, but if it was cast from the back row, it would target all in the area. This would make changing rows a strong priority as many enemies were immune to, or could be healed from certain elements and this would cause trouble for the player if he/she didn't take immediate action.

Well, that's my list folks, if you disagree with my choices, tell me why in the comments and what you would have chosen instead. Until then, I'll be seeing you.

Although, this isn't an announcement of a sequel (Alan Wake's American Nightmare excluded), it's worth noting that in the DLC for the original Alan Wake entitled "The Writer", Alan Wake writes a book named "Return."

A sequel to Alan Wake has never been out of the question. In fact, the creative director at Remedy Entertainment, Sam Lake, had this to say about a potential sequel in April 2015:

"For Alan Wake, from the get-go, we assumed there was going to be a sequel and we mapped things further out when it came to character, story, details and focus changes," said Lake. "We knew we would have to iterate and refine, but there was always a rough road map there.“

Stay tuned as the story develops further...

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.

I have been coming to terms with the fact that my childhood was short lived since I have been employed for the majority of my life in one way or another ever since I was ten years old. I have had little time for games and being destitute during that time meant that if I wanted any kind of games, then I had to pay for them myself with the money that I earned. This made me appreciate the games I bought even more and I carefully chose which ones I would be purchasing. But I guaranteed you, nine times out of ten, the game would always be something from Nintendo. They always put love and care into every game they made and it made them all the more special to me when I actually learned a life lesson from them. They were like the Father I never had, and that's why it greatly pained me to find out that the great Satoru Iwata, CEO of Nintendo and master programmer for many great games like Balloon Fight, EarthBound, and games in the Kirby and Pokemon series, had passed away.

When I found out this news, I was distraught. It was like losing a family member that you secretly loved the most and I didn't really know how to cope. He was an inspiration to me and his charm, humor, wisdom, and overall likability made him very much a father figure in a time where I didn't have a strong male influence in my life. His soft spoken demeanor gave me a sense of comfort that I desperately needed in times of great stress and he was always so apologetic even when things didn't go as initially planned. Listening to his voice always calmed me when I was feeling annoyed or enraged because it gave me the feeling that everything was going to be alright. Now that he is gone, I really don't know what to do now...

So, as a tribute to the late, great Satoru Iwata, I have prepared a Haiku in his honor to help me grieve in this time of great stress. I hope you will all appreciate it.

One of the greats, gone,
Now, forever a legend,
Now we understand.

Thank you for reading, and I wish you all to leave luck to the heavens.

One question raised is whether PlayStation music will operate like the Spotify program for the PC, or if it will act similar to the mobile app. In the mobile app, the service takes similarities to common radio apps, in which you may listen to radio stations based off of songs or artists, or you can listen to your personal playlists on shuffle. Many people may bedisappointed if PlayStation music is simply Pandora radio for your PlayStation. Do you believe the fusion of music and video games will be beneficial? Or will it lead to more price tags andhassle?

View the official announcement here.

I recommend downloading Spotify if you have a stable internet connection, and want free music.

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. 

Before I begin, I'd like to state that, for the record, I'm a huge Metal Gear fan. I've played through every entry (except The Phantom Pain since it's not out yet) and loved them all. I could go on for hours about what is so great about this franchise, but fans and non-fans alike need to realize that something fishy is amidst the early Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain reviews.

Metal Gear games have been known for getting perfect scores in the past, so is The Phantom Pain worthy of the 9's and perfect 10's it's been receiving from early reviews? I personally do not know yet (I haven't played it yet). It could, by all means, be as amazing as early reviews say it is, but that's not the issue here. It's how certain game journalists played the game early and reviewed it. That's what needs to be addressed.

Typically, when a game journalist wants to get a copy of a game early to review: they contact the developer/publisher, inform them of their intentions, sign an NDA (Non-disclosure agreement), and get the game early to review, but that's not what happened with The Phantom Pain.

The following is a statement from Dan Dawkins at GamesRadar:

"For fear of spoilers, Konami invited journalists to review the game at five-day 'boot camps' tied to strict NDAs (non-disclosure agreements). We played between 9am to 5pm, with no unsupervised play outside these hours. That's a maximum play time of 40 hours, assuming no stoppages for eating, drinking, stretching or reality. So you're trying to complete a 35-50 hour game (or longer, depending on your play style and the nature of your 'completion' I can't say more), that you've been anticipating for five years, in a realistic window of 30-35 hours. On one hand, you're finally immersed in one of the deepest, most experimental, open-worlds in history – overwhelmed by side-missions, upgrades and secrets – on the other, haunted by a tick-tock race to reach the 'end' without knowing when that is."

That last paragraph is reason enough to not trust early reviews, but it goes even deeper.

This statement also comes from Dan Dawkins and gives you a bit more insight into how the game was played:

“Based on the UK boot camp, I know of only one reviewer (who was able to play for six days) who has seen enough of the game to deliver a meaningful perspective and I can't even explain why for fear of spoilers. In my boot camp, reviewers were charging through missions wearing the chicken hat (which makes you invisible) almost completely ignoring Mother Base and all the side-ops in a race for the 'end'. Will it score high? I mean, duh, but I don't feel the boot camp was sufficient basis to offer my views on Kojima's intentions and MGS5's abiding legacy. At times, the boot camp felt like being gifted a bottle of Macallan 1946 whiskey in a frat house and being told to chug, chug, chug.“

That last statement openly reveals that most journalists that partook in these 'boot camps' did not play The Phantom Pain to it's entirety.

So how is it that these same journalists that gave The Phantom Pain 9's and perfect 10's did so without even playing through the entire game? I shouldn't have to tell you that you have to play through the ENTIRE game to review it fairly.

A hands-on report from RockPaperShotgun claims that reviewers were under strict NDA to "share only information that was deemed necessary by Konami higher-ups."

It's completely understandable that Konami doesn't want story spoilers to be leaked, but they went about it all the wrong ways. The way Konami went about this means that journalists cherry picked the things they liked to put into their reviews and did not report on many things that may have hindered the game experience if Konami found these details "necessary".

Many journalists were quick to point out that the story wasn't up to par with previous Metal Gear entries, forced combat in many unnecessary moments, and included serious pay-walls in the form of microtransactions; yet that still warrants scores of perfect 10's by the same journalists?

The two aforementioned journalist sites did not have to share the 'boot camp' and NDA details, but they did. Most journalists wouldn't have and most didn't. All the journalists that gave The Phantom Pain 9's and 10's failed to mention the inner workings of the 'boot camps' and the NDAs. Were they trying to hide something or did they simply "forget"?

Again, this article isn't bashing The Phantom Pain. Is The Phantom Pain worthy of the 9's and 10's it has been receiving? It very well could be, but that's not the issue here. This article only serves as an attempt to bring important information to light that was trying to be hidden.