The first season of The Wolf Among Us felt absolutely brilliant! The story was engaging, the characters were interesting, and the gameplay kept me on my toes. I could not wait to talk about this game again once I had finished the final episode of the first season “Cry Wolf”. However, wait I did since most games tend to leave us players with lingering feelings (good and ill) that skew perception away from what it should be. Now that the rose-colored fervor has worn-off though, I feel that my head is clear enough to give this game a fair look and pick out its best and worst aspects. Each portion of this game has them, the much touted story included. Continue reading The Best (and Worst) of The Wolf Among Us→
Thief is one of those games that over the years i’ve heard plenty about, but never actually played, predominantly because it’s been exclusive to PC, until now, so when it was announced that it’s fourth installment was coming to Xbox One i was quite excited! I think it was a great choice of release date by Eidos, two weeks before Titanfall and three before Infamous hit the shelves here in the UK. i’m almost seeing it as something of a filler, something that can keep me busy until Titanfall launches on the 14th, because as we all know, there’s not a lot of choice on the next gen consoles right now, but hopefully in the next couple of months that will change with Titanfall and Infamous Second Son both imminent on their respective consoles, nevertheless until then Thief is a very welcome break from the consoles launch titles, don’t let that mislead you though, Thief is still a top game in it’s on right.
Thief, as the name suggests, follows the story of Garrett as he pickpockets and steals his way through a dark, wet, grim looking city which it seems is based around London at the time of the plague, or as it’s referred to in the game, the “Gloom” A time when the people on the streets are struggling to survive, i think Thief gets this across really well, you almost feel like a part of their struggle. The tone of the game matches this, the game is dark, the City is a pretty miserable place to behold, but take nothing away from the graphics, they’re very good, and the lighting effects are fantastic, the shadow casting is superb, something you’d expect though as the game involves a lot of sneaking around in them. Continue reading You’ve Got To Pick A Pocket Or Two- Thief Review→
It’s fair to say that Ryse: Son of Rome has had a difficult time gaining traction up to its release after officially debuting at Microsoft’s E3 press conference last year. While the game impressed visually, critics and the public seemed concerned about the extensive use of quick time events and also what the combat would play like. From there on Crytek worked to fix and alter many of the criticisms first levied at the game before its eventual launch day release with the Xbox One. Ryse: Son of Rome is set during the reign of Nero in ancient Rome and takes players on a quest for revenge after a barbarian raid on the city. Is Ryse: Son of Rome a worthy contender in the arena or should it be fed to the lions?
Interestingly enough, Ryse decides to tell its story out of order. You start at the end, only to revisit essentially how you got to where you are now. You play Marius Titus, a hero to his fellow soldiers, a proud Roman soldier, and someone who’s willing to risk life and limb to get the job done. While on the outside he simple appears as a dedicated soldier, Marius has a darker goal of extracting revenge on those that killed his family during a barbarian raid on the city. This gives him his drive and ultimately will take us from the crowded streets of Rome to the dense forests of Britannia. For what it’s worth, I was never lost or confused along the way even through out the many twists and turns the story takes. Continue reading Ryse: Son of Rome Review – Glory To Rome→
So, this is my first post which will be on the United We Game website, so firstly I’d like to thank them for taking me on board! As some of you may be aware I have been working my way through my top 15 games of the Xbox 360/ Playstation 3 generation, but I thought as this post is a sort of milestone I’d do something a bit different.
I was one of the many people that waited in line at midnight on November 21st to get my hands on the Xbox One, and as its now been a few weeks since I got the new console I thought I’d give my opinion on my first few weeks, a small look into the games I have played,how the system works, and my overall verdict early on for Microsofts new baby, I’ll start with the hardware itself.
The console itself is quite big, I don’t think it’s too big though, I’d say even though it’s probably a bit bigger than the original Xbox, it’s a basic shape, and it doesn’t seem chunky, one thing is for sure though,It’s a lot, lot quieter than its predecessor, although its difficult for it not be, i love the 360, but there were times when mine was so loud I thought it was about to take off into orbit! The kinect is also a very sexy piece of kit, and I can honestly say that I have used it far more than I ever envisaged, but I’ll talk more on that topic later.
The controller is fantastic, I actually think the 360 controller was pretty much perfect, but they have somehow Improved it even more, the vibrating triggers are fantastic, particularly on Forza Motorsport where you can really feel the road, and even though it’s lighter it feels as sturdy as ever, and fits fantastically in your hand.
The only thing that lets the Xbox down is the headset that comes with it, I don’t think its particularly comfortable, it has to be unplugged and plugged in several times before it connects, and they don’t feel particularly sturdy, in fact, a friend of mine has broken one already, purely from plugging it in and out. I will be getting a third party at the first chance I get, but for some reason that won’t be until Q1 next year unfortunately.
The software, mainly the new “Dashboard” is fantastic, it takes a bit of time to get used to admittedly, but when you get in the swing of it, it really is a step up from the old dashboard. It’s so easy to to flow from one game to another, and the fact that it saves where you are when you go back to the home screen is incredible, I can’t count how many times I’ve just come out of a game, gone to Netflix, and gone back again, sometimes after a couple of hours, and it’s its like I never left in the first place. This is also where Kinect comes into its own, using commands to switch between Netflix, to games, to party chat, to Skype, and best of all, to turn the console on, it’s a revelation.
The one problem the software does seem to be suffering from is that every now and then it will kick you back to the home screen when you are playing online, this can be very annoying but it doesn’t happen to regularly, but it is something that needs fixing.
With my Xbox One I picked up Forza Motorsport 5, Battlefield 4, and Fifa 14, which came with the console.
Forza Motorsport is the game I’ve played the most of, the game is stunning, as you’d expect from Forza, it’s only flaw is its lack of tracks, and the car count is quite significantly down from Forza 4, but this takes nothing away from the driving experience, and the customisation aspect of the game, which is exemplary, as Forza always seems to be.
Next, FIFA 14, which I’m relieved to say is a big improvement on its Xbox 360 counterpart, which is ridiculously flawed, this newer version still has a lot of gripes, but on the whole it’s another solid instalment, you can tell that they were a lot more focused on the next gen version of the game when developing it, I particularly like the kinect integration within the game, which you can use to change formations, and make substitutions in game.
Battlefield 4, similarly to Forza, delivers exactly what you expect it to, it looks beautiful, and the online is solid, I’ve not yet had a chance to play the single player so I can’t comment too much on that, but from everything I’ve seen and read, it also delivers on every level.
I will review all these games further when I’ve played them more thoroughly, I don’t want to go too deep just yet as I don’t think it would be fair until I’ve played them more (Damn working in retail over Christmas!!)
On the whole my first few weeks with the Xbox One have been great, I love the new kinect setup which I was unsure about before, but it is definitely needed with the Xbox, it makes it flow so much more than could be possible without it. Graphically it is a step up from the previous generation, as you’d expect, but I think what excites me more than anything is the potential that the system has, when you look back at the Xbox 360 at launch, and then compare it to the Xbox 360 now you can see how much it has evolved, and if Microsoft can repeat that transition with the Xbox One, I think we are all in for a truly great console!
Part of why I read reviews is to decide whether or not I should play/buy a game. Games cost money and with a regular 9-6 job my time is limited in what I can play. I have to make that count. Also, I like reading reviews! If I’m going to play a game from start to finish and then talk about it, I should also post my own formal review of it. Makes sense, right? But what makes Read on…
There aren’t a ton of games I’ve played where I thought it was absolutely terrible. Part of it has to do with not being a long time gamer and the other being I’ve based most of my game purchases on reviews and recommendations from trusted friends and family. I did, however, make a newbie mistake in my eagerness to dive straight into the wonderful world of video games.
The one game I made the mistake of purchasing when I was new to the gaming scene and had bought my first portable handheld, the Nintendo DS Lite, was Myst for the DS. The game was originally an adventure puzzle game made for the PC. I heard about the game, but never played it. I never got into PC gaming much. When I was in dire need of a game to play, I looked through the DS section of my local Best Buy, trying to find a game that was fun and affordable.
I saw Myst and read the back of the box. The game has you play as a character who is simply named “Stranger,” who uses a special book to travel to the mysterious island of Myst. You interact with the world to unlock the secrets of the island and its characters. I’m a fan of adventure/fantasy type stories and I thought Myst might be right up my alley. I should have looked up the reviews before purchasing the game.
Fans of the original Myst said their main complaints with the game was the bad transfer from PC to DS. The graphics were smaller, there were too many glitches, and the controls were pretty awkward, considering a lot of the game relies on interacting with the objects you see in the game to gain clues about the mysterious world of Myst.
A lot of the reviewers’ complaints were all correct. While I can’t compare the quality of the graphics between the PC and DS, as I’ve never played the game until the time I purchased it, controlling the game was a nuisance. I didn’t get very far with the game before I left it on my shelf neglected and forgotten. You would think for a point and click PC game, Myst would have translated well for Nintendo’s touch and tap capabilities. It did not.
Reading a book in Myst was annoying. Pages accidentally skipped when I tapped on it, before I had a chance to read the next part of a story or clue. Because the graphics were pretty small, you had to zoom in to read the text in a book. After playing the game for an hour, I didn’t think the world of Myst was as exciting to delve into as I had originally thought. I was instantly bored with the game and stopped playing it after that.
I don’t doubt the original Myst was a better experience on the PC than DS, but I don’t plan on picking up a copy of this game for my computer either. With so many other games to play, I don’t feel inclined to purchase Myst for the PC and play it how it was originally intended to be played––point and click without the graphics being scaled down to fit a small, portable handheld.
I may have wasted about $20 on Myst and have since sold the game back for absolutely nothing, but I did learn a valuable lesson from this experience––always read the reviews before purchasing. Or at least consult trusted friends and family for their recommendations on good games to play.
