VAPF's Gaming Blog

Battlefield 3 Review

2012-01-24T12:43:00.000-08:00

Consoles have been in the multiplayer spotlight for some years now but it wasn’t always so. Before Xbox Live and PSN the only way to get a console online was to buy a Network adapter for your PS2, configure it for four hours then try to find a game that the other ten people in the world who completed the former were playing. Go back even further and the only device capable of such a feat was your trusty Personal Computer. It’s in this sector of history we discover the origins of Battlefield.

The key to the Battlefield heritage, whether set in the past or present, has been its heavy emphasis on vehicular combat. Rather than facing off in the direct firing line of idiots dual wielding AA12’s, players could jump into tanks, jeeps, APCs, fighters, bombers, water craft, anti-aircraft guns and mounted machine-guns. It took computerised warfare away from the simple man v man aspect seen previously and turned it into, well, a battlefield.

Recently, DICE and EA have been playing around with the Battlefield formula and trying to get the consoles users onboard, starting out with the extremely poor Battlefield 2: Modern Combat and then moving onto two story driven games. I, personally, didn’t enjoy Bad Company. It’s single player campaign felt a bit out of sorts and almost entirely unrealistic and, at the time, I wasn’t even hooked up to Xbox Live (for shame) so the multiplayer aspect passed me by completely. So when Bad Company 2 was released and I was initially put off by my experiences of its predecessor. How wrong I was is a story for another time.

Here we are then, Battlefield 3. A direct sequel to the PC only Battlefield 2, the aim is take everything learned from the previous games and produce the ultimate Battlefield experience across all platforms whilst appealing to as broad a demographic as possible. By and large, this is exactly what DICE have achieved (although some eagle-eyed readers noting my score will know its not exactly perfect). The new Frostbite 2 engine looks superb, even on the consoles, creating excellent lighting effects and shadows that actually change the gamplay.

Although, on the 360 at least, disc one is multiplayer, I feel I should first tackle the single player campaign relegated to disc two. Moving away from the rag-tag crew of B Company, we are given an entirely new plot arc centred around Staff Sergeant Blackburn’s efforts to prevent nuclear attacks on US and French soil. The majority of the story cutscenes are played out in a ‘present day’ fashion with all the action taking place in flashbacks while Blackburn attempts to explain himself to the CIA. It’s not exactly the most original story going, having only just been similarly tackled by Black Ops only last year. However, the resulting gameplay is mostly engaging and fun to play through.

I did manage to break the gameplay on several occasions. At one stage, my AI comrades were waiting for me by a closed door only to stand in silence for a good 15 seconds before they finally tripped into action and opened the door for me. At another point, just before a certain fight involving some Russians, I was idly standing next to my squad while they were talking about the mission when I literally died on the spot. I had been run over by the trucks on my own side! Add to this some truly horrendous quick time events that have absolutely no place in an FPS and you begin to understand why the campaign was relegated to Disc 2! The moments are easy to anticipate though as they are the only sections where your squadmates make you go in first. The real bread and butter of Battlefield will be found in the multiplayer.

Before the final release of Battlefield 3, there existed an air of discontent from the fanboys aided quite heavily by the Beta which I covered in a previous article. DICE released a statement soon after listing all the things they were going to fix by the time we would be unwrapping the cellophane on our shiny new obsessions, albeit in a day one patch *shudder*. From the first minute you play in-game it’s clear they have fixed the majority of problems, even if there are a few others rearing their heads.

Fans of the series will not be disappointed. The majority of the maps are gargantuan (maybe even a little too big). All the expected vehicular sexiness is present and correct (including the jet fighter!). And we now have the ability to go prone. There are a few close quarters maps that are more akin to similar shooters, but these shake up the gameplay adequately enough to alleviate any ‘mapathy’ you might other wise incur. It has the same mode set as Bad Company 2 (with the inclusion of the frankly pointless Team Deathmatch option) which will see you attacking/defending MCOM stations, fighting over control of flags and competing in 4v4v4v4 squad deathmatches. Everything feels very Battlefield.

Let me be clear, this game is NOT Call of Duty. If you try to play it like CoD then you WILL die and die frequently. Any keen players of other shooters will first have to adjust not only their play style but also their fundamental way of thinking. Acting like a lone wolf will only hurt your team in the long run, and so will caring about your K/D ratio. On one match I died 10 times and didn’t kill a single opposing soldier but still ended the highest scoring player of the round. I dedicated myself to capturing and defending objectives whilst healing and reviving squadmates. Team actions are paramount to achieving Battlefield greatness. Addionally, the squad member with the highest score is appointed Squad Leader and can dish out objectives to gain more points. It’s a shame as the old Commanders in BF2 could bring a world of hurt onto the enemy.

On your way to attaining glory, you will level up and level up frequently. It seems like you are forever unlocking something new, whether it be a simple upgrade to your weapon or game changing gadgets. There is always something to be working towards, adding to the desire of ‘I’m only 500 points from level 10, I’ll just play the next round’. Each weapon, gadget and vehicle has its own unlock tree, requiring a certain amount of XP to unlock the next item. Then each kit has its own unlocks when you reach XP milestones using that specific kit. Finally, all of the previous plus ribbons and medals are collated into your total XP used to level up, each level giving more unlocks!

The funny thing about this game is it may well have been a perfect 10/10 if Dice would have just completely sacked off single player and spent the extra time refining the multiplayer from the excellence that it is to the supreme greatness it could have been. Let’s face it, not a single person bought BF3 for the campaign and most of us only completed it when EA’s servers were down. It’s highly unlikely that Battlefield 3 will knock MW3 off its throne this year, which is a shame on global scale as its more than capable of it and better in almost every way.

Warner Bros Blogger Event

2012-01-24T12:42:00.001-08:00

Entertainment giants Warner Brothers recently opened their London studio doors to a select group of bloggers and budding gaming journalists to showcase their latest games, movies and apps. 7Bit sent me down from the lofty heights of our Midlands Division to have a peek and report back on my findings.

Apps

Brought to you via Apple's AppStore, Warner have produced several apps based on their recent and upcoming films. Showcased on an iPad 2, I was shown the app for the Harry Potter films. Essentially, the freemium app is a bunch of bonus content with the likes of behind-the-scenes videos and photos as well as some trivia. There was also extra paid-for-content that, rather surprisingly, wasn’t unlocked for me to view.

I was allowed to play about with the app for a bit, but I found loading times on the videos and even photos quite lengthy and the content quite lacklustre. It’s the kind of stuff I would expect to see on a special features disc. There were some other branded apps on show, but these were carbon copies of the Harry Potter app and very little extra to talk about.

Movies

I think the most surprising element of the event was the selection of films on show, of which there was only one of note, Yogi Bear. We were allowed to watch a segment approximately five minutes long from the start of the film. It seemed your typical child friendly affair, lots of slapstick humour and some good CGI-FMV integration. I didn’t see enough of the film to review it, but adult fans of the original cartoon will probably want to give it a miss. The actors don’t seem to be have been trained on acting with characters who aren’t really there and deliver quite a poor experience, while the humour is aimed directly at kids with little or no adult fun included. On the plus side, the active 3D glasses and TV it was shown on looked fantastic.

Gaming

On show for the gaming side of things we had Batman: Arkham City, Lego Harry Potter Years 5-7 and Lord of the Rings War in the North (all of which are now in shops and ready for purchase)

Batman: Arkham City

Rocksteady’s sequel to the massive success that was Batman: Arkham Asylum, B:AC sees the B-Man entering a newly cordoned off section of Gotham. The premise is simple, all the supervillians and their idiot cronies (plus a few political prisoners) have been banged up and Batman has to keep the peace. Fans of the first game, and Batman in general, are going to LOVE this game. Absolutely everything you liked about B:AA has been improved upon in some way or another.

Top of that list is the Riddler trophies, of which there are now 400. Each one could be simple to solve or require some pinpoint control to obtain the reward. There’s also a reason to finish them this time (bar gamerscore) as Nigma has kidnapped civilians and will kill them unless Bats gets his detective on.

Lego Harry Potter: Years 5-7

I have been a fan of the Lego games since Lego Star Wars and have played almost every iteration released since then. It’s fair to say I know my way around the Travellers Tales franchise quite well. So much so that I managed to sneak the preview code into ‘free play’ mode (rather than the story mode everyone else was getting shown) without alarm bells being triggered. All the regular functions return with the same button set up that is tried and true. There are a few new powers introduced to show the progression in the young students skills and a few new characters from the books but the rest is largely unchanged. Indeed, even the old problems still exist. One major downfall of the series has been the inability of player two being able to unlock progression achievements/trophies with player one. Fans of the series will like it, everyone else won’t. But I think Warner Bros and Travellers Tales know that already.

Lord of the Rings: War in the North

Previous LotR games have been fairly poor. While setting an interactive experience in a world as rich as Tolkiens’ Middle Earth is always an attractive proposition - in reality its been quite difficult for the developers that have had the cojones to try.

For this iteration, Snowblind Studios have the reins (which is quite exciting for me as I was a massive Baldurs Gate Dark Alliance fan)and have decided to opt for a completely non-canon story. The first thing you notice is the age rating, receiving a 15 from the BBFC. That makes it the most adult themed LotR game to date, a fact that is translated to the screen from the off with bloody battle effects.

Gameplay sees you controlling one of three protagonists (a human, a dwarf or an elf) either offline with AI or online with two others. I think this will be the key to the enjoyment of a game that is otherwise another one button hack em up. The combination of skills across the roles should provide some tactical elements against particular foes.

The problem with the latter two games is they won’t be able to hold their own against the mass of heavyweight titles being released in the run up to Christmas. Still, at least they’ll be cheap in the January sales.

The drop in event came to an end for me around two after arrival, as by then I felt I had seen everything on offer. It’s a shame there wasn’t more there. Even so - in the gaming world anyway - there is some great stuff coming out of Warner in Q4 this year.

Civiballs iOS Review

2012-01-24T12:39:00.000-08:00

Civiballs HD is the latest in a long line of iPhone remakes of classic browser flash games. The premise of this particular app is to cut chains in sequence to drop coloured balls into their respective pots with an increasing amount of obstacles in your way. If it sounds a little familiar it’s because it plays quite similarly to another Chillingo title (*cough* Cut The Rope *cough*). In addition to getting the balls in the right place, there are also two stars per level to collect to add some replay value.

As the title may (not) suggest, the game takes place in four themed level collections based on different civilisations. These backgrounds serve to keep things fresh but with only 20 levels in each setting I hardly found myself getting bored with the back drop and gasping for more.

The gameplay is definitely a distinctive update from the old web-based version. It runs smoothly and looks slightly better, but calling ‘HD’ is a bit far fetched. The only real complaint is the same with many of these games, as its often wearisome to see the specific chain you are trying to cut underneath your opaque fingers.

All in all, it’s difficult to bark at 69p for an evenings entertainment but that is exactly what you get for your pennies. Even the more taxing levels can be solved in a few minutes of trial and error. Once you’re done there is very little to keep you coming back for more. As such it’s not easy to recommend next to all the other apps available at the same price. Perhaps the most Herculean aspect of reviewing this game was avoiding puns about the rather unfortunate, slightly too literal, title.

Rage Review

2012-01-24T12:37:00.001-08:00

Always at the forefront of graphical prowess, id Software have some frankly amazing heritage. With the likes of Doom, Quake and Wolfenstein 3D under their developer belts it’s difficult to have anything but awe for their works. Difficult, but not impossible. id Tech, id’s engine family, is also responsible for such games as the first Call of Duty, Half Life, Prey and the recent Brink. The big question is whether their latest title, Rage, can live up to the pedigree or not.

Before booting up, I had no real knowledge of the game so was immediately struck but just how beautiful Rage is - stunning in fact. Get it running on a big TV in full 1080p HD and you’ll see what I mean. Everything feels incredibly crafted from the landscapes right up to the diversity of characters you’ll meet across the campaign. It’s a shame that frequent texture pop ups ruin the up close experience.

We pick up the campaign following a rather nice intro sequence depicting the apocalypse avec asteroid and our character going into cryo to one day return and kick the shit out of whatever inhabits the world. It’s ironic really, as this is pretty much as far as the story goes. My first few hours with game were literally nothing more than running a series of odd jobs for a few folk that I had zero attachment to. It’s somewhat disconnects the player from the game when there’s no real explanation as to why you are agreeing to go into a random hideout and kill everything. Even the ‘twist’ at the end wasn’t enough for me to want to call it a ‘story’.

Thankfully, killing everything is mighty fun. While the weapon count isn’t quite as high as other post-apocalyptic games - like Borderlands and Fallout - each weapon has a selection of ammo types. These can be used to combat harder enemies or different situations but can also be used for your pleasure (pop rocket shells + standard enemy = red goo messy joy). There are only four slots for your quick select, but I found this didn’t bother me as I quickly discovered my four weapons of choice and sacked everything else off. Of course, it’s impossible to talk about weapons without mentioning the Wingsticks. Think of them like smart, brutal boomerangs. Chuck one just right and it’ll lop the head of a weaker opponent or embed itself neatly in the cranium of a tougher foe. Using them takes a bit of practice, but it’s highly rewarding!

It’s not all a murderous jolly though. A couple of minor elements spoil the experience for me. First is the quick menu. Holding your right trigger brings up two wheels in real time allowing you select a weapon with the right stick and its ammo with the left. The point of this is to be able to swap in a pinch to deal with a particular enemy type. In reality, the fact the game doesn’t pause during this action means too much pressure is placed on quick fingers, often resulting in you drawing the wrong item and wasting even more time in a tense fire fight.

My other gripe is the completely broken stealth mechanics. You are given a crossbow quite early on and told that it is often easier to sneak up on enemies rather than engage them. If you make a kill with said crossbow you will indeed be silent, but it will still alert everyone to your exact location. Similarly, moving silently is completely impossible and a massive waste of time. Given the incredibly confined setting of the shooting sections, it is often easier to get your quarries attention then back track to a choke point and mow everything that comes to find you down with a shotgun.

In addition to all the other tacked on elements, you have the multiplayer. You’d be forgiven for assuming I mean ‘tacked on’ due to it being an FPS and therefore must have all the standard FPS modes. In fact there are NO shooter modes at all. Instead, we are presented with the weakest gameplay mechanic, vehicular combat. Yawn. It works well enough but it won’t be the defining aspect of the game and, frankly, it could have done without it.

Unfortunately, it has all been done before. I’m about as tired of the typical wasteland as I am with zombie DLC. As fun as the shooting bits can be, the sheer lack of tangible plot made the experience to a very pretty but entirely forgettable one. In the presence of blockbusters like Deus Ex and, the soon to be released, Skyrim, I find it simply unacceptable to allow weak writing to be slapped onto such a beautiful game. In addition to this, the game is extremely linear. Very rarely will you have side missions of any importance to complete, and the ones you do get are just revisiting a previous location for some other object that wasn’t there before.

Are you a fan of the pretty but brainless shooter? Or do you prefer strong narratives? Comment it up!

Battlefield 3 BETA Views

2012-01-24T12:36:00.003-08:00

After all the excitement, the Battlefield 3 Beta is now over. No doubt most gamers with an online connection would have jumped on to give it a go and formed their own opinions. Indeed, a fair amount of chatter has passed my screen on the many downfalls of the beta. Personally, I had been looking forward to getting my grubby mitts on the multiplayer. Previously, I had only played the campaign at EuroGamer Expo(an experience marred by the lack of a Y axis invert option but that’s a debate for another time) for fear of losing my sanity in the queue for the rush gameplay.

After the hefty 1.3gb download (sadly confirming the consoles would not get access to the Caspian Border map), I boot up and attempt to get into a game. To start with everything is great, I’m straight into the sole map of the beta, Operation Metro, and everything feels very Battlefield, albeit more close quarters than the Bad Company 2 fan-boys wanted. There were several times when the servers simply couldn’t cope anymore, usually when I want to play, but this shouldn't be beyond the expectations of a beta code.

From the outset, its clear that this is old code. Unfortunately, the map is full of bugs, prone can be a bit twitchy and the bullet hit detection seems a little off at times (I assure you it is not my terrible aim!). This tells me that EA do not consider this to be ‘demo’ of the game but a server code test. It confuses me that they made it such an open beta as the masses are clearly hinging their preorders on this code and judging, somewhat unfairly, the final game on this outdated build.

Visually, the Frostbite 2 is a big step up from its predecessor used in BFBC2 and I fully expect the final product to further showcase the updated graphics. Smoke billows out of burning cars and carriages, your screen blurs up nicely when you are under fire and shadows spread across everything realistically. In fact, lighting has never been so critical in a Battlefield game before. Lie in the shadows and you’re almost impossible to see if your quarry is ambling about in the sunshine. Moving around the environment feel a lot smoother too. One of my big issues with BFBC2 was that I would forever find myself stuck on scenery. Now, one click of the jump button and you vault cleanly over whatever obstructs your progress and away you go.

I’ll avoid going too in-depth into the different classes and the various unlocks that comes with them as I should imagine anyone with even slightest interest has either played the beta for themselves or is hiding away from information like a hedgehog in danger. Suffice to say, the changes to the classes are welcome in my book. Support feels exactly as it should, a mobile turret, and the assault/medic feels powerful enough without going into points overkill (much like the LMG-revive machine that was the medic in BFBC2). I especially like the bi-pod attachment for completely reducing recoil and suppressing the enemy.

My absolute favorite addition is the new social and stat tracking feature Battlelog. Using your web browser and, eventually, smart phone, you’ll be able to see exactly where you stand with your mates, when and what your next unlocks will be and a multitude of other statistical goodness. Some won’t care about this, but stat fiends like myself will love delving into it before and after matches. The best thing about it? It’s free in its entirety.

The major complaints I have come across are the prone campers and the COD-like gameplay. From my experience in the beta, the prone campers are a pain, but also easy to combat. Thanks to the killcam, locating and flanking these folk is a breeze and lets not forget, digging in and defending a choke point is a tactically sound method that shouldn’t be grumbled at (after all, the attackers are now given 100 tickets per MCOM set). And yes, this map does feel somewhat COD-like when you clear the first set of objectives, but then it is an infantry map. I’ve seen Caspian Border in action and I can tell you it’s 100% the Battlefield of old.

My biggest fears after the Beta is that too many people treated it like a demo for a finished product that it simply isn’t. It’s entirely possible that by allowing completely open access to the code that EA and DICE have shot themselves in the foot and convinced way too many people to opt for MW3 instead as its a safe bet. I truly hope that isn’t the case and BF3 will still maintain the level of buzz which has been present for many months now. My preorder is still very much intact (and so is my days annual leave!). See you on the field soldier!

F1 2011 Review

2012-01-24T12:33:00.000-08:00

Originally posted on 7BitArcade.com

Last year, racing developer legends Codemasters, treated us to the first ‘proper’ F1 game for a long time. Interest, which had once dwindled, was gaining within the masses, so much so that copies were sold out across the board. The success of the title meant a yearly update was to be inevitable. And here we are one year later with F1 2011 in our yellow and black 7Bit hands.

The first real question anyone will ask you about a direct sequel to any yearly update game is inevitably “will it be significantly better than last years iteration that I forked out nigh on 40 notes for?” The good news for these folks is that F1 2011 surpasses its predecessor in almost every conceivable way.

Graphically, 2011 has been given a noticeable overhaul. Every car has now been refined to the smallest details so you can actually see the suspension and front wing flexing should you care to pause and watch a slow-mo replay of your last chicane. Eagle eyed enthusiasts will also notice different levels of wear on tyres depending on your driving. Last year suffered badly from first corner mayhem frame rate issues, this time around all these problems are corrected making the whole experience a much smoother one. In addition to this, each team now gets a custom steering wheel and unique animations to cope with the different button locations.

In terms of gameplay, several new features have been added. To keep up with the rule changes this year, we now have to cope with KERS (Kinetic Energy Recover System) and DRS (Drag Reduction System) buttons. Luckily, these set to L1/Triangle and LB/Y for the different systems mean they are logically in the button map for a boost button anyway. There is also the addition of a safety car to control the race pace should a major incident occur on track. This is a great addition but does take some control away from the player allowing them to only swerve from side to side to heat the tyres a la real life. Handling has been significantly tweeked making it somewhat easier to keep the car on the track, although you can change a few setting to make it harder again if you are so inclined. The AI has also been updated to allow them to utilise advanced defensive techniques

The career mode is largely unchanged, your first career is still in the eyes of a rookie driver for a lower team. However this year you will have Force India and Williams to play about with as well as HRT, Virgin and Lotus. You can still change each weekend’s settings to suit your available time for play and all the strategy elements have remained in place. Before each session you receive emails regarding the weather of the upcoming weekend, but this information is easily obtainable through your race monitor anyway.

Multiplayer has been dramatically altered to include up to 16 human cars with an additional 8 AI cars in the usual game modes and host options. Typically, these races are a mixed bag depending on the other players ability to not crash. The major addition is a coop career in which you and a buddy race a full season under the same team. This mode is great as you must work together to obtain the Construction Championship but you must also strive to out pace, out qualify and out race your team mate at every opportunity. The person who performs better will be the number one driver and, therefore, get all the upgrades first.

By now, any non-F1 fans will probably be wondering what I’ve been guffing on about. The truth is this is still the major flaw in the franchise. Normal racing game fans will be able to somewhat guide their car through a career, but you do need quite a substantial knowledge of Formula 1 to be able to get anywhere in the higher difficulties. Functions like the afore mentioned KERS and DRS are just race changing devices that used improperly they can actually impede your chances of success. For such an in depth sport there really should be a few tutorials to explain such advance mechanics as the extremely late breaking zones, making effect use of KERS and DRS and managing your fuel and tyres.

The only other issue I have with the game is it can be impossibly long. Of course you can reduce your time investment at every opportunity by skipping sessions and shortening race length but, as a true F1 fan, I want the full experience. This can mean up to 8 hours of gameplay for a single race weekend, which equates to a gargantuan 150 hours across a full season. Unfortunately, this leads to becoming uninterested in the vast season ahead of you and, after one race, most will only play a short race weekend.

Overall, F1 2011 is everything F1 2010 should and could have been. Looking back on both games, it’s clear the extra year of development was much needed. There just simply wasn’t anything to compare last years game to and now 2010 seems remarkably unfinished in comparison. I’m mildly disappointed that I didn’t have this game last year as it is truly fantastic and the most complete F1 interactive experience to date. Let’s hope next year will include some minor tutorials in the guise of pre-season testing.

Eurogamer Expo 2011 Preview

2012-01-24T12:31:00.001-08:00

Originally posted for 7BitArcade.com

Look anywhere in the gaming media and you’ll see talk of sequels saturating the market. People will argue to the death about how there is a distinct lack of original IP and that the sequel is killing the industry. Pah, I say to these people. PAH!

This years Eurogamer Expo is rife full of massive Triple A sequels. The likes of Gears of War 3, Assassins Creed: Revelations, Forza 4 and Uncharted 3 will all be rearing their beautiful heads to wow us and empty our wallets before the year is done.

In preparation for the massive titles on show, I’ve gathered my top 3 anticipated games at EGX this year.

#3. Batman: Arkham City

I picked up Arkham Asylum on release after being lucky enough to attend a closed event with Rocksteady. I was immediately stunned by the presentation that oozed from the screen as after a stream of terrible Batman titles, AA was finally an adventure worthy of the worlds greatest detective. Now, Rocksteady have a heap of expectation piled on them to make AC surpass AA in every way and, from what I’ve seen, it does.

Moving from the confines of an island to the mainland, Arkham is now a sprawling network of dilapidated buildings and villainous activity. It’s almost as if it has been designed as Batmans’ playground.

All the villains will be there: Joker, Two-Face, Riddler, Penguin, Hugo Strange, Zsasz, Bane, Mr Freeze, Harley Quinn, Deadshot and, of course, the playable Catwoman.

If you are not excited about this at all, then find some excitement within the deep dark recesses of your brain. Batman Arkham City is going to rock the Expo this year.

#2. Mass Effect 3

ME2 was easily the game of 2010. Aside from Assassin’s Creed 2, there has been no better sequel in recent years.

ME3 sees a continuation of Shepherds’ story directly after the events of The Arrival DLC, and whilst I don’t want to give away spoilers to people who may not have played ME2 yet (why?!) the title pretty much speaks for itself. Expect the usual full story arcs (or not, depending on who died) from all the main characters and an expansive set of side missions to distract you from the galactic apocalypse.

As for the massively toned-down RPG elements in ME2, well they are back! Expect something inbetween ME1 & ME2 with the inclusion of full customisable weapon loadouts. While finer details are a little thin at the moment, BioWare are masters of their craft. This will be immense. Fact.

#1. Battlefield 3

My top slot, and more than likely my game of the year, is saved for the warfare giant of BF3. Call of Duty fans may get a tiny facelift and a few new features once a year, but good things come to those who wait.

Battlefield has long been the staple of PC online multiplayer action. The massive maps and gigantic teams gave an overwhelming sense of your tiny part in a much larger sequence of events.

The series had a shaky start on the consoles. I wasn’t a fan of either Modern Combat or Bad Company 1 so much so that it took a friend to introduce me to Battlefield: Bad Company 2 before I really gave it a chance. Thank your respective deities that he did otherwise I would be stuck admiring the graphical changes in COD (sarcasm people!).

From the trailers I’ve seen, BF3 has some of the prettiest looking destructible environments around. They’ve built the Frostbite 2 engine up from scratch this time and it shows. The lighting and particle effects are unparalleled. Of course, these previews are always shown on a high end PC so I’ll look forward to getting my hands on a console version, but I highly doubt DICE will let it be released with anything less than perfection.

With three giants like these hitting the markets in coming months who can possibly argue that sequels are killing the gaming world?

Where have all the good games gone?

2011-08-11T08:47:00.000-07:00

The summer lull seems to occur almost annually these days. All the big developers are holding back their giant triple-A titles until the Christmas period. Nothing is being released, nothing is being announced. What can a gamer do with a distinct lack of new and interesting titles? If you’re anything like me, then you’ll be hitting the growing stack of unfinished games you’ve been accruing over the last few months. This blog post is dedicated to all the old games I’m playing at the moment that are seeing me through the dry spell until my next major purchase (Battlefield 3, Hoorah!).

Oscar Mike to the first game, The Tomb Raider Trilogy (alas only on PS3). This pack rams Legend, Anniversary and Underworld onto one Bluray Disc of glory. In addition, the former two have been given the HD treatment. Before I picked up the pack, I’d only really ever played the demos so I was shocked to find three great games for a really low price. Well worth a look for any PS3 owner!

I’ve also gone back to Mass Effect 2 to tidy up loose ends and complete all the downloadable content released in the games lifetime. One such mission, The Arrival, is designed to bridge the gap in story between ME2 and the 3rd instalment in the series due out next year. It’s been fantastic to get back into the game as it’s easily one of my favourite games ever made!

My girlfriend loves a game or two but it’s very rare we get to play together. I like driving games, she doesn’t. I like music games, she doesn’t. I like deep RPG’s, she doesn’t. But what we both like is shooting stuff in the face. Enter Borderlands, the highpaced openworld shooterRPG. The great thing about this game is the coop. We can work together if we like, or just run about shooting stuff. Many an hour has been sunk into world of Pandora and its vast amount loot and enemies with faces to shoot.

And finally, in lieu of what will undoubtedly be my game of 2011, I’ve been playing multiplayer Battlefield Bad Company 2. I’m not a massive fan of most multiplayer games as they make me angry and I REALLY hate to lose. For some reason though, Battlefield is different. It’s more strategic and team orientated than other shooters and it feels slightly more rooted in the real world. So if you lose it’s because the other team were genuinely better than you, rather than just opened fire from the hip at the right time.

Of course, as an alternative to the above, you could enjoy the summer snooze by putting the controller down and getting out in the sun. Ah hell, who am I kidding? Who needs sunshine anyway?

What do you have in your To Be Complete pile? What are you dying to have released?
Leave a comment below and let me know!

To the Brink and back!

2011-07-22T02:17:00.000-07:00

The review process for brink has been an interesting one. Normally when I review a game it’s because I have had an experience worthy of discussing and that experience is usually a positive one. So when the fine people of PostABargain.co.uk asked me to review Brink I jumped at the chance to get out of my comfort zone and delve into a game I had no interest in buying.

In the run up to Brink’s release the hype was almost overwhelming. Everywhere I turned people could be heard talking about how good it looked and how fresh the gameplay would be. Personally, I rarely fall for hype. I have been burned way too many times in the past (here’s looking at you Halo 3!) to trust any opinion that derived from a pre release code. In Brinks case that turned out to be right on the money.

Previews of the game came back with rave reviews of how good the gameplay is and how well it all works. But on the day of release when millions logged into play, the game was marred with lag issues resulting in a completely unplayable game that many swiftly put down and went back to Call of Duty.

Fast forward to two weeks ago when I received the game and inserted it into my PS3.
Given all the bad press I had already read, I was determined to give the game a fair chance. If there was anything good about Brink I was going to find it and redeem it.

So, what is Brink?

In the future, some clever folk built a floating, self-sustaining city called the Arc. Everyone rejoice. As global warming came into effect and sea levels rise, the inhabitants decided to tow the city out to the ocean. Soon after, contact is lost with the mainland and ships full of refugees turn up. Cue several years of poverty and unrest for the ‘guests’ plus oppression by the Arc Security and you’ve got a recipe for revolution. The Arc Security want to ‘save’ the city and the Resistance want to leave it. A silly premise and one that could easily be averted by simply allowing those that want to, to leave.

That is the story, and don’t expect any more as you won’t get it. What you do get is a series of missions based on the faction you choose and their eventual objective coming to a close. Every mission plays outs with several objectives that are tied closely to the different classes available. For example, one objective might be to fix a crane to proceed. Only the engineer can repair stuff, but you’ll need all the other classes to get you to the location and protect you. One side assaults, the other defends. If the objective is completed, the attackers win. If the timer runs out, the defenders win.

The class based gameplay works very well. Everything is balanced as you would expect and everyone gets their turn to do something, everyone is useful and every class has strengths and weaknesses. Along with the gameplay is an extraordinary level of customisation. Not only can your entire appearance to be changed to suit, you can also customise the attachments on your weapon to allow greater choices on the field.

Readers who have played the game will note that I have yet to mention SMART (Smooth Movement Across Random Terrain). This basically boils down to the addition of a ‘parkour’ button that allows you to jump railings and climb buildings rapidly. The reason I haven’t mentioned it is because it’s rubbish. Don’t get me wrong, it does work, but it’s entirely unnecessary. Why have a button to traverse random crap in the level and not just remove all the crap?!

So what are the issues with the game? Well for one, the single player ‘experience’ is exactly the same as the multiplayer except with bots…Stupid bots…Stupid bots that don’t help you in anyway at all. I would define single player as DIY multiplayer.
The second problem is that everyone traded the game in on its dire launch week resulting in very few online players, so you can’t play online. And the third problem is even when you do get a game with real people, no one communicates. You end up with a team full of medics and no one fighting for the goal. It is possible that this experience is different on the 360 with its vastly superior chat functions, but in Brinks case I highly doubt it.

I really wanted Brink to be good. I wanted to write this review to tell everyone that is was safe to pick Brink up again. But the truth is it just isn’t good. There are two types of gamer who plays shooting games, those who play Call of Duty and those who play Battlefield. Brink appeals to neither audience in the long term.

Did you play Brink? What did you think of it? Or are you just waiting for MW3/Battlefield 3 in Q4 2011? Leave a comment below!

LA Noire: Shining light or black as night?

2011-06-30T00:41:00.000-07:00

LA Noire, an investigate-em-up from developer giants Rockstar, is a brand new intellectual property and is said to be unlike anything we’ve ever played before. For the most part this is true, though it’s far from perfect.

You play Cole Phelps, a decorated war hero, who returns to LA to right the wrongs of war and clean up the streets. Starting as an officer in the LAPD, you follow Coles’ career up to detective and work cases for various desks (Traffic, Homicide, Vice and Arson). On each desk you get a partner and they’re not always happy to be working with you.

So, how thrilling can being a detective really be? The answer is mostly, but not always. Searching crime scenes for clues is fun but slow paced and methodical and very reminiscent of old point-and-click adventure games. Similarly, the interrogations offer little in terms of excitement but are branching puzzle elements were you must decide if a person is lying or not based on their facial twitches and eye contact.

This leads me to the main selling point of the game, a new technology called MotionScan. This system uses 32 HD cameras to record the facial expressions of actors from every angle. The result is perfectly captured animations on screen and accurate digital recreations of actors that are so good that you find yourself saying “Hey, isn’t that the guy from Heroes?” throughout the game.

Action junkies will be pleased to hear these downtime sections are dispersed with high paced sequences involving both car and foot chases, gunplay and old fashion fisticuffs. At times, these feel like they HAD to be written to provide an extra 10 minutes of gameplay, but they break up the progress significantly enough to not bother you.

The games size is something to awe but also contempt. Reaching approximately 8 square miles, the map has been recreated using aerial photos taken over the 50 year career of Robert Spence. So good is recreation that you can navigate it using a route planner. The downside of the gargantuan gameworld is the distances to drive. Over a total of 12 hours game time, I spent no less than 2 hours behind the wheel of a car. Of course, this can be skipped entirely by making your partner drive. The massive nature of the game can be quantified by simply noting that it takes THREE discs on the Xbox 360.

My main concern with LA Noire is that I am not a trained detective. At times, the links you must make between a lie and piece of evidence are so obscure that only a genius would make the correlation. I felt that it was in the games nature to have you fail first before trying again in a different tactic rather than helping you genuinely solve some cases. One such example is the murder of a woman; you have two suspects with overwhelming evidence against both, the husband and a hobo. If you convict the husband you get a 3 star rating and telling off and if you convict the hobo its champers and 5 stars for you.

It’s the style of the game that will keep you playing. Everything is presented perfectly. You feel like you’re taking part in a genuine film noire. You can even play in crisp black and white (though if you do, you miss out on the beautiful colouring of the city).

The plot, that doesn’t really kick in until half way through the game, is a hive of intrigue, not only for the supporting characters, but also for Phelps. Little cut scenes showing his back-story appear after most cases and slowly reveal that he is not exactly the golden boy he first appears to be.

There in lies the truth about LA Noire. It should have been a film (or a series of films). Infinitely more entertaining to watch someone else played than controlling yourself but none the less a great effort to tackle the frankly lacklustre state of today’s gaming quality. No doubt a sequel will be in the works and hopefully it will tackle the issues presented here head on and provide an experience a little more refined.

In answer to my title question, this game is neither. It’s one of the many shades of grey that appear between black and white. But, like Heavy Rain, it is a great example that developers are not afraid to try something new, and not just churn out endless gimmicky nonsense.

What did you think of the game? What would you like to see in an LA Noire sequel? Leave a comment below and let me know!

2011 Gaming

2011-06-30T00:40:00.001-07:00

This subject is massively important to me. I have been playing games since a relatively young age and watching films even before that. I’ve watched the progression in technology catapult the gaming industry from something geeks and nerds did in dimly lit rooms to the dizzying heights of full mainstream attention. Similarly, movies are constantly evolving with new techniques and state-of-the-art special FX which even appear to be 3D.

I find it genuinely exciting to be part of the era where storytelling is pushing beyond the veils of the silver screen and interactive experiences are becoming ever more realistic. But should we be careful? There are politicians that tell us we’ve gone too far, that realism is desensitising the masses and clouding people’s sense of right and wrong.

Across the course of my blog I will cover individual games and films and my thoughts on them. I’d also like to explore some of the political and health issues that arise when discussing the industry as a whole. I hope to provide good information that everyone will find interesting and maybe even inspire a few people to play/see some things they wouldn’t ordinarily try.

Top 5 anticipated for 2011
The coming year is going to be an exciting time for gamers. There are a host of massive sequels releasing as well as some new franchises coming to light. In fact, 2011 may just be the toughest Game-of-the-Year decision yet! Here are my top 5 games to look out for:

Mass Effect 3
The previous two instalments were both epic games, with ME2 receiving GotY 2010 from many sources. ME3 looks set to continue the RPG Action gameplay of the rest of the trilogy whilst expanding on all the great elements of ME2. Of course, those that have played the previous titles will be able to use their saves to carry over all their choices, but this time around newcomers will be able run though an interactive comic to make all the major plot decisions. Release date TBC.

Batman: Arkham City
The original Batman: Arkham Asylum took the gaming world by storm. Created by Rocksteady, it was evident from the start that they were batman fans. Some have called it the best Batman game ever created. Gameplay was a great mix of stealth action, fight sequences, epic boss battles and detective work. Arkham City follows on the story line, seeing the asylum expanding. This will lead to a lot more outdoor Batmaning across wider areas. It’s almost a guarantee this will be super polished and every inch as good as the last. Available from 21/10/11.

Battlefield 3
Battlefield has a long standing pedigree of massive online action with an emphasis on vehicular warfare rather than fast paced action you might see in Call of Duty. Previous console iterations have been a haven for those who prefer tactical thinking and teamwork based action. A new graphics engine has been built for this game, as well as fresh sound recordings. Release date TBC

L.A. Noire
From the creators of Grand Theft Auto and Red Dead Redemption, L.A. Noire is a fresh IP that looks set to shake up the standard ‘go here, do this, speak to them’ format that has been Rockstars’ bread and butter for many years. There will be a greater emphasis on figuring out your own cases with detective work and chasing down criminals in the 1940’s setting. Get your hands on it 30/05/11.

Portal 2
The original Portal was released as part of The Orange Box collection, which contained Half Life 2. Gameplay consists of a puzzle game that lets you place portals around the environment to complete various objectives. Although it started out easy, the learning curve ramped up very quickly and became mind boggling. Portal 2 is a stand alone title that expands on the concept to increase the over all length of play from 6 hours to a full sized game. Add to the mix a coop mode (four portals at once!) and a wealth of new features and you’ve got yourself a massive reason to get excited for the April 21^st release date.

These five titles have my taste buds tingling (and my wallet screaming) and I shall no doubt be breaking my vow of not buying brand new games on day 1 for most, if not all, of them!

Of course, there are plenty of excellent games coming out this year that didn’t quite make my list (Eldar Scrolls V, Operation Flashpoint Red River, Gears of War 3, Uncharted 3). What games are you most looking forward to? Do you have a top 5 of your own?

Super Street Fighter 4 Review (Xbox)

2010-05-12T11:09:00.000-07:00

Firstly, I feel I must make you aware that I neither like fighting games nor do I really know anything about their history other than the infamous death of Liu Kang from the Mortal Kombat series.
This is mostly because I suck hardcore at them (having once been beaten by my aunty on the original Tekken) and I have a really short temper when I lose.

However, I am a sucker for hype and the opinion of others, so I picked up SSF4 on day of release and remained sure that I would, as my past predicts, hate it and never play it again.

Let me get the bad points out of the way first; It is frustrating at times (here's looking at you Seth) and it can be horribly fiddly for someone who isn't used contorting their fingers into the shapes required. It is also immensely difficult on the harder settings.

The good news is there's a bright side too. In fact, I've had so much fun playing the game that it has changed my perspective on the genre entirely.
Yes it is hard, but it's meant to be. You're meant to spend ages learning the moves of the fighters to be good and you're meant to dedicate yourself to get used to chaining Ultras from cancelled specials. The game even gives you a dedicated section to learn all the moves (including the new characters and the new Ultra for each of them).

The main fun of this game lies, not in the arcade mode, but in the improved online modes. My personal favourite is Endless Battle, which has you entering a lobby of up to 8 people with the top two fighting. From then on in it's winner stays on. The beautiful thing is the rest of the lobby watches the fight take place while the voice chat is still fully enabled. This leads to some excellent banter.
On top of this there is also a team battle mode as well as your standard 1 on 1 fights.
The final genius of the online modes are the leaderboards. Winning fights not only provides you with points, but you are also awarded character specific points allowing you track your ability with each individual fighter as well as on a whole.

The only question I cannot answer here is, if you already bought Street Fighter 4 should you buy the Super version. If you want more characters, moves and online options then your answer is a simple yes. However, this is mainly due to the price tag. If this were a full priced game it would be a different story.

Overall I'd give SSF4 a solid 8/10
Immensly fun in the right company, but the frustration that is inevitable from losing A LOT loses a mark or two for me.
If you didn't buy SF4 this should be a must buy for fans and haters a like, you never know, it may just convert you too. And if you did buy it, then it depends on if the features included tickle your soft spot.

Modern Warfare 2 Review

2009-11-09T00:25:00.000-08:00

Considering I was lucky enough to get this early I thought I'd post a 'quick' review. Although I'll try not to spoil anything too major, there might be information in here you haven't read elsewhere so hit the back button if you don't want to see it.
I'm going to split this review into three sections as you are essentially getting three separate games for your hard earned. First up is the Single Player Campaign.

This is basically your typical Infinity Ward affair, that is to say you can expect excellent level design, graphical prowess, jaw dropping set pieces and polished gameplay. A few levels stand out in particular, those being the Favelas, for its tight corridor alleys and multi tier design, and the levels wandering about a decimated America. At the beginning of the game you are asked if you are easily offended and if you would like to skip a particular mission. I won't spoil this for you, but DO NOT skip it, and DO NOT watch it on youtube. This is definitely something you'll want to experience yourself and will test your moral fibres like never before.
The storyline is a direct sequel to COD4, where a badass named Makarov has filled the power vacuum left after you killed everyone in the previous game. Needless to say, he's doing a good job of sending the world out of control. Here in lies the problem. The OTT nature of the plot leads to some very odd sets of objectives, one level in particular sees you defending a suburb and has you running between a burger joint, restaurant and cafe picking up Stingers and Predators (your average Cafe menu then!) and there were a lot of times I wasn't really sure WHY I was doing the things I was being asked to do.
Add to this a campaign is easily finished in less than 6 hours and I was left somewhat disappointed after.
But that's not really why we play COD is it...

Multiplayer

From the outset a number of things are notable. Namely the Americans already well into Prestige, the level cap of 70 and the complete reworking of XP. If you have any skill at COD4 at all you will find XP lavished upon you at every corner. Kills net 100XP, headshot for a further 50, if you stop his killstreak you get more, if you get revenge you get yet more, in fact I managed to obtain almost 700XP from a single headshot. Obviously, gaining levels has been made harder to counter this, but you never feel like you're not making progress. In addition to in-game XP, the challenges have been re-thought. There are now many more unlockables per weapon, including Red Dot and ACOG sights, plus shotgun, thermal and heartbeat sensor attachments. You can now gain XP on secondary sidearms and there are even challenges for using different Perks and equipment.
As you level up you will unlock weapons and perks as normal, but you will also open up nicknames and emblems for your new call sign. This effectively your COD gamercard, and can be changed in the menus to anything you've already unlocked.
The maps are well designed, offering options for all the classes and yes, the sniper levels are still a pain in the arse.
Talking of classes, the defaults are very interesting. They offer you options that are not readily available until much later in your levels, giving new players both a fighting chance and a glimpse of what they can hope to obtain given the time effort.
My favourite part of MP is the Deathstreaks, a new mechanic which let people like me (who spend a large amount of time getting shot in the face) a fighting chance at a kill. If you die a certain amount of times in a row with no kills you are given a little boost to help you out, like the ability to copy your killers class, give a large temporary health boost or get access to our fabled friend, Martyrdom.
This mode will definitely have you busy long after SP is done.

Special OPs

Multiplayer not enough for you? Good.
Spec Ops is a separate mode designed to be played coop on or offline (thought you can play it single player) where you and a mate take part in self contained challenges, some based around events of SP and some not, to obtain stars and highscores.
Unfortunately, I haven't delved into this mode too much yet as I really want to experience it with the rest of the country on Tuesday night. So I'm afraid you'll have to wait and see what this mode has to offer!

So far I'd give Modern Warfare 2 8.5 out of 10
Although the MP is highly addictive and very well designed, I found the SP experience to be more centred around extravagant set pieces than well thought out mission objectives and plotlines. For this reason it feels like a Multiplayer game with a single player campaign tacked on to justify the pricetag

Trials HD XBLA Review

2009-08-17T02:29:00.000-07:00

Like many people, my first encounter with Trials was a few years ago on one of the many Flash game websites. The aim of the game was get your 2D bike and rider to the end of each level using only accelerate, brake, lean forward and lean backwards. Levels varied in difficulty from easy to pull-your-hair-out difficult.

Following a popular sequel, we now get Trials HD. Red lynx have taken the original formula, added 2.5D graphics, explosions and realistic physics to create a title worthy of XBLA.

When you first load up the game, you'll notice that the levels are banded under different difficulties. A word of warning to all, do not underestimate these titles, extreme actually means your controller won't last the night. Conversely, the easy levels are exactly that, easy. I found myself breezing through these levels, only really hitting problems on medium and even then it was one or two faults before finishing.
I started having major problems at Hard onwards; I once had to restart the level because I hit the fault limit of 500 and the time limit of 30 minutes. There is a saving grace though, the top 5000 leaderboard replays are saved, complete with a little graphic showing exactly how that person is better than you. You can then attempt to replicate this on your own run.

On top of the 50 or so levels, are also Skill Games. These involve completing tasks such as going as far as you can in a wheelie (because your front wheel falls of), or breaking as many bones as possible in crash. These games are truely brilliant when you have a few people together who can compete for bragging rights or just save anyone one person from the madness of infinite repeat.

The final mode is the User Content. Essentially, this is a map creator which you can share with friends. This creates some strong competition between you an your buddies as you strive to create a truly diabolical run to stump your friends, therefore causing embarrassment on their part. The only shame of it is, there seems now way to share levels with the masses, not yet at least.

To summarise, this game will make you angry, very angry. You'll want to through the controller down. BUT you won't. You'll keep playing it, and keep trying it, over and over. Why? Because your mate beat you by a 500th of a second and you don't want to be 2nd. You're a winner, and you want recognition by being on top.

Buy this game; it’s a great replacement for everything else in life, including food, drink and conversation.

'Splosion Man XBLA Review

2009-07-30T08:54:00.001-07:00

I'm always skeptical of brand new developers. The people must be skilled to be producing games, but do they really know what they are doing? Can they produce games to the quality of long standing companies?
When Twisted Pixel Games released The Maw on XBLA a while back I was proven wrong. It was the perfect example of what fresh blood can bring to digital media.

The developers’ next title, Splosion Man, is much of the same level of creativity and ingenuity.

Simplicity is key here. Effectively, you have two controls in single player: the ability to move left and right and 'Splode' (which is basically a jump). The aim is to traverse through the 50 single player and 50 multiplayer levels, sploding your way through and past various traps, enemies and puzzles.
Simple often translates as easy, but Splosion Man isn't willing to fall into this category lightly. You see, you can only Splode three times in succession before having to recharge by landing. And add into the equation that you will have to time your splodes very carefully, some of the later levels get very challenging without getting too frustrating and stopping you from playing. At one point, I even died so often the game humorously offered to let me chicken out of the level and skip it.

The multiplayer allows you to romp through an entirely different set of 50 puzzles with a pal. This adds extra depth as you are required to splode with the other person (adding your third control, the ability to countdown to your splode) to propel one, or both of you, higher, or further, through the level. This definitely took some practice, especially section that didn’t allow you to stand together before sploding, and it got a little confusing at time, but practice makes perfect.

So what happens after you complete the 100 levels? Glad you asked! The design of the games leaderboards means that you'll be fighting for the best times on your favorite levels. I found myself thinking of ways to shave valuable seconds off my times, whilst also sploding enough scientists and equipment to boost my score.

All in all, this is one of the more enjoyable XBLA titles I've played this year and at 800 MSP it's a bargain.

Monday Musing 06/07/09

2009-07-06T07:38:00.000-07:00

I’m feeling very music’d out. I’ve played guitar. I’ve played bass. I’ve sung my heart out and beat the crap out of some drums. All of this makes me feel like it’s supposed to, like a Rock Star (or at least someone with musical talent!).
But after all this, I’m not sure I can be bothered any more. I think I’ve finally gotten bored of music games and the endless ‘updates’ are making sure I put the plastic guitar away for good.
I don’t want more peripherals littering my, already full, front room. I don’t want more discs that aren’t compatible with anything else in the past. I don’t want ‘band’ titles. I don’t want ‘greatest hits’ compilations. I want one master game that does it all AND has all the previous songs in one place. I want it to be easier to switch instruments with my gamertag. I want simplicity.

Sort it out developers

Avatar Xbox 360 Review

2009-07-05T14:54:00.000-07:00

Man, this is probably the worst game I have played on a current generation console.
It really does need to be seen to be beleived.

The graphics are truely substandard, being on par with a late PS1 game. The characters barely even move in the cut scenes.

In all honesty, I got the 1000 GS from this (achievable in less than 5 mins, that no joke!) and then I sent it back to the place it was rented from.

If it weren't for the easy gamerscore then I would give this game zero but as it stands...

VAPF Rating: 1/5

TMNT Xbox360 Review

2009-07-03T04:04:00.000-07:00

Primarily, this will be a game for the kids, though I played it because of its easy achievement list.

Made by Ubisoft, its easy to see that this game was made to test out some of the acrobatic features that would be later used in Prince Of Persia. There are a lot of control issues that will cause you some major headaches and frequent trips of the edges of the levels, but the infinite respawn at your last checkpoint (which are fairly regular) means a second go isn't far behind.

The platforming sections are very easy, control issues aside, due to the auto camera pointing you in the right direction constantly. These are usually followed by a one-on-many fight that won't be too much off a problem for most people. The boss battles add some element of strategy, but once you figure out the weakness its just a case of rinse and repeat.

All in all, this game if perfect for the achievement hunters out there, but is not recommended for those looking for an enjoyable, engaging experience.

VAPF Rating: 2/5

Xbox Monday Musing 29/07/09

2009-07-02T02:52:00.001-07:00

Here’s a list of people that assumed I’d grow out of playing video games: My parents, all my girlfriends, my work colleagues, my teachers, most people in authority and all of my friends who don’t also play games. But, at 23, I’m still booking days off, closing the curtains, eating junk and not washing or sleeping for three days whenever a new Call Of Duty comes out. Where do these fascinations stem from? Am I destined never to ‘grow up’? Personally, I don’t care. I like being the guy who spends his time after that elusive ‘Mile High Achievement’. Give us more games that remind us of nervously putting in the disc to GTA1 even though we were drastically underage. Balls to growing up, I say.

Slight Change

2009-07-02T02:32:00.000-07:00

Ok, so this blog was initially designed to be a place to document my survivalist progress.
But, progress on that front is mighty slow being that it costs a lot of money to learn and time that I don't have.

So, in between survival blogs I will post about things that I deem necessary or cool or whatever (like a normal blog then).

Survivalist Forums

2009-06-16T15:11:00.000-07:00

Today I decided to check out the Survivalist Forums and found a really good one at www.survivalistboards.com

There's some top quality information in there and some knowledgeable people to boot.

If you're interested in survivalism (and I guess you are if you're reading this) then check it out!

The beginning of my End Game

2009-06-16T02:41:00.000-07:00

Survivalism. That's my word of the moment.

The term came to me after a friend suggested I read a book called 'Emergency' by Neil Strauss.

Until I had read this book I had assumed that bushcraft or survival techniques were for people like Ray Mears. I had assumed that if the world were to end that I would be killed in the very instant whatever apocalyptic event took place.

But what if I were a survivor? What if everything I knew changed and I was forced to protect and shelter myself and others around me? Would I be a sheep or a wolf?

It's these what ifs that have led me to start this blog.

I have decided that I am going to learn the fundamentals of survival and try to build on the knowledge over time. The purpose of this blog is to help me track and document my progress, as well as gain the interest of others so that they might also consider starting this path.

Please do not mistake this venture as paranoia. I have no delusions regarding the end of the world. This is simply me being prepared for worst case scenarios, therefore all other scenarios by default.

More to come in the future