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Top 5 Uncharted Moments!

Look out! It's Drake!

Here are the top 5 moments we've had in Uncharted!

#5 - Nepal

In Uncharted 2, in the first third of the game, you find yourself in Nepal with Chloe. This whole section of the game is one of the best, but the helicopter scene in particular stands out, and takes you over many rooftops and through a collapsing building to escape and eventually destroy your pursuing aircraft, and is easily one of the most tense and cintematic moments in the game.

#4 - Descendants!

In the first Uncharted game, towards the last part, you enter the facility and encounter a new type of enemy, giving the gameplay a fresh tweak and making it something more in the survival horror direction. The Descendants are zombie-like creatures who will pursue you relentlessly, and adds a fresh, nice, and unexpected twist for the game. I, for one, would be all for zombie DLC for Uncharted 3, anyone else?

#3 - The Ship

Uncharted 3 has many awesome set pieces. The chase in Syria. The burning Chateau. Wandering lonely in the desert, near death, looking for anything. Catching a plane, literally. But one segment towards the middle of the game stands out, it pits you on a ship against a secondary antagonist and at first, you venture into the ship, then one thing leads to another and you're trying to escape the ship, and during the whole time the storm and waves affect your movement and aiming ability, the whole segment just rocks, and even though it was shown and we were expecting it before release, it was still really awesome.

#2 - The Burning Chateau

I've played a lot of games, but no game has captured such tensity as the burning chateau segment in Uncharted 3, it had things constantly catching fire, burning, falling, blocking your path, and making you feel like this building is collapsing around you, the narrow escape attempts, and near-death scares were amazing, and the gorgeous graphics and realistic building destruction was the icing on the cake, truly one of the tensest moments in gaming history, even though we knew the outcome.

#1 - Train Segment

Uncharted 2 features one standout moment in particular. The moving train section. Every part of this segment screams amazing, the environment moves past you as quickly as as you're moving, you make your way towards the front of the train, but there's plenty opposition between you and them, and the game runs it all flawlessly, it takes you from a lush jungle setting up to a snowy mountain with no framerate hitches and even pits you against a helicopter, truly showcasing what the PS3 can do.

The Uncharted series is notable for its cinematic moments, and if I didn't list your favorite up here, or I got the order wrong in your opinion, let me know in the comments! Thanks for reading!

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January 28th 2012 @ 16:09

Posted By: infexxion - Category: No Category

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Delay, More Coming!

To anyone who reads this, I am truly sorry in the inconsistent updates I have been giving this blog. I apologize. But, instead of giving a lengthy apology, I fully plan to get back into the news writing mood so, thank you for bearing with me.

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January 27th 2012 @ 23:34

Posted By: infexxion - Category: No Category

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Back at it!

I apologize to everyone for the severe lack of posts, my computer got a horrid virus around New Years, and I've had to re-install windows, download everything all over again, and all that jazz.

Just know, I've got more stuff coming. I'll round off my Underdog Game Of The Year, quickly do a follow-up for my 2010 GOTY, and we'll get right back to the gaming reviews, news, etc.

Thanks for hanging in there, game on!

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February 4th 2011 @ 08:31

Posted By: infexxion - Category: No Category

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Underdog Game Of The Year Contenders

Here at Passion For Games, I like to mix it up, so I'm going to be doing an 'Underdog Game Of The Year 2010'. Basically, this list will be made up of games that didn't sell well, that didn't get the best review scores, or otherwise didn't compete with the 'big boys' (which is a VERY subjective and opinionated term, I use it lightly because all the games I list here I think are great) but are still great games and deserve recognition as such. So, who's up? Here are the 10 contenders for UGOTY (See what I did there?)

Mafia 2 is a game that blends classic mob-like storytelling and twisting it into the video game world in an open, free roam setting. It's a very interesting take on the genre, despite the whole 'free roam' thing being somewhat limited. Despite not playing the first, I very much enjoyed the second. It's one of the first free roam games that has implemented things I've wanted for years (gas, *mostly* realistic cops, an open world setting) into an innovative, fun game thats main draw is the story, which, for the most part, does not disappoint. Despite the lack of multiplayer, I see myself playing through Mafia 2 a second time probably by next summer.

On the contrary to Mafia 2's mostly empty open world, we have Just Cause 2, an over the top, fun, explosive, action-oriented sandbox game that basically says "Here's a huge map, here's two guns, go blow sh*t up and have fun!" And boy did I! Barrels go boom, there's plenty of big things to blow up, pulling off stunts is awesome and easy, and it's just one of those games you bust out to have a good, fun, unrealistic time with to laugh and widen your eyes at chaos *you* just created.

Army Of Two wasn't a huge hit back in 2008, but the sequel improved on nearly every aspect of the co-op shooter, which dropped early this year. Playing with another person through the whole campaign is fun as hell, and the AI isn't half bad either if you choose that route. Add in some morality moments to spice up storytelling, gun customization that rivals (or surpasses) that of Call Of Duty, and as the final ingredient drop in some hectic multiplayer, and The 40th Day was an absolute blast.

At last, we have had a new Splinter Cell game this year! Indeed, something we haven't been able to say for quite a while. While this game distances itself from its predecessors with much less 'traditional' Splinter Cell Stealth, which turned away a lot of fans, it's still a good game. The story is quite interesting, and while hearing enemies shouts insults at you every 5 seconds can get annoying, it's fun to employ the stealth tactics, the cover system is awesome, and watching guys open fire or run to the spot they think you are, only to discover you disappeared sometimes makes for some good fun. The online was very fun though, co-op missions and different modes was great fun. A solid game, just not a very good 'Splinter Cell' game.

A new Castlevania game has recently been unleashed upon us, and it's quite good. God Of War styled hack 'n slash gameplay, a strong story, great voice acting, awesome graphics, and an excellent upgrading system make this a very fun game to play through. I rented it not expecting much, but I'm having a blast with Castlevania: Lords Of Shadow. Some of the bosses are slightly annoying, but they are gorgeous to look at, and despite the frustrations, I give it to the devs, they are innovative and most are pretty cool.

Some people might be wondering why this isn't actually up for game of the year. Dead Rising 2 is a lot of fun, but after beating it, I realized it did feel very familiar, like Dead Rising 1.5. While the story is good, the bosses are unique, and combining weapons and moving while shooting are all welcome upgrades, not much else changed except for minor tweaks here and there. It's still fun to destroy the masses of zombies, and the new weapons and ways to kill zombies they implemented are amazing, and the old saying "If it ain't broke don't fix it" may hold true, but after beating it I deleted it from being installed on my 360. The multiplayer, for all intents and purposes, was fun for a few times but is just boring now. I had burnt myself out of the first game and the second just didn't bring enough to the table to keep me playing, but is still fun as hell.

Enslaved is a game that sold poorly, given how great it really is. The story holds true to being excellent and gripping, and you come to care about the characters as they venture on, and you want to know what happens next in the story. The gameplay is fun, even though I did encounter a few bugs and glitches where I had to reload to an earlier save. The platforming segments, while almost too linear, are a solid break of pace from the intense fights with mechs, and the game is just gorgeous to look at, the jungle areas are really brought to life here. A great single player experience.

Alpha Protocol got a lot of heat from reviews for the buggy combat, hilarious crouch animation, and overall poor gameplay. While I don't disagree that the combat is less than stellar, I don't think it is unplayable as most sites made it out to be. The story responds to your decisions and actions more than Mass Effect, but less than Heavy Rain or Dragon Age, and overall, I'd say the game is, while sometimes not as fun as the games I just mentioned, still worth playing just to see how your decisions affect the story and how it plays out.

Bioshock 2 is the sequel to the highly-acclaimed (and rightfully so!) Game Of The Year for 2007. In fact, another sequel, Bioshock: Infinite has already been announced! Bioshock was great, and I'm sure most, if not all agree with me that the biggest draw was the atmosphere and the way the game immerses you into this underwater world, Rapture. You feel like you're there, and the sequel only improves on that. While some will argue that the story is inferior to the first, it's still a blast to play through, and it keeps you wanting to play. Maybe because now we're familiar with Rapture it isn't as gripping, but it's still awesome to see. The graphics and combat have been ramped up, the multiplayer is fast and frantic, and it's still an awesome experience, one not to be missed in 2010 if you haven't played it.

Alan Wake, as you can read in my review, is an amazing game. It probably has the best Xbox 360 graphics I've seen so far (Gears 3 might change that, though) and the story is nothing but flat out amazing. It pulls you in and makes you NEED to know what happens next. You play through 6 episodes of Alan Wake's adventures (there's 2 more if you buy the DLC) and it's just great losing yourself in this world. When I had it rented, I couldn't let a day pass where I didn't play it. The combat, while maybe getting a bit repetitive toward the end, is still fun, and the game truly freaks you out sometimes, but it only adds to the gripping tale and awesome experience that is Alan Wake.

So, there you have it, 10 contenders for UGOTY. My pick for winner will be announced soon, so be sure to check back, and let me know what yours is!

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November 26th 2010 @ 07:51

Posted By: infexxion - Category: No Category

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Call Of Duty: Black Ops Review

Call Of Duty: Black Ops is the latest, and fourth game in the series by Treyarch, the developers of 'Call Of Duty 3' and 'World At War'

Ah, Call Of Duty. Loved by many, hated by many. My stance on it is somewhat neutral. I loved Call Of Duty 4, World At War was good for one thing: zombies, didn't really like Modern Warfare 2 much, and now Black Ops is upon us. So, is Treyarch still that 'other' Call Of Duty developer? Or have they stepped up their game to full on compete with Infinity Ward?

Visuals: The game looks good. Some people say the graphics are a step back from Modern Warfare 2, but I don't think so. One scene in particular in the campaign where Reznov (yes, the same Reznov from World At War - he returns!) is telling a story and is sitting next to a fire looks especially amazing. The guns (and the different camo you can apply to them) look pretty good, though some better than others.

All of the character models look good, and most of the multiplayer maps look good as well, with a few exceptions. Some of the walls in Cracked look low-res, and I don't think WMD or Array particularly look very good, but none of the maps look 'bad', some just look better than others.

4/5

Gameplay: The single player campaign is pretty good, definitely the best yet in the Call Of Duty series. Despite some rather bland missions, the story does keep you guessing, and is definitely engaging and worth playing. For a Call Of Duty game, it's surprisingly well-done. You play about three or four different characters, they all meet and interact, it's cool to watch play out. The story is told in flashbacks of the main character Alex Mason, and his interactions with other characters like Reznov, Hudson, and Woods. There is a neat little twist at the end too.

I've noticed a couple times where lip syncing gets off, and in the campaign where there was some noticeable screen tearing or slight pauses in the game. This was on the PS3, so I'm not sure if these are present in the 360 version or not.

The multiplayer, is for the most part, similar to past Call Of Duty games, just with different upgrades and improvements. One step backwards is the spawn system, which is for all intents and purposes, broken. Hopefully, nothing a patch can't fix, though. I never really got into Modern Warfare 2 multiplayer, so that may be why I am really enjoying Black Ops multiplayer. I think it's pretty fun. New this year is the ability to customize and deck out your classes's model with face paint, and the perks affect the way he looks. Also new are COD points, which are used to purchase guns and perks. Instead of hitting level 50 and unlocking 2 new guns, you 'unlock' them when you hit level 50, but you still have to buy them. Some of the maps are currently infested with campers, but that's the fault of the player, and I don't blame Treyarch for that.

Coming along with that are Wager Matches which allow you to pit your COD points against others. Basically, you bet your COD points that you'll come in the top 3 in that round, and there are 6 people in each match. Gun Game has been around for years in other games, Sharpshooter has everyone using the same gun for 45 seconds before switching, Sticks and Stones has you squaring off with a crossbow, tomahawk, and ballistic knife, and One In The Chamber gives you, well, one bullet in the chamber to kill everyone else, but if you kill them, you get their bullet. All of these are neat twists, and a lot of fun to play.

Now, let's talk about the reason I bought this game (and the reason I bought the Hardened Edition): Zombies. They are back in full swing, and are still a hell of a lot of fun. One of the main differences this time is now we have Cold War weapons to take on the hoards of the undead, instead of WW2 weapons. On the new maps (there are 3), there are new 'crawling' zombies, the maps are a lot bigger, there's new power ups, the improvements are seamless and very welcome, creating and pitting you against a bigger challenge, which is a lot of fun. At the time of writing this, my highest score on Kino Der Toten is 25 (let me know what yours is!) So, overall, zombies are still amazing, and definitely the reason I bought this game. We get the same 4 characters we became familiar with in World At War, and teaming up to take on the undead has never been funner.

4.8/5

Sound: The guns sound realistic enough, especially the improvements with the M1911, it no longer sounds like a paintball gun, it's got a nice *bang* to it. Conveniently, online, your character will announce to you and your team mates when planting a claymore, when he gets stuck with a crossbow or grenade, when he's throwing a frag, etc.

There's a really cool guitar when you start a multiplayer match, and being a fan of rock music, that's welcome. Props to Kevin Sherwood who has created yet another masterpiece of a song for Zombie Mode, entitled '115'. Great fun to listen to while blowing the masses of the undead to oblivion.

Strangely, sometimes you can hear footsteps, sometimes you can't. The Ninja perk seems a bit useless at this point. But again, these aren't game killers, especially for me and the way I play, I run around a lot so hearing someone's footsteps isn't as high on my priority list as say, point and shoot at the guy running.

The voice acting in the campaign is good, the character's voices match their faces, and overall, is pretty solid.

4/5

OVERALL:

PROS

Solid, fun multiplayer
Surprisingly good campaign
Good sound work
Epic return of Zombie mode

CONS

Not any major changes from past Call Of Duty's

OVERALL: 4.25/5 MUST BUY

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November 25th 2010 @ 00:57

Posted By: infexxion - Category: No Category

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Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood

The latest entry in the stealth action series, 'Assassin's Creed'

It's 2010, and we're seeing the third entry of the Assassin's Creed series, though it isn't titled so. Instead of being called Assassin's Creed 3 (which Ubisoft has stated they chose not to, because "when people see 3, they'll expect a new setting and a new character") it's got 'Brotherhood' at the end of it, which is fitting. It is a direct sequel to Assassin's Creed 2, which, while I didn't beat, I enjoyed playing. We still play as Ezio and Desmond, but that's by no means a bad thing. So, does Brotherhood factor in as a solid entry in the series

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November 24th 2010 @ 21:05

Posted By: infexxion - Category: No Category

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Red Dead Redemption: Undead Nightmare Review

Undead Nightmare is the latest (and best, so far) DLC for the hit game 'Red Dead Redemption'

Red Dead Redemption has had two great DLC's already, (Legends & Killers, and Liars & Cheats, respectively) but this marks the first time we've gotten some additions to the single player campaign AND multiplayer at the same time. When Rockstar said this was the biggest and best DLC for Red Dead, they weren't lying. Let's have a look

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November 24th 2010 @ 20:27

Posted By: infexxion - Category: No Category

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Halo: Reach Multiplayer Review

The latest and last Halo from Bungie.

Reach has finally released, and it had a lot of expectations riding along with it. As Bungie's last Halo game, they wanted to go out with a bang I'm sure. So, does this final installment of the Halo series take us back before the beginning in an epic tale of "what led up to all this?" Or does it fall flat with the consistently high expectation mark? Let's find out

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October 11th 2010 @ 03:51

Posted By: infexxion - Category: No Category

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Army Of Two: The 40th Day Review

The cover to the sequel to 2008's 'Army Of Two'

Army Of Two: The 40th Day is the sequel to the original Army Of Two, which, as the title implies, was a co-op heavy game that focused on team work and strategy, while calling upon a Gears Of War style third person shooter experience, with the ability to take cover and wield many guns, along with performing some cool co-op moves like dual sniping and back-to-back (both which make a return.) So, how does the sequel fare against the original? Let's find out

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September 24th 2010 @ 19:24

Posted By: infexxion - Category: No Category

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Halo: Reach Reviews

We're only a little less than two weeks away from the launch of one of the most anticipated titles of 2010, and arguably the most anticipated title of Fall 2010 (others will argue Call Of Duty is better, but we'll save that for another day.) The reviews for Reach are steadily streaming in, and most, if not all of them, are 10/10.

What does this mean

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September 6th 2010 @ 00:59

Posted By: infexxion - Category: No Category

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January 2012

2 Posts

February 2011

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November 2010

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