August 2010 - Passion For Games

Passion For Games

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Passion For Games - August 2010

Section 8 Review

Section 8 is a first person shooter released late last year for Xbox 360 and earlier this year for PS3.

Section 8 is a first person shooter that looks awesome (and should be awesome) on paper, but as I settled in to play it, after the first mission I realized this game just simply can't find its grounding at all. It wants to be a halo-styled shooter with a fast pace and frenzied combat, instead it just ends up being a bore-fest, and that's taking it lightly.

Visuals: Now, the game has some good looking cutscenes, I'll give it that. But most of the environments are bland, and some have some pretty bad textures. Level design is simply, and even though you're on different types of terrain and such, it all mostly feels the same.

2/5

Gameplay: The game does have a cool jetpack feature, but one thing immediately started annoying me about this game and annoyed me until I quit playing. Your character moves extremely slow. It is crazy. Now, I have no problem with slow character movement IF IT'S REALISTIC. Killzone 2 captures this perfectly. Instead, what do the developers do to counter this slow movement?

Well, they add a sprinting button that when held down for more than 4 seconds, switches to a third-person view and makes your character move EXTREMELY fast and it is almost impossible to turn. This was a horrible decision and I cannot stress enough how this does NOT WORK.

You're either moving slower than a snail with a walker, or you're speeding past your objectives with no intention of slowing down.

Bad, very bad.

1/5

Sound: The gun sounds are generic, though props to a couple of the voice actors that were actually mildly decent and not unbearable. Unnoticeable soundtrack rounds out this section with a

2/5

BREAKDOWN

PROS

It makes a good coaster

CONS

Bad gunplay
Horrible sprint/walking system
Guns and shooting are a cheap imitation of Halo (which does everything better, and I am indifferent about Halo)
Weak multiplayer

OVERALL: 1.6/5 Avoid

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August 26th 2010 @ 02:18

Posted By: infexxion - Category: No Category

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New domain!

Regular readers have probably noticed that this blog has several new posts. This is because this inactive blog was recently taken over by me (infexxion), so I will be running it from now on.

I do game reviews, game news, and give my thoughts on the industry and certain games, so hopefully it'll give you all something to read, and a little insight into my opinion on games that are coming out.

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August 24th 2010 @ 03:12

Posted By: infexxion - Category: No Category

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Alan Wake Review

Alan Wake is a psychological thriller from Remedy, the guys behind the acclaimed 'Max Payne' series

Alan Wake is a psychological thriller that is one hell of a ride to play through. The combat in unique enough to warrant some tense moments, but it doesn't stray so far from the typical third person shooter style that a steep learning curve is necessary to enjoy the game. The story is about writer Alan Wake, who has been unable to write anything for two years. So, in an attempt to break this writer's block steak of sorts, Alan and his wife, Alice, head to a remote location spot know as 'Bright Falls', a small, seemingly harmless town. But when Alice goes missing Alan, and the whole town, become victim to what is known as the 'Dark Presence' which takes over people.

Visuals: There's no denying that Alan Wake, exclusively for the Xbox 360, is a visually gorgeous game. Though the gloomy, depressing woods that we are frequently found in may seem boring, the atmosphere Remedy creates with a combination of fog, the flashlight which you carry around, and the way the forest is detailed simply makes the game that much more immersive.

The town of Bright Falls is colorful and, well, 'bright', in contrast to the dim forest we are usually in, and is a welcome change of scenery whenever you get to see it.

4.6/5

Gameplay: Alan Wake is mainly a third person shooting/survival horror combination. One of the main weapons you have is your flashlight. Basically, when the taken (regular people whom the dark presence have taken over, creatively dubbed 'The Taken') attack, they are surrounded by the dark presence. You have to shine your flashlight on them to eliminate the dark presence. However, once you've done so, they will still try to attack, but are now vulnerable to regular gunfire and weapons.

Later in the game you acquire flash bang grenades and flares which can be shot/dropped to quickly eliminate enemies whenever you feel outnumbered. There are also multiple versions of the flashlight that cast a bigger/smaller beam of light and are either more or less powerful than the other variants.

Alan Wake does a good job of building tension through combat. The game does an amazing job at not making you so powerful you can just take out enemy after enemy, but also not sending too many enemies on you at once. I really enjoyed this, as its only one of the recent games in memory to nail this head-on.

Mixed into the dark forest sections where you're fighting enemies are driving sequences, and other sequences where you talk to characters or follow someone around for a bit. These are a welcome break of pace to keep the game from getting repetitive.

The taken, mentioned previously, actually retain some of their personality so they talk to Alan as they attack him, only their voice is twisted, distored, pitched up or down, or in some other way effected to show the dark presence has control over them. This added a very creepy, yet satisfying personality to each individual enemy. For instance, a doctor that has been taken over by the dark presence will begin reciting the prescriptions for patients, or how many pills they get, while attacking Alan.

The game takes an episodic format like a TV show. Every time you complete an episode, the next recaps all the major events leading up to that point. So, if you've got someone watching you play they can be quickly and easily brought up to speed on the plot.

Speaking of the plot, I absolutely loved it. This is definitely one of the most engaging, immersive games this year. It really drags you into this universe and makes you feel like part of it. You really want to know what happens next, or what Alan is going to do, how he will try to find his wife, etc. Very fun game to play through, and the ending, while a bit 'unfinished', is entirely up for interpretation for us, the fans, to try and work out what happened exactly.

5/5

Sound: The eerie music does a great job of making you feel tense in the deep, dark forests. The voice work is great too, Alan Wake's voice totally matches his face and character. The dialogue is realistic, at times very emotional other times pretty funny. Major props to Remedy for the character of 'Barry', who adds a lot of comic relief during the last 3 episodes.

The game also has a great soundtrack, featuring David Bowie, Poe, Poets Of The Fall, and an in-game heavy metal band that includes two in-game characters which, in one particular sequence, is totally awesome. This fictional heavy metal band's music in the game is actually performed by previously mentioned artists, Poets Of The Fall (who, apparently, Remedy are big fans of, their song 'Late Goodbye' was in the credits of Max Payne 2)

4/5

BREAKDOWN

PROS

Amazing plot
Great voice acting
Great Gameplay
Good Soundtrack

CONS

Ending can be confusing

OVERALL: 4.5/5 Must Buy

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August 20th 2010 @ 23:40

Posted By: infexxion - Category: No Category

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Mass Effect 2 Coming to PS3

The hit sci-fi series is now on Sony's Playstation 3

All the rumors that have surfaced/plagued the internet since Mass Effect 2's launch back in January have been officially confirmed as of a few days ago, as developer Bioware announced at GamesCom the hit sci-fi series that is currently available on 360/PC will be making its way to the PS3 in January 2011, nearly one year after the game's launch on 360/PC.

What does this mean exactly? The abundance of PS3 fanboys are jumping for joy of course, but some are also shaking their heads. Likely because only the sequel was announced, not the first game in the series. Though some have speculated that because Microsoft was the publisher on the first game it will never make its way to PS3, others choose to adopt a more optimistic viewpoint with rumors circulating that the game will be re-released in the form of a game called 'Mass Effect: Genesis' for PS3.

Regardless, Bioware also announced that the PS3 version will contain 'hours and hours' of bonus content. Whether the developer was referring to the already-released DLC for the 360/PC being included free of charge on the Blu Ray of ME2 for PS3, or if the PS3 is getting exclusive Mass Effect 2 content, is unclear. Others still choose to believe this 'Bonus Content' is either a summary of the events in Mass Effect 1, or Mass Effect 1 itself.

Personally, I'd like to see Bioware include about a 1-2 hour recap of Mass Effect 1, allowing you to make the important decisions that would carry over to Mass Effect 2, such as whether you save the Rachni queen, whether you save Kaidan or Ashley, whether you save the Council, whether Wrex survives, etc. I think this would both bring PS3 gamers up to speed with the important decisions, and also not violate any deals that may still be standing between Bioware/Microsoft regarding Mass Effect 1.

Any which way you look at it, the Mass Effect series coming to PS3 is big news, and I for one am glad that the game is being released to a wider fanbase. I believe a game as amazing as Mass Effect 2 deserves to be played by all, and hopefully Bioware will deliver the same amazing ground-breaking experience on the PS3 that 360/PC Gamers have already got to experience.

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August 20th 2010 @ 03:23

Posted By: infexxion - Category: No Category

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Battlefield: Bad Company 2 Review

The sequel to DICE's destructive 'Battlefield: Bad Company' that released summer 2008.

Bad Company 2 was probably one of my most anticipated games for the first half of 2010. In my opinion, the original Bad Company was awesome. Large maps, fun vehicles, a sense of humor that was actually funny, great gunplay, and destructible environments all made for a fantastic multiplayer experience, plus the single-player campaign wasn't too bad at all. So how does the sequel stack up against its predecessor, and its current online rival, Modern Warfare 2? Let's find out.

Visuals: The game looks pretty good. The environments are large and colorful ranging from snow-filled multiplayer maps to jungle sections in the single player campaign. However, the character models aren't terribly detailed, and the water could've used a bit more work in my opinion.

3.8/5

Gameplay: The game plays quite a bit like the first Bad Company, so fans of the original will feel right at home as they boot up a multiplayer match. As for the single player, I liked the campaign (what I've played of it so far) better than the first Bad Company, though the light sense of humor that was in the first Bad Company is for the most part, gone.

Destroying buildings is still fun as ever, and now buildings can be completely destroyed. Meaning, if you throw enough grenades or enough gunfire plagues a building, it will eventually collapse, possibly killing all inside it in the process. I think this is an excellent new feature, and makes you re-think entering a building that looks like it could break at any second - it just might.

Plenty of guns, and unlocks for the multiplayer to keep you coming back. There's always a lot of people online. The controls are solid, and the game is just a blast. The matches online can get lengthy, so you might want to set aside an hour or so to get in about 3 full games, but still, I guarantee you won't get bored for a long time after picking this one up.

4.6/5

Sound: The guns sound excellent, and when you enter a building/shack/anything with an interior, there's an echo when you shoot a gun or a squadmate talks, making you feel that much more immersed in Bad Company 2.

Your squad will shout out updates in multiplayer, whether they are taking gunfire, killed an enemy, etc. Another thing is that the game is rated 'M' this time around, so whereas in the first Bad Company you might here 'I took him down', this time you'll hear 'I got that mother f*cker!'. This change will be purely up to the person playing whether they like it or not. Personally, I like it. Some of the taunts and insults after someone is killed can be pretty funny.

4.5/5

BREAKDOWN:

PROS
Same great gameplay with refined and new features
Buildings can collapse
Multiplayer is fun as hell
Single player will keep you entertained throughout

CONS
Graphics aren't amazing

OVERALL: 4.3/5 Must Rent/Recommended Buy