Watch Dogs and The Crew Delayed

Hey guys and gals some sad news in the gaming community, Ubisoft has announced that Watch Dogs and The Crew have been delayed. Watch Dogs will now be released  between April 1 and June 30, 2014 and The Crew between July 1 and September 30, 2014. I am deeply saddened by this news for Watch Dogs was one of the next gen games I was really looking forward to but a statement by Ubisoft via Ubiblog should clear things up for you guys

"Our ambition from the start with Watch Dogs has been to deliver something that embodies what we wanted to see in the next-generation of gaming. It is with this in mind that we’ve made the tough decision to delay the release until spring 2014.

We know a lot of you are probably wondering: Why now? We struggled with whether we would delay the game. But from the beginning, we have adopted the attitude that we will not compromise on quality. As we got closer to release, as all the pieces of the puzzle were falling into place in our last push before completion, it became clear to us that we needed to take the extra time to polish and fine tune each detail so we can deliver a truly memorable and exceptional experience.

We would like to take this opportunity to thank all of you. We thoroughly enjoy and appreciate the way you respond on the web, at events, press conferences and other opportunities we have to interact. Your passion keeps us motivated.

We can’t wait to see you in Chicago next spring. We are confident you’ll love this game as much as we love working on it."

CEO Yves Guillemot also made a statement saying

"Our long term goal is to win the next generation. The tough decisions we are taking today to fully realize the major potential of our new creations have an impact on our short-term performance. We are convinced that, longer term, they will prove to be the right decisions both in terms of satisfaction for our fans and in terms of value creation for our shareholders. We are building franchises that will become perennial pillars of Ubisoft’s financial performance. In a context of growing successes for mega-blockbusters, the additional time given to the development of our titles will allow them to fulfill their huge ambitions and thus offer players even more exceptional experiences.

Fueled by strong momentum for PlayStation 4 and Xbox One, calendar 2014 will see the return of growth to the console market. Combined with the quality of our line-up and our strong financial situation, this growth will allow us to achieve record operating income in fiscal 2014-15 and 2015-16." 

Grand Theft Auto V Review

Hey guys and gals GTA V has been out for over a week now so either you've completed it or like me you're ruining though Los Santos picking fights with pedestrians or having high speed adrenaline filled chases with the LSPD (Los Santos Police Department) either way you've experienced the wonders of GTA V if not don't worry this review may just persuade you to become one of the millions of people already playing the game.

The Grand Theft Auto series has been a popular franchise among gamers since it was a top down old-school PC game and as the years went on and technology has made leaps and bounds GTA's fan base as grown astronomically to the point that GTA V is the UK's best selling game of all time beating the titan that is Call of Duty and that is no small task.

In GTA V you control for the first time in the games history not 1 but 3 protagonists while this seems daunting at first during gameplay it seems that Rockstar has perfected multi-character plots and the ability to switch between them. The 3 characters that you will be playing in GTA V are Michael the once best bank robber in the world who has been but into the witness protection program, Franklin the gangster of the trio who will do anything to gain some money and status then we have Trevor who is as crazy and insane as you're going to get but is also quite the comedian.

Get used to these guys as you will be playing them alot

Each character has their own special ability Micheal can slowdown time Max Payne style while shooting, Franklin can slowdown time when you're driving which if you're a bad driver like me this is very handy and Trevor who goes into berserk mode which allows him to deal twice the damage but also receive reduced damage. 
These abilities come at a cost though and that cost is represented by a yellow bar that is located at the bottom- left of the screen with your heath and body amour if you have some. If you're wondering how do you refill your ability meter its quite simple all you do is drive at top speed, driving on the wrong side of the road with on- coming traffic and in Trevor's case taking damage.

If you find that you're dying quickly or your ability bar is depleting rapidly then never fear for these can be upgraded by doing various activities and each activity is related to a certain area for example playing tennis will increase your power do to more damage in melee, running around Los Santos and competing in triathlons increases your stamina which allows you to run father without tiring and driving everywhere will increase your effectiveness with cars.

Driving in GTA V has vastly improved to the point that its fun to drive at high speeds without the fear of crashing 

Now GTA has been know to have some trouble when it comes to driving and that can be seen in GTA IV where if you wanted to turn a corner you would either drift and smash into everything or you would have to slow right down luckily GTA V improves upon this the first time you drive in GTA V you will notice that the cars are very sensitive to movements this is actually a good thing for ever since this has been implemented I haven't crashed so much and its generally more fun to drive from the one end of the map to the other.

The thing that makes GTA GTA are the weapons and how they handle in this respect the people at Rockstar have taken a page from Max Payne 3 where the reticle or the aim point is now a simple white dot this is a more simple version but it can sometimes be hard to see if you don't focus on it. The way in which you select your weapons is again taken from Max Payne 3 for your weapons appear on a radial around your character which you can chose from any you have purchased, depending on your character you may have different weapons say if you have a shotgun for Franklin and not for Trevor then until you purchase or find a shotgun for Trevor he can't select it.

GTA V has had gamers waiting for a long time and when it was finally released it did not disappoint in fact it was beyond expectations so much so that it's being dubbed the best game of the decade which is absolutely correct except for the mandatory 8 GB install to make the game run smoother I have had no disappointments with it. GTA V with over 100 hours of gameplay is going to keep me and fellow players occupied for a long time and with the release of GTA Online on the 1st of October which has over 700 missions I can see GTA being the most played game for many months to come. 

However PC players are suffering with no PC version available for them and Rockstar being smart will most probably announce a PC version in the next couple of months and whith the next generation of consoles released very soon will GTA V be ported to the next gen consoles if so they would not only provide a game that would be visually stunning but would make a ton of money.   

                            
     

A Steam Console?

Hey gays and gals yet another surprise by value today but this one taking the shape of a Steam Machine or Steam Box as people are calling it  which will let you play 3000 games while more to work via streaming. If you are panicking that you will have to buy this new hardware don't worry Value have said that you don't have to purchase it if you don't want to, for more information about this new Steam Machine click on the Link.
If you want the chance to test on of these machines Value is giving only 300 away so you can help with the development so what are you waiting for go check it out. 

A Steam Operating System

Hey guys and gals after a busy week I'm back and ready to work and to start things off Value announced yesterday that Steam is getting its own OS or Operating System. I am hugely excited for this due to the fact that I have a stupid amount of games on Steam thanks to their awesome sales also Value will be bringing something new and exciting to the table. For more information about the Steam OS click on the Link.

    

Saints Row IV Review

Hey guys and gals have you ever dreamed of being the president of the USA and having superpowers? if so then Saints Row IV is the game for you or is it? Read the review and find out for yourself.

Just like any Saints Row game you can expect over the top action and humor now some people hate stuff like that but for me its on of Saints Row's biggest feature. You can guaranty that every conversion that your character has will be filled with sex related jokes and one liners which although may not be pee your pants funny they will make you smile occasionally. 

The overall voice acting in Saints Row IV is good considering the fact that you can chose from 7 voices which include that of Nolan North who famously portrayed Nathan Drake from the Uncharted series and Desmond Miles in the Assassin's Creed series. 

Now on to the thing that makes all Saints Row games great and that is the endless amount that you customize your character from the colour of his/hers eyes to what type of socks they wear. It's this level of customization that makes Saints Row IV one of the silliest games ever made for if you ever wanted to have your character running around Steelport with nothing on except a towel and a halo then you're in luck because Saints Row IV leaves you do just that.

If you like to dress quite silly then Saints Row IV is the best game to do so 

Right off the bat in Saints Row IV you take the role of the president of the United States with one difference though...you have superpowers. When gain your powers they are quite powerful even though they haven't been upgraded, you upgrade your powers by collecting clusters of data which can be found everywhere around Steelport get enough of them and you can run faster,jump further and glide your way across Steelport. When these powers have been maxed out you feel like your are untouchable but that can take a long time if you're not doing any of the side quests of which there are many.

The fighting mechanics in Saints Row IV largely remain the same as Saints Row III which the exception of new super powered melee attacks and new controversial weapons such as the Violator which well you have to play the game or Google it to see why this game isn't for kids however there are weapons that just make no sense like the Dubstep gun which when fired makes civilians dance and cars bounce to the tune of "wub wub" while shooting out bright lights which are surprisingly effective. My favorite weapon though has got to be the Inflate-o-ray which you can guess inflates people well their heads anyway, while this takes time to do it's just too funny not to do. 

The addition of superpowers in Saints Row IV is just amazing no matter how bad you dress

Overall Saints Row IV is the best one so far for the introduction of superpowers and just amazing new weaponry make Saints Row IV a massive sand box that will keep you playing for hours due to the numerous side quests and just running, jumping and gliding around Steelport is just a blast.

Steam Family Sharing Gets People Excited

Hey guys and gals Valve has announced a Family Sharing system for Steam this allows users to share their  game libraries with family and friends. Users may only access a shared library one at a time so if you're playing something and someone wants to play one of  your games they have to wait. The library owner will always take the priority, so if someone's in your library and you want to play say Rome II they'll have a few minutes to quit playing or purchase the game they're running.

Steam accounts can authorize up to 10 devices at a time, however not every Steam game will necessarily be available for sharing external services such as Origin and Uplay, subscriptions, and other tech limitations may prevent you from playing someone else's games. However Valve notes that if you borrow a game you also have access to an owners DLC content.

I think that this I pretty neat espically that Microsoft took family sharing away from the Xbox One then decided to bring it back again, for more information check the Link to the official steam page where you can sing up to the beta.  

New information about PS4 and PS Vita

Hey guys and gals at Sony Japan’s pre-TGS press conference there was a vast array of information regarding next gen consoles and the PS Vita. 
First off the Vita is now designed for "a more casual and easier to use model” it's also thinner, lighter and  comes in different colors. It’s  not only 20 percent thinner and 15 percent lighter than the standard Vita model but the main thing is that its more “affordable,” packing a 5” LCD (liquid-crystal display) display instead of an OLED (organic light-emitting diode) screen. Battery life has been increased by an hour which added to the generous battery life it already has is just amazing. Sony as also announced a 64 GB memory card for the Vita however this so far is exclusively for Japan 

The biggest shock was unveiling of an all-new piece of Vita-related hardware. It’s called PS Vita TV, and it lets you play Vita games on your television. Now that's freaking awesome!
The idea of PS Vita TV is to let you play Vita games on your TV using a DualShock 3 controller.However PS Vita TV has a card slot for Vita games, and accepts Vita memory cards, so it will let you use video streaming services. It will even let you play your PlayStation 4 via Remote Play with DualShock 4. Sony are really pushing for the Vita to be the ultimate go to device when it comes to mobile gaming so if your a Vita owner 2013/14 will be a very good year for you and with rumors of a PS3/4 Vita bundle Sony could be racking in the cash.   

In other news the PlayStation 4 will launch in Japan on February 22, 2014, and will cost 39,980 Yen or $401 on its own with a DualShock 4 controller, or for 43,980 Yen $441 with the PlayStation 4’s camera. A special “First Limited Pack” will also be available, which will come with a download code for Knack and a one year guarantee on the hardware itself.  This year and next looks like a very expensive year for gamers and hardware enthusiasts. 

Xbox Live Rewards Made More Simple

Hey guys and gals if you spend a lot of money on Microsoft points then you must be familiar to Xbox Live Rewards which is a good system if you have the money. In the release of the Xbox One almost here Microsoft have re-imagined the entire Reward system and it's much more fair and manageable, for more details look below.  

Total War: Rome II Review

Hey guys and gals for this review we will be going back in time by about 2000 and odd years for one of the best RTS franchises that has hit the gaming market. So sharpen your swords and tie your sandals for Total War: Rome II.

If you haven't heard of the Total War series then you haven't played the best Real Time Strategy (RTS) franchise in the world. When Rome II was announced the fans of the series where intrigued for the original Rome has some hardcore fans which wanted to know where Creative Assembly would take the legacy of Rome, will they lead the squeal to glorious triumph or would they send it to the depths of Hades?

As with all Total War games you can control dozens of factions that are suited to the time period and Rome II's roster seems to be the biggest yet from the mighty Rome to the unique Eastern Pontus. Each faction comes with their own advantages and disadvantages which is new to the Total War series these advantages and disadvantages aren't game changing but if you're not careful the could backfire on you.

Also new to the Franchise is the introduction of provinces. Provinces are made up of 2-4 cities or settlements if you control all the cities and settlements you not only get the control of the province but you then have the ability to announce edicts which basically are buffs for that province these can range from extra food and increased tax to increased recruitment slots but you can only apply 2 edicts from the start but as your factions influence increases you can apply more and more edicts which are extremely helpful.

Rome II's campaign is vast and compelling 

In every RTS game without armies you can't win or defended against your enemy luckily this is Rome II's bread and butter. You still recruit troops the same way except that unlike previous Total War you can't split your army throughout the campaign map unless they are attached to a general this is a major pain for you cant take advantage of a settlement that only has a few troops defending it. On that note the days of raiding buildings in and around cities have gone for they are all contained within the city it self the thing that was a big thumbs up for me was that each building give you a certain number of troops so that you can defend your city if its attacked whether this is to compensate that you can't split your forces I don't know.

Now onto the best thing about Rome II, the combat. Just like all Total War games the battles have been intense and heart pounding and Rome II doubles the intensity with the introduction of naval battles combined with land battles. This amazing feature is arguably one of the best things about Rome II it allows your land troops to be supported by your fleet whether it be landing extra troops or raining fire from your siege ships. One on one fighting also has had a massive overhaul in Rome II even though the camera doesn't go that close to the troops you can still see each man fighting their individual fight which can sometime be quite satisfying to watch.    

Watching individuals fight to the death is some what fascinating  

As an avid Total War fan I was hugely looking forward to Rome II and I was not disappointed. There is some hiccups but that's to be expected for a PC game that has only just been released so if you're a huge Total War fan then Rome II is going to make you wish that you were a Roman solider but if you're just a casual player I personally would wait until the hiccups are fixed but overall Total War: Rome II is one of the best in the series.   

Xbox One release date announced

Hey guys and gals the long wait for the release date for the Xbox One was announced earlier today and that date is, drum roll please...November 22 in the following regions Australia, Austria, Brazil, Canada, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Mexico, New Zealand, Spain, UK, and the USA. Not only do we know the release date but the Xbox One's CPU has been boosted from 1.6 GHz to 1.75 GHz. This puts Microsoft a full week behind the PS4's November 15 launch in the USA but a week ahead of the November 29 Europe.  

  

PlayStation 4 Killzone bundle leaked

Hey guys and gals the console war as we know it is about to get nasty with the release of the Xbox One and the PlayStation 4 looming over us. With each new generation of consoles you expect a bundle that would give you some extra stuff and according to the Amazon France the PS4 could be getting a bundle that contains a physical copy of Killzone: Shadow Fall, two controllers, the PS4 camera and of course a 500 GB PS4. 

How much will this set you back? well if you live in France it will cost 499.99 Euros which is the same amount that an Xbox One costs, now if your strapped for cash but want the next generation of gaming consoles then the PS4 looks like to be the supreme winner.

   

Nintendo's new handheld announced

Hey guys and gals if you're a Nintendo fan then you should either love or hate this. Nintendo have announced the 2DS which is fully compatible with all 3DS and DS games but you can't display games in 3D. It does the same thing the 3DS does (WiFi, local multiplayer, etc.) and can be put to sleep using a slider that replicates closing the clamshell on a standard 3DS. So in my opinion it's basically a massive DSi or just a DS with added improvements and with a nice low price. Leave me know what you guys think in the comments below.

PayDay 2 Review

Hey gays and gals have you ever dreamed of having lots of cash or robbing a bank then fighting your way though swat teams and police? if so then Pay day is just around the corner.

PayDay 2 is one of the games that you either love or hate and for me personally Iv'e been looking forward to this since it's announcement. The first PayDay when it was released had a cult following until  PayDay was part of a steam sale where it again exploded in popularity, whether  it was the fact that you could rob a bank without facing the the police in real life I don't know , all I know is that the first PayDay was bloody amazing and PayDay 2 capitalises on this success in a big way. 

 First things first if you are going to rake in the cash in PayDay 2 you will have to think and act smart for unlike its predecessor you can't go in running and gunning...well you can but you won't get as much cash than if you went all ninja like. Payday 2 rewards thoughtful behaviour for if you can get in and out without alerting the guards then you will be buying upgrades for your guns left right and centre but this is always difficult for the objective locations are randomized. 

The randomization adds a great challenge every time you start a new game from security cameras being moved to entire rooms being in different positions. However this can cause some glitches for instance after a swat team had ambushed me and my fellow players carried 10 bags of shall we say illegal substance to one place only to find out that the door to the van to collect the goods had disappeared, we then had to fight our way though one of many assault phases to get the bags to a different location so we could try to outsmart the glitch and I can say that my heart was pounding as the adrenaline coursed though my veins as we tried to outsmart the glitch.

PayDay 2 is one of the best online team games I've played in a long time 

One of the most iconic aspects of the PayDay series is the famous masks and this return with a vengeance in PayDay 2. Masks in PayDay 2 can be customized from the patterns and colours that are provided to you and these can be found via cards that you pick after each mission but these cards or also random so you might get some money or a attachment for one of your guns but these still need to be paid for so in PayDay 2 cash is your worst and best friend.

Now the days of shared cash and XP have gone for in PayDay 2 each is now separate from each other and by that I mean you like any other FPS you gain XP from completing your objective and not by collecting cash a system which I miss. Also new are the skills which as you level-up can be purchased via points which can range from skills costing 1 point to 4 then on top of that you can ace these skills to make them generally better for example getting a skill that can leave you carry bags faster then by "aceing" or upgrading that skill you can throw loot bags further.

PayDay 2 is worth its weight in gold whilst in multiplayer however if you decided to venture into single player you will be met with AI that just doesn't know what to do, these AI partners don't interact
with loot bags or any objectives this can leave you feeling frustrated and basically it's just not playable. As said though the multiplayer is one of the enjoyable and heart pounding that I have played but It's not with out its faults which are really few and far between.    

Why is this cloud following the Xbox One?

Hey guys and gals if you have not heard we are in a war...a console war that will dominate our lives pretty much until the next one and the thing that has been pushed forward from both Microsoft and Sony is the "Cloud" which basically follows you or you're gaming identity should I say which Is kinda creepy. If like me you are confused on this matter the lovely people at Microsoft have given us a nice picture that will help us to understand what the "Cloud" is and what it actually does.

   

Star Trek: The Game Review

Hey guys and gals for this review we are going to a galaxy far far away...or are we boldly going  where no man has gone before? I can't remember. Enough talking lets energize straight to the review.

As a Trekkie myself I was excited about J.J.Abram's Star Trek Into The Darkness but as with all major blockbuster films there is always going to be a game that either ties into the story of the movie or takes a different route in the form of spin-offs or a completely different story. Star Trek: The Game sees our dynamic duo Spock and Captain James T. Kirk as they receives a distress call from a space station. There is too much interference to beam the crew aboard, so Captain James T. Kirk and Spock take a shuttle to rescue the crew. They encounter T'Mar, a childhood friend of Spock, who explains they were gathering energy to power the Helios device, which would speed up the terraforming of New Vulcan, but in the process opened a Rip in space. This rip allowed a new enemy for Spock and Kirk to fight called the Gorn who manage steal the Helios device.

Gorn in 1967...not very scary 

Gorn in 2013...these guys must be on steroids

 From the get go you have the option to either pick between Spock or Kirk and this is not just for cosmetic reasons, each character has their own gameplay techniques. Kirk is more of an all out action packed character that is focused on getting the job done no matter what while Spock has a more stealthy approach to situations and can use the deadly Vulcan death grip and the infamous mind meld which will give you immediate access to doors that would normal would have to be hacked via a mini -game.
Ah yes the mini-games, if you love mini-games left right and center then you will enjoy Star Trek even more but for those of you who despise them you can command your AI partner to complete the mini-game for you, sure it takes longer but if you have had enough this is a nice way to take a breather. Star Trek looks to be designed around the co-op aspect of the game for there are many events throughout the game that require your AI partner to help you from prying open doors to hacking systems at the same time, in theory this works but in-game not so much for if your human partner is a douche things can get dicey pretty fast.

As with all games these days you will along your journey gather experience points which can be used to upgrade your weapons and your abilities. Both Spock and Kirk have different weapons and abilities so in order to purchase each ability you will have to play though the game a few times dedicated to a certain character which on a side note you can't change between Spock and Kirk between missions or during gameplay. Whilst I was playing Star Trek the whole moving cover mechanic reminded me of Ghost Recon: Future Solider were you aim at the piece of cover you want to move to and hold down the prompted button, this type of cover system has been done to death but in the fire fights between you and the Gorn are hardly challenging. 

Sometimes the Gorn forget how to fight

Now AI in games should be up to a good standard but Star Trek's AI is unfortunately one of the worst Iv'e come across for the Gorn who just move from cover to cover and hardly shoot can make the game less fun than what it actually is, even your AI companion just stands there and doesn't do much but enjoys the scenery so it's basically you versus the entire game this coupled with tedious mini-games can really make Star Trek unplayable.          

99.99% of movie games suck and this applies with Star Trek: The Game for terrible AI and more mini-games than you can count can really get you down however the positive thing about Star Trek: The Game is that its a Star Trek game, many people who enjoy the Star Trek franchise will enjoy the game due to its ability to let you play as two of the most iconic sci-fi characters of all time. So would I recommend it? Yes but only if you can get it cheap or if you are a hard core Trekkie who just wants to kick Gorn ass as Spock or Kirk.                      

Amnesia: A Machine for Pigs is coming!

Hey guys and gals it's time to step back into the darkness for Amnesia: A Machine for Pigs, the follow-up to the genre-defining horror game, Amnesia: The Dark Descent has a release date of September 10th! If you played the original Amnesia then you will now that A Machine for Pigs is going to be even more scarier than its predecessor, is that a good thing? Well for people like me hell no because after playing Amnesia: The Dark Descent I nearly pooped my pants but for those of you who like being scared then A Machine for Pigs is going to be...your worst nightmare! 

Amnesia: A Machine for Pigs is going to give you nightmares every time you see a pig

Now some information about Amnesia: A Machine for Pigs,The year is 1899. Wealthy industrialist Oswald Mandus has returned home from a disastrous expedition to Mexico, which has ended in tragedy. Wracked by fever, haunted by dreams of a dark machine, he recovers consciousness in his own bed, with no idea of how much time has passed since his last memory. As he struggles to his feet, somewhere beneath him, an engine splutters, coughs, roars into life…

From the creators of Amnesia: The Dark Descent and Dear Esther comes a new first-person horror game that will drag you to the depths of greed, power and madness. It will bury its snout into your ribs and it will eat your heart. Amnesia: A Machine for Pigs is survival–horror at its most unsettling; helpless and alone, no weapons to soothe your nerves, and the dim light of your lantern to offer any comfort.

And a nice trailer to go with it.

Call of Duty: Ghosts Hardened And Prestige Editions Revealed

Hey guys and gals did you watch the Call of Duty: Ghosts reveal? If not I wont bore you any longer watch the entire event on Youtube or watch it right here.

   

One of the biggest announcements was the reveal of two editions of Call of Duty: Ghosts, the Prestige and Hardened Editions for PS3, PS4, XBOX 360 and XBOX ONE  

The Hardened Edition will set you back £89.99 GBP or $119.99 US Dollars and contains: 

• The game itself (that's handy) in a steelbook case
• Paracord strap which allows you to carry over 9 feet of paracord
• A season pass which grants you access to 4 map packs (this is actually good value if you plan on getting all 4 map packs)
• An in-game Ghosts insignia player patch
• An in-game Ghosts player background
• The official Call of Duty: Ghosts sound track
• It also includes Free Fall a dynamic bonus map

The Prestige Edition will cost you £179.99 GBP or $199.99 US Dollars and contains:

• Everything that is included in the Hardened Edition
• A 1080p HD tactical camera that's water proof and shock proof, it also comes with a 4gb memory card, batteries and an editing software. 

The question remains which edition I will be purchasing and the answer is that I don't really know for my gamer instinct wants the Prestige Edition but my wallet is saying the opposite.

Which edition will you guys and gals be getting? Let me know in the comment section below.

Dead Space 3 Review

Hey guys and gals for this review we are going into space...dead space that is.Dead Space 3, as you can guess it is the 3rd installment of the Dead Space franchise which is known for its action/horror style gameplay. The iconic hero that is Isaac Clarke or the marker killer as he is known as returns to kick some Necromorph butt in a variety of ways such as dismembering limbs and throwing them back at the attackers with interesting results. So is Dead Space 3 a waste of space? read the review below and find out.

As you would expect Dead Space 3 left off where Dead Space 2 ended...sort of you start 200 years before the original Dead Space as Tim Kaufman a solder in the Sovereign Colonies Armed Forces (S.C.A.F.). Your mission is collect an object called the Codex that will play a supremely important when you are playing as Isaac Clarke 200 years latter.

The vast amount of time you will spend doing in Dead Space 3 is collecting ammo, heath packs and resources to upgrade your RIG/suit. Depending on your level of difficulty the frequency of finding these items range scattered around the place to having to conserve your ammo and hope that there is an ammo pack in the next room. You are not alone when it comes to collecting resources for the game gives you scavenger bots which are the best thing since sliced bread for not only do they automatically collect resources they also collect rations which can be used as a type of currency to purchase micro-transactions for more powerful chips to upgrade your weapons.   

Collecting resources is a vital component to Dead Space because for the first time in the series you can craft your own weapon with dozen of unique bonuses for example every time you shoot a round into your enemy a small amount of stasis also hits them which slows them down to attachments that help your partner in co-op missions. I found this extremely helpful towards the end of the game where combat is a bit frantic, I will explain more about that further on. 

Customizing your weapon allows you to help your co-op partner or deal some real damage

 As soon as you start playing Dead Space 3 the first thing you will hear is the amazing music that plays throughout your journey, it can be soft and calm when you're traveling though space or suddenly a quartet of violins descend upon you and you know that you are in trouble. The music in Dead Space 3 adds to what already is a dark atmosphere that will make you question if a shadow is that of a Necromorph waiting to strike or a stack of boxes. While playing I have felt my heart pounding at the thought of a Necromorph running towards me with its arms flailing ready to kill me while another waits around the corner where I nearly jumped out of my seat. So Dead Space is one of the best games that can scare the life out of me thanks to its focus on the impressive atmosphere that really draws the player in. 

However the problem that I found with Dead Space 3 was its combat don't get me wrong I'm a huge fan of Dead Space 1&2 but the combat in Dead Space 3 is less tactical then the previous installments. The main enemies in the Dead Space series are the Necromorphs these can be killed by plain shooting them or to cause maximum damage you can shoot off their limbs. This in previous Dead Space games was a fun and enjoyable thing to do but in Dead Space 3 there is literally no time to catch your  breath for you are constantly surrounded by multiple Necromorphs that even when targeting their limbs take forever to die. After I played Dead Space 3 for a number of hours killing the Necromorphs stopped being fun and started to become a chore if anything and if you actually manage to dismember a limb an throw it back at the owner via TK then that doesn't do much damage but that's if you even get a chance with about 6 or 7 Necromorphs breathing down your neck.       

Fighting Necromorphs becomes a chore after a while

Also new to the Dead Space series is the feature of co-op missions these are missions in game that can only be accessed if you are playing with a friend or a random person. When I play games that have a drop in/out system and I want to play the campaign in solo mode I switch it off, in Dead Spaces case I felt like I was being penalized for doing so for if I wanted to go back play those missions with a friend we would have to play though the entire chapter just to play the one co-op mission. After this little nuisance the co-op was generally fun, I think if there was a dedicated co-op campaign that spun off from the Dead Space 3 story it would have worked better rather than penalizing people who like to play their games solo.

All in all Dead Space 3 was a little bit disappointing for me because of the choice to drift towards the style of an action game rather than stick to the horror side that made Dead Space 1&2 hugely popular. That being said Dead Space 3 does have its good side, the fact that you are able to scavenge for resources to build new weapons and up grade them is a huge thumps up for me because I really like the ability to customize items that give you in-game bonuses. So would I recommend this game? Yes I would because although it's not the best in the series it's still worth a playthough if you have a few hours to kill.           

Call of Duty: Ghosts Multiplayer Reveal Reminder

Hey guys and gals a quick reminder that the Call of Duty: Ghosts multiplayer reveal is tomorrow at 17:30 GMT (5:30pm) for the UK and 10:30am PDT.
To watch this reveal click on the following link. http://www.callofduty.com/ghosts/feed

   

Grand Theft Auto Multiplayer Reveal

Hey guys and gals if you're looking forward to GTA V then put you your hands up in the air and wave them like you just don't care! I'm going to assume that 99.99% of you did and here is some news to get the rest of you excited. Rockstar have recently announced that on the Thursday the 15th of August we will get our first real look into the world of GTA V's multiplayer, which we saw a glimpse of in the end of the gameplay trailer that was released a month ago. So in order to watch this reveal you must go to rockstargames.com/GTAOnline on the 15th of August this Thursday. 

Image courtesy of Rockstargames

If you missed or want to re-watch the gameplay trailer then watch the video below.
         

A ton of new Xbox One videos

Hey guys and gals today Microsoft has given us a ton of videos including the official unboxing, information about the controller, the headset and the play & charge kit for their upcoming console Xbox One. If like me you hated the Xbox One at its reveal at E3 you might not want to watch them but as Microsoft has sorted out is huge problem of DRM you might think of purchasing an Xbox One at launch.

The things that make an Xbox One work

The main video that was published today was the official unboxing of the Xbox One by Major Nelson. The Xbox One will come with a 4K HDMI cable (sounds fancy) and a headset which Microsoft had previously said that it was going to be an accessory that had to be bought, all this comes in a liquid black which is basically a shiny black. If you are interested in watching the videos then by all means go ahead. 

   

Sleeping Dogs Review

Hey guys and gals for this review were are journeying to the Far East, our destination Modern Day Hong Kong.
Sleeping Dogs around the time of its release in August 2012 was a highly anticipated game that focused primarily on the martial arts style combat. A fun fact about Sleeping Dogs is that it was originally the 3rd True Crime game called True Crime: Hong Kong but due to high development costs the game was shelved in 2011 until Square Enix stepped in and acquired the publishing rights.

Original box art for True Crime: Hong Kong

In Sleeping Dogs you play as Wei Shen a recently transferred officer from the San Francisco Police Department to the Hong Kong Police Force, your mission is to infiltrate Triad society and take down the Sun On Yee. As Wei is deep undercover he will have to act just like a genuine member of the Sun On Yee this can be in the form of taking out key targets from other Triad gangs such as you in-game rivals the 18k. 

As you play though the game you will have to act like a law enforcer and a member of the Sun On Yee at the same time this sounds difficult and it is for after each mission you are scored on your Police XP and your Triad XP. if for instance you steal a car or destroy a railings your Police XP will decrease, this is a pain in the side on levels where you are pursuing a target though the busy streets of Hong Kong where I always either smash into a dozen cars and railings. Your Triad XP is earned by being basically a badass from doing combos to slow-mo Max Payne gun fights, if you collected enough XP you have the option to upgrade Wei in all sorts of ways from the Slim Jim which allows you to steal cars without your Police XP suffering to doing awesome slow motion stunts. 

As well as Police XP and Triad XP there is also Face XP which unlike the previous two can only be acquired via Wei's reputation which can be increased by buying clothes and doing side missions, each level of Face XP gives its unique advantages such as food consumed effects will last longer, Face XP are purely for cosmetic additions for Wei but are advantageous mentioned are quite useful during the latter part of the game.

Now the combat in Sleeping Dogs is much like that of the free flowing action that we all loved from Batman: Arkham Asylum/City, you start off the game with just the basic punch, kick and grab moves but as you progress though the game you will be able to unlock devastating moves that literally leave your surrounding enemies in shock however you can only acquire these moves if you find 11 jade statues for everyone you collect you can learn an additional move. The statues themselves are not difficult to find but some are mission locked so you have to play certain missions in order to retrieve them for out of the mission they are inaccessible. During combat you will encounter different types of enemies these include the Grapplers who cant be grabbed but cant block, the Strikers who are your basic thugs, Armed Thugs who will be your bain for if you miss your counter then they will deal serious damage and finally we have the Brawlers who are the tanks of Sleeping Dogs for they can absorb a lot of damage and deal quite a bit of damage. 

Combat can be challenging but when you know what to do it's a hell of a lot of fun. 

In sleeping Dogs you will be doing a lot of shooting and it does this quite well because it follows the Gears of War style of moving from cover to cover, blind firing and vaulting over cover and into slow-mo Max Payne style. You also have the ability to shoot while driving using the shoulder buttons which at first feels strange and unnatural but after a few car shootouts you will soon master these mechanics. Talking about driving Sleeping Dogs has one of the best driving mechanics Iv'e seen in a open world game for unlike Grand Theft Auto VI where you can drift totally out of control Sleeping Dogs feels more refined however the best thing about driving in Sleeping Dogs is the ability to open your door to jump onto other vehicles and hijack them, I however use this ability to knock people off their motorbikes and Triad members.

Sleeping Dogs is one of those games where you can lose hours upon hours due to its vast open world and the option to try and collect the collectibles scattered around Hong Kong. Even after you have finished the game maybe you haven't maxed out your Face XP this in itself may take you either minutes or hours depending on how much XP you have collected, then there is the choice to just create havoc and have car chases with the Hong Kong Police. So over all Sleeping Dogs is one of the best open world games that I have played but with GTA V being released on September 17th  I may have to rethink my verdict.