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.  
                 

The Elder Scrolls Anthology

Hey guys and gals by now you have most probably finished playing Skyrim, explored all of Skyim and leveled your character to the max but never fear for if you like so many others crave for more Elder Scrolls goodness Bethesda has an ace up their sleeve which comes in the shape of The Elder Scrolls Anthology. This masterpiece contains all 5 Elder Scrolls games from Arena to Skyrim with all the add-ons and expansion packs in between and also each game comes with a detailed map of the land that you will be exploring. The Elder Scrolls Anthology is exclusive to Pc at the moment and will set you back £49.99 in the UK and €59.99 in Europe both released September 13. If you live in the USA then its going to cost you $79.99  but you get it 3 days earlier for it's released on September 10 and for all 5 games plus maps and expansions I would say is a good price.

Image courtesy of Bethsoft 

 A shout out to mithrilwisdom for telling me of the existence of such an awesome collection of games. 

Dishonored Review

Hey Guys and Gals I became quite sad a couple of days ago, do you want to know why? because the steam sale ended although these sales are few and far between the boast some amazing deals such as Dishonored a steam punk idea that proved to be vastly popular within the gaming committee. Now no time to waste full steam ahead into the review!

The first thing you will notice about Dishonored is that the cover is very interesting for not only do you have that awesome mask but also you can see some type of magic that the person is showing off and that person is Corvo. Corvo the bodyguard of Empress Jessamine Kalswin is sent from Dunwall the setting for the duration of the game to find a cure for the recent plague that has begun to spread throughout Dunwall. On his return Corvo is forced to witness the assassination of Empress Jessamine Kaldwin and the kidnap or her daughter Emily, Corvo is blamed for this event and is imprisoned this is where you the player get to get to grips with the mechanics and style of the game.

The beauty about Dishonored is that you have the choice to either kill your way though footsoldiers or be all ninja and take the non-lethal approach however these do have there advantages and disadvantages. If for instance like me you prefer going all sneaky sneaky then the game will have less rats and infected but if you want to create utter chaos and kill everyone in your path then you will see more rats and infected as well as more guards as you progress though the game. The ending is also determined by your actions in game for a more violent and bloody play though will result in a darker ending than if you committed to a non-lethal take on the game.

As said before Dishonored can be played one of two ways or a mixture of lethal and non-lethal takedowns if you find that you have tried to take the stealthily route though a level and have been discovered you have two choices fight or run for your life. If you chose to fight then get ready for a repetitive but fun blocking and striking system, your primary weapon is your trusty sword/dagger thing that will be with you till the end I sadly named my weapon Kain after the legendary vampire from the Legacy of Kain series. Your secondary weapon can be swapped out from an arsenal of weapons from pistols to grenades these also vary, your crossbow for example can shot normal bolts, sleeping bolts, incendiary bolts and exploding bolts.

Movement is a big part in games where stealth is involved and Dishonored does this superbly from sliding to climbing, lucky for us Dunwall has plenty of opportunities to use these moves. Dunwall at its best consists of many hidden areas and secrets that can only be accessed by climbing and jumping around rooftops as well as the narrow lanes of the streets. One of the funniest and coolest things Iv'e done was running across a bridge getting discovered only to vault a stone wall and fall into a massive bin which kept me hidden from the search lights and the guards. 

Now the thing that makes Dishonored great is the fact that you can use that powers to create ways to kill that the developers didn't even think of, one of the earliest powers that you acquire is Blink now if you're a World of Warcraft fan you will know what this is if not then Blink is a power that allows you to move short distances in a blink of an eye. Blink combined with a jump can move you great distances which could mean the difference between life and death this combination has surely saved my skin a few times however my favourite power would be the ability to slow down and stop time this gives me some time (or until my mana pool runs out) to summon a pack of rats slowdown time and attach a bomb to them so when normal game is resumed the rats not only attack normally they explode as well its time consuming but the results are worth it.

Combining your powers to kill can take time but are totally worth it

All in all Dishonored is a bloody good game the option to kill or not to kill allows it to be played multiple times and this in today's age a game that has a good amount of replay ability is going to sell like hot cakes. The combat system could be improved from the blocking and striking system to allow chain kills if you are fighting a group of people, your powers however try to balance this out with the developers allowing you to use these while in combat to create maximum carnage. If by chance you did purchase Dishonored in the steam sale then your money has not gone to waste for Dishonored is one the best stealth action adventure games Iv'e played so far and with the rumours that there might be a sequel on the cards I for one am pretty excited as to where they will take this series.