To Busy, Here Is A Quick Post

I'm a bit distracted this week and haven't had time to play the 2 games I was considering writing a review for.  The first one was Shadow of Mordor that came out this past Tuesday.  From what little I've played with it's reminiscent of the Batman Arkham games in terms of fighting style and free roam. 

The second one I really wanted to do but I felt that I needed to play more of it to do it justice was the Beta for The Crew.  The Crew is an MMO car racing game with some story (it has more story in the first 10 minutes than Destiny, ha! take that Destiny!) where you and your crew take down other crews around the USA.  You can drive from coast to coast on or off road, upgrade and customize your cars, race against other people, and play some revenge story that you don't care about.  Like I said, I need to play more of it but I thought I would at least give you guys a game trailer and a link to the Beta to try it out for yourself.

Closed Beta link: The Crew Beta

See you on the other side

Bitch'n Friday: Good Month For Game Releases

Now that the summer slump of new game is over, it is time to focus in on the up coming game for fall and christmas season. Already September has pushed out peaked my interest in up coming games that have released and soon to be. Here are a few that I'm going to buy or have already purchased.

Dance Central Spotlight (Xbox One) – Out Now

I've been waiting for over a year for the new installment to come out for the One and it is worth it. The improved motion tracking with the kinect is so much better, I love the new and improved Fitness section. The routines change and keep you on your toes every time you play the same song. For $10 the game comes with only 10 songs; some people will not like the fact that it has become a micro-transaction game, but I see it as a way to truly customize your playlist and dance to the song you like. I recommend it for those who want a more dance routine workout or a game night game.

Minecraft (Xbox One, PS4) – Out Now

It's finally out on the next gen consoles after months of waiting and pushed back released dates (the One edition was released a day early along side of PS4). The worlds are bigger, textures looks about the same from the previous gen, and and you can import you already created worlds so you don’t have to recreate them! Hours of soul sucking commence!

Destiny (Xbox One, PS4, 360, PS3) - September 9

One of the first big titles to kick off the Fall games. I'm still curious and on the fence about this game, interested to see if they can flush out a story. You can read my thought on the Beta here: Bitchn' Fridays: Destiny Beta Review

Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor (Xbox One, 360, PS4, PS3, PC) - September 30

This game seem interesting to me, an open world where you can choose what type of game style you want to play sound amazing. Check out Rooster Teeth demo of the game.

What fall games are you excited to play? Let me know in the comment section below.

See you on the other side

Bitchn' Fridays: Destiny Beta Review

Hi little bots, today I just wanted to to a brief review of the Destiny Beta now that it has launched on both systems and is available to play for anyone (no beta code required).

First off this game can be summed up in 4 words: New Phantasy Star Online. It's basicly a graphically updated version of Phantasy Star with elements of Star Wars and Borderlands mixed in. Visually the game is pretty, good music, and really feels like you are playing a MMO on the console. Playing it on both the PS4 and Xbox One there isn't a difference in visuals or game play, it all depends which controller you like using more and which console more of your friends are going to play on.

Game Play:

It's a first person MMO shooter, if you are like me and really suck at first person shooting games it's best to team up with a friend and tackle enemy’s together. In the Demo you are restricted to level 8, there was only 1 competitive multiplayer game type that I saw (the rest said restricted so I don’t know if that means you have to unlock them threw more game play or have to be a certain level), all of the story missions and free roam missions are in the same area (very repetitive game play).

Every time you enter a new area for a story mission or go back to free roam, you are dumped in the same spot with the same level 2 enemy’s looking at the same satellite tower. You go threw the same areas, new areas open up as you go threw the story line but it is still on the same map area and you repeatability go threw the same place over and over again. The enemy spawn points are supper obvious and you can predict when the enemy will re-spawn after another player has cleared that area.

As for creating your character and picking out your class and race, there isn’t that many options. You have 3 different races: Human,Exos (robot), and Awoken (blue people); and you have 3 different classes: Titian, Warlock, and Hunter.

after designing your race you come to the character creation screen where you have a limited number of faces to choose from all of which you can not alter, you can choose hair style, markings, and coloring for your character. I guess I'm a little spoiled when it comes to creating your character after playing Skyrim and Mass Effect so much that I expect to make my face look clownish if I so desire.

The thing that made me a little sad was the fact that choosing a character class really doesn’t matter. There are no perks to choosing one over another, all can wield any weapon in the game and the special attacks are the same. You have grenade type, special supper charge attack, and your bitch slap (aka melee). Yes, each class's special attacks does something a little different, but it all boils down to do you want to see your character use a golden gun or magically blast your enemy’s away when you use your charge attack.

Multiplayer:

It feels like any other competitive multiplayer, you just do it on the moon. No new wheel invention here as of yet.

Story:

Sigh, the story... it's like they expect you to know what is already going on in this world. I wish they gave your character amnesia so you can ask questions like who the hell are these blue people or the history. As of now the story telling is flater than a crepe. Hope they fix this before launch.

Graphics:

Graphics look good, your character looks fine in cut scenes, and load screens are pretty to look at. I didn’t see any glitches. The only down side is they will make a spawn point where the enemy comes out (say a bunker or room) black. This makes it supper obvious where your enemy is coming from.

Sound:

Like I said I have no complainants about the music, it was well done and fits in with the feel of the game. The sound effects for the guns and vehicles I've heard before. Very redundant, very pew pew pitching with the fire arms, and the bike sounds like one from Star Wars. Could have used some more gack sounds with the gun when firing, to give it more of that post apocalyptic feel.

Final Thought:

It's a pretty MMO for the next gen counsels. I don’t think it will be as great as every one was hoping it to be when the full game comes out. I just don’t see this winning game of the year. There are a lot of repetitiveness in the game play, a lot of grinding that might turn off a lot of players. If you like MMOs you will like this game, If you are more of a FPS type of player unfortunately it looks like you will have to play the MMO side of the game to unlock weapons/gear and upgrade your character for multiplayer. At that point you would be better off playing Battlefield or Halo Master Chief edition.

So Destiny Beta is out for everyone to play right now. It ends on Sunday, so if you would like to try it and form your own opinion about the game, please do! I probably will play the full game when it comes out in September. For more information about the game go to Destiny the Game.

See you on the other side

Game Review: Diablo 3

            Happy Friday everyone, just wanted to do a quick review on Diablo 3 since I finished is last week.  I know this game has been out since last year, but the console version for the 360 was released in September of this year.  My man bought it after some of his coworkers were raving about it.  With me being a lover of fantasy, I jut had to try it out.

Story

This is your typical hero save the world story.  You the main hero must battle undead, monsters, demons, and eventually the demon lord of hell Diablo.  The story plays out more like a play (a total of four acts you play threw) than a linear game.  I wont give away the plot, but it is a flat story line with a predictable plot twists, no character development, and flat NPCs that make you want to bang your head against the wall.  

           

Gameplay

            Supper easy to pick up.  Top down play to see everything around you, no jump scares of coming around the corner or surprise attacks.  This makes it a lot easier to strategize on how to go up against a group of enemies.  The controls are fluid and the camera adjusts your view (like seeing threw walls) and your movement with joysticks reacts quickly.  Your attacks are like that of World of Warcraft, where you pick an attack.  Unlike WoW, the attacks are quick and have a much faster reload time. 

            Playing with your friends either online or local co-op is great.  This game is meant to be played with someone else.  I know if you play with out someone you have a companion to help you fight; it is not the same as having a buddy with you to help or hinder you as you play threw the game.  Furthermore each time you play the game it randomly generates levels and encounters.  This make the replay more exciting since you have a new area to explore and wondering what is to come (unlike the main plot).

  

Graphics and Sound

           

            The graphics are better than WoW but still looks a little cartoony.  Yes you have some horrifying monsters but the over all look isn’t scary or creep you out.  The brightness and colors pop in this game resulting in little to no change in lighting from one dark dungeon to the outside.  I do like the character and monster designs; but it would have been nice to fully appreciate there detail if their was a way to zoom in on them or had a character gallery in the menu.

  

            The sound design relied on the background music and reused sound effects libraries.  Music in this game is very nice and calm, doesn’t pump you up unless you are up against a boss or about to head into a long battle.  I really dig the music in this game and how it changes with each chapter. The voice acting was well done by the actors desperately trying to give life to there flat as a pancake characters (I will stop now) and it was enjoyable to listen to them rather than reading out a large text.  Other than the voice acting and music the sound design was just coving there butts to make sure everything was covered that needed a sound. 

            Overall this game is great for those who want to play with friends or love dungeon crawlers.  While the story has been told a thousand times over, and the overall sound design is ok, the gameplay and easy on the colorful graphics will make this game an easy pick up for any gamer on any level.

           

            What are your thoughts on this game?  Agree or disagree with me, let me know in the comments below.  See you Monday for another instrument of my boring ass life.

 

See you on the other side.

Bitch’n Friday: First Impressions on Assassins Creed 4

            Still under the weather, this pesky cold will not let up and it appears that some of my friends are experiencing the same type of cold.  My man caved and bought Assassins Creed 4 instead of waiting for the next gen versions.  I’ve watched him play threw about 6% of the game and I thought that I would give my impressions on the first few hours of the game. 

  

            Right off the bat you are in the Animus and playing as Edward Kenway a privateer or as we would like to call him a pirate.  There isn’t a tutorial screen, yeah! Instead you play threw the story and learn along the way.  The Animus interface is the same but you don’t really feel like you are a guy stuck in a simulation.  The story and where you can go starts out very linier, but once you have obtained the Jackdaw it becomes a more open world exploration where you feel that you can say “fuck you, I am going to go over to this island and jump in trees for an hour.”

            This world is massive.  The first time you open your map and you see the 60 islands that you can visit, your mind is blown.  The ship mechanics are vastly improved from AC3 and the over all look of the ships is impressive, probably more so on the next gen.  The first time you are in a storm, it is intense.  Not only do you have to take in account of the winds but the waves as well or you can be shipwreck and have to start over. 

            For the most part the story is great, Edward is a pirate who happened across some assassin and trouble commence.  You like Edward, he isn’t out to save the world or has the assassins or Templers on his mind, no, he is a pirate and all he wants to do is get rich fast.  Let’s face it, you bought or going to buy this game based on the fact you want to play a pirate game like Sid Meier’s pirates but updated. 

            However the story takes a major dump when you are pulled out of the Animus and into the real world of game companies.  Good news is it is in first person so you can implement yourself more easily in the real world part of the game.  The bad news is…FRENCH CANADIANS EVERYWHERE!  I love Canadians, but French Canadians from Montréal are verge on the side of douche bag.  I have lived in B.C for over a year and every native born Canadian I ran into said Canada is great but they hate Montréal French Canadians.  Aside from the French, Desmond’s crew makes an appearance and all you want to do is to go back to your office area and play as Edward for the next 30 hours!

            Overall this seems like this will be better than AC3 and will be more sandbox, which I like, than the previous games.  Personally I would wait until the next gen counsels come out so you can really see the beauty in this game.  I might do a full review on this, if you want me to write in the comments below.  Also what are your thought on the game thus far.  Come back Monday for my weekly wrap up on my life.

See you on the other side.

Game Review: Grand Theft Auto V

            I have finally finished Grand Theft Auto V!  Holy cow it is a long game, but worth it for the pay off in the end.  I will be focusing on the game play, sound/design, and overall story/characters in the main game, sorry no online review yet.  There might be some spoilers, your have been warned!

Game Play

            The control for the cars and other motorized vehicles in the games is very well done.  For some one who hates driving in games because the cars usually go off the road after one bump into an object, that is saying a lot.  Now some cars are worse than others but once you have found a well balanced car (or pimped out a car enough to handle turns and breaking) it makes driving easier. 

            However, I have found the controls for aircraft to be a bitch.  The only thing I could really fly with precision was the helicopters.  Sure there is flight school but I didn’t really want to spend 2 hours (that is how long it would take me to complete the whole thing) learning to fly planes.  Thankfully there aren’t too many missions where you have to fly a plane.

            The fighting and shooting mechanics they are ok.  It is better to go into the setting menu and switch your sights to complex.  That way you can have a circle and a dot instead of a tiny little dot that you can barely see what you are shooting at.   Combat situations are easy to get threw as long as you stay in cover and switch to Trevor (when available) to use his special powers.

            Speaking of special powers, each main character has there own unique skill/power.  Michael is the ability to slow down time to doge bullets and precise aim (Max Pain style); Franklin is handy with cars so he has the ability to slow down time while in the car to make tactical driving chooses; Trevor can go into a berserker mode where time slows and he receives no damage while in this mode.  I found these to be very handy on missions and general walking around.

            Over all the game play mechanics are done well and once you have grasped them, you can fully immerge yourself into the game.

Visuals and Sound

            The visuals are stunning.  From the first moment you are walking on the beach and you watch the sunset, you know this game is going to look alright.  The lighting in this game is very well done, from the sun glares to neon lights; everything is properly lit and doesn’t seem out of place.  The water and sand looks like water and sand and not some copy and past texture.

            Although there are cases where the textures are copy and past, the shops that you cannot go into the “windows” look like poorly copied ads placed on the graphic.  Also if you are riding around in the hills or look at a patch of grass the texture looks like something out of a last gen counsel. 

  

            As for sound I literally had an orgasm when it came to the background sound design.  The layers and right mix of traffic noise and air was overwhelming.  It is refreshing to go to different parts of the city and get a different soundscape for each part.  Even on the beach near the city you could still hear the roar from the traffic. 

            The dialogue from the main cast was well done, it pays to have an excellent cast, but I felt the background extras became a little to repetitive.  The sound effects for the vehicles could be little more divers but overall everything was covered. 

            Overall the visuals and sound are stunning, and you can easily get lost for house in this gigantic sandbox just driving or what I like to do, sail around the map.

Story and Characters

            This is a long, long story line, as it should be with three main characters.  While I found the story to be moving at a good pace where I never felt board, I did find the story to be a little too predictable.  Once all the major players in the game had been introduced you could easily see the setup and ending roughly half way threw the main story.  Don’t get me wrong it is still a good story, but predictable. 

            Side mission story lines boarder on the ridiculousness but funny.  It is a nice deviant from the main story line and gives the player more experiences that you can do in the world.  I particularly love Trevor’s freaks and strangers missions. 

            The characters themselves are very complex and diverse in there own unique way.  You can easily identify where they came from, brought up, and became the person they are to this day.  As for the others characters outside of the main 3, every single one is flat and a stereotype.  The men fall into douche bag with penis envy while the women fall is a raging ball of PMS and sluts looking to score a high paying dick.  It would be nice to see some type of diversity in the next game.

            Final thought on the game, it was well written, visually appealing, and has a very high replay value.  Few things would need to be fixed for example a few of the textures, more complex villains and side characters, and better controls for flight.  But this was a fun game to play and I for one can not wait to dive back in to explore more of this world.

See you on the other side.