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Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 review
Posted by John Ball Categories: Activision, First Person Shooters, PlayStation 3, PlayStation Network, Reviews, Wii, Xbox 360, Xbox Live
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Since the release of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 this past November, many were left wondering what was next in store for the Call of Duty franchise. With seemingly every American war being fought in one of their games and having made up a war in the near future, we may have seen the final Call of Duty game release last year. Is this necessarily a bad thing though? The Call of Duty franchise and especially the Modern Warfare series have been raved by gamers as the best video game series of the last several years. With thrilling and fast paced online multiplayer that Mountain Dew guzzlers love and customizability that the hardcore gamer can submerge themselves into, who can argue that it isn’t?
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Gears of War 3 beta review
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Features, Reviews, Third Person Shooters, Xbox 360
"Gears of War 3," the final installment in the Gears of War trilogy, is slated to hit store shelves on September 20, bringing the war between The Coalition of Ordered Governments (COG) and the Locust Hoard to its conclusion. However, you don't have to wait until the fall to play the game; developer Epic Games has given those who purchased "Bulletstorm: Epic Edition" or pre-ordered "Gears of War 3" a chance to take the online multiplayer for a spin. New and returning gamers will appreciate all the new weapons, characters, and the smooth online experience.
The "Gears of War" beta comes with a purpose. Besides letting gamers preview the title before its release, Epic Games is using it to test its new dedicated online servers. The studio is also looking to iron out any bugs, glitches, and exploits that plagued the previous series entries.
The gameplay of "Gears of War 3" multiplayer remains mostly the same, but it incorporates new weapons, maps, game modes, and game play mechanics. Gamers will continue to strategically go in and out of cover to get a better position for the kill.
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Portal 2 review
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: First Person Shooters, PC, PlayStation 3, Puzzle, Reviews, Xbox 360
Innovation in video games is terrific—sometimes. But with certain ideas and series, particularly the simplest ones, the smartest thing to do can be to just expand and build on the concept but not change it very much. That's the choice Valve Software has made with Portal 2, the ravenously awaited sequel to the addictive and brain-twisting 2007 first-person puzzler. Judging from our initial half-day with the game, Valve has chosen wisely.
The original Portal, first released as part of the Orange Box collection, was maddening because it was so straightforward, and delightful because of its rampant dementedness. As a test subject trapped in the Aperture Science building, you were armed only with a gun that could create up two dimensional portals: shoot a blue one, shoot an orange one, then run through one to emerge from the other. Strategy and physics played key roles as you struggled to discover what happened to the all the office workers, evade turret fire and pits of foul-looking liquid, and determine what the nature was of the teasing and tormenting computer (the Genetic Lifeform and Disk Operating System, or GLaDOS) that made jokes at your expense every 30 seconds.
Portal succeeded because its formula was both hard to screw up but easy to love. It was both rigorously adult (some of the levels were hard, and many of the bonus boards all but impossible), and yet faultlessly cute (who can forget the baby-voiced android weapons, or the Weighted Companion Cube emblazoned on all six sides with hearts). This meant that anyone of any age could play it, and because it required just a handful of keys or buttons (far fewer than the average shooter), you didn't even need to be an experienced gamer. As if realizing this, Valve even structured the game to provide to provide its own fully integrated tutorial so you could master tricky concepts without being aware you were learning everything.
In fact, the most commonly cited problem with the game was that it was too short: Nineteen levels and it was done. For years, people have been crying out for more levels and more snappy wit—and with Portal 2, that is what Valve has almost exclusively provided.
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Fallout: New Vegas Review
Posted by Patrick Lambert Categories: Action, PlayStation 3, Reviews, Role Playing Games, Xbox 360
As the first game of the season I was eagerly awaiting, I got Fallout: New Vegas as soon as it came out and played it religiously for 27 hours. In that time I estimate that I probably finished around 60% of the side quests before finishing the main story. It gave me an overview of the wasteland in and around the strip, and most of the quests available to carry the story along. The game is available for the PC, Xbox 360, and Playstation 3. So, is it worth your time? We give you our thoughts in our full review.
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Sonic the Hedgehog 4: Episode 1 review
Posted by John Kilhefner Categories: Platformers, PlayStation 3, PlayStation Network, Reviews, Virtual Console, Wii, Xbox 360, Xbox Live Arcade
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“Nightmares exist outside of logic, and there’s little fun to be had in explanations; they’re antithetical to the poetry of fear.”
- Stephen King
And so begins the story of Alan Wake. When you begin the game, that line is spoken by the main character, writer and horror novelist Alan Wake, and it sets the tone perfectly for the adventure that you are about to embark upon. Alan Wake is a game where you’ll spend time searching for answers, questioning what is real, and answering questions that the main character never wanted to have asked. The beauty of the title is that the premise is simple and enthralling all at once—a horror novelist’s story has come to life, and he is in the middle of it. Even stranger, he doesn’t recall writing it.
We must say, we’ve been excited about Alan Wake since we first heard about it some five years ago. The narrated gameplay makes it feel like you are playing through a novel, or maybe more closely, a series of Twilight Zone episodes. This is a welcome difference from the all-to-common feeling that developers often try to make it feel like you are “playing” a movie. The game has been in development forever, and saw a couple of delays, which normally signals trouble (just look at Too Human.) However, we are here to tell you that Alan Wake didn’t suffer for it. This is one book that you won’t want to put down until the very last word.
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Gallery: Alan Wake review
Mafia II: Hands-on impressions
Posted by Alex Lifschitz Categories: Action, Features, PC, PlayStation 3, Reviews, Xbox 360
Poor Mafia. When the first game released in 2002, it drew plenty of criticism for being too much in the vein of Grand Theft Auto. The game actually had a flair of its own and a distinct cinematic style, with plenty of interesting moments and glowing reviews. Some moments in particular (notably the one involving crashing a funeral) were altogether more memorable than anything in other open-world games.
Nearly a decade later, 2K Games has decided to bring the series to current-gen consoles with Mafia II. We got a hands-on sneak peak at the game at the GDC. Do your best Marlon Brando impersonation (note: please do not do your best Marlon Brando impersonation) and hit the jump to see how it stacks up to its namesake.
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Hands-On with Sony’s PS3 3D Games
Posted by Alex Lifschitz Categories: Features, PlayStation 3, Reviews, Sony
3D was a fad that died a well-deserved death during the 90s. Of course, the flame was kept alive by evil, evil hipsters who swapped between polarized lenses and shutter shades for a while, but only recently has it come back in a big way (thanks to new glasses, new technology, and the ability for us as a culture to forgive transgressions for existing as fads before being properly implemented.)
Sony is apparently on board with the 3D revival, and they had a bunch of games and TVs showing off their 3D technology at the GDC. Hit the jump for our hands-on impressions.
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‘Splosion Man Review: This game is a blast!
Posted by Brandon Gribin Categories: Action, Downloadable Content, Reviews, Xbox 360, Xbox Live Arcade
‘Splosion Man, currently available for the Xbox 360 on Xbox Live Arcade, is a 2.5-D action platformer where the goal is to “splode” your way through levels.
You play as a guy who can ‘splode himself - which essentially propels him into a jump. The controls are simple - A, B, X, and Y all do the same thing; yeah you guessed it, ‘Splode. You can also perform wall-kicks, akin to many platformers like the more recent Mario games. Of course, instead of just kicking of a wall, you ‘splode off of it.
However, the game’s not so simple once you get going. The catch is that you can only ‘splode three times while in the air before either coming back down to the ground or briefly sliding down a wall to recharge your ‘splode-ability.
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Hands-on with the August 11 Xbox 360 Dashboard Update
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Downloadable Content, Features, Microsoft, Reviews, Xbox 360, Xbox Live, Xbox Live Marketplace
This morning, Microsoft hooked us up with an early preview of the next Xbox 360 Dashboard Update. We were able to get a look at the new Netflix features (which no longer require a PC,) the Avatar Marketplace, Game Ratings, Games on Demand, and more. While more coveted features like Twitter, Facebook, Last.fm, and Zune Marketplace won’t be landing until the fall, the update is still a solid one. Here are our thoughts on the next update, which lands on your Xbox 360 on August 11 (or sooner if you apply for early access!)
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Gallery: Hands-on with the August 11 Xbox 360 Dashboard Update
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