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Worth it for house settings. I use a wireless network with a 360 and media PC. I have lived in two places with my 360 adapter. First a small apartment. There, I was able to use my 360 for Tivo-like abilities. Everything pretty much worked fine. A few times, there was some network congestion. However, for the most part things went the way they were suppose to.
My house is another story (no pun intended). The nice thing about the adapter (as pointed out by a few), is that it supports the 802.11a. Problem is, that my router and wireless USB upstairs are only B/G. The media center PC is upstairs, and no matter where I have placed the router, have not been able to get a strong enough signal for TV/movies on my 52" on the main floor.
I plan to get a router and USB adapter that both support A, and this should solve my problem (I found even with my current setup, if I override the TV viewing on the media center, I can still watch my movies stored on my media PC, however I get a lot of congestion at times, and it is not possible to watch a movie without skipping once or twice).
If your 360 is close enough to your computer, you should run a LAN cable. however, if you have any form of a network, this item is worth the money, even if you do not use a media center PC.
If you have a media center PC, and are going to have a network, make sure your router supports 802.11A that your media center PC goes through, this is what you want (assuming that you have a TV source, or movies in the right format, like WMV, on your media PC).
Bottom line:
(5 stars) if you have or plan to include 802.11A router and have a media center PC \ if you live in a large house \ if your 360 is no where near a wired network spot
(1 star) you live in a loft \ your 360, computer, and network are in hands reach of each other \ you do not have an internet connection, and are reading this review on someone else's computer
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video-games_xbox
|
Flawed Masterpiece. This is an amazing game in its breadth and scope, with one of the largest virtual worlds I think I have played (think SSX Tricky III times 10, or Zelda Twighlight Princess times 4). The graphics are stunning, the movements and characterisations of people and horses are fantastic. The American and Mexican territories are rendered beautifully, with very convincing landscapes and changing weather (everything from lightning, thunder and rain to snow to bright sunshine and everything in between). There is a plenty to keep the player occupied - I finished the game in about 70 hours of play. Side missions, narrative, mini-games (Poker, Blackjack, Liar's Dice, Five Finger Fillet etc), bounty hunting, wildlife hunting and treasure hunting all make for a rich and varied game play. For this reason I don't understand reviews which said it is repetitive, nor those who said travel is boring - they obviously did not find the 'travel to waypoint' feature in the 'improved campsite'. I do agree that there wasn't enough stuff to buy in the game - I ended up with about $5,000 from normal gameplay and with nothing to spend it on.
With R* spending somewhere between $80 to $100 million dollars on this game it's no surprise the detail, voice, story etc is going to rival Hollywood movie standards and it does. I like the story and the ending (some people don't like the ending - it is a little unusual but it fits). No surpise they brought in a movie director to make a short film entirely using the game graphics ('The man from Blackwater').
I was skeptical at first due to the level of violence expected from such a title; which, although gunfights are one of the main elements of play, is a reflection of history and it's set within a moral framework, so it's not 'mindless' (unless you choose to play it this way, which is not the way the narrative leads things). It would be nice to see more titles in the future which don't feature so much violence but do have this level of excellence. What I'm saying is that it is difficult to pick up a computer game these days that doesn't have guns or swords in them, but there is so much more to gaming than killing. Having the RAGE engine and movie quality production leads to a compelling virtual world to explore, and the narrative possibilities are endless which don't involve a gunfight every two minutes (think Sherlock Holmes, Scott of the Antartic, Odysseus the list goes on and on). Even in this game, it seems there are too many side-of-the-road encounters which involve a gunfight - was the Wild West really this wild?
There are occasional bugs in this game, which in some ways are a little humorous, but also sometimes annoying. You would think that R* having spent so much money making such a monumental game, they would spend a little more time and effort to iron out all these wrinkles. Without these glitches, the game would be an out and out masterpiece. As it is, it's just a flawed masterpiece. Some glitches I found:
- Sound goes 'scratchy' - have to reboot Xbox to fix.
- Yellow suitacase left in midair after 'he stole my wagon' encounter.
- Bank lady employee in Blackwater, next to safe had chair superimposed on her head.
- Person lying down in bed, but projecting out 90 degrees, i.e. lying on thin air.
- Viewing 'Loot' cutscenes from under cabin floors.
- Getting completely 'stuck' in the cabin whilst lasooing a baddie in Aurora Basin. Had to reboot Xbox, as I couldn't even get to the in game menu.
- People getting stuck in walls.
- People continually walking against a building.
- Jack 'hiding' in the barn in the final John Martson scene, but he's not really there.
- Mirrors not reflecting JM (*)
The list goes on - there are a lot.
(*) The non-reflection thing is interesting. I was thinking for sometime whether this was some bizarre story device, like JM is actually a ghost or something, but having played through the whole game, I feel it's just an inconsistency.
One other element which is part of the deliberate design, but is totally silly, is being able to select your horse deed in the wild, whistle and magically get a new horse! How nuts is that? Yes, it would be OK if you were in a town for example, but in the middle of the countryside?
These small issues (and they really are small compared to everything else) don't detract from a fantastic game. It's 'legendary'! This game raises the bar very high indeed, and I look forward to more games of this calibre, now that the precedent has been set.
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video-games_xbox
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Another Let-down for the Year. [I HAVE played this game on BOTH the Xbox 360 and Playstation 3 - thus am posting this review on both consoles.]
*sigh* I had hopes. In fact I had high hopes, and that's what makes it so dissapointing.
It's been said a lot - Most Wanted was a great game. A fantastic game. One of the very few games I decided to play through twice just to try a different approach.
What made Most Wanted different for a driving game was a compelling story. It wasn't even a very deep story, but you had conflict right from the get-go and it made you eager - no, determined - to get revenge. It gave you a clear, linear story - 8 "bad guys" (I think it was eight...) to take on until you reached the baddest dude of all - the guy who took your car, took your reputation, even tried to take your girl... But in between those linear points, the game was a free-for-all. You had set things you had to do, but you could do them in any order, you could do them however you wanted. You always knew were the next objective was, but still had that freedom.
Undercover is just a cluster. There's roads everywhere, cops everywhere, races everywhere... You have no idea what to do. The story is clear only because we've read about it here on Amazon, on other review sites... Honestly, the game has never told ME that I'm an undercover cop.
The came starts with a car chase - you at the wheel - and a million cops behind you. You're in a 350z, pretty decked out, Red. Suddenly you get away. Then you're watching a clandestine meeting between a woman and a shadowy, male figure. She says he's going to be their driver. It wasn't until my second re-start (tried a different console) that I realized, "Oh, I guess I'm that guy..." Next thing you know you're sitting on the street in a POS Nissan. What happened to the 350z? What am I doing? What's the objective? Who am I??
So you start running races - easy to do, just push down on the D-pad and it'll automatically launch the next race. You'll run a few races and then get a short, somewhat vague cut-scene. That'll open up a unique race - which you'll run - and nothing special will happen. So you'll do a few more races, then something else suddenly happens... It's really only curiosity that keeps you playing. There's no motivation, no apparent pay-off... I've played now for a bunch of hours and still have only unlocked a small handful of parts. I never understood that theory - you have enough money to buy something but it won't let you. The game just levels up the opponent cars anyways - let me buy whatever I can afford!
As far as actual game play goes, it's... ...alright. Graphics are okay up close, but distances get real vague. There are a LOT of aliasing issues, and items appear very blocky and granular. I've had a couple frame-rate issues during auto-saves and what-not - VERY frustrating in a driving game while you're drifting a corner at 140 miles per hour. Technical tracks become challenging because you can't see far ahead. You can, but you can't make out what you're looking at. Is that a turn? Oh, no - it's a bridge abutment... Oh and forget the map. The cities of Undercover are pretty convoluted, which is nice, except that the map doesn't detail elevation changes. So an intersection that appears on the map could actually be a bridge going over another road. Oh yeah - that's fun when you're trying to dart a corner while running from cops... *SMASH* - oh, THAT road is BENEATH me!!! Thanks for the help! You're under arrest...
I of course have no idea how far into the game I am, but it's not very challenging. I've won every race, and have "dominated" all but a few of the "jobs." The cops are present, but they lack that... ...je ne c'est pas... They have no spirit - no soul. They appear out of nowhere - hit a chase-breaker (usually a road-side object that you can hit to stop chasing police cars) and the game goes into a quick cut-scene to watch the destruction. That's always fun, except that I've come out of those cut scenes only to plow into a road block that appeared out of nowhere. Very frustrating. **UPDATE** Even MORE frustrating when those roadblocks include a spike strip in later levels of the game... Sure ended THAT chase pretty quickly. Thanks EA!!! **/UPDATE** The [cops] seem to pit-maneuver you pretty easily - suddenly accelerating out of nowhere... But if you keep dodging, taking corners instead of following the road, this isn't much of an issue. They just don't have the organization of Most Wanted. When you think you're about to escape, more will appear out of NOWHERE. When you finally do escape, they literally dissapear! In instances when you're TRYING to rack up more points, more cop-car-kills, more damage, etc, you can't!
A lot of the game just seems tacked on. Remember the first "Underground" NFS games? There were shops everywhere that focused on specific areas, like body parts, performance parts, certain brands of cars... Now you just push start [pause] and select "Cars." You basically buy cars and customize them from the pause menu. How pathetic is that?? And if you actually go to a shop, you see the EXACT same screen.
The "crews" from Carbon are gone - thank God. You don't have to hire certain staff members just to customize your car. Autosculpting is available immediately and that's a welcome change.
NFS Undercover quickly becomes boring. You run a race, unlock some new races, run some of them, and maybe if you're lucky you'll trigger the next story sequence. But you have no idea, you have no motivation, and all you're left with is another highly anticipated let-down.
Stop doing this, gaming industry. Quit focusing on the dollar and make us some games that are worth playing. We're tired of looking behind us at "what was." Give us something to look forward to, or quit wasting our money. I'm tired of the $60-dollar coasters.
**UPDATE**
I have to say, the last 1/4 to 1/3 of this game was nearly unplayable. These games are completely unrealistic when it comes to high-speed "simulation."
Throughout the game you have "highway battles." On these challenges, you race against a singular AI opponenet, and have to usually get 1000 feet ahead of them to "win." Of course you start off behind them, and - big surprise, they're automatically pulling away from you." In the begining they were easy, towards the middle they were challenging, and at the end they were impossible. Why? Well, because you're allegedly going 230 miles an hour, going over blind hills and around blind corners in a see of traffic, up against an opponent who of course has impeccable reaction and timing. The only way you could win these was to get lucky and have the AI "goof," smacking into a car at the exact same time that you got a clear straightaway to put some distance between you. But many times I'd pile up into a STACK of AI "traffic" cars, and watch as the opponent deftly weaved around them like it was a cakewalk. Completely unrealistic, completely impossible, and utterly frustrating. I beat the game, and gave up on the rest of the "completion" achievements.
I cannot explain how HAPPY I am that I rented this game.
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video-games_xbox
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May The Funk Be With You. toe jam & earl three is by far one of the most satisfying games i've played on the xbox for a number of reasons.
first and foremost, the game is funky fresh. that's right. if you can remember that saying from back in the days when hiphop was playful and simple, this game is right there. it's got bootsy collins and utfo appeal complete with breakdancing, complicated dap, and pg-rated street dialog which is right up to date.
secondly, the game is very clever in its concept of integrating lighthearted funk culture into a theme of integration and redemption. (did i actually say that?) funky aliens come down from the planet funkatron to funkify obnoxious earthlings and rescue the 12 vinyl albums which are the source of all funk in the universe from the minions of the anti-funk. there is no killing or anything, it's about using music to transform squares, geeks and a host of hilarious characters (including a demented dentist) into afro sportin' bootsy sunglasses wearing disco dancers, for a moment anyway.
it was my wife who picked out the game. when i first played it, i had to do a double-take. funk in a videogame? i kept thinking they're going to screw up something and i'm going to be offended. but i wasn't disappointed, in fact i was inspired. the authors ought to be proud of delivering the bomb metaphysics in a way even george clinton himself would appreciate. and of course if you are truly funky, you'll be pleased at all the inside jokes and references even if you are not familiar with the earlier toe jam titles.
my elementary school kids absolutely love it. they sing the songs, they repeat the dialog (which has some subtle double-entendres on the border of pg-13, but you can turn the characters from 'naughty' to 'nice') and they run to tell me when they graduate from a 'dufus' to a 'poindexter'.
now here's the kicker. i have never seen a videogame of any sort in which you use musical skills to defeat the enemy. but toe jam and earl will have you playing your xbox controller like a beat box to infect the earthlings with that irresitable funk fu.
gameplay is not particularly challenging, it's laidback adventuring capture the goody style without tricky puzzles or traditional boss challenges. but there are plenty enough levels to keep you busy and characters that can render you helpless in novel and frustrating ways. this is another game that even when you die it's funny, and there's plenty fun to be had just roaming through the levels and having your avatar speak to the other characters. i wish there were more avatars to choose from and you run into the occasional glitch where your character gets stuck in some crevice, like between a tree and a lake shore. but on the whole the execution is very smooth and you are totally immersed. action gets fast and furious like gauntlet. the voices are excellent and the music is just right.
the levels are bright and fanciful with a kind naive surrealism and you get to run around like bebe's kids trick or treating and kicking silly rabbits to the curb. it has the same kind of snarky badboy appeal as conker's bad fur day but in a totally lighthearted way. it's not even as dark as banjo kazooie or blinx. in that way it's really cool for kids and you can play and play and lose and lose without getting angry, which is a lot to say given the state many videogames leave you in.
in the end it's all about the funk, what could be cooler?
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video-games_xbox
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I hate to be one of the few but this controller . I hate to be one of the few but this controller is like the original Atari "Night Driver" controller in quality. This thing breaks. Easy.
So, the good first. This controller represents what is best in console ergonomics. There are only a few things that fit this well in my hand and I've been denying that I partake of those other things since adolescence. Conan the Barbarian may disagree but I would pass on the crushed enemy and lamenting women for a controller that doesn't feel like its carved from a cast off pyramid stone and uses hieroglyphics as button references. This controller is the "stretchy pants" of gaming. Yeah, its that comfortable. Still, that's about where the magic ends with me and this new controller.
I bought an Xbox One about four months ago and picked up an additional controller to the tune of $59.99. Sixty dollars...a game...a one year Xbox Live account subscription...another half hour with my therapist...that I now need...because I have no more virtual, or actual, friends. I digress, let me explain.
After about three months of wear one of the controllers developed a left joystick "stick" in the 12 o'clock position. Seriously, shouldn't we all have more "joy" in our sticks? Or less "sticks" in our joy? Perhaps I am weird here, but I have yet to come across a game that needs a 2-D, "straight-ahead," auto-pilot. So those of you like me who started out on "Pitfall" and "Asteroid" are probably starting to see the problem here...no, not the one where I am a borderline senior citizen who still plays kids games. Focus here, man! I am talking about the problem where my Warthog driving causes team kills. Even the Jar-rine NPC's in Halo start cussing and running when I get behind the wheel. Yeah, sorry buddy, I meant to stop. How many times will that crap go over? They think I am some squeaker who is running them over and laughing! No way someone would believe that this silk-like controller could be the cause. It is.
Then there is Titan Fall game play. Up, down, up, down, up, down...I am the laughing stock of the Titan world! I am known as the only Titan in the game who has Tourettes instead of Turrets. To the opposing team it looks like my Titan is saying "YES, SHOOT ME!!!"
So I think this controller, after a mere four month of (shared) use is Tango Uniform, that's dead for the less astute. Think about it. I learned that phrase from a Call of Duty clan member shortly before I got booted for my atrocious KDR. Apparently, there aren't too many maps with flying opponents. I tried to make my case, I am powning the crows!
In all honestly, this wouldn't be such a big deal if I was only made to be an Xbox Live pariah. However, it has extended into my home life. This Christmas Eve as I sat down with my family to watch our annual holiday movie I couldn't flick down fast enough to use Netflix and after hours of frustration I attempted to use "Stanley." That is the pet name for our Xbox Connect who only works when you are talking "about" him and never when you are talking "to" him.
Me to child: "Are you going to play the Xbox?" BAM!! The Xbox turns on.
Me to Xbox: "Xbox, go to Netflix" ... ... ... "GO TO NETFLIX", "I HATE THIS FRIGGIN..."
Daughter to me: "Dad, just use the controller" BAM!! Xbox comes on "...Xbox, stop listening."
Controller to Xbox: Sign-in...messages...p-l-a-y-...SIGN-IN...p-l-aMESSAGES...p-lMESSAGES!!!!
I am not sure whether to blame the controller or the console for this, honestly, but they are mocking me. I can hear them! All I can do when I start this system is sign in and check my perpetually empty e-mails. If UP and FORWARD is your game then please buy this controller and live in euphoria. If you need more options then I would wait (oh, God I am gonna say it) for the MadKatz version to hit the streets. Please, God, tell me that there is more to Microsoft quality than this.
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video-games_xbox
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Rockstar's Rashomon. Long time fans of Grand Theft Auto know that each of the games in the post-PS1 era is thematically linked to a particular genre of movie. GTA III is heavily indebted to Mafia movies such as Goodfellas and The Godfather, as well as to the cable television series The Sopranos. Vice City is clearly influenced by Miami Vice and Scarface, while San Andreas draws a great deal of inspiration from Colors and Boyz N the Hood.
GTA IV-The Complete Edition carries on this tradition by transforming Grand Theft Auto IV into an homage to Akira Kurosawa's Rashomon. As in Kurosawa's film, a set of events is seen from multiple points of view, leaving the player to decide which perspective he or she believes is the most credible. Niko Bellic, Johnny Klebitz, and Luis Lopez, the main characters, each bring a different experience and interpretation to GTA IV's story line. Niko is an immigrant, forced to assimilate and adapt rapidly to a world completely new to him. Johnny is caught in a classic master versus apprentice situation. Luis, who is the only character with any kind of insider status, must choose between building his future and honoring his past.
These are all familiar character situations in videogames, of course, but Rockstar creates deeper and richer stories and characters than most other game developers. The majority of games stick to the bare rudiments of character motivation and development. Rockstar has given us THREE strong stories in the GTA IV series, each with a complex and compelling main character. It was ambitious of Rockstar to release Niko's view of the story first, in isolation, without any indication of what was to come later. Many of the events in the Niko version of the story, in fact, aren't fully explained until the Luis and Johnny episodes. Compare that to the usual rote or clichd story arcs found in too many games, even multi-episode games. There are a few studios that consistently produce well-written games in addition to Rockstar--Bungie, Valve, and Kojima Productions are three standouts--but the vast majority treat story and plot as afterthoughts.
Story and influences aside, the bigger question is whether or not GTA IV and the two Episodes are fun to play. The answer is YES, even though it is clear that Rockstar devoted a lot more development time to Luis' episode than it did to Johnny's episode. TLAD feels somewhat stripped down and is similar to GTA III in many ways. You'll spend most of your time following the main story, driving or riding to combat missions. If you fully explored Liberty City in Niko's episode, there isn't a whole lot to discover or do that you haven't already experienced. On the other hand, TBOGT contains a much broader variety of missions, side activities, and minigames. Most players will spend more time with TBOGT than with TLAD--but now that they're both part of this value priced set, it's no big deal. The important thing is to play the series in the order in which it was released (GTA IV then TLAD then TBOGT). If you don't, you'll miss out on properly experiencing how the full story unfolds.
Well worth picking up.
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video-games_xbox
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The best Gaming Experience of the year. I never played the original fallout games, but I have always been an elder scrolls fan. Oblivion is one of my favorite games that I have ever had the pleasure of playing, news that the same team bought up and was working on this game made me very happy, if it could just be oblivion with guns, I would be sure to find much enjoyment. However it is SO much more.
The game is epic in scope, when you are "born" you crawl around, and you find this book (which is very cool) that teaches you about the S.P.E.C.I.A.L System, and you get to choose how you will be. I love the whole way this game is presented, everything seems very realistic, the environments are of the best I have ever seen.
The voice acting has to be heard to be enjoyed. I finally beat this sucker, after many late night gaming sessions (who needs sleep?) its crazy how many times I would say, ok, a few more minutes then its time to sleep, and the next thing I know the suns coming up!
One of the cool things about this game is the Pip-Boy 3000, it is how you manage everything, stuff you pick up, your aid, your ability to check your radiation level, as well as letting you check your maps, choose your quest, and the coolest feature of all, the ability to listen to the in game radio.
The radio features music from the 40's and 50's and its all real music, very unique, and fits perfectly into the world this game has created. I love it. It adds so much to the experience.
This is a very good game, much more mature than oblivion due to the language and themes (one part has you visiting a virtual world, where you break up a marriage, beat up a little kid to make him cry, then proceed with murdering all the inhabits while wearing a mask scaring them all away -- though you can avoid it, if you figure out how to get out on your own!)
Speaking of which, I must mention the cool perks system. If you want to play the game as being evil (my next play through for sure!) you can use the "Sandman" Perk and kill people in their sleep, if that's not enough, there is a perk that lets you eat people! Also whenever you pick pocket you can replace what you stole with a grenade and watch as they die (you get an achievement for this too!)
The game is so good, so slick, I really hope they treat this game like oblivion and offer some expansions, maybe one taking place in NY, LA, or something, that would be very cool.
The new VATS system is pretty cool, you can use Attack Points and use your weapon in a cinematic view that lays waste to your enemy, weather your slamming a sledgehammer down on a demon dog, or shooting off a raiders head with your hand gun or rifle (think resident evil type animations), with that said, this game had me jumping several times throughout, it is very good and you get very involved in this game.
Lastly, I must mention the graphics are the best I have seen. They surpass Oblivion, and look better than any game out on the 360 right now.
Bottom line, pick it up, you will be playing this more than 1-2 days, it is a very good game, a game that requires repeat visits. It combines the best of all my favorite games, GTA's seedy underground environment, Resident Evils Character design, boss strength, and the gun play and horror, oblivions fantastic engine and how everything goes together. It has to be played to truly enjoy.
Also, the guide is NOT necessary, the game is pretty easy to figure out on your own. (though not an easy game)
This is one of the best games I have ever had the pleasure of playing.
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video-games_xbox
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Almost perfect, with just a bit of cheap. THE SHORT: Super fast, loads of modes and options, tons of unlockable stuff, 2 players, custom soundtracks. It'd be perfect if not for a tiny bit of cheap.
THE LONG: First, let me get that "cheap" comment out of the way. To begin with, this game is fun. Very fun. I'm no racing fan, and I loved it. I played it for 9 straight hours when I bought it. I usually only do that for role playing games.
But it's during this extended play that I did start to notice something. I was learning the controls and doing progressively well, but then when I took on a 3-race Grand Prix challenge, I started to see that no matter how fast I went or how many times I hit them, my opponents were always able to appear right behind, or in front of me. What always kills a racing game is when the computer just gets cheap and makes the drivers experts who never screw up. Although this doesn't always happen, I have seen a few spots where it sure seems to. If I can constantly use turbo, not crash, and spin around corners without hitting the walls, should the other drivers just be expected to be right there doing just as well, only to whip right past me for good if I dare to make one mistake?
Well, I reiterate: This has happened to me on only 2 or 3 of the stages I've played through, and thankfully, out of a combined 15 hours so far, that's a pretty good ratio.
The rest of this game, I'm happy to say, has been fantastic. As I said, I don't like racing games, but upon seeing this one in action and reading the astonishingly positive reviews, I just had to check it out, and there's a lot to do. You can race against the computer, take on a friend, try causing huge pileups in specific "crash junctions", and do other stuff like see how many cpu-controlled drivers you can smash off the road before your car finally expires. You can do any of this at any time, or take on the "world tour" mode, where something new, be it a track, car, award, etc., is unlocked after you successfully complete a course. And although certain courses are geared to be unlocked only after clearing the ones before it, for the most part you can sort of go back and forth between what stuff you want to do.
The action itself, whether in world tour or just freeform mode, is exhilirating. You are directly encouraged to do as much damage to other drivers as possible, while of course avoiding collisions yourself. Even after a good couple thousand destroyed opponents, it's still satisfying to ram a driver against a guardrail and watch the car flip into the air in slo-mo. The graphics and sounds are fantastic too, making every crash (even your own) seem realistic yet impossible, and at some points, even cringe-worthy.
Crash mode is fun too, as you repeatedly get to try ramming your car into certain areas of a small track, trying to cause as much damage as you can in the time you're given. If you're lucky, you can maneuver into bonus points and things like that as well. It's a lot of destructive fun.
There's no big customization or fine tuning involved in this game. Over time you'll unlock dozens of cars (although several are pretty similar), and the only thing you have to worry about is which ones are the fastest and lightest. No other statistics necessary.
And as I said, there's a lot to do, because even though this is basically a fast, arcade style destruction derby, there are still tons and tons of things to unlock for incentive. You start with a few cars and a track or two, but by the end of my first night I had about 20 cars and a dozen tracks. That's about a third. There are rewards and feats to win, too. Cause another car to get rammed under a bus, that's a reward. Cause more than a million dollars in crash mode, that's a reward. Cause more than 40 wrecks. Wreck three cars at once. A huge list of your progress is kept and there's always something to do. The only real problem I had with the game is that you can't re-map the buttons. The controls are good, and easy to learn, but since the R trigger is the accelerate button, your finger will be getting sore after a while, and it would've been nice to change this.
The custom soundtrack feature, obviously exclusive to the Xbox, is a fantastic thing to have in this game. But you can't use it during two-player, for what I can only assume are memory reasons. Also, I mentioned before that some of the tracks or individual races can really get frustrating, due to how invincible and perfect the computer seems to be. Again, this has only happened to me a couple times and the majority of the game has not felt so difficult so far. Besides, you can work on other progress such as unlocking cars and other things, then try that difficult track later. I don't want my races to be cakewalks, but after doing well all day, having a sudden group of wonder drivers eliminating me drops this game from a perfect score.
But, hey, what I've played so far has still been great fun. The minutiae of the game's modes and details are too many for me to go into here, but rest assured that although this game is essentially pick up and play, there is so much to do that you won't get sick of it after a half hour, such as similar games like Crazy Taxi (which, especially given the control scheme, feels a lot like this game). I think the best way I can put it is this: I just plain do not like racing games. But this one was fast enough, addicting enough, unique enough, agressive enough, deep enough, replayable enough, and FUN enough, for me to not only like it but to have spent double digit hours with it and still find absolutely worth playing.
If the game doesn't stay cheap like the part I'm hung up on now, then I will definitely assert that it's the best racer ever made.
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video-games_xbox
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Good , but get first avengers instead if you have not already. Giving this 3 stars when comparing to some of the other Lego games out there.
My Son and I have played Lego Marvel for many hours and loved it. From all the lego games out there (and we have pretty much all of them) the Original Avengers game was our favorite. We had pretty much maxed everything out and still really enjoyed going back and playing the missions and exploring the world over and over again. So when the new Marvel Avengers was announced just in time for my Son's birthday, we were super happy.
However, I find that the following negatives in comparison to the original game:
- it is definitely not as fluid. It seems like a lot of start and stop for story additions
- the stories in themselves are not that great
- when playing in 2 player mode, there are situations where you can not see what is happening on the edge of the screen (sometimes a character actually disappears from the screen) - this is even more annoying in dynamic screen mode but even true in the vertical split screen as well
- flying style has changed, which makes it a little more difficult to pick up
- graphically, the character selection is worse quality so difficult trying to find characters that you want
- jumping and the edge of objects has changed. I have fallen off multiple objects as it is difficult to judge edge of the objects and aligning with the next rope you need to jump to
I hope many of these are going to be corrected in patches
The following positives
- reasonable addition to the marvel story line. Nice to play some new missions
- Some of the co-op moves are good
- quirky humor of the lego genre still there, so lots of laughs
Uncertainties
- DLC ??? Will have to wait and see what they add.
Summary - If you have not already, but the first Avengers game. Much cheaper alot of fun. Wait for this one to drop in price and then maybe the DLC will be easier to justify.
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video-games_xbox
|
No anti-ghosting via USB, cheap feeling, unpleasant typing experience. Pros:
*Genuine Cherry MX switches
*Uniform key feel, smooth operation
*Nice weight, doesnt skid on the desk
*2 position height adjustment and detachable wrist pad included
*6 foot extra thick braided cable
Cons:
*Only 2 key rollover via USB, not 6 as described
*Cheap feeling and rough around the edges
*Wrist pad poorly designed
*No USB pass through, illumination, or multimedia keys
*Key wobble, not sure if its common among mechanical keyboards
*No choice of switch type
Neutral:
*I don't like the feel of the black switches, but thats a matter of personal preference
I was looking for a mechanical keyboard that was sturdy, reliable, responsive keys, and budget friendly. The Sentey Gho5t was one of the few mechanical keyboards I found that didn't have many negative reviews regarding key failure and was offered at an entry level price. It's a simple, no frills keyboard, but not without problems. I think its over-rated and there are better options available at this price point.
Ill start with the positive aspects. I tested all the keys with a keystroke viewer out of box, and they all functioned as expected. The key feel (resistance and operating point) was consistent throughout the keyboard. The action is very smooth, and even long keys like space bar and shift don't stick when pressed at the far edges. The laser etched keys contrast nicely with the matte black finish. The keyboard is quite heavy and has rubber feet on the back, on the height adjusters, and on the wrist pad, so it doesnt skid. The cable is sturdy and hard wired into the keyboard, thereby eliminating one possible point of failure.
Now for the negative aspects. I tried random key combinations with the keystroke viewer and got 2 - 6 keys to register simultaneously via USB. Most of the time, it registered 5 or less. By definition, this is 2 key rollover, not 6 via USB N-Key Rollover as advertised. There are cheaper gaming keyboards available that have some degree of anti-ghosting, even if not NKRO. I cant comment on the functionality via PS/2 because I don't have any computers with that connector type. The keyboard feels relatively cheap. For the lack of features, I was expecting a better build quality. All the parts are made from injection molded plastic, and they are noticeably rough around the edges, including the keycaps. A small section of the bottom part of the casing was warped, causing it to protrude and not to line up with the top portion. The backplate looks like plastic as well, but Im not certain. The weight might create an illusion of sturdiness, but the plastic is medium thickness. It definitely has less flex than a cheaper keyboard though. The wrist pad snaps onto the keyboard with two plastic tabs on each side. Its awkward and takes some force to attach and detach. If you continually take it on and off, the tabs may break. When pushed down at the center, the wrist pad doesnt deflect, but its attached loosely to the keyboard and doesnt sit flush against the desk surface, so every accidental bump causes a clacking noise. Its a crude design in my opinion. The rubberized surface of the keyboard attracts finger/palm prints and dust.
Personally, I don't like the feel of the black switches. They are too stiff to type on comfortably and cause hand fatigue. If you tend to type by striking the keys instead of pressing them, it may be OK for you. For gaming, the heavier springs delay response time and take more force to hold down. For me, this outweighs the benefit of faster rebound time for repeated key strikes. If you plan on typing more than a few lines of in-game chat, I wouldnt recommend it. I ended up returning the keyboard. If you are interested in this keyboard, but would prefer a soft tactile switch instead, take a look at the iOne XArmor U9. I found out about it after buying the Sentey. Its essentially the same keyboard, but uses Cherry MX Brown switches instead.
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video-games_xbox
|
If you like RPGs and Turn-based battle systems, this one's for you. I just finished the game, and while I generally don't write reviews, I had to write one for this game only because I didn't feel like its average stars really did it justice.
First off, it's a role-playing game and its combat is turn-based. This means that it is extremely story heavy, and the fighting is done by each character in the fight taking a turn. If either of these things aren't what you like, Divinity OS will not change your mind. If you like them though, both are very satisfying.
The story is interesting and it and the side quests have just the right amount of seriousness and humor. Too much of either gets old quickly, but I felt they struck a great balance. All of the speaking text is voiced too, so that was a nice feature. Some of the time I would just read quicker than the speaker to get the point of the conversation, but a lot of the time I would sit and listen. The voice actors and writers did a great job.
The combat took me a little time to get used to. It works off of action points, so each character has so many to use in a turn (based on constitution) and each action and power has a number of action points it consumes. You 'save up' action points you don't use in a turn and can use them on the next turn. It took some time to get used to, but once I got the hang of it, I loved it. By the end of the game you feel fairly powerful, but not to the point that none of the fights have any sense of difficulty.
The game is kind of open world, but not really. If you figured out how to do it you could walk through each area and get wherever you wanted, but the difficulty of the monsters quickly catch up to you, so you end up staying in one area until you are ready for the next. Each area is big though and contains a bunch of side quests, so you never really feel like there is nothing to do.
Overall, I loved it. There were a few things that I wish were different, but on the whole, a great game that makes we excited to play the next installment.
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video-games_xbox
|
ME2 is better than I ever thought it was possible. I did play the first mass effect when it came out few years ago. In many ways, first mass effect was a flawed game. Its frame rate was a mess. Its inventory system as well as loading time was a nightmare. But I really liked mass effect despite all that. I liked it enough that I actually preordered collector's edition on Amazon.
After finishing the game and well into finishing second play through, I think it is safe to say this is the best game I ever played in this console cycle.
The improvement over the fist mass effect is so great that I think it might rival that of Uncharted 2. First, the game looks good. I mean really good. The look of Mass effect 1 was frankly rather bland. It is not the case in Mass effect2. There are so much detail and sci-fi themed atmosphere in this game that every area that I visited over the course of the game featured very distinct and beautiful look. Many times it felt like I was looking at really cool looking science fiction art work and I played enough games to know it is hard to make it so.
Also, shooting mechanic of this game improved dramatically over the last. I am a fan of gears of war series. So I am very sensitive when shooting control doesn't feel right when it comes to third person shooters. (this is the reason I couldn't play Dark void recently. Its control felt so wrong that I was practically torturing myself) ME2 control is almost as good as Gears of war 2. Its cover system is not as natural as Gears of war 2 but it came really close. However, I am having way more fun shooting in this game more than GOW 2 because cool biotic powers and all the customization that I can do with the characters. I can not stress this enough!! Combat is so much fun that this is the best third person shooter for me over gears of war 2 and Uncharted 2.
Lastly, I like to mention the story. I do not wish to spoil anything so I will try to avoid specific detail as much as possible. If you have played any bioware games, you know how story is presented. Basically, the story is told by all the conversation between characters. So those conversation between characters have to feel as natural as possible. otherwise it would just distract the players from the story even if it is the best story ever written. Thankfully, bioware also delivers in this aspect. Every dialogue is voiced over and delivered with such a mastery that it almost feel like I am watching a actual person speaking in front of me. The main story itself wasn't really unique yet all the detail that carries over from the first game was impressive. Let's just say that Story is good and told well. I don't expect much from video games but Mass effect 2 more than exceeded my expectation.
I loved this game. I normally don't buy collector's edition and often feel like I shouldn't have paid 60 dollars for a game since they tend to drop its price within two or three months. But this time is different. I don't care if mass effect drop its price to 30 dollars next month or whatever. I loved every minute I spend on this game. It was worth every penny. It was such an unique experience for me and games like this reminds me why I love video games. Thank you Bioware. I look forward to your next project.
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video-games_xbox
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Survive a Nightmare. The Good:
+Very good story
+Simple to learn gameplay but difficult to master
+Multiple endings
+Very pretty game
+Fantastic Soundtrack
+The meter of "lawful" or "chaos" presented here is much more unique than in most games. There's not being a "good" or "bad" guy, it is only about figuring out who Vincent is.
The Bad:
-The difficulty is going to turn off some gamers
-It's a little too easy to screw up unintentionally
-The stages near the end seem based a lot around luck rather than skill
---
Note: The Following review is lengthy
In recent times there haven't been a slew of games that have really stuck out. A lot tend to be either the next first person shooter or have you facing off against aliens as some kind of super soldier or something along those lines. And as much fun as those games can be, it is always refreshing to see something slightly different. Atlus often strives to give a good gaming experience and it shows here. Catherine is a very unique game that will challenge players and give them an experience that few video games can give. This is because of Catherine's unique design and style.
You take on the role of Vincent. He's been dating Katherine (with a "K") for five years now, and it's come to the point where she wants to take that relationship to the next level. A level Vincent isn't sure he's ready for yet. While thinking this over at the bar one night he suddenly meets a spunky young woman named Catherine (with a "C") and she's almost everything Vincent wants in a woman. He begins an affair with this woman, but as the narrative goes on we see that Vincent is a conflicted man, confused by what he wants. To make matters worse, young men have been dying of mysterious deaths in their sleep and Vincent himself might be next if he can't figure out how to escape his nightmares. But what do his nightmares have to do with this mysterious woman named Catherine? Quite a bit actually and as Vincent dives into this mystery he'll learn more about what's really going on... as well as himself.
The narrative in Catherine is quite amusing. Vincent is actually a likeable and sympathetic character. Despite his predicament the game manages to get you to understand just who Vincent is. But in the end it is ultimately you who will lead Vincent to what he really wants. Is he ready to settle down with the woman he's been dating for four years or is she truly not right for him?
There are two aspects to Catherine's gameplay. The first and probably most unique is what happens during the day. You'll watch cutscenes, none of which are really long, and then you'll usually find yourself in the Stray Sheep. A bar where you can go and talk to your friends, send and receive text messages and get a few drinks. On the surface this doesn't seem like much, but as you talk to certain people you'll often be asked questions. How you answer showcases the kind of guy Vincent is. There's a meter in the corner that shows you going closer to a "Lawful" side (blue) or a "Chaotic" side (red). While most games make their choices quite obvious, no one way is truly "good" or "bad". No side is either "heroic" or "evil." The game even encourages you to be as honest as possible when playing through the game. It gives a nice little twist as some of the questions you're asked don't have obvious "lawful" or "chaotic" answers. And again, because it bears repeating, neither side is better than the other. The impact of these choices will change Vincent's inner thoughts during some of the game's crucial scenes. Ultimately it's about deciding what Vincent wants and it's actually quite important for the player to be as honest as possible--at least during your first play through.
The second aspect of Catherine's gameplay comes during Vincent's dreams. The nightmare stages are where the crux of the actual gameplay come out. You'll ascend towers by pulling out and pushing blocks that allow you to scale higher and higher. It's a simple game to learn, but as you progress things become a little more challenging. In early stages you'll be faced with sheep who are also trying to climb the tower who will do their best to knock you down. You'll also be faced with different types of blocks as you get further. There will be cracked blocks that will slowly crumble under you, ice blocks that you'll slide on, trap blocks where spikes shoot out and more.
In between levels you'll be on landings where you can save your game and talk to some of the other sheep. Some will teach you techniques, others give you a chance to make choices that will affect your lawful/chaotic meter... but the most important aspect is what happens before each level. You'll enter a confessional and be asked a series of questions. These questions have a greater impact on your meter but are also interesting questions. You'll be asked odd question such as whether or not you prefer boxers or briefs and then you'll be asked other strange questions such as what really constitutes cheating: An emotional tryst or a physical fling? The questions aren't all black and white. And sometimes the answer you'd think would lead you more toward the lawful side will actually lead you more toward the chaotic one instead. Again, the game encourages you to answer them as honestly as you can.
Catherine is an easy game to learn, but it's difficult the master. Some of the puzzles are very difficult. Without utilizing some of the techniques you'll learn from the sheep you probably won't find yourself getting far. The lower floors beneath you are also collapsing away. You can "undo" moves a certain amount of times, but that doesn't always make the game easier. Gamers who are frustrated easily might not enjoy Catherine as much. You're given rewards for getting to the top of the tower as fast as possible without stopping, including some unlockables if you're really skilled. But it's not hard to find gamers who find some of Catherine's challenges to be a bit much. You'll also encounter bosses from time to time and some of those levels feel as though luck plays a bigger part than skill itself. Luckily Catherine is quite generous with giving you extra lives, and being able to undo moves helps the difficulty somewhat. They also give you items to help you along the way.
Catherine isn't a very long game by any means. Your first romp will probably take you just over ten hours to complete. But there is incentive to play through again. You can experience the story in different ways if you wish by making different choices which affect your meter. This also plays a big role in the kind of ending you get. Catherine has eight different endings. And which one you get depends on your choices. I won't tell you there are no "bad" endings in Catherine, however, each side of the meter actually has a different set of endings. This is partially why being honest is important. Because going the "chaotic" route doesn't give you a "bad" or "evil" ending anymore than going the lawful route will guarantee you a "good" ending.
There's no doubt that Catherine is a beautiful game. It has a very anime like quality to it and some vibrant character models. The game is also populated with lots of different characters that you'll talk to, who are all well developed in their own way. The voice acting and the writing are also not so bad. There are some moments where the voice acting encounters a hitch, but not too many. The music, however, is a real treat. Much of the music you'll hear in the game are remixed classical tunes from some famous composers such as Bach, Beethoven, Holst, Handel and Chopin. You'll recognize most of them when they begin to play. Those who bought the game brand new will receive a music CD where you can listen to these tracks.
Catherine isn't a perfect game by any stretch of the imagination. We talked about some of its difficulty, but it also has a couple of control issues every now and then. The biggest issue being they feel a little loose. It's easy to make Vincent do something you didn't intend, such as push a block or run in the wrong the direction unintentionally at just the slight tilt of the analog stick. Likewise, the final set of levels seem much more dependent on luck rather than any actual skill. You'll be more than happy to have that redo option once you get there.
There doesn't seem to be much of any real difference between the PS3 and XBOX360 version. No one version is really offers anything that the other doesn't. So pick whichever one you want. Both come with an art booklet and music CD.
In the end Catherine is a great game. It's narrative and overall structure of its story makes it a game worth checking out. It also provides a challenge for players willing to undergo the trials. Though some will find the challenge a bit much, those who slave through it will find a sense of accomplishment for doing so. The dynamic of the meter and multiple endings also help Catherine out a little. Simply put, if you like puzzle games and good stories, Catherine is worth picking up.
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video-games_xbox
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please do your job and rid of the obviously fake reviews like "Excellent product very compliant. First off - Amazon, please do your job and rid of the obviously fake reviews like "Excellent product very compliant". It skews the ratings improperly.
I'll keep my review as simple as possible.. Loved Guitar Hero when it first came out, the custom\funky venues, the sense of humor, the "campyness" of the thing. When Rock Band came along, a lot of that was lost but I still liked the game and bought a lot of DLC. BTW, I've owned all GH and RB games, include Beatles Rock Band, which I loved.
But I've found that outside of the actual song playing, which has had - lets be honest - almost zero improvement or change in years and years - the rest of the game just gets more frustrating to use, and has worse options. It's a nightmare to think about inviting a group of friends over who don't have XBox profiles and think about trying to guide each one through signing in \ creating profiles\ customizing their characters (which as others have said has SO FEW options to start). That's after having to hook up all of the instruments and setup the damn legacy adapter (which of course I had to pay for with this bundle). Oh, and thanks for not even putting buttons on the Microphone, so the singer has to use both a Microphone AND a regular XBox one controller for other game stuff.
The DLC has frankly enraged me. The process for finding and downloading previously bought tracks SUCKS. Imagine my joy when I bought a new XBox One S and had to sort through literally hundreds of songs, having to find each one that was previously purchased, and click install, wait for a screen to load, and then back out and go find the next one. No sort order is available, cannot even sort by "already owned", and god forbid we could just select all of the previously owned ones and then queue them all up for downloading at all.
Lastly, I not only bought this game, but then had to re-buy it for "rivals", and had to get new instruments. The drums are the same crappy drums, and the guitars are worse than previous generation controllers, IMHO. I spend hundreds of dollars all said and done to upgrade the game and instruments hoping for a great experience and if anything, it's worse than all of the previous games. If there was some way to return the game and instruments and get my money back, I would.
Harmonix - you clearly don't ever playtest the entire setup with users who have never played Rockband and who are not Xbox "pros" - because the worse thing the game fails at is simple letting 4 people jump on, pick a name, outfit a character or go random, and just PLAY (no signing into profiles, no forcing a player to "assume" an instrument just to create a character, etc. But aside from that, add the DLC problems and the HORRIBLE playlist for this game, and this release is a big waste of money. Sorry, this is a very harsh review, but this game is a HUGH disappointment.
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video-games_xbox
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Major upgrade. I have the first Dance Central and totally loved it. Now with the sequel, Harmonix has worked hard to put in new features that makes Dance Central 2 a full and new experience. I am hardcore gamer with a collection of 78 games, and yes I like playing Dance Central.
Now 2 player coop is available, only LOCAL. It is unfortunate that there is no Xbox Live Coop other than leaderboards. But who cares, you can have fun with friends when having party or impress your date with awesome dance moves :P
The usage of Kinect voice allows you control the game in variety of ways such saying Xbox, Pause. It is suprisely good at hearing even when the sound is loud. Now you can also record the video while in breakdown mode so you can have better understanding what you are doing wrong in a dance move. There is new crew challenge mode where it is basically dance routines with mix variety of songs. I find that Kinect tends to track significantly better in DC2 than DC1. The difficulty has ramped up, it is harder to pull flawless moves in DC2, I guess they have reduced the margin of error in the game.
You can import DC1 soundtrack using the special code in DC1 Manual and pay tranfer fee which I think was 560 MSP. May be a letdown but I guess they were remade of DC2 experience and Coop too. You also get similar code in DC2 suggesting there will be DC3.
The song list are pretty decent, dances well, I think there is fewer guy songs but you can always combined the list from DC1.
There is new fitness mode which now tracks calories burned across all modes, even in practice break down mode. There are special fitness playlist with longest one about 47 minutes, whop, major calorie burn. I played quite a bit and I believe I am losing weight, muscles always sore you know. Too much movement results in good workout.
I suggest any Dance Central fans or new Kinect purchases, must get this game for their kinect collection and experience.
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video-games_xbox
|
Great for the whole family. If you have the 1st thrillville then you'll like the new Thrillville off the rail just as much, although I was a bit disappointed it wasn't more challenging. It has all the same game play as the 1st game did, from managing the park, building rides and easy to play arcade games for the kids. What I like about thrillville the Most is that my 3 kids can play the arcade games with me and can keep up because they are easy but fun.
Old game vs. New game
Old game- you put up a pizza, hat, balloon stand all you could do was change the color & look at it.
New game- put up a stand not only can you change the color & put eyeballs, crabs etc.. decorations on it but you can also play a vending machine game. Which is actually very addictive.
Old game- building rollercoaster was a bit tricky I had a hard time with it.
New game- Is Much easier, I had no problem building my own roller coaster this time.
Old game- Only had like 14 party play games (arcade style games where up to 4 people can play together) which were all fun for the whole family.
New game- Has 50 party play games, which I was excited to see but about half of them are really Lame. Like Coast Tron, Strongman, whack mole there are no direction, took awhile to understand what to do and once we did we were bore with them easily actual Hate those games. Also Sparkle Quest and Bandito are really FUN new games, but they only have 4 levels, you can complete the game in 10 minutes!! This really upset the kids, just as they got use to the game it was over. But they also add another sparkle island 2 makes up for the bad games.
Old game- building the park had so many objectives you had to complete it took me a long time to finish the whole game.
New game- Building the park does not have that many objectives, I was able to finish the game in 4 days and was disappointed, I like when it's a hard challange.
Old Game- Had some really Good music which I ended up putting on my Ipod
New Game- The music is awful!! Turn the volume off
Altogether it's a great game to play with younger kids, they loved the newer roller coater that go off the track and the arcade games are still fun.
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video-games_xbox
|
Awesome game for musicians (or those who want to learn. I've been playing music for nearly 30 years, and while I liked the concept of Rock Band I've always wanted more--something that would let me hook up a bass or guitar and play along to some of my favorite tunes. Thankfully, Rocksmith delivers, and I can't recommend it highly enough if you are a musician and also love video games.
I picked up Rocksmith 2014 on sale (for 40 bucks including the USB cable--which was too good to pass up). Installation was easy. The game does a decent job giving you little tutorial bits along the way. It has a lot of features that I'll probably never use all that much (customizing amps and tinkering with sound settings, etc.) but it's good to know that's there in case I ever want to really dig in to all the features.
The library of songs included range from some classic rock to more contemporary metal and alternative numbers. If you're like me you'll find some tunes that you like, some that you won't, and even more that you've never heard of. Thankfully, you can import songs from previous versions of Rocksmith. I found a cheap copy of the original Rocksmith for Xbox 360 and spent another 10 bucks to import the songs into RS2014. It was worth the price for me, but may not be for everyone.
About my only gripe with the game is that, initially, none of the DLC would show up in the shop. Then magically about a month later I can now shop for song packs on Xbox One. Not sure what was going on (licensing issues? server problems?). There are tons of individual songs and song packs to choose from, and now I'm worried about spending too much money!
Two small gripes: Unlike the PC version, if you want to play co-op you need an extra Xbox One controller. I don't know why the game requires it but it's kind of stupid (although this may be an Xbox One thing and not a design decision on Ubisoft's part). Also, you may experience varying degrees of input lag depending on your set up. If you can output audio via optical cable to a receiver that's preferable. You can tinker with settings to improve the lag, but it's noticeable at times.
I'd like to see more indie bands in the shop, and also some classic stuff like Motown, Staxx/Volt, etc. The game is clearly marketed toward guitar players but I almost exclusively use it for bass. Would love to see Ubisoft put out a few packs geared towards bass players that highlight some of the masters of old (e.g. Jamerson, Dunn) along with more genre packs (punk, post-punk, funk, rap, etc.).
In short, I'm glad that Rocksmith is a thing and I hope its audience continues to grow. It's awesome and I recommend it to anyone who wants to practice their chops or host a music night with friends. Totally worth the purchase.
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video-games_xbox
|
Not a bad headset. From just using it for the first 30 hours of gameplay and other use. This headset is pretty good. The sound quality is great and I've tried all three modes.
I've used the headset for chatting during gaming and its awesome. I noticed that the mic is active regardless if it is stowed or pulled out. I haven't tried to chat while it is retracted yet but from some self tests it appears doable and the mic should be able to pick up my voice--considering if I pumped up the mic level on my PS3 (which I have already done)
Other than the headset feeling a bit tight out of the box. The cushions should ease upper after break-in.
I have already drained the headset three times and have re-charged it and it appears to fully recharge in a short punt of time and within the manual's guidelines of about two to three hours (haven't really timed it yet so no real comparison there).
Overall other than the awesome light up feature and the hard ear cushions, this headset has done well for me.
One thing I did noticed was that there was static once in a while that so far I've narrowed it down to the mic being extended and retracted. At first I thought it was a communication issue but with the 2.4ghz I found that wasn't the source.
If you like a flashy and very decent headset I'd suggest getting this set. If not there are other choices and more expensive choices. For the PS3 I would suggest either Sony headphones they are both around the same price point.
One thing is that I had trouble setting up the mic to work with the PS3. I finally got it to work by doing the following: go into your PS3 settings. Find the audio settings then manage accessories settings. For me I had my Bluetooth headset installed but when you go into change the sound input option, the afterglow headset should be in the drop down menu. Same goes for the audio output.
After you set those up you should be fine. Also don't forget to adjust the mic sensitivity.
This was on a PS3 system using only HDMI output
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video-games_xbox
|
An overall nice game. First this was one of the best sword games I played.
I liked the earlier game, Sands Of Time and it was fun to play. But the combat was very frustrating and it almost spoilt the fun.
The best part of the game was that its combat has significantly improved and the puzzle solving part was almost intact.
Things that improved and I liked a lot are
-- ability to weild two weapons and perfom lot of combos on it. The ones I liked was XXYYXX. Very effective against group of enemies. There are other combos which are are also very effective.
-- good combos on single move also. And I always did the steal and kill move where in you strangle the enemy and steal the weapon and then kill it. But beware do it if that is the only enemy left.
-- ability to throw the secondary weapon. Some enemies are very suseptible to this and suffer good damage.
-- ability to throw enemies on other enemies or even throw them off the cliff.
Sad part I have to battle with so many girls for which I could have other plans. That also brings up one not so required part of the game being rated M. Sometimes I forgot if it is a Persian palace or Oscar presentation when seeing the dress.
I did miss Farah in this game.
The game has BOSS battles but then it is almost predictable. You don't have much moves in the boss batles.
The other thing I missed was some BOW and SPEAR action. Although u could almost get SPEAR action by throwing weapons.
Another thing which I and lot of other people missed is the simplicity of the prince in sands of time. Blood and enemies being sliced apart are shown a lot. Not sure if it was needed. Not that I hate violence in games(I have played almost all of Doom series). But I just felt that this game could have done without that.
The game does get bit confusing if you are not following properly because of the time travel. The storyline is lengthy and you travel in similar rooms at different time. That can sometime be confusing. But advantage is that if you miss to get something (like a treasure artwork chest or gain extra life) you can come back with more sand powers.
Its not that you can get the game with just combat supremacy. Apart from the normal puzzles there are time limited puzzles There are at time where you have to be sharp and vigilant when u are chased by Dahaka. One wrong move and you are done. But then of course you have sands to reverse the fate. Also this game makes use of the sands a lot. And you cant get across some puzzles without using the sands.
And Yeah there is are quite a few suspenses in the game. I don't wanna spoil those. Play and u will know. Hint SandWraith .
Overall the game is fun to play and I give it full 5 stars to play. I m just happy that I don't have kill the same an enemy 300 times. A nice calculated move or blow might be enough.
If you like Prince of Persia series then the game is it. When playing I was wondering what if Halo3 had master chief the ability to move like the prince and strangle the elites and jump over enemies and fire guns while in air :).(Okay I admit I am a Halo fan). But the novelty of the moves in this game (POP) inspires me.
Waiting anxiously for the third game in series.
Try to play Sands of Time before you get started on the game. If you can live with the frustrating combat of Sands of Time that game is also great.
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video-games_xbox
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Some notes for 360 users, fun game. I really don't have a full review of the actual gameplay, but before buying this I had a lot of questions and couldn't find the answers I was looking for. I will review the actual gameplay a little so you know what you're getting.
I had the original Xbox years ago, but didn't play Morrowind on it. I have been wanting to try it ever since finishing Skyrim, but had seen so many varying opinions about its compatibility with the 360, that I didn't know if I wanted to risk it. Here are the questions I had and hopefully others are looking for these answers.
Will it play on the Xbox 360? I have the Slim Xbox 360 and an old "fat" white Xbox 360, it plays on both without a hitch. I didn't need to update anything or download anything. Of note: You cannot install it to your hard drive. Also of note: The disc reads smoothly and there's no noise unlike most games played from disc instead of hard drive.
Are the add-ons Bloodmoon and Tribunal expired, have to be downloaded or how do those work? They are included on the disc and are incorporated into the main game. You do not have to download anything. You just put the game in and play, Morrowind, Bloodmoon and Tribunal are all included on the GotY disc.
Those are the main questions I had and had searched the internet for hours looking for the answers.
Next "problem": I had no interest in ordering a new version at the prices people are asking. I ordered a used copy "fulfilled by Amazon" and had Prime shipping, it was from the seller "Nextworth". It arrived early, I opened it and I said, "This is not the GotY edition!" It was the platinum hits version of just Morrowind. I returned it and reordered, this time choosing "Amazon Warehouse" as the seller and this time when it came, it was the GotY edition and it was only listed as "good" condition, but it has the manual (still has the crisp sound when flipping pages), it has the original box though it is cracked, has the foldout map and even has the registration card.
So, I can't guarantee you that if you order through Amazon's Warehouse that you too will get what I consider a like new copy, but I would recommend ordering from Amazon Warehouse.
Okay, now for the game. I wasn't shocked in a bad way by the graphics. It's not bad at all, the movement is as fluid as Oblivion, if that's a compliment. It does take a while to get used to everything, especially if you've played Skyrim and/or Oblivion. I've enjoyed it so far. I have roughly 60 hours in a character. If you're still hung up on it being an old game, I'm going to list all the things I notice as possible being detractors for Skyrim/Oblivion players.
Unless I missed it there's no character physical appearance customization. You pick your race, then decide if you want to pick your class (custom) or you can answer some funny questions that will decide your class for you, similar to Fallout 3's Generalized Occupational Aptitude Test if you've played it. I went with custom. You then pick your sign your character is born under.
There's a lot of fog out there. I'm guessing this wasn't intended fog for visual effect, but it's not the worst I've seen. The first hour will most likely see you run around pointlessly trying to figure out what to do.
Combat (armed): It's pretty funny really. You jab away with your dagger, sword, axe. This could be the biggest turn-off for me since I didn't even like the visual attacks in Oblivion. If you can deal with Oblivion's visual attacks, you should be fine with these though.
Magic: It's very basic looking. Quite a bit more basic than Oblivion's, but I use a Warrior class so I don't pay much attention to the magic.
Menus: This is a big one. The menus are hard to read, inventory can be a pain at first, but if you can get by the muddy graphics on the menus you'll be fine.
Oh and it's not 1080p resolution. My 1080p screen has a black box on both sides of the game screen.
I still didn't mind. If you're really wanting to play it, it's fun, after a few hours. Everything does feel slightly clunky and I had to turn the subtitles on. You will find yourself stuck from time to time, running into a wall, over and over and not realizing it because the game has a very dark look to it. I would recommend it for those like me, have played Oblivion and the DLCs for it, have played Skyrim until you've done everything you can at least twice and still want more. Just be sure to read over the first part before ordering.
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video-games_xbox
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Fantastic Addition to the Splinter Cell Series. I've owned every single splinter cell game since the original splinter cell on the first xbox, and this one by far is the most fun to play!
The first thing most splinter cell fans will notice (and appreciate much more than your average first time splinter cell player) is the smoothness and speed of the game. The old splinter cells were very slow to mimic realism, which made the animations during action sequences very crude. Conviction moves at an Assassin's Creed II pace (Same company, go figure) so if you've played that game you'll notice very similar speeds in animations. Furthermore, Conviction lends itself to much more intense action than its predecessors. Most mission can be completed by loading an un-suppressed assault rifle and burning through enough ammo until you reach the end. The change of pace is welcome in my book. However staying hidden and completing the missions using stealth is a lot less of a headache.
The only thing that takes some getting used to is the color de-saturation when Sam is in the shadows. To indicate that you are hidden, the screen turns black and white, while the dynamic parts of the environment remain colored. This can mess with your depth perception and takes away from the otherwise flawless graphics of the game.
The story is absolutely fantastic, with the game focusing much more on Sam Fisher as a human being instead of a splinter cell. The presentation is absolutely flawless, with animations depicting the past and present, and how sam is perceiving as he uncovers the truth (Example: Words like "Betrayal," "Trust," appear on the walls during an intense cutscene and the like). Loading screens are masked behind cutscenese that outline the entire level, so basically the entire game plays like a movie. This is something Ubisoft REALLY deserves applause on.
Multiplayer is also much more fun than in the past thanks to the speed boost mentioned earlier.
New features include the "Mark & Execute" feature, which NEVER GETS OLD. Think along the lines of Fallout 3's V.A.T.S system. IT JUST DOESN'T GET OLD! Later in the game, Sam's night vision goggles are replaced with sonar goggles, that outline enemies on the map. While the goggles don't do night vision very well, they suffice and also emphasize the fact that in the storyline Sam is doing everything without technological support from his past employers, which makes the game more intense in my opinion. But to each is own, as some people won't like the new hybrid goggle system. Sam's interrogation techniques and general hand-to-hand combat scenes are also much more intense and more fun to watch. The AI is also VERY well done. I have yet to see the AI do something completely stupid that makes me just sit there and laugh. They will flank you, throw grenades, and check the ceilings with flashlights (Unlike the old splinter cell games).
Overall, the game is perfect for past SC players and new players alike. If you liked the old splinter cells, and enjoy the gameplay of Assassin's Creed II, you'll enjoy playing Conviction. The only downside is the total color desaturation, which I recommend balancing by turning up the brightness a notch.
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video-games_xbox
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After 25 years you'd think they'd get it right. Second day of owning the game and I've already completely given up on it.
I purchased the Anniversary Edition but didn't have time to open it up until last night. I vowed to never buy an EA product again, and I haven't for years, but the Sunday Ticket Deal in itself is worth $100. That is the one and only reason I even considered throwing my money away to EA and their cash-grabbing, uninspired, borderline unethical production of games.
I played the game and big surprise! The game freezes after every snap for about 1-2 seconds, and then continues to run through the play. This also happens before kickoffs and field goals too. Freezes also occur during instant replays and screen transitions. The bright side? Uh it doesn't cause the game to freeze to the point of having to reset. That's a positive, I suppose. This used to happen to my Madden 11 for the 360. Of course EA didn't do anything, but someone on the Internet found a fix for Madden 11. For Madden 25 you would hope a patch will be released no later than next week, but we all know EA. They already issued a cheap quick-fix that many people including myself tried with zero results. No EA, it is not my Internet connection or my Xbox, you are just incompetent schmucks.
So how about when the game is actually working? Well, it's pretty lifeless. When I play this game I do not feel engaged at all. Nothing draws me in and makes me feel like I am dictating the actions on the screen as much as previous titles used to. It feels like playing chess on the computer. I issue a command and just kind of watch things unfold. My influence hardly matters. Make a play call, press A to snap the ball, hold up on the joystick and just hope for the best. Older versions used to require much more involvement.
I downloaded the demo before the game came and it felt and looked better than the full version that came in the mail. The thing about the demo is when I played it I thought surely EA would've refined the commentary for the full version. Nope, it's shallow, and adds nothing to the experience. It sounds like two dudes watching golf. Barely anything is said at all. I rather have Chris Collinsworth saying the same long phrases repeatedly than the careless lack of effort by Jim Nantz and Phill Simms. It's not their fault, EA just didn't give a damn to use the duo anywhere near as much as they should have. They contribute nothing of value in regards to dialogue, and they barely even say the players' names during instant replays or big play recaps. They say "The offense", or "The special teams squad." It's all very generic.
If I purchased the game in itself for $60 I would be infuriated, but like I said, NFL Sunday Ticket was worth it. I expected the game to disappoint me quickly and it did. To those of you foolish enough to actually want this game, ignorance of what quality really is is bliss I guess.
I've owned Madden 05 and 09 for the original Xbox, and Madden 11 for the 360. Any one of those games provide more value than this garbage. Seriously, EA is one of the few game companies I know that consistently somehow find a way to become worse as the years to by. They know they can pump out any mindless nonsense, slap the Madden logo on it and generate millions without investing anything real in terms of financial contributions or human effort.
The most pathetic thing is that every football fan old enough to have the original Xbox or PS2 will easily admit that NFL 2K5 (released in 2004) made by 2K games was the greatest football video game ever made. It was released at $20 a pop, brand new, put Madden to shame back then, and miraculously, still has not been bested in nearly a decade's worth of attempts on EA's part. EA, knowing that they had their backs against the wall, threw money at the NFL for exclusive rights to be the only developer to be able to use the NFL's likeness, so the 2K series disappeared. Finally, the contract is nearing its end and fans may see the light at the end of this godforsaken tunnel of mediocrity. I can only hope.
Don't worry EA! You've got that 3rd consecutive Golden Poo award locked up tight yet again this year!
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video-games_xbox
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Trying to be honest but a little one sidded. I'm going to try to be as fair as I can in this review.
I love Bungie, I loved Halo 2, and I think Destiny is a great game if you consider or like the following. There isn't much of a story in this game at all. Honestly it was so boring I didn't even pay attention to it, And I have three toons that have beat it. Missions are kind of always the same, go here kill a bunch of stuff, Guard this, Scan this. Nothing exciting. That didn't really bother me though, I'm not a big fan of story lines, I just like to run and gun and blow crap up. Sad part is I don't care for story lines and I noticed the story sucks hahaha.
I have played probably over 100 hours of the game by now, done the raid on two toons. I have multiple toons just so they can get gear and things need daily for my main really. I have a bunch of exotic gear and weapons. The game is kind of repetitive though i can't seem to stop playing for some reason it's weird. I love playing the game even though I'm doing the same thing over and over again. Hopefully I will be able to have more toons soon haha.
If you like a story in a game it probably isn't for you, well at least until they release the expensive DLC that will hopefully fix the story line and add more depth. Least that's what everyone is hoping.
It's a great game to enjoy with friends, not really fun playing by yourself. Having a Fireteam for everything makes everything go ten times faster. It's worth it trust me, if you can get a good team going. Very fun with friends messing around, grinding, Raiding with clanmates.
There are a ton of people complaining about the game, first it was the loot system, Which now is fixed. I honestly never had a problem getting gear before they fixed it anyway. I know some people have connection problems, especially in party chat, They are supposed to fix connection issues today, well at least improve them in the patch. I've never had a problem connecting to the game, except when the servers were attacked.
Overall I would recommend to anyone really, I love the game. The game is slowly getting there Just Hold on it's worth it. I think it will eventually become an amazing game, right now it's great but it could be better and I think it's going to get there.
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video-games_xbox
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Xbox One Piece of Crap (But Better Now. This whole bundle is crap. I got it in the mail a day early but can't download the game until the next day because they used the wrong codes. When I do start downloading on my FAST internet, it takes 2 days to download the game, with the percent of game downloaded jumping back to lower numbers several times. Jeez! Just give me a disc! When I do play the game, which is pretty good, the game lags out horribly on occasion despite Microsoft bragging about its servers. In addition to this I've had the Xbox One put weird numbers in the IP settings after switching from manual back to automatic. It actually put a subnet mask number in a DNS field! So, I am currently using manual settings because I can't find a setting to reset the network settings for automatic without wiping the whole Xbox and having to re-download the entire game again. Also, the Xbox website rarely has an up to date server status. I don't even know why I bought this... it only has slightly improved graphics over a 360, and a bunch of features I won't use. Waste of money. Wish I had knew Playstation consoles and games better.
Also, I forgot to mention the first time I got the Xbox One I downloaded and installed the current update and then turned it off. 5 hours later I noticed it was really hot for no reason and I hope that problem doesn't pop up in the future. Another thing is that I use my Xbox on my trusty ASUS monitor through HDMI and with my computer hooked up through DVI. When the Xbox One was on and connected but I was using my computer through DVI I would get red lines dancing all over the screen. This does not happen when I switched over to my 360.
Update (12/16/2014): I had it for a while now and am still having way too many issues. Open NAT but lots of lag in game on a good internet connection, with perfect server status. Sometimes the console is unresponsive and then when I turn it off, it just blinks and won't turn back on. I have to physically unplug the cord and sometimes do it twice to get it to start up. (BTW, instant on is off). Still get crackling/static with my Turtle Beach headphones even though I've follow manufacturer and Microsoft instructions for setup, and have no issues with pc/xbox 360. I don't know why I bother, I should just go back and enjoy COD on 360 instead. Sucks when the latest and greatest is such a disappointment.
Update (01/16/2015): Haven't changed anything since my last update, but it is working great now. Connections in COD are way better and my headset stopped crackling.
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video-games_xbox
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Thinking about giving this game another try? READ THIS. I purchased this game about 3 years ago and was VERY disappointed! I traded it in and vowed never to play it again....that was until I had an opportunity to purchase the other Dead Risings (all except for 3) for little to nothing on the Xbox 360 Games Store. Now what turned me off the first time was the combination of the following "P!$$ me OFFS!" (PMO):
1. Zombie attack to health bar ratio - You start the game off with a limited amount of health and to get from one point to another, it usually requires paying a toll with an attack, or two, or three....or more from a crowd of zombies.
2. The "save" system - the save system is old school in a way. There are no check points between cases (missions) and the only places to save the game is in the bathrooms or in the safe house but as I've said in the first PMO it may, for the most part require the toll of one health bar in order to get there.
3. The maniacs in the park - If I was ranking these PMOs this would probably be number one! It was the main reason I quit. I couldn't, for the life of me, figure out how to avoid them because one of the cases required me to run through the park!
4. The escort missions - Now I'm already frustrated navigating my character through a hoard of zombies, you tellin' me I have to escort someone else through this heard and make sure they don't die!? Give me a break.
These are the top 4 that were game breaking issues when I first tried to play. Oh, AND, at least for me, there was TOO MUCH trial and error, more than I had time for.
NOW, what in the world has changed to make me give this game 4 stars!? Well:
1. A guide and YouTube! - I cannot express how important it is for someone like me, who decided to give this another chance, to use a guide and a little help from YouTube
There are several guides out there on the web. The one I used was a walkthrough from IGN. I used YouTube when I couldn't find the answer in the guide. There are cases and side quests that make the game ALOT more easier and ALOT less time consuming and ALOT more FUN that I wouldn't have known (or it would have taken way more time to find out) had I not used a guide. I'm going to go so far as to say that every PMO that made me quit actually are the highlights that made me continue. Here is how:
1. Zombie attack to health bar ratio - The guide gives a tip to level up during the first 30 minutes of the game. With leveling up you may gain a skill that helps to navigate the zombie sea without paying a health toll. Additionally your health capacity gets bigger as you level up (but not with each level up)
2. The "save" system - Get this, there was actually a moment that I got far into the game and had to start all the way over because I saved at the wrong time. Now at first I would have quit again and traded this game but this mishap helped me become more careful about when to save and where to save. It also gave me an opportunity to do things a little better than I did the first time through. Save management is important to completing this game.
3. The maniacs in the park - I found a way to defeat them from a YouTube video and what resources I had. DISCLOSURE: Once you beat them don't think you never have to deal with them again because you do! They come back the same way at the same time of day whether you beat them or not. Was that a game breaker? NOPE! As a matter of fact I started to look forward to them being in the park so that I can defeat them, take their humvee and drive around the park smashing hundreds of zombies!
4. The escort missions - If you follow the guide to level up earlier (see 1) there is an escort mission early on - maybe the easiest in the game - that is important for progress. Another mission involves the clown with the chain saws that I assume many have seen in other videos. Other than those two, I suggest that you rescue and escort people ONLY if it is convenient and don't get discouraged if the escort mission fails. This game is meant to be played more than once and all of your upgrades follow you into a new game. ALSO, don't spend a lot of time and resources trying to save those whom you escort.
NOT PMOs but a couple of additions to my experience actually enjoying this game:
5. The BOSS fights and other characters - Forget the zombies! Some of the BOSS characters are some of the best villains I've ever encountered in a game! These people are CRAZY from the clown to the grocery store owner to the butcher! The zombie incident brought out the insane in these characters Walking Dead style!
Even though the story isn't the most compelling, some of the characters who work with you are VERY memorable and make the experience worth while.
6. The INCREDIBLE feeling of accomplishment! - I haven't felt this accomplished in a video game since I beat Ninja Gaiden: Black!
BOTTOM LINE: If you have since put this game in your "never play again" list and for one reason or another you are thinking about giving it another shot, please use a guide and YouTube. I'm not a "guide" person. I don't usually use guides at all because I like the challenge of finding my own way. Using a guide with this game doesn't take the challenge completely away but it does help - BIG TIME - making the play more fair and level. Dead Rising is a classic and I can't wait to start Dead Rising 2!
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video-games_xbox
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A Bright Cheery Cartoon of WWII. The Outfit has you performing missions in World War II Europe. You're the Allies, out to stop a rogue German soldier who is causing trouble.
There are certainly a ton of WWII games out there on the market, and many of them are excellent. The Outfit doesn't try to reinvent the wheel. This isn't a dark, realistic, drama-filled game like some others. Instead it goes for a more cheezy, cartoon-colored version of WWII where you're having reinforcements drop immediately from the sky and are blowing things up.
Whether that's good or bad for you of course depends on your personality. I have to say I like the realistic games, but I also understand that every single game shouldn't be exactly the same. There should be room out there for different styles.
It's sort of an odd mix. On one hand the graphics are very nice - the detailed brickwork on the ground, the clouds drift in the blue sky, the mouth animation while people speak. On the other hand, it's like an Oz version of the world. The grass is a bit too green. The rocks are a bit too shiny. I expect a horde of little children to pop out from the shrubbery and start singing, "It's a small world after all!"
The sound ties in with the cheesy design. There aren't moody, realistic commentaries or orchestral music. Instead you get cliches like "They sure have big mosquitoes in this part of France" that you get to hear repeatedly.
There are interesting aspects to the game. You get to be one of three main characters, each with his own special strengths and weaknesses. If you die, you respawn at a checkpoint that you can choose and can rotate to another character. As your health fades, your vision goes to black and white. Your enemy slaying earns you money which you can spend to improve your situation. You can blow up buildings or just watch the blades of grass wave in the wind.
On the other hand, some things are odd here. Units don't reliably use cover. The ragdoll physics are sometimes good and sometimes extremely bizarre. Whoever chose the acronym "F-U" for Field Units wasn't thinking very clearly.
All in all, I would recommend people rent this one first. Give it a play for a few hours. It might be that this lighthearted take on wargaming really appeals to you! On the other hand, it might be that you really prefer serious wargaming and would rather justkeep playing Call of Duty 2. It's best to know which way you will go before you pay for a full version.
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video-games_xbox
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My favorite game since Elder Scrolls: Oblivion. Reading over all the reviews some people may realize this may not be the game for them. For those that do, they will quickly realize what a masterpiece this game is.
This game is deep and addicting. I beat the last boss at 100 hours over 16 days and still missed plenty of side quests and a couple areas of the game. It's non-linear which is a huge positive. You will still have to get past certain bosses to get to certain areas, but it will not hold you hand barring you from areas that are too difficult for your character. This will give you the opportunity to sneak in and grab a powerful sword from a sleeping dragon if you are feeling daring enough, but the risk of waking it up and getting killed in the process.
Now, this game is difficult, no doubt about it. Probably the best part of the difficulty was a friend and I starting the game at the same time to share strategies and tips. Due to it being non-linear we often did area locations in a different order and were able to provide tips on beating the boss or what items to have handy in certain areas (ie anti-curse in the Depths / anti-toxin for the Blights / light for the Giants Tomb).
My favorite part about this game is the atmosphere. The developer's goal is to make you feel like your alone in this world tuned upside down and they execute it flawlessly! Some dungeons are just plain out creepy. You will fear what is around the corner for fear of dieing or getting invaded by another player during the last leg to get to the area's final boss.
I tend to be the type of person who likes to complete a game without any kind of guide, but this one is an exception. It will help for when deciding for what upgrade paths to take for upgrading weapons/armor, how to beat bosses, and find helpful items/spells such as the light spell or glowing maggot helmet for the Giants Tomb.
I am one that appreciates deep, well thought out games and Dark Souls fits the bill (also if you have a PS3 go buy Demon Souls too, just as great!). Do your research, and if you feel this game fits what you're looking for then don't hesitate to buy a great game!
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video-games_xbox
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Reintroducing The Genesis. There is no doubt about Sega no as a software giant in video gmaes. While we've seen greats like Sonic The Hedgehog have great titles over the years for the PS2, and the Wii, it is definitely easy to get complacid about the beginnings of what made Sega so dominant in the first place. Back in the 90's, Sega really delivered some of the greatest video games imagined that have withstood the test of time for its well-received Genesis system. There were so many great games that really influenced the way we play video games today. But as time went by, Sega made systems like the Saturn, Sega CD and Dreamcast that have made Sega lose tons of interest to others like Sony with the Playstation 2. Now, Sega and their biggest glory days are finally available in a new best of series that is just built for hedgehog speed.
Sonic's Ultimate Genesis Collection for the Xbox 360, is a great buy for nostalgic gamers that definitely want to relive the classic days Sega is still widely recognized for after all these years. The game features over 40 cllassic Genesis titles that still are constant in our gaming universe. The games are remastered well, and redesigned to specifically recognize HD gameplay. The compilation features all your favorite classics from Ecco The Dolphin, all your favorite Sonic The Hedgehog gems like Sonic 3, Sonic & Knuckles, and Golden Axe. The graphics look just like they've done years earlier, and the control is very easy to pick up with the gameplay. While there are all of Sega's best from the Genesis days, I was a bit upset that there were some titles that could've been highlighted here like Virtua Racing and other games popular from the franchise like Ren & Stimpy: Stimpy's Invention.
All in all, when it comes down to right, the price definitely delivers with Sonic's Ultimate Genesis Collection for the Xbox 360. You get so many classic games at a great price, over trying to download classics that would eat your budget away. If you've loved Sega's greatest games from their most successful system, or if your new to Sonic or Shinobi, than you'll definitely want this as a must buy for your video game library.
Graphics: B+
Sound: B+
Control: A-
Remastering: A-
Fun & Enjoyment: B
Overall: B 1/2+
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video-games_xbox
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Most Loved Gaming Genre. 1. Need to know: How many GB will you need to install it: 7 GB and people were complaining about bugs; I did not personally experience any during gameplay. Also, I played the 360 version of the game
2. What perspective is the reviewer coming from?
Most Loved Gaming Genre: Horror. Easily scared in games. Its more fund that way
Gamer for 20+ years. Been gaming for a while and love all genres, but one above the rest (see above). Has love for all the systems.
Loved the old school Resident Evil, Silent Hill games, Dead Space, Haunting Grounds, etc...
3. Does not really like (not my cup of tea):
Casual Games ala Angry Birds, Action over Horror in a game (see Dead Space 3 and Resident Evil 6)
4. First impressions of the game (first 2 hours):
"What hell are these big black boxes taking up so much of the screen?.....I don't have the option of removing them?!
"What the hell is that?!...Holy Crap, run!"
"Well the first part was cool. This is a little dull here....meh"
5. Impressions after some time with the game:
Boxes eventually didn't bother me as much as I progressed through the game.
Could not put the controller down.
Really got into the game.
"I wonder what's next"
Pros on game:
1. Camera and gameplay similar to Resident Evil 4 "Cool, over the shoulder view"
2. Ammo is scarce. Really makes things tense and makes you scrounge for ammo. "Ah yes! A box of bullets....only 1 bullet?! Dammit!"
3. Good variety of environments. "Ah cool a hospital, ah Cool sewers, Ah cool Caves, Ah cool a mansion, Ah cool...whatever this place is."
4. Good variety of enemies: "These are like the zombieish things from Resident Evil 4. Chainsaw! Run! So I killed the guy by stabbing him in the head even though he had a giant stick through it? Oh geez he is invincible. Where the heck is he...Agh! This reminds me of the invincible enemy in Amnesia: Dark Descent for PC. What in the world was that crawling down there? Water Monster, yes! (I liked the sharks in the Resident Evil Gamecube Re-make"
5. Good Boss Battles. The bosses have you doing other things other than just running around shooting them. "Hurry, Hurry the heck up he is coming toward you, screw it run!" "There's more than one?!"
6. Ability, weapons, and crafting. You have a load of abilities to choose from which you use to purchase with some green ooze. There are some good variety of weapons; pretty standard. Crafting different types of arrows for the crossbow was cool.
7. Took me about 20 hours to pass it. "What part are you in the game. So you passed it? I am at the.... I am not even close to the end yet?! No complaints"
8. It has new game plus. "I'm gonna still be scared act like a 5 year old girl, but at least I feel safer with this gun"
Cons on game:
1. Zombies have guns. I find it takes out the tension. Did not like when they did it in Resident Evil 5 &6. Developers stop doing that! It turns the game into a dull shooting gallery. Luckily its only a few times. "Is that...a gun? Seriously?! That is is ridiculous. Great I thought they wouldn't do that here"
2. Story is ok, but then again it wasn't that bad either. The ending made it make more sense though.
3. Bugs. Did not experience any, but for those that did it should be fixed.
4. Big Black Cinematic Letter Boxes. This was my biggest issue. They take up about 30% of the screen. I wanted to see this in all its glory. Why you do this Bethesda?
Will I like this game?
Probably so: If you are a fan of the old school horror games
Probably not: If you are a fan of Call of Duty games and Action in horror games.
Summary: Played it, dull at first, but really amped up the gameplay as I progressed through the game. Could not stop playing it. Highly recommend to horror fans.
**Will update review if I get a chance.
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video-games_xbox
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Great Microphone, Better At Mid To High Sounds. This looked like a nice set of gaming headphones, so I ordered them. I find these to do a good job rendering mid to higher notes, but not as well with bass, to have a great microphone, and good controls and connections.
First, the sound. I tried this with my phone and with my laptop. The phone had very good sound, but unless you boost the bass with some kind of equalizer (like the boomsound in my HTC 10), the low notes are just not that intense. The middle and high notes are very good however, making these good for classical, new age, or jazz. If you CAN boost the bass at bit, these are really excellent for modern music as well. For PC use, the sound will depend on the quality of the sound card you are using. With my Dell laptop, it was not as strong as with my phone (I had to turn up the volume wheel), but the quality was much the same. There are nowhere near the best I've tested, but at the price, they are very good, and will certainly be fine for gaming.
The headset looks better in person than on the product page - the blue is a bit deeper and looks better. The headset looks will be pleasing to most young gamers; it is a bit futuristic in design - a bit much for us older folks! I love the way the microphone easily swings away from your face, and how it integrates into the look of the headset when stowed. The earpads are comfortable, and there is additional padding for the top of your head. Along with the adjustable length, I found this to be a very comfortable heaset for long term wear. The design features a 3.5mm jack that will plug into your phone (to provide both mic and hearing), an Xbox 360 connector, and a standard pink/green connector for PC use. Other than that, it comes only with instructions, which are not well written but can be understood. They provide an on/off switch inline with the jack, and it is NOT a mic switch - it turns off the entire headset. On that same switch is a rocker wheel that controls the volume.
The microphone has good sensitivity. I think that whatever software they are using to isolate the environmental noise must be working very well. I was able to use the headset to speak with callers on my phone as well, although there are no provisions for answering calls - that has to be done from the phone. But based on my testing, this is a good mic for gaming chat as well. Note that I don't have an xbox, so I was unable to test that connection.
Summary: A very reasonable price for a good microphone and decent headset - very good for gaming. Highly recommended.
Please note that I received this free of charge, so I could review it.
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video-games_xbox
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What happened. Ive played Zoo Tycoon on the PC, despite it having issues I still enjoyed it. When I heard news that Zoo Tycoon was coming for Xbox One, I purchase it. After playing for a few weeks, I have more cons about this game then pros.
Cons:
Lack of animal variety- True, the game says it has around 100 and so animals, but its deceiving. Each category of animal is broken down, Antelopes, Elephants, etc. When you open a category you realize there is at least a dozen of that species. There are no wolves, ocean animals, penguins, zebras, just to name a few. I do not mind if there is two or three antelope varieties but to have around ten is just ridiculous. Considering all the time they put into having such a variety with a single animal, makes me wonder why they did not spend that time making different animals such as those I mentioned above.
No Construction- Zoo Tycoon on the PC allowed you to build from the ground up, pretty much making everything. This version, there is no construction. All the exhibits are pre-made and you have a choice between, small, medium and large. The small exhibits are too small for any of the animals to live comfortably; its like shoving them into a closet and closing the door. As before the concession stands are already build, but the issue with those is they are oddly shaped making them not only ugly but leaving gaps in-between other buildings/exhibits. After a while, seeing all the space not used up makes an ugly birds-eyes view of your zoo. Then comes the decorations, use to be you could personalized your zoo any way you wanted. Want a lion statue within the Hamburger Stand? Sorry you can no longer do that. Not being able to customize your zoo how you want hurts this game.
Menu navigation- The navigation in this game is nowhere near the smoothness it once was. For example, say you want to put down a tree. First you need to find a patch that does not have anything on it, click, then click again and finally you're at decorations, oh wait more clicking. Now you can place a tree down. But lets say you want that same tree but in a different location. Instead of the item already being within your possession, you have to go back through and find the same item again. This becomes highly annoying when you're placing animals within the exhibits.
Mini-Exhibits- While a good idea, it just not work. On the PC, I loved to make a lemur exhibit and watch all the little babies scurry around. With them being shoved into a mini-exhibit, you only get to have 3 lemurs and what makes it worse, any animal within these mini -exhibits do not breed. So no baby lemurs or cute little baby sloths. If you do not have the money or do not want a Zoo Keeper, these mini-exhibits get dirty fast, causing you to stop every two minutes to clean them. Most of the time, I completely forget about the mini-exhibits, because I find them rather pointless.
Limitations on Zoo Size- I have no idea what the developers were thinking when they decided to place a limitation on how big your zoo can be. PC version was based on land sizes, if you can fit the stuff on that land then number of items/exhibits you had did not matter. With this Zoo Tycoon, when you build a zoo, there is a bar right below the money and the guest number box in the upper middle of the screen. Once this fills up, you have no choice but to either delete stuff in your zoo or make a new zoo altogether. This is a huge problem. First of all the concession stands and the decorations will take up a good portion of the bar, leaving you with not much room for animal exhibits. This snowballs into a larger problem, the guest start complaining about the lack of animal variety and/or there is not enough entertainment. Beyond that you unlock animals and items all the way up to level 40. That is nice, but before you even reach level 30, your zoo is already at the max amount it can hold, so there really is no reason to stick around and continue to improve a zoo when you are limited on space.
This of course then begs me to wonder, why even bother with the zillion different types of the same animal when you can only place X amount on the land to begin with. The developers need to go back and remove this debilitation, by doing so would make the game more fun to play.
Facilities- (This includes the Bathrooms, Janitor, Zoo Keeper and Breeder. The reason it is on the list of cons is because it was poorly thought out. If you choose to sacrifice entertainment and concession stands for more exhibits, this means you're going to need more facilities to coincide with the exhibits. For example, you assign Breeders to exhibits, but you can only have X amount of breeders working out of that building, even upgraded. In order to get more breeders, you have to build another building, (which takes up more land space) and upgrade it. I just do not understand why the developers did not allow you have a large amount of breeders out of one upgraded building instead of forcing you to create another. This can be said for the Janitors and the Zoo Keepers.
Challenges: There pretty pointless unless you're bent on getting achievements and/or a new zoo area to unlock and a decoration. If the zoo was based on size, small, medium, large, with no stipulation of how much is on that land as long as you can fit it, then the challenges would be worth it. Since the game is not, really the challenges are a waste of time.
Pros:
Beautiful Graphics
Interactions with animals.
Final Verdict:
This game is and can be fun to play for about an hour or two, but then you want to go play something else, due to the lack of variety of what you can do. If you're a fan of the Zoo Tycoon and played the PC version(s) you're better off not even bothering with this game, unless it gets some serious updates and DLCs. For those who never played the PC version, you may get some enjoyment out of this. This game no longer caters to kids and adults alike, its more for little kids now and certainly not worth the $60.00 price tag more like $20.00.
As a gamer, I am disappointed the developers went way backwards on Zoo Tycoon and not forwards. The game could have been amazing but it simply turns out to be a former shadow of it once was.
Over All Score: 5/10
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video-games_xbox
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A unique RE experience. This was a well done game that offers an experience separate from you usual resident evil game.
Gameplay-wise: If you've played RE: 4, it's just a touchup on that. Capcom followed the popular dual-stick control method rather than using just the left stick to aim. The melee attack system (not the knife) was improved and it even followed up on the partner system. It's like Ashley Graham with a gun and guts. As you play as Chris, the new Sheva Alomar actively assists you as needed (though if you don't keep her on a short leash, she tends to jump in front of the most dangerous of enemies) and there are many areas that require teamwork (like lifting someone over a ledge) Unlike most resident evil installments, ammo is everywhere on the easier difficulties. You will almost never run out of ammunition outside of the first level and in my opinion, that takes away from the survival-horror experience.
Other than that, it's a solid over-the-shoulder shooter.
Story-Wise: A well-grounded and believable storyline taking place in various african locales as you track down black market weapons dealers trying to sell zombie viruses and bio organic weapons to terrorists over africa, eventually leading to the discovery of a "doomsday plot." The zombies are introduced well in addition to the inclusion of some new enemies. And for my particular favorite, Wesker is back, and he is badder than ever. Prepare for one of the hairiest fights of your gaming life. If you've watched the Matrix, then fighting Wesker is akin to fighting an agent.
Despite what some have said, I don't believe the game is racist or insensitive in any regard. It is a science-fiction story line that follows the "what if" scenario, Capcom did not develop this game with the intention of downplaying Africans.
Graphics and Sound FX: Good. Not perfection at its finest or anything but such aesthetics really have no bearing on the gameplay quality. I wouldn't use this as a basis of judgement if I were you.
Multiplayer: Well done. The cooperative modes make it so one player can't get too far ahead of the other and strongly pushes for cooperation, or you will find death quickly. The zombies have intelligence, and will work together to trap and surround you, so you need that extra person there watching your back. You can share items, and you don't even need a mic to communicate properly. Your character can issue commands/make requests as needed.
Overall: This is a game that is worth adding to your RE collection, or just for having a different kind of zombie-fighting game. Excellent in both regards.
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video-games_xbox
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Elite Version is Well Worth Having. Note: This is not a review of "having an Xbox 360". I did a full review of that already, on the base XBox 360 unit. We have had one since launch and we LOVE it and play it far more than we ever touch our Wii or PS3. This review is specifically about our upgrade to an XBox 360 elite.
The Xbox 360 Elite - with its shiny black case - is the latest version of the Xbox 360 with several important upgrades. First, it comes with a 120 gig hard drive, which is very important for people who love to download games, music and movies. Next, it comes with a built in HDMI port!
First, the disk space. We got an Xbox 360 base unit right when it first came out, and we play *constantly*. It was very easy to get those 20 gig of space on the basic hard drive filled up with all sorts of things. We had music to play as background music in some games, we had lots of game demos we were trying out. We had videos to watch and downloadable games from the marketplace. We definitely needed more space.
For graphics, we can easily notice that the video quality from the HDMI feed is better than what we were getting from the high def feed on the regular Xbox 360. The regular one offers component (red-green-blue) as its only high def feed. So if you're a gamer with a high def TV and want the best quality signal, you'll be happy about this HDMI output.
Yes, you get a black wireless controller, a black headset and Live Silver membership along with this package. But really, most Xbox gamers have those things already. And most of them have Gold Live, since without Gold you can't play online. So these three things are certainly nice to have, but not a reason you would buy the Elite system.
The package comes with a single disc containing 2 games - Forza and Marvel Ultimate Alliance. Both are old games and not that thrilling; we had them already. Still, free games are at least things you can give away to friends.
Perhaps best of all, the Elite has a new motherboard inside it which is much more reliable. It's called a FALCON. How can you tell what motherboard your Xbox 360 has? Here's the trick. It works for any 360
* Turn your 360 off and take off the hard drive and remove the game.
* Turn the unit upside down.
* Put a flashlight directly against the bottom grill.
* Look in from the SIDE grill at the inside of your 360.
If you see 3 red rings that "stick up" from the green motherboard, you have an old launch motherboard. If you see 3 red rings that "lay flat" on that motherboard, it's the middle Zephyr version. If you have only TWO red rings that lay flat, you've got a Falcon!
I highly recomend having an Xbox 360 in your house for gaming, and I highly recommend going with the Elite. The hard drive space is VERY useful, the HDMI graphics are great, and having a 360 in general is just superb. Again, we literally play with the 360 all the time and rarely touch our other systems. The whole reason we had to get an Elite is that we were fighting over who could play on the 360 even though we have all these other game systems in the house.
Highly recommended.
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video-games_xbox
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Gran Turis-who. Forza Motorsport is as much about style as it is about speed. Buy a car, tweak it with numerous upgrades and choose your paint colour for the main body of the car, the hood and the mirrors. Tint the windows, change the rims, apply a million decals to the vehicle and take it to the track. No, you can't fit neons and no, you can't change the colour of your exhaust, but you don't need to. Resizing the decals and vinyls, colouring them, spinning them and moving them to the desired location can result in some incredibly intricate designs - and the chances are that when you take it online, you won't see a modified car like yours.
But, that doesn't win races. Upgrading your engine, suspension, turbocharger, intercooler, bodywork and a whole host of other parts is what's required to do that. Along with a bit of tuning to the camber, tyre pressure, suspension stiffness and more. If you obtain a car that allows it, you can even swap out the entire engine for a better one to improve performance.
The results of these changes can be viewed instantly, using Forza's "out of ten" system. Your car is given a score for acceleration; cornering, braking, top speed and rarity, with these updating instantly should you choose to buy a new part. Installing more custom parts increases the car's rarity, which in turn increases its value when you come to sell it back to the CPU, or if you take it online and flog it to another human player. The whole system is incredibly easy to use, and is as in-depth as you wish to make it. Cars don't have to be tuned, but if you want to squeeze an extra couple of miles an hour out of the engine and a little more grip on the corners from the tyres, then you can tweak all of the settings to get the car feeling just right. Paint and decals don't have to be applied, but having your own personal car when racing online - and knowing that nobody else has one that looks exactly like it - is a very cool feeling.
The gameplay - thankfully - matches up. The game does move at a solid 30fps - which many have criticised - but you'll rarely notice it. Had the developers chosen to cram so much graphical flair into a game running at 60fps, we might be mentioning slowdown here, but we aren't. The game whips along at a stunning rate, and you won't notice the framerate at all. You'll be too busy trying to slice an extra split second off your lap time by riding an apex a little more than you should, or blocking off one of the fighting CPU AI drivers to stop them passing you, or brutally knocking you spinning on a corner. Make them mad and they'll begin nudging, pushing and taking more risks - just like you would. If you're bored of racing but still want to proceed through the game's offline structure, train a "Drivatar" and make them race for you - a bit like the B-Spec option of GT4. In this mode, you're rated on how well you take different types of corners, and this is then applied to your Drivatar. If you drive badly, he'll drive badly - simple as that.
Playing in the game's career mode is also as customisable as you want it to be. If you're having trouble timing your turns, pop the "Suggested Line" option on and watch as it tells you where to brake, where to cruise and where to put your foot down - dynamically - meaning that the line changes to reflect your current speed. This, along with the optional traction control, stability control, damage type and opposition difficulty is all changeable. The penalty for setting these all to the easiest option is that you won't earn as much money for winning a race, with the opposite happening if you set them to the most difficult levels.
Online, Forza Motorsport uses a modified Chess ranking system to grade players and find the best opposition for your race. The game slides along at breakneck speed and rarely suffers from lag or slowdown. PGR2 has also been unseated here.
I know I'm not doing the game justice here, because there are simply so many things to talk about, that its impossible to get it all in without running over thirty thousand words.
I haven't touched on many of the game's features, but they are best left for you to find. All you need to know is that if it was a poker hand, Forza would be a royal flush. If a football score, it would be a 7-0 win. As a game, it is the finest straight-up racing game to grace any home console system and as such, is an absolute must buy. I don't often say that a game has no flaws, but I certainly can't see any in Forza Motorsport.
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video-games_xbox
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Easily one of the better RTS games on a console. I'm a bit of a Halo fan-boy. I've got the games, read the books, comics etc. I really enjoy the mythos surround the game. I believe it to rank with Star Wars in terms of story, characters etc. This game, story wise, really kept me playing. I thought I was only going to be sitting with the campaing for maybe an hour and then moving onto the multiplayer/skirmish modes. Not the case.
I've taken a break to leave a review. I've sunk about 15 hours into the campaing mode and still have not beaten the game. This is a true Halo "I've got to finish the game!" kind of game. If you enjoyed the other three FPS games you can stop reading now - same to be said if you rolled your eyes at the idea of another Halo game.
This game lives up to the high standard the Halo franchise is held to. The graphics are great in 1080p, the voice acting is on par with the rest of the series, and the cut scenes that drive the story make you wonder: "Now why haven't they just made a CG movie yet?"
Every RTS that hits a console has always had the trouble of ease of use when it comes to controls. This is a pick up and play kind of game. The controls are deep enough that any PC can appreciate the effort made.
Unit upgrades and options are clear and to the point. You can swiftly see why you need to updgrade your tech, supplies, units etc in order to run a blitzkreig on your enemy.
I would expound further on a few things but that would be a spoiler in my eyes. Check the video review at IGN, you'll see gamplay, graphics etc. Don't rely solely on Amazon user reviews to justify a purchase. This is targeted at Halo fans, if you're not one then you may not like it for that shallow reasoning alone.
I give this a 4/5 stars only because of unit limitations. You can only create an army so big, and it's marginal when considering such PC games like the Command and Conquer series. I was also hoping for a wider array of air units and the inclusion of sea-based units. While sea based units are not included in the books etc the developers could have made a believable reach by creating them. It would have been a nice option but by no means does this detract from an all around great console RTS.
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video-games_xbox
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Schizophrenic Application. Rocksmith needs to decide if it's a guitar game or a guitar instructor. By not deciding to really be one or the other I believe it fails at being either.
As a game it's going to be overwhelming. Imagine a Guitar Hero controller with 144 buttons and six toggles and a dozen ways of indicating how a note should be rendered on that controller. A little mind-blowing.
As an instructional application the gaming aspects are constantly interfering. The music notation is neither sheet music nor (in its default configuration) tab. The notation can be "inverted" to display as tab, but that should have been the default. Anyone not familiar with tab is not going to know to go looking for the setting, and then later have a problem when they try to move beyond the included set. (The set is another problem, and while it's good to be able to play in a variety of genres, motivation is provided by playing songs you like and already know [as in "know how they go", not "know how to play] and a very small set of the included songs are anything I'd normally listen to or want to play).
The "progressive complexity" method of starting with a simpler version of a song's riff and then adding notes as the simpler ones are mastered is not how it's done. The only way to learn a passage of music is to play it *as it is to be played* starting slowly and gradually increasing the speed (not the number of notes) over and over and over again. Just when you've committed a riff to "muscle memory" the game suddenly throws in new notes (and sometimes new notation that you've never seen before unless you've gone through all the "technique" sections beforehand). Now you have to unlearn what you just learned to accommodate what is essentially a different passage. There's an option to reset all songs to their *lowest* level, or the highest complexity level *you've achieved*, but none to have the program always use all the notes all the time.
The number of times a new unknown part needs to be repeated can be immense. As Zak Wylde has said "You just start out real slow and play it a million times". Or at least until the other people in the house threaten to throw you and the guitar out. The gaming aspects of the "Riff Repeater" (which has some otherwise good intentions) means that every time you mess up you lose a "life". Lose three and it's game over. You have to then re-navigate the (unwieldy) menu system and *re-tune the guitar* before you can have at it again. I understand that the guitar must be in tune (or in tune as the program would have it) so that it can function. But surely the player can determine if the game is calling bad notes on properly fretted ones and ask for the tuner. No guitar that isn't broken is going to go out of tune after three runs of the verse riff of "Satisfaction".
It's also helpful when learning a song to be able to see what part is coming up. The notes appearing from some far off netherworld and sliding towards you is a gaming aspect and is not as useful as being able to see the score ahead of time. A display (or the option of one) that would display the song as tab or sheet music a page at a time and highlight the notes as they are to be played would be more helpful.
I'm still not completely sold on the idea of an automated "teacher" even if all the options above were incorporated. A video of a technique can only take you so far. If you don't grasp the concept and learn it wrong it can be hard to undo, and a simple problem with physical technique that a human instructor could spot and correct in a moment can become a long-term liability if the guitar is learned using Rocksmith. In addition, there's more to getting a song to move listeners than hitting the right notes at the right time. That's only the beginning. A human instructor can help the player get the feel and soul of playing the instrument to be second nature. I'm not sure any game can.
There's a brief period of euphoria when you start using this and realize "Hey, I'm playing a song!", and it can be fun and make practice more interesting. But I'm just not as enthusiastic about this after several weeks of use as I was when I got it.
In summation, the "progressive complexity" approach, constant tripping through the menu system, re-tuning, and lack of immediate feedback and correction that a live instructor can provide are the greatest hindrances of the program and comprise my major caveats about the game.
All of the above is, of course, my opinion. Your mileage may vary.
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video-games_xbox
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The best hockey game on any system. NHL 2002 is a crowning achievement in videogame hockey, the first to combine techincal mastery, EA's typical fast-paced gameplay, and convincing realism into one seamless package. The beginner mode is a good tutorial to get used to the controls without getting hammered, while the difficult setting will have experts throwing their controller through the TV after the opposing goalie's 40th consecutive save. Take your team through a season on medium setting on 5 minute periods, and the point totals will accurately reflect their true range (at least with Toronto this was the case). The feeling of picking the top corner with a rocket wrist shot from the top of the circle is unprecedented, and the control is as crisp and intuitive as one could ask for. One-timers, thankfully, are still the best way to score, and even star players can miss the net when one-timing a hot pass, although more often than not they are on net. Although others have complained otherwise, I find the powerplay is recreated well, thanks to good offensive positioning. The penalty kill [disappoints] though, you can still stick handle end-to-end. And its too bad the computer AI doesn't cycle the puck or show anything resembling a powerplay. The X-Box has slightly smoother graphics, a more detailed create-a-player engine and more hit posts/crossbars than the PS2 version, but the big bulky controller is a bit more awkward and unnatural in pulling off on-the-fly line changes and spin-o-ramas. The commentary is rock-solid, but it can be very lame at times. However, I find the cheekiness a refreshing change from the usual staleness of videogame and real-life commentary. And occasionally it is quite funny (At the beginning of the 2nd period during a blowout: "Hey honey, good news; I won't be working overtime today!"). The gameplay is fully customizable, from game speed, to player/goalie boosts, pass accuracy, shot accuracy, aggressiveness, and even puck friction. Other great features include an NHL cards system that rewards skills and milestones, in-game replays of big hits and saves, the Widescreen Breakaway Camera, and (this is sweet for all you poolies) a FANTASY DRAFT. This attention to detail makes NHL 2002 an excellent game for casual fans and purists alike, and a superb choice on any system. Right now this is the best hockey game on the planet, but there are still some ideas that would make the game even more incredible:
1. Improve the fighting. Not only is a pathetic exercise in button-mashing, but I have never seen Aki Berg drop the gloves against Rod Brind'Amour in real life. It happened several times in NHL 2002.
2. Include a player editor. On top of the aforementioned Brind'Amour scandal, it is frustrating when real-life snipers like Brian Rolston and Keith Tkachuk keep missing the net due to their low shot accuracy rating. The ability to fix these tiny inaccuracies would be awesome.
3. The simulated stats are still inflated. In today's game, only 1 or 2 players will reach 100 points and 50 goals, not the 10 or 15 represented here. Only 10 or 15 players will average a point a game, not 50 or 60. Nobody will reach 500 penalty minutes, and no team will average 11 powerplay opportunites per game.
4. How come nobody ever fans on a one-timer or slap-shot?
5. Tightening up the defensive AI will lower those inflated shot totals dramatically.
It might sound nit-picky, but I'm just rambling on in hopes of convincing others that future NHL titles will be just as groundbreaking as this one. As I said before, the best hockey game on the planet, one that you will be playing until the next precedent-setting EA hockey game is released.
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video-games_xbox
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plenty of old and just enough new. I have been a halo fan since the beginning. I must say I was skeptical when I heard 343 was taking over for bungie. But Halo 4 has been a pleasant surprise.
As should be expected, visually this is by far the best game of the series. Great level design, fun new weapons (although they still basically follow the halo pattern of each race getting their own piston, assault rife, sniper rife ext.) The new alien race is and nice change of pace from the flood. The story can be a bit light on all the nitty gritty details of the new world/species and events that have taken place since we left master chief but from start to finish the story is both entertaining and compelling.
I haven't played a ton of multiplayer yet, but so far I like the changes, I am sure as with most games now a days they will expand the experience with DLC.
There are a few cons:
As I have said the single player story could have been drawn out a little more. The game runs 6-8 hours on heroic for a seasoned player. I would have preferred a couple of more hours but it still beats levels like "The Library" :D
No firefight, I love spartan ops and if I had to choose one or the other I would go with spartan ops, but I wish we could have both ( maybe with a flood option. . . just saying)
Music. . . . I think the new soundtrack is very good, imo better than Reach and ODST but the original CE theme is missed.
Over all I think 343 delivered, they gave us a new halo game with a good story with the same look and feel of the original. But they have given us some updates that were needed to keep the series fresh and enjoyable. Compared to its predecessors at the time of their respective releases I put halo 4 slightly behind CE and Halo 3. You can never make anyone happy, but its obvious from the final product that Microsoft didn't just go through the motions here. Alot of time, money, and effort was put into making this game and it shows.
Keep up the good work 343!
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video-games_xbox
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Surviving the zombies of Trumbull Valley. Standing atop a water tower, the survivor scouts out areas that may contain much needed supplies while also making note of where the nearby zombie activity lies. This is Undead Labs' "State of Decay," and day to day life inside the zombie title constantly involves the search for materials to survive. It's not just about getting the goods necessary for living another day as much as the situations gamers encounter while out scavenging for them.
"State of Decay" may feel like several other tiles. It's easy for gamers to look at the title and see that it's an open-world game with vehicles and think it must be like "Grand Theft Auto." Others may hear that it involves rescuing survivors from a zombie outbreak and think it might be similar to "Dead Rising," or that the act of searching for supplies in order to outlive the undead must make the game some kind of single-player "DayZ."
The truth is, even though "State of Decay" may seem like all of these on paper, it all blends together to create a unique experience that gamers can't find anywhere else.
The survivors of Trumbull Valley
Players don't have a single character to control inside "State of Decay." In order to survive in the safest and most effective way possible, gamers must bring together a community of people. Rather than playing as a single survivor, the player represents an entire group.
After earning any character's trust to become their friend, players gain the option to take control of that survivor and thus use them to go out and gather supplies or do missions.
In Fact, "State of Decay" requires gamers to switch out which survivor they are playing as doing too much on one person will make them fatigued and much more likely to die. Speaking of death, when a character dies it is permanent. That person is forever removed from the group and loading a previous save isn't an option as "State of Decay's" auto-save feature ensures that both risk and choice matter in the game.
Basically, gamers should get use to the idea that survivors will die. This is the zombie apocalypse after all.
It's the supplies that keep the group alive
Trumbull Valley features a rural setting that includes small town settlements as they would exist today if an uncontrollable zombie outbreak occurred. As such, the landscape is filled with houses, stores, storage sheds, warehouses, and more to scavenge through.
In addition to finding weapons and other items that are for active use on a character, players must find packs of materials that are necessary for the home base. The group needs food, medicine, and fuel for obvious reasons. Ammunition helps keep the survivors at home alive as it gives them the means to defend themselves while the player is away.
Another important resource the community requires comes in the form of building materials. These are necessary for the group to make repairs and additions to their home base by building watch towers, sleeping areas, workshops, medical tents, and more.
The new structures allow the group to improve their base so that it can provide better protection, house more survivors, repair tools and vehicles, treat the injured, and even grow a daily source of food via outdoor gardens.
There's no place like Home
Since the home base houses all the survivors together, they will occasionally get in fights with one another. This will prompt players to escort these troubled individuals away from the base so that they can have a private talk in hopes of calming the situation down. Occasionally, members of the group will also end up in distress or turn up missing. Gamers are then tasked to come to their aid and help them back to safety.
To help everyone out in the field, players may establish outposts away from the home base which provide relative safety while separated from home. Outposts allow missing survivors to find their way back, and create a safe perimeter around the structure which can be expanded by placing traps.
This land belongs to the dead
The 16 square kilometer map of "State of Decay" features a couple of small towns, wooded areas, rivers, farms houses complete with fields, and even some lakes. Basically the game's environments provide all the ingredients for a classic horror setting after scores of the undead are thrown into the mix.
The living dead themselves are both varied and plentiful. There are standard shambling zombies, which travel either alone and in large wandering hordes that work as a single unit which can easily overwhelm lone survivors.
"State of Decay" also features a few special zombie units that are more of a threat than the average walking corpse. These range from bloated zeds who leave a deadly toxic fume in their wake to armless zombies whose only attack comes in the form of a stunning scream which lets the nearby undead swarm the defenseless survivor.
Most of these special units bear a resemblance to a figure that was once believably human with the exception of the lumbering Juggernaut. This behemoth towers as a giant above the other dead and bears the strength to send cars flying with a single swipe that would suggest that they aren't merely the reanimated corpse of a deceased human being.
An enjoyable harmony
`State of Decay" weaves elements of several genres together to create a new gaming recipe for fun. On their own merits, the game's combat, resource gathering, survivor micro-management, and other systems are decent. When they are put together, however, they become much greater than the sum of their parts. Everything blends together in such a way that players won't even care about the game's few minor issues such as graphical tears, clipping, and framerate dips.
When looked at as a full-title, "State of Decay" is remarkable. Considering the fact that this is an Xbox Live Arcade game, the results are phenomenal. This is definitely a must buy for any fan of either zombies or sandbox gaming, but this is the kind of experience that every gamer should at least try.
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video-games_xbox
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February 2015. Game is still broken. Probably always will be. Seems like 343 has chalked it up as a failure and moved on. Bought this at launch in November. It's now February. Still broken. Getting a group of 3 or 4 friends together to play takes at least half an hour, sometimes hours. If one person has to leave and come back later, it starts the whole nightmare all over again. Impossible to get people into the party and it requires starting over (and hard-resetting XBOX) to try again. Takes multiple tries. Once the party is in order, you enter matchmaking, and 75% of the time your party gets split up, and again you have to start over. If you do effectively get into a game, the game itself plays OK, but after the game ends, you cross your fingers again to see who is still in your party.
Even with custom games, outside of matchmaking, the party issues are still there. You just can't get everyone together. And then once you are together, since the XBOX party chat sucks, you have to switch to game chat, and game chat often doesn't work-- Often two players can't hear each other, while others on their team can hear them fine. This requires everyone to restart and try again.
I bought this game so every once in a while I could get together with 3-6 friends and play for a half hour to an hour. I've given up-- it takes half an hour to an hour to even get a game started. Over 50% of the time we try to do this, we spend our alotted time trying to get it working, and by the time we have to quit, we still haven't gotten into a game.
Even if you play solo, the matchmaking is still much, much slower than any other game I've played, and often requires you to start over with a hard reset.
Immediately after the launch, 343 made a concerted effort to fix the game. They fixed a lot of things but not enough to make this playable. Sometime mid-december, they toned down their patches. The release schedule of these patches is slowing, and we see less and less getting fixed each time. It's clear that they have accepted that the game will never work perfectly and they are just chalking this one up as a failure. I think they are releasing patches every couple weeks so people don't accuse them of giving up, but don't let that fool you. When they were trying back in November, we saw results, even though they were slow and frustrating. Now we don't see results at all-- none of the issues I experience have been improved in the last month.
I'm sure the single player works but most of us aren't buying it for that.
Short version: Multiplayer with friends is still unplayable because it takes hours to get a game set up. 343 tried to fix it but at this point, it appears they have given up and are regarding this game as a failure and attempting to move on to their next game. Don't buy.
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video-games_xbox
|
Very entertaining despite a few flaws. I don't play a lot of Kinect games. Not because I'm lazy, but I don't think the technology is quite to the level it needs to be at to have an above-average experience. We have the Dance Central games, the Kinect Adventures, and the Hip-Hop Experience; all of which have pretty good detection controls and are more accurate than not in reading movements. Yet despite all the lighting adjustments and re-calibrations, there are still times where movements are erroneously detected or not detected at all.
This is where creatively ambitious games like "Rise of Nightmares" are short-changed. The movements are mostly accurately detected, but then there are times when you get stuck in a corner, trying to escape by furiously twisting your shoulders with your one foot behind you while the camera stubbornly continues to bump against the wall. Or when fighting the final boss, you get wedged up in a cliff crevice that prevents your electric fireballs from reaching the boss's hit box.
But the occasional frustration brought by the Kinect controls thankfully did not overshadow what I found to be a fun little macabre adventure. The eerie environments and mutilated enemies are varied and very well done. There are classic horror elements mixed with science-fiction fantasy. I saw quite a few similarities in plot and design between this game and Sega's earlier zombie games such as House of the Dead and Zombie Revenge. The characters you encounter range from the creepy yet intriguing to walking clichés. The story is ridiculous and, at times, outright silly (think man's head on Chihuahuas body) and seems to just continue on unraveling with even more outrageous elements the farther you get. There are some clever moments where it makes you think the game is about to end with a climactic scene, but then throws you into yet another stage. The final boss battle is so removed from the original premise that it feels like they might've gone a bit too far into the absurd. I felt like I was in some weird dimension that was a hodgepodge of Alice in Wonderland, Dune, Tremors, and Street Fighter(!).
But I would be lying if I said it wasn't fun. Apart from punching and kicking your undead foes, you also get lots of fun little weapons to slice and dice them. There are lots of 'jump' moments too that require you to jump back or side to side to avoid spikes, saws, and spears coming at you.
My play-through lasted about 3.5 hours. That's not bad for only sixteen bucks.
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video-games_xbox
|
If the year ended now this would easily be game of the year. I knew very little about this game when I made the purchase. I just needed something new to play, as that other big release this month quickly grew old. So I picked this up on my way home from work last night and from the very start I was hooked. So much so that I got very little sleep last night. So after putting about ten hours into it so far I decided I'd leave a review with my thoughts so far.
Story: I'm a LOTR fan. Not a huge fanboy though. I've read the books and seen the movies and liked them both. So far I'm loving the story in this game. I felt like it fit well into the LOTR universe and it pulled me in from the begining. I found that I care about my character and what happend to him in the begining, and I found that I want to help him seek out his justice. To me that is what makes a story great, caring about the people in the story.
Graphics: Very good. Are the they best I've seen? No. They are still very good. In my opinion its one of the better looking games on the new gen consoles.
Combat: Ok so by now you know that the combat is very similar to that of the Assasins Creed and Batman games. Only in my opinion it does it better than both of those games. It seems more fluid and easy to pick up. Sure there is a lot of button mashing, but its a lot of fun. It's all about timing and if you miss a block or parry it can have dire consequences. At least early in the game when you find yourself surrounded by mobs you can very quickly get into trouble.
Nemesis System: This is what makes this game great. Early on in the game I came up against an Orc Captain who made short work of killing me, he in turn got promoted and got more powerfull. Later on I run into him again and he taunts me about killing me the first time. This time I manage to take him down thinking that would be the last I seen of him. Alas, I find out later that unless you take off their heads they can come back. So once again I run into my nemesis and now he is quite a bit more powerfull than me. He is now scared and has bandages on his face from our last meeting. This time he kills me again and once again finds himself promoted and more powerfull. Long story short I run into him two more times, once went in my favor and another in his. He is now extreemly powerfull and I find myself obsessed with taking him out for good, however I know I must make myself more powerfull if I'm going to take him down. This is just and example of this great system. What it does is it makes death matter. Your death has consequences. Later in the game I know I will be able to turn certain Captains against others and I'm looking forward to that. The nemeisis system adds a level of depth to this game that I believe will lend a decent amount of replay to the game. Everything is randomized so you'll never be fighting the same Captains twice.
Normally I'd add some negatives, but as of right now I just can't think of any. I'll be sure to update this if I come up with any. I think this game is a must buy for anyone owning a next gen console.
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video-games_xbox
|
Camera angles - arrghhh. I'm still trying to understand the game designers' intent with this one. You play one of several of the major characters in the LOTR series: Gandalf, Aragorn, Legolas, Gimli, Sam, Frodo. I've tried both solo and "co-op" with my son (i.e., multiplayer on the the same box with 2 controllers. In this case, there is no split screen, so you can never part ways). There is a 'mission tree' that you have to 'climb' - essentially it chronologically sequences the events/missions to match the movie/book. For some missions, you can play solo, but not co-op, or vice versa. And for the most part, the missions presume to fill in gaps in the movie sequence, e.g. battling your way through the Halls of the Dead with Legolas, Aragorn, and Gimli - lots of undead to kill, pathfinding through the caves, etc. Or battling as Gandalf on the parapets of Minas Tirith. You advance levels, get to select special attacks (higher level = greater attacks and selection), and hack through missions.
The cut scenes and visuals are not bad as is the voice-over acting. Generally, the strength of this game is the replication of the major characters and many of the scenarios: the situation setup and familiarity draw you into the game as they provide continuity from mission to mission and most folks have seen the movie.
It's the camera angles that became frustrating on several occasions. Here's how the work: just like a movie. "What's that mean" you say? It means that your watching the game as if it were viewed from static, pre-staged, 3rd person cameras. Sometimes your looking straight down, from the side, or even into the faces of the charactes and there's nothing you can do to change the viewpoint! Occasionally, you can't tell where to go next or some object screens your field of view. Example: Gandalf's running right-to-left across the parapet's of Minas Tirith, close-in shot (say, 40 feet away), perpendicular to his travel, and you can't tell what's further down the parapet as the 'camera' neither pivots, follows your character, or changes to another 'shot' even when you've got a bunch of orcs running in from 'stage left' and off camera! Use ranged weapons? Plan for 10 orcs bearing down on you? Nope, can't even see them coming. When you do, it's too late (although with the right powers, it's not really impossible, just annoying).
I suppose the camera technique is supposed to enhance the cinematic effect - but playing it as a video game, I found myself often trying to peer around the inside to the left and right (and top and bottom) of my TV screen to 'look into the wings' of the stage to see the offstage badguys comin' at me.
Get it cheap and if you're a LOTR fan. Otherwise, you won't be to thrilled.
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video-games_xbox
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Rich, Involving and Phenomenal. How can anyone NOT give this game 5 stars? Knights of the Old Republic is a near perfect role-playing experience!
This is how role-playing games should be done; open-ended gameplay, deep customization options, superb cinematics, and extreme length! I've spent 40 hours taking my time through the game and I'm not even halfway finished! But I simply can't wait until then to review it.
Other than Rogue Leader and the upcoming Rebel Strike for the Gamecube, Knights is the best Star Wars game ever made. The attention to detail is astounding. Star Wars fans will find every character, sound effect, and image faithful to the movies and literature. The camera is never a problem since you have full control over it. Animation is the weakest part of Knights. The frames per second stay pretty much constant all the time so there's no transition to notice. But you can tell the animation is subpar compared to most new games. It never bothered me.
I found Knights to be very non-linear. Players are given a great deal of freedom to do as they wish in plot, action and interaction with the game's characters. Once you get your spaceship you can select which planet you want to explore, and you can leave almost anytime you want in order to visit a different one. Dialog in the game is handled by giving the player choices of what to say. Some of the responses are truly hilarious. But take what you say seriously, it can have a major effect on your main character's progress. All of your characters can be customized greatly, from their statistics to their clothing. When you slap a piece of armor on someone it shows them wearing it on the screen at all times. There are endless numbers of tools and weapons at your disposal to further outfit your team, although certain people can't use certain items (Wookies can't wear armor). Lightsabers and Force powers make themselves available eventually and boy, are they ever satisfying! If you plan on using light side Force powers a lot be kind and helpful in your adventures. If you want to use dark side powers easily just be mean to everyone you encounter. The scope of choices in gameplay is impressive.
To keep things fresh there are a few minigames strewn throughout your adventure. I liked the Pazaak card game. It was easy to understand and proved to be a fun way to build credits even if it's mostly a matter of luck to win.
The music is what you would expect from a Star Wars experience. You'll hear some familiar tunes but most is brand new stuff that fits on-screen events well. Definitely no complaints there.
No other game I know of does such an entertaining job of ingrossing you in what it's like to be a Jedi than this one. Of course if you just want to be a Han Solo, blaster-toting scoundrel that's your choice, too. That's what makes this game so fun: FREEDOM. As far as I'm concerned this is an essential purchase for X-Box owners.
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video-games_xbox
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Really badly made game, but still fun to play. Pros:
1. Improved Ground Through Balls (more realistic).
2. More realistic gameplay mechanics.
3. Attack minded game which makes it very fun to play.
4. Fixed crosses
Cons:
1. Pace is king. Over all else. Meaning you can never use players like Toni Kroos, Pirlo, Xabi Alonso the way they were meant to be played with (i.e they will suck compared to ANY fast player out there). If you don't have pace in your team you WILL get battered. This makes the game extremely unrealistic.
2. Goalkeepers are more realistic but broken: They make IMPOSSIBLE diving saves when you do power shots but can't manage to save the simplest finesse shots. Overall they are more realistic and I love how easy it is to beat them 1v1 when they rush out (like in real life) but the diving saves they make when you do power shots is just crazy.
3. Body Feints are overpowered: No matter how good you are in defense, Its literally impossible to stop a body feint 50% of the time (you'll fail 100% if you're not a very good defender). Body feints simply DO NOT work in real life they way FIFA overpowers this move.
4. Standing Tackle is Broken: Even when you make a perfectly timed standing tackle on the ball, somehow the opposition player always manages to retain it. Always. I get it that some players like Falcao are really strong, but when you make a clear cut tackle on the ball but the ball doesn't even budge, then you know that EA screwed up (as usual). THIS IS INFURIATING at times when you clearly deserved to win the ball back but the game decides to disregard your tackle and provide an open net for the opposition. I often times feel cheated and angry because I was beaten by broken game mechanics rather than any real skill of the opposition. I'm sure others can relate to this.
Compared to FIFA 14:
Where it wins:
1. Its more fun than FIFA 14 as its more attacking.
2. It fixed the broken crossing system which balanced out the game to get played through the middle more often.
3. The GROUND Through balls in FIFA 15 are amazing and more realistic (FIFA 14 doesn't come close).
Where it loses out:
1. FIFA 14 gave more importance to dribbling, passing and on the ball skills whereas FIFA 15 ONLY focuses on pace. I used to be a boss with Toni Kroos and Pirlo in 14 but in FIFA 15 putting them in my team makes them an instant liability.
This is just one bad side, but believe me its a major one. FIFA 15 took the cheap way out and overpowered pace which ruined EVERY SLOW BUT GOOD player in the game. Ibrahimovic is subpar compared to 14 becuase of the pace issue. Pirlo, Kroos and Xabi Alonso (some of my favorite players in 14) are outright bad. This is massively unrealistic.
I hope EA fixes these issues in the next installment, but then again I've been saying that since forever.
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video-games_xbox
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Awesome Stick. First off, this is an amazing arcade stick with great packaging. You can also mod this stick. There are quite a few resources on the net about this. do a search for Art's Hobbies and Joystick in google to find out.
If you're reading this review, and wondering, is this stick worth the price, the answer is yes. It's a really expensive stick, that's for sure, but you get what you pay for. If you're a retrogamer like me and you spend hours playing not only fighting games but Pac-Man CE, Afterburner Climax, Final Fight DI, etc for the latest consoles, then you owe it to yourself to pick up one.
The Sanwa buttons aren't concave like how you remember most US arcade machines, they are japanese styled, but this actually makes them faster to use, and you won't regret it after using it. They're very light and sensitive. It does take some getting used to to convert from a pad to this stick, but you'll be happy you did.
As far as the square gate goes, it didn't really give me any problems with QCF/QCB type moves. You just have to give it a bit to get used to it. The sticks look really great in your house when you have friends over, and if you're enterprising you can toss the artwork and get artwork in there that is done custom (will probably void warranty tho). I imagine all kinds of players might want a PacMan, Robotron, Afterburner, Outrun, or even Taito Viewlix designs on there.
You can get really nice custom sticks out there for around 200 dollars, so if price isn't a concern you might want to support your community instead of a corporation, but on the other hand you have it all right here. The price and availability does seem to fluctuate alot, so waiting might get you a cheaper stick.
To sum up, if you want quality but can't afford it, put 20 dollars a week aside and in a little over a month you can invest in this stick which will last a long time, and will surely be worth it if you are into playing games the way they were meant to be played and not with the abomination of modern console pads.
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video-games_xbox
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Incredibly Frustrating and Essentially Pointless. I agree with you if you think the game play doesn't have to be awesome and the story can be non-existent, because you really just want to play a simple, fun game with incredible looking girls in bikinis. I wasn't looking for a great volleyball, jet ski, or random mini-game game. I just wanted something fun with hot girls in it, something like Rumble Roses XX. With that in mind, I am still incredibly frustrated by this game and I'm concerned that a number of 5 star reviews are misleading (as in, this is not porn, this is not hentai, this game will not fulfill your sexual desires).
The DOA girls look incredible - except when their hair clips through their bodies, which is not sexy.
Taking photos of the DOA chicks should be fun, but I found using the camera to be overly difficult. Plus, there is no pause button during the photo shoot, so you only have about 20 seconds to try and snap as many photos as you can before the scene is completed.
You can only complete 3 activities per day, then you're forced back to your hotel room to play casino mini-games. Something as simple as giving a girl a gift or falling off an incredibly tough water slide count as 1 of your 3 activities each day.
The focus of the game is on giving gifts to the other girls and getting them to like you enough to where they will wear swimsuits that you give them. The problem is that purchasing and giving gifts is a very tedious and fairly confusing process.
You can purchase watercraft, but when your vacation has ended there is a chance that when you go back on vacation with another girl the expensive watercraft you purchased will be gone.
The casino mini-games are fun but stay away from the one-armed bandits. For some reason the game designers felt there should be a massive penalty that appears to occur more often than a regular win: you bet 100 and unlike anything I've seen before...you can lose 50,000! Can you imagine if Vegas worked this way, you put $5 down for black jack and when you lose they ask for everything left in your wallet?
I really wanted to like this game, the DOA girls look great in their suits and a few of the games are fun, but it is entirely too frustrating - It could have been so much better with just a little more thought. Rent for a few bucks first to see if you think it's worth it, you might just save yourself $15 that way, which may be better suited to buying the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue.
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video-games_xbox
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Dance Central 2 vast improvement on DC1. I'll make this short and sweet... I freakin' love Dance Central, the game was the only reason I bought an XBOX (I'm a woman in my thirties and thought I'd never own an XBOX). I love the Dance Central playlist (hip hop, r&b and dance) and the choreography is very authentic, the stuff of music videos. I originally had a Wii but I wasn't feeling the avatars, playlist and choreography of Just Dance, just wasn't my cup of tea, it had a more universal commercial feel. The animated avatars/characters on Dance Central look great and the dance environments provide a great atmosphere (unlike Just Dance). As much as I loved Dance Central 1, it wasn't perfect!
HOWEVER....
With Dance Central 2 Harmonix fixed every grip I had with Dance Central 1.
TWO PLAYER MODE
Now two players can battle each other simultaneously, with the previous version of Dance Central you had to perform separately and compare scores after the second player had perfomed.
FREESTYLE MODE
Freestyle mode in the middle of the choreography is now optional (for new routines), I personally didn't care for it as I wanted to perform choreographed moves from start to finish without interruption.
WORKOUT MODE
The workout mode has been developed to meet the needs of consumers wanting to use dance central primarily as a fitness tool. DC2 offers continuous songs using playlists so you don't have to stop every few minutes to choose another song/level/dancer (keeping ones heart rate up). Also the ability to switch off free style mode, aids with the quality of the workout.
BREAK IT DOWN MODE
Enables users to learn the choreography step by step outside of the game mode, DC2 now allows players to jump straight to the moves you have problems with.
Can't recommend this game enough...
If you love to dance...
If you enjoy hip hop, r&b, dance and dance hall music then you'll enjoy this game.
There are hundreds of videos online showing the gameplay so check those out before you make a purchase.
Finally I only have one criticism, it would be great to have a larger selection of avatars, apart from that I'm very happy with the game.
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video-games_xbox
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Excellent Purchase. What an amazing buy!
So I bought this controller so that I could help my friends create a "Mk14" clan, where we all just ran around with mods and got people angry and stuff. After much research on the market, I had my sights set on an Evil Controller, but to my dismay, their controllers were a little out of my budget. Having tried my friend Sam's Evil Controller, I can say that those are of high quality. So I was a little disappointed when I saw the price tag. Hoping that Amazon might have them at a cheaper price, I came here to search for a modded controller. After a couple days of window browsing and reading reviews, I bought this one and, believe me, I could not have been happier with my choice.
This controller is sleek and pretty. The color buttons are colored black and look very stylish. Honestly, if you don't know where the A,X,B,Y buttons are by now, then you're not playing Xbox enough so there really is no detriment in taking away the corny colors. The triggers are pretty standard, no difference noted so far. The bumpers are also equally as responsive. But I think people will be happy with the directional pad. It is less clunky than your standard Xbox controller, an important feature to have when selecting which killstreak to activate mid-game and also a bonus for other games you might play.
Where the controller stood out to me were the lights. The thumbsticks and the home button both light up. They are a nice, strong set of colors. My only complaint here is that the home button does not feel nearly as nice as the original, metallic home button. I understand they did this so that the light would show through much better, but it always nags me in the back of my mind whenever I hit the button to join a party online. It's a small voice that says, "Man, that feels so cheap." But, of course, it is quickly shoved aside once gameplay commences and you turn on the mod.
Should you order this product, as with all GenuisModz controllers, it will ship in a very professional looking box. In fact, I saved the box simply because of how nice it looks along with its manual. The manual is aesthetically pleasing AND informative. There is nearly no room for confusion when reading the manual's instructions, and once you give it a look over or two, you probably won't ever be needing it again. Customizing the mod is pretty easy indeed.
And for my final comment, the mod button seems fine. I've always liked mods that have an extra button. Never liked using the sync button to shuffle through the mods either and GeniusModz did the right thing, I think, in adding a button on the backside in a convenient area that is easy to reach but will not interfere with the manner in which you hold the controller.
Overall, it's a great buy. You won't be disappointed.
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video-games_xbox
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A Step in the Right Direction, I think. ok, so I was a fan of the original LEGO games (up until they promised to "make it better" with LEGO Indy 2) and this one feels a bit more like a return to form of the originals... I enjoyed the hub level structure of the Star Wars games, the first Indy, and Batman. AI is STILL thicker than molasses and will stand right in front of you while you try to fight off a single enemy... it'd be nice if that could be patched... or my favorite so far: I hold a rocket launcher. Yoda stands next to a droid (and of course doesn't do anything) and the droid attacks me. So I shoot my rocket launcher at him. Take a guess what the auto-targetting directs it to? YODA! who of course doesn't take too highly to that, so he redirects it straight back to me... I die, lose studs, and broken characters get to go die in a ditch... l-(
Now while I do like the hub type structure (a slight change from what it used to be, that makes it more in tune with the SW Universe, I think) there seems to be little connectivity between levels. What I mean by that is, you follow the 3 major villains of The Clone Wars: Dooku, Grievious, and Ventress. My problem with that is: the villains duck in and out throughout the timeline! In reality, you could chase Dooku through a level, then go after Grevious for 3, then Ventress, then Grevious. But the way they actually put the progression together, you go after Dooku EXCLUSIVELY! (or Grievious, or Ventress, whoever you choose) so there's not really much in the way of a story progression, for the Clone Wars Saga. Perhaps a better way to go would've been to let us follow the story of certain key Jedi, have a campaign for Skywalker/Asohka/Kenobi, another one for Windu, and I don't know... a whole 6 levels of playing as Yoda (BLECH!) though I do admit he is better than he was in the first LEGO Star Wars... his "walk" is not like he's trying to be slow and sneaky... its an actual walking pace.
With all that said: I do think I'll be finishing this one. Which is more than can be said of LEGO Indy 2 or LEGO Harry Potter. Or I'll try finishing it... at least until LEGO Pirates of the Caribbean comes out.
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video-games_xbox
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Still great even with the XB1 on the horizon. I have four Xbox 360's in my house since I use them as extenders for my Windows Media Center PC that runs my TV. But one of them was the original Xbox 360 from the initial release when they first started being sold. It still worked (no red ring of death) but was noisy as all you know what and didn't have a large hard drive. I've got the Xbox One preordered already, but since games aren't backwards compatible I knew I have to keep a 360 system on my main TV in the great room anyway. So I thought I'd take advantage of decent pricing and get a new one that will sit next to the XB1 when it arrives, that will be in warranty for a little while as well. And this way I can move the slim into my Halo Vanguard portable gaming system, pull the elite out of there to put back into my room, and shuffle things about. And all this will free up an Xbox I can give away to someone.
The unit itself is nice. People are complaining about the lack of an optical audio out, so if you need that, the 360E is not for you. I use HDMI so not an issue for me at all. The controller is standard, as is the Kinect (although there's a bit more to the logo than my existing Kinect). The power brick is similar to the one for the Xbox 360 slim, but rather than two power barrels on the end, there's just one barrel with multiple sections on the cylinder. There's a network port still which I like, since I don't like saturating my wireless with things that I can run plugged into my gigabit network here at home.
The unit is nice. I like that it's more a match to the forthcoming Xbox One, and I like the less intrusive appearance from the front, since the power button and lights are a fraction of the size of previous version's power buttons. This comes at a cost, however. There is no longer any indication of what controllers are connected, like you used to be able to see with the four different quarter arc lights around the power button indicating player 1, player 2, etc. There is no more indication of any controller connected whatsoever. This is a bit of a deprecation, but since it's generally me and my 10 year old son playing, it's not something that impacts us.
The buttons are buttons again, not just sensors like the Xbox Slim had. Physical clicking buttons for power and eject.
Fit and finish is nice.
But the big thing is the silence. And it is VERY silent. I'm about 15 feet away on the couch and can't hear anything at all from it. Even up close, it's dead silent. The drive also makes considerably less noise when reading discs than the slim or previous versions did.
It took me several hours to transfer content from the slim to this via a USB stick, and then the hassle for transferring licenses and redownloading things that I couldn't just transfer over in that process.
UI is smooth, I didn't see any difference here between this and any of the previous Xbox versions I have.
The games are alright, but don't buy it for the games since they're usually discounted separately now anyway. And be aware, the racing game is a code only, you have to download all 6.8 GB before you can play it.
If you're looking for an Xbox 360 because you want to be able to play the games available, this is a great choice. If you are looking to replace an existing older Xbox 360 for whatever reason like I was, it's a great choice. If you're looking for any new features, there are none. Some people prefer the looks of the Xbox 360 slim, so you can always get that without any loss of functionality compared to this one. They're ALL going to be cheaper because of the push to get as many sold as they can before the Xbox One launches in another 22 days.
For the price, I thought it was a great deal, getting the games, the new style Xbox 360, and another kinect that my son can take with the Vanguard when he goes gaming elsewhere.
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video-games_xbox
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All That Could Have Been. I have not ever been a fan of open-world racing games. When I heard Paradise was going to be done in this way, I was skeptical to say the least. Then I got my hands on the game and my fears were realized. First off, the map is TINY. So tiny that you will drive down the same roads so many times you'll forget you even care how small the world is. The events are presented in an interstingly enough way; you pull up to intersections with traffic lights and initiate races from there. There are over 100 events to choose from, which is nice. The unfortunate thing is that because the city is so small, the races are over VERY quickly. There is also no feature which allows you to warp to events (a mistake seen in earlier EA produced NFS titles during the last console generation), so if you race from one end of the map to the other (this can be completed in under 3 minutes) you have to drive WAY back to the other side if you have events over there to complete. This happens often. Another curious design choice with the events is how they are setup. The races begin at traffic lights but every single race ends at one of six pre-determined locations. Pretty soon it feels like you've gone from an open world racing game, to one with only 6 closed tracks. Only the tracks are poorly designed and you can't tell where to go.
Another gripe is the fact that the navigation system is a mess. It is very hard to tell which direction you are supposed to be going because there are no arrows or barriers to keep you on track. Small green signs pop up on either the left or right side of the screen to indicate to turn left or right. This is distracting for two reasons. 1. You have to move your eyes too far away from your car to see which way to go. Taking your eyes off your car is a death sentence in ANY game. 2. Because there are no barriers to indicate where your turns are, you have to rely very heavily on depth perception against many similarly colored objects to determine WHERE to turn. This results in many crashes because you are having to not crash into things while simultaneously trying to understand where to go while driving too fast to even be able to do this. Luckily since the AI is so bad, you can recover from these instances. Trust me, it happens A LOT. However, the game is not all bad.
The best thing about this game is easily the cars. There are around 70 cars but half of them are just upgraded versions of the other half, which is stupid. This problem not withstanding, the cars are fun to drive and the game does a good job of ratcheting up the speed gradually. You start off with a clunker (albiet a fast one) and slowly work your way up to supercars. The speed increase is done very well, something this series is known for. You never feel like you're driving something you can't handle. The sense of speed is also top notch and you feel like a champion after wrecking seven cars in a row on any given event. And for some STUPID reason the crash camera cannot be turned off. I feel like the crash cam takes you completely out of the moment just to show some chump crashing.
All in all the game is ok. Its shortcomings are pretty big but that doesn't change the fact that it is still fun. If you NEED a Burnout fix, pick this up for $20. Just don't get the Big Surf Island expansion pack, its a lot of money for 6 cars and not much else.
Remember: Its just one man's opinon.
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video-games_xbox
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A Fun but Pointless Addition. The only thing really wrong with this game is the tower defense mini-game (which is absolutely horrible). Everything else is simply the same as AC: Brotherhood, which means that the game is really fun. I loved playing the game, but I must say that the gameplay was getting a little old as the only addition really since AC:1 is a hookblade, which really doesn't change anything other than being able to go zip-lining (Sadly there aren't too many lines for you to use). I will say that the story is much weaker than all of the previous campaigns, there's really no story in the present, and for what little story they have in the past I wasn't too interested in the setting.
The only other gameplay addition to this game was an interesting and sometimes annoying first person virtual reality game. There were some interesting puzzles and platforming here, and it was nice to get to learn about the main character's past, but I almost wish they had given more information. The monetary/leveling system in the game is again kind of messed up, but now it's almost worse than the previous games. You still have the whole buying/upgrading buildings and increasing your salary, and unlike Brotherhood I didn't have a crazy amount of money by the end, but instead there was really nothing worth buying. All of the best weapons and armor in the game could be attained relatively early if you do some of the challenges and fully train your assassin apprentices.
Overall, if you liked the previous Assassin's Creed games, you're almost assuredly going to like this game even with the horrible tower defense (I only had to play it 3-5 times, though the 3rd challenge was impossible) especially since you can probably get it pretty cheap now. I do find this game a year schedule without changing anything very annoying, but thankfully for the past two games a separate team has been creating AC3.
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video-games_xbox
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Great game. I am new to the Xbox 360 and this was one of three titles I purchased with my new machine (the other two being the first installment of Black Ops and the other being DiRT3). The graphics and depth blow the original Black Ops out of the water. I'm not terribly fond of the near-future setting of the game but it does allow for the introduction of new technologies and weapons that enhance the gameplay and make it that much more fun. One thing I noticed the multiplayer was lacking though was an assortment of 70s/80s era weapons as a carry-over from the campaign missions. If you get to use an AK-47 or a Dragonov in the single player game why aren't they available for use in mulitplayer? My only other complaint is the almost exclusive use of number-letter designations for all the guns. For weapons that haven't been invented yet it makes it very difficult to recognize them by name. Everyone knows what an MP5 or Colt M4 are because they actually exist. When you do the same thing with fake weapons it just makes it hard to identify them in the game. I usually tell my friends that I play with that my favorite sniper rifle is "the one all the way to the left on the list of sniper rifles" because I haven't memorized its alphanumeric designation. I also would have liked it better if the weapons upgrades counted for all similar weapons instead of having to level up for each specific weapon. If I spend hours getting the scope I want for my sniper rifle why can't that item be available for another sniper rifle as well? I don't really want to go through hours of playing just to upgrade my gun to the same level.
With those small issues aside, the online play is great. Much more scope than was seen in the original BO. I have only played through a few single player missions on the easy setting and they're okay, but I'm not terribly invested in the characters or the storyline. I have played the zombie maps once online with friends and they are fun, although again I'm not really into it. Somehow fighting Nazi Zombies in the first one just felt better than killing regular zombies that aren't Nazis. Also, what's the deal with every fourth zombie wearing either pajamas or hospital johnnies? Just kinda weird...
The bottom line though is that if you enjoy playing FPS games online this one is a definite go! I don't really have anything to compare it to (comparing it only to the first BO isn't exactly fair) but it it definitely fun and lends itself to quite a bit of exploration online.
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video-games_xbox
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A fantastic game, but not the best in the series. Let me start by saying that DDR is a fantastic game. The basic game concept is so fun and so addictive that any game in this series deserves a minimum 4/5 star rating just on that. The addition of network play and network download of new song packs are great new features for this series that they will likely never be able to do without again (At least with Xbox, which can support both easily).
However, I do have a few nitpicks about this game, especially for those who have played other DDR home games (such as DDRMAX and DDRMAX2 for the Playstation2). First, and perhaps most minor, the song list doesn't seem as much "fun" as the song list for DDRMAX2; that may be just personal taste, however, and really the songs all play very well. Perhaps a little more major is the lack of an information screen to track progress on your unlockables; while the number of unlockables isn't a concern to me (This game has significantly less than DDRMAX or DDRMAX2, from what I've seen so far; I think the online purchase of new songs is to alleviate that), I am disappointed in the lack of a menu section to show what you've unlocked and accomplished. Further, the voice announcers seem much louder than the music itself in the game, and there are no comparative volume sliders. I've had to turn off the in-game announcers, and turn up the TV volume loud, just to hear the music properly. Unfortunately, this makes the menu voice-overs very loud. Lastly, so far I have found at least one out and out bug. When sorting by player's best, my list has become corrupted; one song is repeated 7 times in the list, and this overlays 6 other song entries that are no longer accessable through that list.
All in all, these are minor detractors to a great game. Konami has done better with this series in the past, and I expect a more polished game when they release an Xbox sequel. I strongly recommend this game for everyone; for fans of the series, I simply warn there may be a few minor disappointments.
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video-games_xbox
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Fun game if it worked. First this will not be a frame by frame comparison of this version versus the Xbox vs. PS3 vs. PC. It gets a bit boring and tedious. I will say the graphics are very good. One thing with the Wii U is no frame tearing as is prevalent with the other nonPC platforms I've seen. So at least you won't see the top half of a player's body on the left top of your screen and his other half on the lower right of your screen. Granted this happens only on occasion and lasts for half a second or less but it's weird and probably indicative of the outdated hardware of both machines. Beyond that, the Wii U is an overall brighter experience whereas in the other versions the jerseys move - which I've read is important. But I've yet to see how this effects gameplay for the average person.
With that out of the way one issue that is a MAJOR problem for me is you pretty much CANNOT UTILIZE THE MY PLAYER/MY CAREER MODES the way the designers intended. I cannot overemphasize how disappointing and frustrating this is. You can get it all set up, play in the rookie showcase, predraft interviews, draft and then blam.... The game will display "saving to the 2k server..." and you're done. After an hour or more you've pretty much lost everything and cannot continue. If you haven't seen the game - all you need to know is this takes away about 75% of the fun.
The menus in this game are horrible and buttons you're used to using one way for just about every other title are backwards. Gameplay is fun. I like the physics of the game. The commentary is awesome and has a good flow with the game. If you take a terrible shot - they let you know about it. This game has loads of potential. I'm going to hang on to it for a while in the event they patch this horrendous 2k server issue - I'd have rated it 4 stars easy but it's simply not worth a dime right now. I've been very disappointed that they are willing to put out the software on the Wii U but then offer no support to fix known problems. This seems to be a common thing with the Wii U. Everything seems rushed and thus subpar and incomplete.
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video-games_xbox
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Don't waste your money. One star is being generous, frankly I don't think this game deserves a star becuase it is another installment in a series of same titles that has almost no improvements and is worse in a few respects. (for whatever reason my review is now showing 4 out of 5 which isn't what I selected and it will not let me change it - I apologize for that, but it is 1 out of 5) I have played Frontline (also on Xbox) and Allied Assault (on the PC) and gave both titles less than stellar reveiws for reasons that are still a plague in the latest installment. Let's get to the review...
The Good:
- Very little here, but it was a WWII game, a genre that draws many (including myself) to these games.
- The sound was not stellar, but was better than average.
- You get to man the guns on a gun boat during the Pearl Harbor mission and then be gunner on a japanese airplane at the end of the carrier mission.
The Bad:
- Almost everything about this game fell into this category. For starters, the game is short. If you skip the movies and intros, you could complete it in about 1-2 hours. Hardly worth the rental price. There is no feeling that you are actually taking part in the war in the pacific, and when you watch the videos between missions they span years without you ever taking part in the battles. You don't defend Midway Island, you don't make a stand on Wake Island, you never set foot on Iwoa Jima, you are only on Guadacanal for one night time raid and then one daylight mission where you are hunting through a cave complex for some artillery peices, and then you are in Burma for one mission (Bridge on the River Kwai), one mission in the Phillipines and one mission in Malaysia, and finally there is a mission on an aircraft carrier.
- The missions don't feel like you are actually in the war. This was bad in Allied Assault, worse in Frontline and is really, really bad in Rising Sun. You did get to neutralize some artillery and survive pearl harbor, but the focus of the game is hunting some stolen gold (and while that has its importance, I would like to have more to do with the actual mainstream combat).
- The weapon selection is poor. The M1 Garand is still modeled nicely, but the .45 recoils badly and is nearly impossible to hit anything with because the rounds do not always go where you are aiming even at what I would consider close range. In addition to the aforementioned there is the Sten (incredibly underpowered, but more accurate than some of the other weapons), a shot gun (one of the better weapons), a sniper rifle (not quite as accurate as Frontline, but fair) another pistol (single shot, very accurate and powerful), the Thompson (you won't get this gun much), a Japanse automatic rifle (not sure what this one was) and a Japanese light machine gun that is both inaccurate and weak, and while it is an automatic the rate of climb when firing is so bad that you can only expect to hit someone with one or two shots before you are firing at the ceiling. There are some fixed machine guns that are lethal if somewhat difficult to aim. There are also grenades on some levels, and I hear there may be other weapons, but I never saw them.
- You are able to kill with a single swing of any weapon which will save you many, many times when you have someone right on top of you and a weapon that isn't powerful enough to kill them before they kill you, or you are simply out of ammunition (which happened to me only in one level, but was really, really annoying).
- Weak guns. The weapons are so weak that you can fire into an enemy's face at range 3 times with the .45 or Sten before they drop, even twice with the sniper rifle. Even a non-lethal shot to the head should affect the target, but they continue to happily stand at post.
The Ugly:
- The graphics are some of the worst I have seen on the xbox. People are animated the way they were on PC's 5 years ago...it is absolutly horrible, they look like splotchy animated skeletons in a paper mache world. Sometimes people are visible sticking through walls or vehicles, when they die they will fall half in and half out of a wall and at times the scenery dissapears all together and you have people hanging in midair. At times the enemy will fire near the edge of a wall and you can watch the streak of the round come right through the wall as if it wasn't even there.
- Unlike frontline when an enemy dies you can't pick up their weapon or their ammo. This is extremely annoying when you are walking around with a pistol and you would love to pick up a fallen enemy's machine gun.
- No AI for your allies or the enemy. They shoot when you walk into a certain area and continue to shoot until they have fired all of their ammo, then reload and start firing again non-stop. They don't pursue, they don't run when wounded, they don't usually even scream for help. Once I had my grenade thrown back at me, but the rest of the time they just stood there and let themselves be blown up. Really conveinent, but not realistic at all. If you havn't stepped into their programmed "kill zone" then they can't see you and you can shoot them to your heart's content and they will hop around and then stand at attention again.
- The game has the look and feel of any no-name shooter you can pick up at your local superstore for almost no investment. EA Games has merely done a poor job of adjusting the scenery and weapon skins (most part time programmers on the web do a better job in their spare time) to reflect the Pacific Theater. Don't waste your big bucks on this one.
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video-games_xbox
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Worth it with some reservations. I was hesitant to buy this after reading some of the reviews. But there is absolutely nothing else on the market, from what I can find, which will decrease the minimum distance required by the kinect. So, my thoughts:
1. The distance decrease is not all that dramatic. Instead of the front of the sensor area being the front of my couch, it is now the 1 1/2- 2 feet in front of the couch. Still, it actually allows me to play the games, which is a plus.
2. For more coarse motions, this is fine. My wife and I have played Fruit Ninja, Dance Central 2 and Fitness Evolved 2012 without any real issue.
3. Games that are more sensitive to fine-motion are problematic, like the Michael Jackson Experience. This game, the game plays...well but not fantastic. Certainly playable, no question. The menu interface is a nightmare, however.
4. I saw people complain about the hand tracking. There's a reason for that. Some games allow you to see larger versions of the blob that the kinect sees as you. With arms, it has a tendency to either make the arms past the elbow disappear, or for the area between elbow and wrist disappear, so that it has difficulty is figuring out what that floating blob (your hand) is. This leads to some real nightmares with menu interfaces. The same thing happens with legs- they often simply disappear below the knee.
5. When you do the kinect tuner, you can see what the camera sees through the zoom, and it clarifies the tracking issues. The lenses used actively interfere with the image processed. You can see that the world seen by the kinect with the zoom on is splotchy, the splotches being the lens in front. It is NOT grease or dirt on the lens, I was extremely careful with that. It is just a problem wth the lenses themselves. Perhaps if the lenses were replaced, this wouldn't be an issue.
6. Ultimately: If you have the space so that you don't need this, stay away. If you are like me and don't have the space, you really don't have any other choice. It's not great, but with a little patience it will get the job done. The choice was between moving the couch and buying this. For me, there was no question- I bought the Zoom. And for better or for worse, I stand by that. If I had the space, I would chuck it in a heartbeat though.
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video-games_xbox
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Perfect Dark Zero is Perfect. Pros:
This is one of the best games I have ever played in the 25 years I have been playing video games; it is so much fun! The graphics are amazing on any television, and they are photo realistic when you play the game on an HDTV. The 5.1 audio is also amazing; it literally is a tool that helps you play the game. You can locate enemies in better ways thanks to the high-quality 5.1 sound, because you can hear their voices or their steps or their guns in certain speakers at certain times; it really is incredible to have sound be such a huge factor in gameplay!
The background music is also excellent. Perfect Dark Zero is the first videogame I ever bought the soundtrack to. When you hear the song, "Limelight," which plays at a nightclub you are at in one of the early stages, then you will know what I am talking about! The bass pumps out the sound as if you are at a real nightclub, and when you get closer to the building, it is as if you are really there! This is something you will love about the way Xbox 360 uses 5.1 audio!
The gameplay difficulty is also another factor that is excellent, because you can set what sort of difficulty you want it to be at based on what sort of agent you are. I like the way that you have a technical person that your character Joanna Dark is working with named Chandra; she guides you to your location if you take too long doing something and clearly don't know where to go next. This makes it so you don't end up wasting time going back and forth over and over like you do in some of those other games on other systems. This game also has multiplayer and online capabilities that are very nice, especially the online features!
The controls can be adjusted, too; that way, you can have your controller do whatever you want. I personally changed the way the character moves so that Perfect Dark Zero played much more like Halo. The default analog controls are based on the control setup of the original Perfect Dark on the Nintendo 64, which is something that I do not like very much. I believe that many of the negative reviews for Perfect Dark Zero focused on the control setup and the way that it wasn't as good as Halo. However, the controls of Perfect Dark Zero can easily be adjusted by using the Options menu. Perfect Dark Zero's left and right analog stick controls can be identical to those of Halo if you just make one change in the Options menu. So I went to the Options screen and changed it so the right analog stick moves the characters head up, down, left, and right so it is easy to coordinate where you are looking. I also changed the controls so the left analog stick causes Joanna Dark to move forward and backward and strafe left and right. I believe that this should have been the default control, because it allows anyone familiar with a first person shooter like Halo to instantly be familiar with the controls in Perfect Dark Zero. Thankfully, this is an easy adjustment to make, and it is a great overall control adjustment feature that I highly recommend!
Cons:
I have nothing to complain about this game! Under normal conditions, I would say that the only thing to complain about would be that the game had to come to an end, but the fact that you can play this game online with so many other people makes it so you always get replay value out of this game! Plus, you can go back to earlier levels with more advanced weapons and gadgets that you got in later stages and beat up on those bad guys and examine new places in very fun ways! The only potential bad thing about Perfect Dark Zero is that the default controls are based on the control scheme from Perfect Dark on the Nintendo 64 rather than the control scheme from Halo on the Xbox. Thankfully, this can be corrected in the Options menu. There were probably people who didn't give Perfect Dark Zero the full chance it deserved, because the default controls make it more difficult to coordinate where you are going and what you are looking at. Hopefully, the programmers at Rare will change the default controls of the next Perfect Dark videogame so they are like the controls of Halo on the Xbox rather than the controls of Perfect Dark on the Nintendo 64.
Comments:
My personal comment would be for people who haven't played this game yet: If you really want to play a fun game that is meant to be fun for the player while taking advantage of graphics, sound, action, humor, and online features all at the same time, then you should at least rent this game! I recommend that you go to the Options screen and change the control setup so it is like Halo on the Xbox rather than Perfect Dark Zero on the Nintendo 64. This is a game that will really make a great gift for anyone! I highly recommend getting the Limited Collector's Edition of the game if you can still find it, because it only costs $10 more at most places, and it comes with some nice things, such as a bonus DVD.
Also, the writers in this game did such an excellent job with the way that the script is designed. The level of humor in this game is absolutely amazing. For example, one of the weapons you use, called, "the Laptop," makes the quick note that it uses Windows 2020. Another funny thing is the way you can listen to people in the game; I have spent lots of time just listening to people talk in the game. Listening to this one guy talk on his cell phone with his wife is absolutely amazing! The voices of the enemies are excellent; they are very nicely done.
Overall, I think that anyone will like this game. If you have an HDTV and a 5.1 audio system, then you will be absolutely amazed with what you see and hear. The graphics on a normal television are still far superior to anything else produced on any other system, and if you don't have a 5.1 sound system, then the stereo sound is still great, just not as great as the true 5.1 element that would have brought in a new element of gameplay. I believe that everyone with an Xbox 360 should at least give this game a try, because I can't imagine anyone not liking it. This game will only be available to play on the Xbox 360, which means that if you don't have one, then this is the sort of game that you would want to get when you do buy your Xbox 360. I hope that everyone who plays this game enjoys it! :-)
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video-games_xbox
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A Zombie Apocalypse Could Not Be Designed Any Better. Four survivors stranded within a city. Upon every turn they face a devious foe salivating to engorge itself in the taste of human flesh. Loaded with only a pistol and the force of teamwork, these survivors must do the impossible and find a way out of the insanity. That's the scenario that Left 4 Dead places the player in. It's quite a predicament, and the chaos never stops. Nonstop action is the name of the game. Surrounded by hordes of zombies in levels that change with each repetition, Left 4 Dead can easily make someone spend hundreds of hours playing through its various levels. The AI director makes sure that no two levels ever playing exactly the same way and that each encounter is unique to each new play-through. Just because you discovered a "Witch" behind that door the last time through does not mean she will even be in the level this time around. It's this kind of variety that makes the player continue to come back to Left 4 Dead over and over again. Up the difficulty to Expert and play with three other humans and the excitement is immeasurable. Valve did a great job of creating suspense through the usage of lighting and sound effects. You can hear a "Witch" crying from several rooms away; you can hear a "Boomer" making grotesque belching sounds before he is even visible; the "Hunter" shrieks with a sound resembling some species of dinosaurs; and the "Tank" makes both the screen and the controller vibrate as he approaches. Recognizing these sounds that indicate which "special zombie" is approaching increases your adrenaline, many times it even makes you want to locate them just for the sheer pleasure and excitement that the encounters entail. I can't tell you how many times I've purposely activated a "Witch" just because of the way the game makes you feel as you try your hardest to defeat her before meeting an early demise at her hands. The game supplies the players with first-aide at the most essential locations, and items such as the dual-wielded pistols greatly turn the tides in your favor, unless you encounter the pure colossal nightmares that are the "Tanks". Playing offline with friends, or online are both great ways to experience the game. I even have a blast playing solo as well, a truly remarkable game worth owning if you're an Xbox 360 owner. This game is one of the reasons why I chose to purchase an Xbox 360 even though I already own a PS3, simply amazing and pure addictive action.
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video-games_xbox
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LM Punk...LM Punk...LM Punk. WWE 13 continues the long-standing and very noble tradition of highly original and very unique wrestling video games that started out with WWE 1...and then continued all the way up to WWE 12. WWE 13 is so different from all of its predecessors in this series because it has the number 13 right after the anagram WWE, unlike the previous editions. I have always been a huge wrestling fan since even dumb people know that WWE is totally 100% real, unlike that f/a/k/e nonsense called UFC or professional boxing.
I'm very glad that LM Punk is the cover of this installment in this glorious series because I think he exemplifies what an imposing wrestler is at only about 6 feet tall and barely 220 pounds of awesomeness. Sure, he is no Brooklyn Brawler or, better yet, Barry Horowitz, but giants like these don't come around very often, now do they? Don't answer that; it was simply a rhetorical question.
Unlike those games of UFC where all the fighters do is spoon with each other on the ground, all macho-like, WWE 13 allows wrestlers to act like real men. By acting like real men, I of course mean to run around in tights, half-naked, and pick up their opponents by their crotches to body slam them. Awesome!!
What I love about this game is the insane creativity of the various play modes. For example, there is a "Hell, Yeah" mode based on Stone Cold Steve Austin, which involves finding his ex-wife, Deborah, and then beating the holy, living hell out of her. Real PG and kid-friendly, to be sure. There is also a very unique straight-to-DVD game mode, believe it or not, which is based on John Cena's acting career; it was wonderfully forgettable, to be sure. My favorite mode was the "Boots to A/S/S/E/S" mode based on The Rock (the wrassler, not the movie). In this mode, your WWE wrestler wrestles once in a blue moon and then takes years and years off to make one awful Hollywood movie after another. A real treat!
I am glad that WWE, which is normally so violent, chose LM Punk to be the cover because I think he is an awesome role model for kids. To wit, his straight-edge lifestyle, which is supposed to be legit and not some ruse, means that he never has sex in order to be totally pure. I didn't know that LM Punk was a social conservative, but now that I do, I think he's even awesomer. Finally, I just want to say that I am a huge fan of WWE, which means that I always try all of their wrestling moves everywhere I am: outside, inside, school, work, synagogue, with friends, etc. Their moves are really safe to try out and do not take years and years of practice. You might even be surprised yourself at how easy they are to pull off!
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video-games_xbox
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Amazing MUST HAVE game, only one flaw, poor value for Prestige Edition. This is another installment of what has turned out to be an amazing franchise. If you are reading this, then you must be one of the few who people on the planet who didn't pick this game up from the release date, you should know this is the best selling game of all time. EVER. This game is one of the most visually stunning games in the Xbox 360's stable of games. From the start, you are immersed into the storyline with a nice array of weapons from which to choose. Also, there is a nice set of non-FPS action sequences where you get to have some diversions (mputain climbing and driving various vehicles just to name a few) so that the game won't become tired and monotonous. The controls are nice and intuitive, the is nothing short of what you would expecy from a bame of this caliber, and the storyline once agains hooks you in from the very start and is excellently written.
However, it is in this aspect of the game where the flaw lies. Even though the game has a great storyline, it is WAY too short. Upon completeing the game, which depending on your skill and the difficulty level you choose you should finish this game in absolutely no longer than 8 hours, the game feels incomplete. Like most huge franchises these days, it is no secret that this game was made with the intention of there being a third installment.
So bearing that in mind, this game is still great. A+ on graphics, controls, multiplayer, sound, variety, and storyline. D minus on length.
As far as this particular Presrige Edition is concerned, yes, you get a bonus download of Call of Duty, you get an art book and a "steel-like" game case and a special "making of" DVD, and yes, last, but most certainly not least, you get the infamous night vision goggles. One word on the NVGs. They work and they work semi-decently. You can see perfectly on front of you almost anything within 10 feet. Outside of that, things start to get fuzzy and not so clear, with probably an extreme mazimum limit of about 40 feet. They are constructed more as a kids' toy, like a "my very first set of NVGs" Tonka toy. They are all plastic, and to be honest, not very well-made. The design for them is more suitible for that of a child, which is ironic, because this set is EXTREMELY delicate and if it were to fall into the hands of a child, it would be broken by day's (or night's, as the case may be) end. The switches contained on the set are: on/off, green/black and white, IR booster on/off (an invisible infared "flashlight" so that the goggles can see farther and make an existing area brighter), a rotary dial for focusing, and a rotary dial for adjusting the viewscreen so that both eyes can properly see one image. The headgear is also very poorly designed and anyone with a head larger than an adolecent will have serious truble making them fit, if at all.
My review for this set is thus: The game is wonderful and obviously a must buy. The download of CoD is a really nice added value. The steel case, the bonus DVD and art book are okay, but not worth spending more than $5 extra. Finally, the NVGs are honestly a disappointment and do not justify the purchase of this package. My recommendation is that you save youself some serious coin and just buy the game all by itself. You can download Call of Duty from Xbox Live, if you really want it, for a little more money. The rest of the items do NOT justify the $80 premium, even including the MW1 download.
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video-games_xbox
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Gears of War v2.0. I thoguht it was rather ironic that the game includes a achievement title "Seriously 2.0" That seems to be the mantra of the game. Its Gears of War with better graphics, a few new weapons, and a few new enemies. This is by no means to say the game is bad, but I'll save my nits for the moment.
GoW 2 follows everyones favorite smoking-since-childhood Sergeant Fenix. The COG has decided to go on the offensive, having been backed into the one remaining habitable city of the world. Fenix and his squad are sent on an attack against a nearby settlement, drilling down into the caverns of the Locust to take the fight to them.
The new level designs are pretty, and have the look of actual underground caverns rather than dark, dank sewers like most shooters. Theres local plant life and animal life that doesn't try and eat your face, which is a nice deviation from the norm. Theres an appearance by a weird Darth Maul esque Locust, and a new species of Imulsion eating creature that also fight the Locust, as well as a few new characters which are shuffled around with a little to much speed.
The problem, and really the only problem, is that this is by and large Gears of War version 2.0, or better yet, Gears of War Episode 2. Theres not enough new material to justify the full price. Sure theres some new toys and skins, and the storyline is gripping, it has plot holes you can drive a 20-meter wide worm through, and WTF moments abound during some of the explanation, but otherwise, the game is a rehash of encounter by encounter fights we all know and love. Again, this is not to say the game isn't fun, it is, but its all more of the same. Theres no new sequences like we've gotten from Half-Life, no interesting new game mechanic to change it up any, and while the levels are pretty, some have a problem with flow, and theres that nagging feeling of repetition.
All told, it plays good and it looks good, but has a faint overarching taste of bland and uninspired. I didn't go into this expecting revolution, and there wasn't any, but there was a genuinely fun game that can kill quite a few hours, but the difficulties been ramped down and the story is starting to grind. While being kept in the dark is a good way to stretch out a good plot and keep players interested, keeping the player totally blind gives a feeling of annoyed helplessness, rather than the overwhelmed feeling they were able to create in the first installment.
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video-games_xbox
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It could have been so much more. This is the game that has been promised to those who have spent hours each day dreaming about how awesome it would be to be a truly powerful Jedi. It was supposed to allow you to experience the role of an utterly powerful Jedi/Sith like no other game. And it does, sort of. Overall the game does a pretty good job of maintaining the illusion of being a super powered bad dude. But its the minor imperfections, and there are a lot, that drag it back down towards mediocrity.
As an adventuring game with a large amount of platforming the camera gives me a large amount of trouble. There are situations where it will fix in place and make maneuvering very difficult. It will also occasionally cause you to miss landings and fall to your death. There are also a large amount of spaces that you would think you are able to maneuver your character to, only to learn they aren't part of the stage as you fall to your death. Without good camera control you aren't able to ever get a good look at these areas before you commit.
The combat can be fun, but suffers from very poor targeting. There are so many times you try to scoop up an enemy only to have your target change. So you lift a rock as a droid pummels you. And for being a guy with a light saber there are a huge amount of enemies equipped to fight against you. You would think that after watching the movies you should be able to cut a bloody swath through most of your enemies. But not so. It turns out a large amount of things you face in combat just happen to be lightsaber resistant. Which manages to kill the fantasy a bit. There is nothing like being unable to get past the guard of a bug creature because he claw can't be cut. You would think everyone in the Empire fights lightsaber wielding Jedi everyday. For finishing the tougher enemies there is also a button sequence you will have to go through. I often find myself hoses as I go from madly attacking directly into the sequence with no warning. Which causes my poor guy a world of pain until I get on the right page. It also distracts from the action on screen. The boss fight sequences are some of the best of the whole game and its easy to be caught up watching the action and miss hitting the right button.
I experienced a number of glitches during my playthroughs as well. I managed to get stuck in walls several times. And there were a few stages I wasn't able to force manipulate items needed to complete the stage. For the latter issues I was forced to quit my game and load it again to sort out the issue. Not too bad but with the poor save system it could mean playing through the entire stage again.
Overall I did enjoy my time with Force Unleashed and will probably take a couple more play troughs. But being this game is already short I would recommend it as a rental most people. On the plus side once you do max out your character you can play through on easy and truly feel like all powerful force user you are supposed to be.
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video-games_xbox
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Works perfectly in our testing. A key issue with the XBox Kinect is that it needs a large space to operate properly. With the XBox Zoom add-on device, you can now play in far less space. How does it work - and DOES it work?
First, let me explain what the device is. Photos make it seem like an entire Kinect system, but all it is is a clip-on that goes over the three lenses. So in the image you see, the Zoom part is ONLY the plastic raised clip area that is over the three lenses. In essence it's putting "glasses" on your Kinect system, so the lenses see more close up.
This means that those Zoom lenses MUST BE PERFECTLY CLEAN. If there are any smudges, or fingerprints, or anything else on those lenses, it is going to greatly distort the image the Kinect sees and make the games not read your motions well.
The Zoom comes with a think plastic protective shield - make sure you pop out the three circle areas that would go over the lenses. You want nothing at all between the Kinect's lenses and the Zoom's lenses and your body.
When we first put the Zoom onto our Kinect, there was a "ghosting" effect around our body. Apparently we hadn't had it seated quite right. Once we removed it and re-seated it, the ghosting went away completely.
I loaded a photo onto Amazon so you can see what the positioning difference is. You can see it by scrolling up, looking at the main image in the top left, and then clicking through the options for alternate images. Mine is the side by side avatar image. The image on the left is my "avatar" in a normal Kinect game. On the right is the exact same game, from the exact same location, but now with the Zoom installed. You can even see that I'm holding the camera up. So there's no ghosting or other issues, and the character is definitely much more centered within the available space.
I tried a set of games without and then with the Zoom. I got the same scores in the game either way. So my performance wasn't negatively impacted by the Zoom addition. My moves on screen seemed as smooth in either situation.
A key here is that the Zoom requires the optics to be perfectly clean and flawless. It could be that your Zoom unit has gotten dirty or smudged if it's not working. It could be that it's not aligned exactly perfectly with the Kinect's lenses. It could also be that you got a Zoom unit that had inherent flaws in its lenses.
However, it seems if you get a good Zoom unit, and then take care of the lenses properly, that it can be a godsend for people like me who only have 8 feet of space to work with in the living room.
We have our Kinect located beneath our TV.
Rating: 10/10 for me.
I purchased my Zoom with my own funds.
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video-games_xbox
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Great fun, but overrated. Let me start by saying that Gears of War is an outstanding game. It is very well polished with no major glitches and excellent graphics. I can say with a high degree of confidence that most people will find it to be worth their while. Please excuse my gratuitous comparisons to Halo in terms of quality.
That said, I was disappointed in several departments. The much flouted cover function can seem almost broken quite often; since the A-button is entirely context sensitive, most people will find themselves getting killed in horribly frustrating incidents. For example, (and this has happened to me) a player might try to roll away from an enemy only find their character slam himself behind a piece of cover and get killed. Other aspects of the gameplay, such as the chainsaw bayonet, can prove equally frustrating, since a single hit will stun your character while he is revving his chainsaw. At its best, the Gears single player campaign approaches the brilliance of Halo. Unfortunately, these types of moments have the player shouting at the screen and throwing his or her controller just as often as they have the player dropping their jaw in amazement.
Overall, however, the single player is tremendous. Unfortunately, and counter intuitively, it's no fun to play by oneself. The horrible ally AI limits the player to the lower difficulty levels, so unless you have either an XBOX Live account or a good friend to play with the campaign is no good. Once you add that second person, however, the game really takes off. I have finished this game once on the easiest difficulty setting, once on the medium difficulty setting, and am now almost done with it on the highest difficulty setting. This game entices the player to go back and try it on a harder difficulty, since (at least for me) it is a slow game to learn. I can honestly say that this is one of the most satisfying single player experiences on the market.
For me, the multiplayer is sub-par. It feels far less precise than Halo 2 did on XBL, and the matchmaking system in miles behind Halo 2. This is an often mentioned complaint, but i figure i might as well say it again. Now, I am terrible at Gears multiplayer, so please take my assessment of it with a grain of salt. Practically everyone I know who has played it enjoys it, so even if I don't recommend it I'm willing to wager that you will.
Overall, Gears of War is a solid game marred by some of the annoyances I mentioned here as well as myriad others that can simply drive a gamer crazy. I hate having to sit through dialogue every time I die in campaign without being able to skip it, and the one vehicle portion is a bit of a mess. These complaints don't make me regret owning it, however, and if I were to pick a list of the top five games for XBOX 360 there is no doubt that this would be on my list. I just wanted to warn prospective buyers that while Gears maintains a consistent level of excellence, it is the most constantly frustrating game I have ever played. So please, don't let this article dissuade you from buying it, and don't expect yourself to have the same complaints as I have. Just be warned, despite what many might be saying, this probably isn't the best game on XBOX 360.
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video-games_xbox
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One of the TOP games I own. Bayonetta is first off one of the TOP favorite games I own!!
Action packed from start to finish!! Even for the gamer that likes to take their time to enjoy the game or likes to try and race through the game for the quickest game play, i assure you it won't disappoint!
Even on Easy mode, this game can be a challenge as most tougher enemies and bosses take a bit of time and strategy to beat in my opinion. With limited "Healing" options in the game you have to decide which and when her herbal healing lollipops are most crucial to use! With a big arsenal of weapons to choose from which you can buy in the game, to the weapons you can pick up and use from some enemies, its fun to experiment which weapons are your favorite to use and/or most beneficial to use! (mine being the whip called, Kulshedra!)
She had an array of basic moves to an array of bad-ass spells she can use as well! (some can be unlocked in game) I think the most interesting i found about this game is her use of her hair as her outfit and source of summoning powerful demons! The designs and concepts of her spells and summons were beautifully designed and executed through out the game!
I was Spell binded to say the least, when it came down to the graphics of the game! They are BEAUTIFUL! the game takes you through all sorts of well designed environment that some are everyday areas and some are otherworldly environments. From the spells to the enemies! The bosses in this game are probably the best Bosses I've seen made in a game, the detail, the careful and thought out designs of the enemies and characters in the game are super impressive!
The soundtrack in this game is also another great feature of the game! A lot of very fitting and lovable songs that will stick to you even after completing the game. I find myself remembering some of the songs when thinking about or telling someone else about this game!
By now this game's price isn't super expensive BUT I would have bought this new if i had known about it! it was worth every bit and then some! I will always love this game, and cannot wait for the release of Bayonetta 2! I highly recommend this game to anyone that is looking for just a fun action packed game, or for a game that will be an inspiration to start a collection like myself haha! :D and a nice used copy of the game for like i said pretty cheap, so its really worth the price!! :D
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video-games_xbox
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Not the best headset, but good for the price. Just a quick note, I'm going to compare this headset to the standard Xbox headset. There are much better headsets out there, but IMO most people looking at this headset are looking to replace a broken Xbox headset, like I did.
The Good - the headset overall has a higher level of construction than the standard Xbox headset. The earpiece is bigger and much louder than the standard. The cables they use are also much thicker and feel like they can hold up to more wear and tear, I think of anything, this is the main reason I bought them. And it's connection is solid to the controller. The mute button is in a great location right next to the ear with a nice big button and a light near the conntroller connection to let you know if you're muted. The clarity of voices coming over the earpiece is good, a smidge better than the standard, I had no problem understanding people. The lights on it do indeed add a geek factor to it that I like, but that's really just an Afterglow marketing thing.
The Bad - Chief among anything is the mic. For bigger heads like mine, the stubby mic puts it too far away from your mouth. My friends said my voice was clear, but very quiet (if you yell a lot, this might be a positive). For what it's worth, my friends seemed to hear me well enough while playing. While the mute button is in a great location, the volume wheel is not, it's tucked away into the earpiece and is sometimes difficult to find. Since the headset lights up, it needs power and so consequently it uses the old style 2 prong + headset jack attachments (puck style)for the controller. Because of this, it cannot connect to a chatpad.
Other thoughts - The headband is nice and thick, but uses plastic that in my experience has a tendency to break. Hasn't been an issue, just putting it out there. While the clarity of voices coming through the earpiece is good, they definitely sound different than the standard, might throw some off. It didn't seem to be an issue, but the LEDs (2 on the mic and one for the mute indicator) are an extra power drain on the controller battery (but they are tiny, so not much).
Overall - I think this headset is a good replacement if you go in knowing it's limitations. It seems sturdier on the surface than the standard, and definitely looks cooler. It won't stand up to the bigger, badder, more expensive headsets, but as a replacement, it gets good marks from me.
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video-games_xbox
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Highly addictive and very fun to learn. My setup:
A) Alvarez RD60 Acoustic/Electric (Not ideal per reviews and recommendations, but it works fine for me)
B) Xbox360 to TV with HDMI cable only (again, not the ideal set up per user guide and recommendations due to audio lag, but it seems to work fine for me)
I bought this game a few days ago, and am hooked. In the past I have tried the DVDs, books, tabs, apps, etc. While a few tab apps are on par with the "game", Rocksmith takes it light years beyond the tab apps.
I love Rocksmith. With the tabs I never was successful at doing a whole song start to finish, never had confidence in which finger to use on fret placement so it was comfortable, and never learned chords to help achieve the placement and quicker transitions.
My previous skill level was slow, choppy, picking at one string at a time, sounding nothing like the actual song (though it was entertaining at parties for a round of "Name that tune" but worse than Pictionary... lol.
I have played about 3 hours so far, and already I am at 25% on a couple of songs.
The teaching aspect is great. First you calibrate and tune the guitar. On my guitar I set everything at 1/2 for the volume out, and turned the EQ and other tonal settings off. I tuned the guitar prior to playing the game, both with the built in tuner, and an external tuner. The game matched as well, so tuning works good. On screen it explains what to do with a short video first, and then "hands on" for you to follow.
Answer a few questions so the game gets an idea of skill level, then pick a song and go from there.
I started with the first song on the list. At first it was just 3 notes for the whole song that I played over and over. Once the song was over, it suggested I play another song to keep things fresh and entertaining. Out of curiosity I wanted to do the same song again and see if I could get 100%... much to my surprise it automatically advanced my level on the song, and now there were several new notes and quicker changes between strings.
So the "game" adapts and progresses you. It also has goals or tasks to help you learn, like Chords 101, 201, etc. Which teaches you how to play a few basic chords, then at the end throws a "game" to make you switch between the chords in repetition to help with transitions.
What is fantastic to me about this is they show you finger by finger where to place them on the fret for a proper chord... so no more mangled fingers and "Twister" involved on figuring out what to do.
I can not attest to how much fun this would be to the guitar masters of the world with years of experience and lessons under their belt, but from a guy who has had a guitar for a few years just to mess around with, and not a ton of money for professional lessons, I can say that by far I have learned more in a few short days then I have in the last couple of years, and I can't wait to pick up the guitar again and go another few rounds.
The only draw back I see so far is my fiance is jealous and wants to learn now too, but I don't see an easy intuitive way to switch accounts. I tried the Xbox log in, but the game didn't register a difference between my Xbox user and hers.
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video-games_xbox
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A small let down. The Beatles: Rock Band was one of my most wanted games this year.. I'm a bit of a music game fanatic, you could say. I fully expected this to be one of the best, but I am left a little disappointed.. Here are the Pros and Cons
Pros
1. Wonderful animation, great use of colors and imagery for the game.
2. True to Rock Band, the charts are laid out very well.
3. Some wonderful song selections
Cons
1. You MUST be a Beatles fan, or you will only play this game sparingly.. it's not challenging enough, or diverse enough to keep you playing constantly.. yes, there are some very fun tracks.. but 10 out of 45 is a hard sell.
2. The repeated venues get old, very very quickly.. I love playing While my guitar gently weeps, she's so heavy, and I am the Walrus.. but seeing the exact same thing done over and over gets repetitive.. on 8 days a week, I can almost to the second tell you when the couple shots of girls screaming come.. and that takes away from the band feel.. it feels canned.
3. Not enough songs.. 45 songs in this day and age for these games just isn't enough.. not even close. If this game could be imported into Rock Band 2, I would have rated it a lot higher as many of the cons would have went by the wayside.. but it's not.. and it makes it, by itself.. an average stand alone.. which has been a disappointment.
Now folks, for those of you that love The Beatles, don't let my review discourage you.. you've seen many reviews already that praise this game, I just wanted to give some insight to those that aren't hardcore fans.. or fans like me, that play these games to be challenged, and to enjoy music.. This game works on the enjoy music part.. but, honestly.. the Beatles are A LOT better on disc, then they are in game format. My review is just to say.. give it a rent first.. see if it holds your interest.. I know that I would have saved some money had I. As the song goes... Don't let me down.. but.. in this case, they did.
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video-games_xbox
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insert theme song here. Trying to top Lego Star Wars (LSW) is a tall order - and Lego Indiana Jones (LIJ) falls short. That's not to say LIJ is a bad game, it's just... not as good. And though this review is going to focus heavily on the negatives, please note the 5-star rating and realize I'm comparing and contrasting it to what I consider the best video game ever.
The first problem with LIJ is that they tried to make the characters do too much. Yes, the carrying bits around added another dimension to the game, but it also made parts of the gameplay more difficult. Since the 'B' button is used for special ability and carrying, it's up to the computer to determine which you mean - and it's not always good at that. You may be trying to attack someone with your sword in the middle of a fight, and suddenly you're getting pummeled while picking up a hat. That sort of thing. The hot spots were also occasionally tricky.
And speaking of tricky! Too much jumping at very odd angles. I'm not even talking about the times when the camera swings about half-way through, some of the plain jumps are frustrating. And there are parts where the area you're jumping onto is not visible when you start the jump, making it as much luck as practice to get it right. LIJ would very much benefit from a character that can fly. I know, it's not in the storyline, but boy did I miss Boba Fett and even R2-D2. Bottom line: unless you're really, really good, expect to die a lot.
One final annoyance: that 'sneaking against the wall move'. That has to go. Seriously. Any time your character gets near a wall they start this irritating slow slide along it, and the only way to stop it is to jump away. Which can often get you killed. So spend forever inching along a ledge or possibly jump to your death. Two not-so-great options.
Even as frustrating as the game was (and it is) I still look back at the time I spent playing and grin. It has a lot of fun little elements, from the cameos by Star Wars characters to the adorable little march the German soldiers do in 'mid-speed' mode. It lacks a lot of the extras of LSW, like the blue canister 'challenge' mode, and it is only half as long, but it was still worth it. If you like LSW, you'll enjoy this game as long as you aren't expecting too much. The story modes were very solvable, and though some of the treasure chests were near impossible to find (until you got the detector!) I thought it was far more playable without cheating than most games.
The down side? Only took 7 days to reach 100%. And I can't get that theme music out of my head.
Now it's only how many months to Lego Batman? And will they ever put out a Lego Harry Potter or Lego Pirates?
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video-games_xbox
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EDITED: It does not work. Purely software issue on microsofts side. Waste of Money. EDIT: The controller with the dongle works now. What you have to do is
1. Hold down the button on the dongle first and wait until it is blinking.
2. Then hold the button down on the controller and wait until that one is blinking.
They will both blink and then finally sync. Sometimes the controller will auto connect when you turn on your computer. Sometimes it just won't. So what you have to do is the two steps above. No need to restart your computer.
Well this doesn't matter anymore as the controller left stick died out sending a signal to point upward 24/7. Now there are Bluetooth wireless Microsoft controllers for 39.99. No need for the dongle.
This is the first 1 Star I have given on ANY product that I have ever bought on Amazon.
Long story short, this S doesn't work. Microsoft engineers are total idiots who can't solve problems and sell broken trash as functional.
Let me tell you wtf the problem is not.
-Its not F dead batteries,
-its not F obstructions between the adapter and the controller,
-its not F broken usb or usb port
-its not a F defective controller
When I first used the wireless F adapter, I went into GOG witcher 3 and the F piece of S didn't work. So then I went to steam to try Rise of The Tomb Raider and it worked. I restarted the system and went back to GOG witcher 3 AND THE S STILL DIDNT WORK...THEN I DECIDED TO OPEN UP ONLY THE STEAM CLIENT ....THEN WENT BACK TO GOG WITCHER 3 AND IT STARTED WORKING!!!....I HAD TO OPEN STEAM TO GET THE CONTROLLER TO FUNCTION!!! of course when I was at least getting the F S to connect to my controller.
I was willing to put up with that ENGINEERING FAILURE THAT IS WINDOWS 10..but then the F controller stopped connecting.
What the F it does is this when I try to connect it.
- it blinks for a bit
-connects for half a second
-shuts the F off
THIS WAS NOT DUE TO F BATTERIES BEING LOW OR LOW CONNECTIVITY!!
I removed the wireless adapter and the controller continues to blink looking for the F adapter.
SO GUESS WTF WINDOWS 10 IS TELLING THE CONTROLLER TO F DO? ITS TELLING IT TO TURN THE F OFF UPON CONNECTION. AND YES I DID GO TO DEVICE MANAGER AND CLICK THAT BS THAT TELLS IT NOT TO TURN OFF !!!
GET YOUR F "ENGINEERS" TOGETHER AND WRITE A F DRIVER THAT ACTUALLY F WORKS!!
YOUR TROUBLE SHOOTING PAGE IS PURELY FOR F SHOW...BECAUSE YOU STILL HAVE NOT F FOUND A F WAY TO REALLY FIX THIS S..
CPU: i7 3770k
MOBO: Asrock Z77 extreme4
GPU: GTX 970
CASE: NZXT Phantom 410
OS: Windows 10 (Such regret too)
WINDOWS 10 a F perfect 10? GTFO with that.
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video-games_xbox
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Adds a layer of polish, but removes some flair. Let me begin by stating that this game is a fantastic sequel, instead of exactly emulating the previous title, it pulls a Halo 2 and expands into unknown and fantastic new areas of gameplay. The animations are smooth, the gameplay is hectic, and the variety of combat is unexpectedly diverse. You start the game inside of a lander blasting baddies to clear a landing zone, if that wasn't unexpected in an EDF game, I don't know what is.
Online Co-Op is outstanding, and supports three people. All the missions are available, and having someone else watching your back with their customized characters (More on that in the next section) is truly something to behold. One of my friends has VERY slow internet connection speed, yet this game still runs flawlessly. There is the classic 2-player split-screen for those who rock it old school, and as far as I'm concerned: The more the merrier!
The new enemies are not simply different colors indicating the amount of damage they can take and dish out, they are actually varied. You will be swarmed, you will be caught in some crazy moments, and sometimes you feel completely overwhelmed if you play on a harder difficulty. You have enemies that fly (Wasps the size of about 5 stories; and of course gunships, because mutated insects have gunships!) you have enemies that fill the landscape (The classic ants and spiders return), you have giant robots called Hector's, and even gianter robots called Hector Mark II's. The classic carriers make a return, and when you shoot them down, you aren't done... Oh no, they'll try to crash down you - and sometimes succeed, and is it epic! The boss battles are a bit disappointing, as the first one had freaking dinosaurs! You have plenty of mini-boss fights - including the "Bomber" which is a giant spider that of course spews...Ticks. You don't have those epic-sized boss fights like the original, but has lots of smaller- bite sized moments.
EDF: IA implements a whole new form of character customization. There are four classes, each one brings its own strength and weaknesses. Battle, Trooper, Tactical, and Jet classes are varied in each approach, and offers something for everyone. The Battle has a shield the deploy on your left arm, the Tactical offers turrets, the Trooper has unique weapons, and the Jet class has a jetpack! This makes playing co-op an amazing experience, as you have someone with Battle armor being a tank, a Tactical loadout setting up turrets, and the Jet class flying around using a sniper from the top of buildings. There are two downsides to their approach, however -
1)It takes FAR too long to level, I have over 10 hours and played on my Tactical class and am only level 6 even playing on Hard for majority of the time. Having to repeat the same 15 missions (To be fair the missions have a "Remix" option that increaes the difficulty and quantity of enemies) to level leaves a bitter taste in my mouth.
2)The other negative aspect of the approach they took, is that each weapon is unique to its respected class. This means that a weapon on a Battle class will not work on say a Tactical one.
The negatives are limited, but drastic. The campaign missions are limited to about 15, and while they are longer, are not as diverse as the first (No going underground, or wide open beaches). The new survivor mode, a horde-style mode, has an awesome 6 people blowing up baddies, but you are SEVERELY limited in weapon choice, and cannot use your leveled up character.
In conclusion -
This is a fantastic sequel, and truly deserves more recognition. The first EDF was fantastic to play split-screen, especially when your internet connection was having issues or under maintenence. The new leveling system is truly excellent in how it varies how you approach each situation, even if you have to grind levels for far too long. There are humorous easter eggs, funny lander pilots, and everything you'd expect from a generic Hollywood blockbuster. Personally, I enjoy the game simply because it is just plain fun, not overly challenging, not overly serious, and not filled with missions simply added for filler *cough* Halo Reach *cough*. It's an explosive, outstanding, and unique experience that can be shared between friends; and that is something special!
Thanks for reading!
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video-games_xbox
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Enough curses for everyone. The full game title, Mamoru-kun wa Norowarete Shimatta, roughly translates to Mamoru Has Been Cursed, or so I've been told. With the way the game is played, however, it should be called Mamoru Curses Everything Else Before Blasting Them To Bits.
Mamoru-kun is a manually scrolling shmup game. The screen does not automatically scroll here; instead you manually scroll it by walking up the screen. This means you can play at your own pace, dashing through as quickly as possible, or taking your time to fight every enemy you come across. A timer is used to push the player forward, and the game has different endings based on how much time remains.
There are several characters to choose from, with different attack patterns to experiment with. When shooting your enemies, you can rotate your angle of attack to target enemies all around you. Combined with the manually scrolling screen, this gives a lot of different options for smiting everything in your path.
The best feature, however, is the curse button. I just call this the Awesome button, because it does awesome things and generally makes the game a lot more fun to play. Cursing enemies affects firepower and how many point items they drop, in addition to using some cool graphics of them being haunted. Feel free to yell out "Cuuuuurse you!" in your best creepy voice every time you use it.
Graphics are very colorful, with a cutesy super-deformed character designs. Enemies are based on Japanese folklore and just as cute, although don't forget they are trying to kill you.
There is also a story mode that features full screen character art and voice acting. Of particular note, character art was also made for rotated screens (via the tate option), which is really amazing looking when viewed this way.
Mamoru-kun is not ball-bustingly hard like some shmups out there, but has options to increase difficulty if needed. The gameplay has a light-hearted feel to it, to match the graphical style. It's pretty fun, but the lack of challenge may annoy some shmup enthusiasts.
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video-games_xbox
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The best in the series. . . Since the release of "Hunter: The Reckoning," the games in the series have become steadily more accessible in terms of play balance. "Wayward," released for the Playstation 2 just months before "Redeemer," offered a considerable improvement to the hack-slash-shoot formula of its predecessor - but also failed to offer anything that felt genuinely new to veterans of the series. It felt like a glorified expansion pack to the previous game, simply put. "Redeemer," on the other hand, comes off as a true sequel, and further refines the series' signature gameplay. Gone is the oppressive difficulty of the original entry, and gone is much of the sameness of "Wayward."
That's not to say that "Redeemer" doesn't become repetitive. It does. When a game relies so heavily on hacking, slashing, shooting, and little else, this can tend to occur. Even so, the formula maintains its shallow but addictive quality - particularly if you have a friend to run through the game alongside you (or a few, for the matter of that). There are many noticeable improvements to the core game that include ranged attack power ups (such as incendiary or poisonous bullets), level-ups that actually make an impact on your chosen character (your weapons become noticeably more potent, and your basic ranged weapon can hold more ammunition), NPCs that add a little something extra to the game's environments, and more health and "edge" enhancers that pop up in place of slain enemies. "Hunter: The Reckoning" was murderously difficult, and both "Wayward" and "Redeemer" have addressed this issue respectably.
Graphically, "Redeemer" takes the series much further. The environments are slick-looking and full of eye candy (like reflective surfaces), and the characters onscreen animate believably. Even when there are many enemies onscreen at a given time, there is very little slowdown. The sound effects get the job done without making a particular impression, and, unfortunately, the music is still sporadic, but the in-engine cutscenes are very well done and excellently voiced. Overall, "Redeemer" offers a winning presentation that trumps each of its forebears.
The story that runs behind the scenes here isn't anything too impressive, but the involvement of monsters that aren't entirely evil does add a wrinkle to the proceedings. The new character class (the Redeemer) plays a large role in the scheme of things, and is a fine addition to the other four. She is, perhaps, one of the most well-rounded characters in the game.
All in all, if you're a fan of the series, then there's no reason why you should be without "Redeemer." It takes everything that makes the series so strangely compelling and polishes it to a radiant shine. It lacks the insane difficulty of the original and the overwhelming sameness of "Wayward" and offers up a game that is quite enjoyable.
Final Score: B
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video-games_xbox
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A disgrace to the name of Lord of the Rings. When you first here LOTR Fellowship you think that this would be a good game. Well, you would only be able to think. This game is atrocious! As Frodo, you're running around with a stick(later becomes a migit sword, and then Sting), and rocks. Puny, pathetic rocks. Once you get to the forests you have to fight these spiders..well using the stick is pretty much suicide, so u have to use the rocks. In one place, if u keep throwing rocks, they don't move and they get pounded! o ya....about 250 rocks for one spider...... 1 spider down....159 more to go. TOO LONG! Once you are Aragorn, which is about 10 minutes long,(Frodo about 3 hours and Gandalf about 1 hour) and yes, 10 minutes, you can use good weapons and kill these drunk lunatics, which isn't the most exciting thing to do with a Ranger. You would hope that the cool guy would be longer to play as... with fire arrows and a sword that looks cool, but its just about 10 minutes. With Gandalf, which is the only reason that i gave this 2 stars, you at least fight things that stand (which are orcs and goblins) and you can use this powerful magic. Well here are the major pros and cons. The beautiful graphics are the only good thing in this game that give Lord of the Rings a bad name.
PROS:
- Play as Gandalf and he has magic
-Long game
-Good Graphics
CONS:
- Loading times between EVERY DOOR! Each loading time is about 45 seconds to 1 minute.
- too many rocks to kill 1 darn SPIDER!
- Frodo is the player the majority of the time
For you people who don't care about the loading times and love frodo and roaming in the shire for 2 hours trying to pick mushrooms and feed pigs, this game is for you. If you want real LOTR Action, and if you want to be able to choose your character between different times, then get Lord of the Rings: Two Towers because that is just a beautiful game.
*Note* as Frodo, you can use The Ring, but it isn't too great unless you like to run away (which is almost impossible in this game).
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video-games_xbox
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Dishonored...Ok but i expected more i guess. As of writing this review, i have not finished the game yet. I am on the mission to rescure the scientist at the bridge.
First of all i think this is a bold step by Bethesda in trying to define an IP in a very choked genre, fps that is.
What i liked : I generally liked the overall graphics and the way the AI responds to situation. Decisions you make will affect the way things turn out for you. I also liked the overall story line.
What i did not like:
The fps nature for a game like this. Maybe its just me but i feel for a stealth game like this, maybe fps is not the way to go but rather 3rd person point of view, much like Max Payne. Seeing only knife in one hand and a bare hand to equip special abilities in the other makes the game become boring easily. Also, it makes otherwise "would have been nice to see" actions/features such as teleporting, assasinations and stalking etc...contributed to the overall gameplay, creating an emerssive experience. Compare this to other fps' such as bioshock and you will understand what i mean, unlike bioshock, Dishonored is supposed to be a close combat game, because you play as an assasin and stealth is your altimate weapon. otherwise all that i mentioned earlier as "would have been nice to have" won't have been required or necessary if this was more like bioshock and stealth was not a big deal.
Character... I don't know, maybe its because i have not advanced far enough but the character is very dry. No dialogue! Only other characters talking to you. Makes relating to the player just not there.
Controls, I think the fps nature coupled with the fact that its a stealth game makes the controls clunky. E.g. Assasinating enemies from above, teleporting etc. Sometimes its just someway and not so fun.
Overall..i think this game is alright. I gave it 3 stars because
(1) its not such a bad start...if this will produce a sequel.
(2) i picked it up for $25 on amazon. I would felt very bad if i picked this up for any price more than $35.
Good luck with your purchase and i hope you enjoy the game.
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video-games_xbox
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Fun for a couple songs. This past weekend i played guitar hero world touur for twelve hours. i also own rock band 2 and have been playing that since the day it came out. As i usually play rock band on a 50 inch plasma and i had to play world tour on a 34 inch rounded screen old school tv it was a little bit harder to read the notes. but here is my review none the less
Vocals: vocals seem way easier to sing then rock band. the microphone seems to read the pitch better and is more sensitive. the only downside about this is that i don't know the words to most of the songs so it makes it hard to sing it.
Guitar: I love the new guitar. it looks great and feels great. it is very responsive and just the right weight to flip it over your shoulder while having a short break in the guitar. the slide feature seems fun to play but while playing on expert it is very hard to find the right fingering and then to get your fingers back up to frets but i'm sure after playing more i will be able to do it fine.
Drums: i'm a drummer and all i do is play the drums until i'm tired of sitting down. the first time i played the drums it felt great besides the foot pedal. the foot pedal is way to close to the ground. it also doesn't really have much of a spring back and is made of flexible plastic. the purple note was also hard to see on the tv screen to play it. as i continued to play the drums, i would continually hit in between the pads. since the spacing is different from the rock band drums i would go for where i thought the drum was, but it wasn't. This would be fine except for the fact that when hitting the plastic it would make a incredibly loud crack everytime you hit it. another thing about the drums was the cymbals are to close to the pads. my stick would get stuck under the cymbal when i was playing the red and fly out of my hand. and finally the blue drum hardly worked at all. if they fix the blue drum and had a better foot pedal i could tolerate playing it.
Set List: A lot of songs available for GHWT are the same as rock band 2. other then these songs there are about seven songs that i enjoy playing. i would totally recomend the rock band set list over the guitar hero one. while playing the set list i would start to fall asleep playing some songs because i didn't know them. some songs are way to long to enjoy playing. and i don't know why there are so many spanish songs in it. i haven't tried making any songs yet, but from the ones that i downloaded they remind me of old ringtones. it doesn't sound like a real song, but something that comes out of a cell phone. As i said before i wouuld recomend the rock band setlist over the GHWT one. there are about seven songs i like to play on GHWT, there are about seven songs i don't like to play out of my 160 rock band songs.
Overall: overall i would recomend this song for the guitar hero lovers, but i would recomend only getting the guitar pack and get the rock band drums which are far superior. maybe some amazing downloadable content would raise my opinion of the setlist, but so far guitar hero hasn't impressed me with their downloadable capabilities.
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video-games_xbox
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Overall good product, still using it! Just a couple small quirks. At first touch, it feels pretty good. Others said the studded grips were too sharp and it's not really true; they could be shorter/duller, but they're far from uncomfortable. The material and overall feel (and look) is actually pretty good. The only thing I really noticed is that the middle - between the start/select/Steam buttons, the analog stick and A/B/X/Y buttons - is kind of loose. The rest fits fine, of course, but it could cause a problem for some people.
For those that don't want to read through me babbling about specifics after a couple days, here are some pros and cons:
Pros:
-Great feel, aesthetic
-Maintained a good grip over long periods of play
-Comfortable, not too thick
-Easy to put on/take off
Cons:
-MINOR: Mid-section between the stick/center buttons/ABXY buttons a little loose, though it doesn't really get in the way
-MINOR: Edges around the pads can take a little getting used to
-Can be a little trickier to push the select/Steam/start buttons
Overall:
I actually like it a lot. Granted, I haven't seen any alternatives for a good skin like this, so there's not much to compare it to, but it's a pretty solid product minus a couple nitpicky things. I'd definitely recommend it to others. I also included some pictures to show the fit. The last one is there to give you a sense of how high the barriers around the controls are, if you're curious.
More in-depth stuff below:
After using it for a couple days regularly playing Dark Souls PTDE & 2, I can say I'm comfortable with it and like it quite a bit. Feels good to the touch, it doesn't slip, and does its job pretty well. As for some cons, the first thing I noticed was the claims that the select/start/Steam buttons are hard to push are true to some extent; they're a little trickier to push, but since they aren't that regularly used and it's still really not that hard to push them, so I don't really see that as as much of a problem as some make it out to be. Aside from that, every once in a while it can make it a little awkward to push the A and B buttons (not X/Y), and it took time to get used to the borders around the pads, but other than that, I'm happy with the product and will happily continue to use it.
For a 5-star rating, I'd recommend working out that loose mid-section and maybe give a little more room/shrink the barriers around the select/Steam/start buttons, ABXY buttons, and trackpads, since those are the only things that would probably get in the way of some more serious players.
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video-games_xbox
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If only Supreme Commander wasn't so. For those who would be interested in the Supreme Commander series if it made some changes, this game was absolutely wonderful. I just completed the single player missions and, in my opinion, it is the best in the series, going all the way back. The funny thing is that the more negative reviews I read, the more I realized the 1 star reviewers were complaining about things that had changed from the original. They seem to have wanted more of the same while I thought, "Wow, all that stuff really brings to light my problems with the SupCom games." Finally, I realized, it looks like they fixed it! Sure, they went in a mildly different direction but it could really be fun and, approachable, and not bogged down with too many spots of boredom this time!
I've played this franchise since Total Annihilation 1 & 2, the fantasy version Kingdoms and then the previous Supreme Commander and its expansion pack. While they were all very fun, none was engrossing enough to play through until the end. Going back 10 years, the current RTS big 3 are still the major players and I enjoy them all. I played through Command and Conquer 3 (skipped C&C 4, of course), I'm playing the StarCraft 2 beta (loved the first one to the end!) but for my money, SupCom 2 is the fun one of the current bunch. Also remember, they are up to version 1.14 when I played.
Remember, while you should definitely make your own decision, there was an organized campaign of negative and positive reviews which you can look up on Google. Many old SupCom fans were spreading the word to post a 1 star review. In response, other fans were posting 5 stars in retaliation. This means that the older 1 and 5 star reviews may not actually reflect the exact feelings of the reviewer but instead, the organized group they got caught up in. That is why the "fake" reviews are not actually fake even though they were coming in around the same time period. The difference is that people online, in general, that are annoyed about something are far more likely to want to voice their opinion than those who just happily completed 10-20 hours of good and challenging gaming.
Graphics:
First and foremost in my opinion is that this game looks great. The genuinely 3D maps are so much better this time around. There are some very interesting models employed such as bridges, canyons, huge buildings, etc. that give the game serious visual appeal. And the campaign encourages you to explore these maps because they hide things all over the place. As for performance, I've got a good system but playing SupCom 1 at 1080p (computer's connected to a TV) was a little tough. SupCom 2 had no trouble at all. The style is somewhat cartoony, which is a much better fit, I think. This game is about having fun. It ended up being fine when Team Fortress 2 went to an animated look and it's nicely done here (minus some bad elbow animations in the movies). I think the uproar again is
Gameplay:
Units: Sure, some say that there was an infinite variety of units, but in actuality, they were mostly all the same with a different skin. This time around, things are simpler with fewer units to memorize. The big difference between the races comes in with the Experimental units and the research tree. This also means that your old units stay useful throughout the match if you keep upgrading them.
Experimental Units: In response to complaints about weak top level "Experimental" units, maybe the reviewers didn't play the game through? Sure, these units are tough, but they come in a variety of strengths. Some are quickly killed with directed fire and some, like the dinobot, take a serious beating and cost twice as much. The real factor is that the game allows you to build up to multiple experimental units so you can actually employ flanking tactics or maybe have experimental defense and offense units in play. Also, these units need support. Don't try to send one in at the front of the group or to send one in alone. Ideally, they should have a mix of offensive and defensive units as an escort and be guarded by some engineers. Or, if you are able, bring in a mix of Experimental units with an air escort for rapid response. In the later single player missions, this worked well for me. One thing that did bother me about these units, though, is that there is minimal information on them within the game. You may need to check the Wiki online in order to fully understand how best to use some of the Experimental buildings.
Research: Regarding the new research system - finally I don't have to find the right building to research what I want! Using the single research menu, it becomes very easy to save up enough points and quickly set things up the way you like. It's even a sort of mini game in itself because you can be under attack while managing your research and then find the right combo to immediately start turning the tides of battle. The results of the research happen instantly so you can get benefits like tougher and faster units, better line of sight, etc. right away. Also, in single player, you can hit the pause button and still manage your research tree as well as queuing up orders which comes in very handy. Something else that's interesting is that not all races have the same tree the higher you go.
Construction: building handles more like a standard RTS in that you can only queue what you can afford at the time. There's no more over-building and then waiting indefinitely while resources trickle in and get used up by too many things at once. Since you can set buildings to repeat their build orders, it's easy to queue things up once you've save enough for one of each of the units in the queue. Related to this is that games no longer degenerate into a grind for the top level units by building Tier 3 power plants and metal makers to get to unlimited resources. Power and mass can be tight early on but then become quite comfortable if you are decent with your engineers and salvaging metal. And (finally) no need to create storage buildings like in SupCom 1 or the C&C series.
Assists: unfortunately, it looks like you can't have an engineer help create a building. The can still help make units though. Also, they can follow your Experimental units and provide support.
Pathfinding: this is just hands down superior to previous versions. It is rare that units get stupid and lost. Usually, they will even politely ask other units to move so they can get through. I say usually because I have seen instances where a tiny unit gets stuck between a huge unit and a wall, but really, should your enormous Experimental unit move out of position so a tiny bot can get by? And this situation happened less than 5 times in the entire campaign. For the most part, they even organize themselves by strength. For example, battleships form up in the front, carriers in the rear, and planes circle around them. While it's true that shield units in mixed groups may end up at the rear, this is actually where you want them. The thing to realize is that you have to move your groups slowly so your offensive units stay beneath the shield and the defensive units don't come under fire right away.
Story:
Another nice thing is that the single player story is pretty good this time around. It left me pretty bored last time around. The characters you are following this time around earn your empathy or your grins. And, without giving anything away, their stories are intertwined very effectively. Also, the tale moves along fairly quickly. There are no more cases where you think the mission is over, but actually the same plain old map just gets bigger.
Ahh... Steam:
I heart Steam. In fact, I bought this game on Amazon only after the organized smear campaign complaints made me aware that If bought it from here, not only would I get a paper manual and an install DVD, I would never have to put the DVD in the drive to play after installing! I accept that Steam doesn't work so great for everyone. In fact, I've had it weird out on me, possibly due to my dual boot setup. However, for the most part it works wonders. At all times, there are over 1.5 million Steam gamers online and I'm one of them. If you remember to set it to offline mode, then there are no problems with running the game without an internet connection. On top of that, achievements are tracked, the game is auto updated, and I never have to worry about the DVD getting damaged. Yes, you can't sell the game. But realistically, after decades of increasingly effective piracy, that's the way of the PC world. Honestly, we're lucky they still make PC games. It's only a matter of time before that happens to your Xbox 720, the Wiii and PS 4. Try the demo then wait for a good sale so you don't feel burned.
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video-games_xbox
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PC Gamer Perspective. Being a PC gamer, I venture into console games from time to time in order to up my selection and to experience the best they have to offer. GOW was the first on the Xbox 360.
I have some problems with console games, usually, attributed to the following -- with comments for GOW.
1. Gamepad joystick controls often seem unwieldy and imprecise. In addition, moving a specified position is slower (than a mouse).
After a bit of time with the game, GOW controls seem manageable - definitely better than some. The joystick sensitivity adjustment seemed too be too coarse in the beginning but later max sensitivity seemed controllable and necessary. Now, how do I select the mouse option?
Your control while running is poor.
2. Console games adore being in 3rd person - even shooters.
GOW uses some fresh or interesting game-play elements including using cover and blind-fire. 1st person mode would limit the usefulness of this unless ... one switched to 3rd person or to a gun mounted camera.
3. The field of view is often limited and/or your person in 3rd person games blocks your view. In addition your neck is stiff and if you wanted to look around, you could only do so slowly or would be othwerwise impractical (especially in combat).
In GOW, this is only somewhat of a problem. (Yet, you are kinda big and have a thick neck.) I would often like to use aim mode perspective but it is also tied to slow movement and this is a killer in many situations.
Note, a person has a pretty wide FOV and their eyes and neck can easily move a limited amount fairly quickly - thus games often present a real FOV limitation. In GOW, this is a problem in hectic scenes. A widescreen tv might help.
4. Controls are often overloaded. This overloading based on context and recognition of this context often seems to involve position and/or some time delay (hysteresis). This often results in me executing the wrong action - some might say skill is involved here, but it isn't the kind of skill I think is fun.
In GOW casual difficulty, control overloading is easily managed. On harder difficulties, it is a problem as I have to manage this aspect when needing to make quick movements and related actions - i.e. run to wall and take cover (the take cover might not take effect).
5. Overuse of cut-scenes and/or the use of control-pad icons on-screen (esp. in center of vision) break immersion. If they are not used I suppose the developers would be picked up and we would never see them again.
GOW uses control-pad icons. This does help you make sure a context will fire but it only helps if you want to wait until you see the icon (casual difficulty). The semitransparent damage/dying icon/indicator takes some getting use to and is an icon when less transparent.
6. There are fewer options to tweak - some important ones are omitted.
There seems to be an always on depth-of-field blur or general low texture resolution in the distance. I don't need a next-gen console to see blurry stuff. Ok it might be cool for a few minutes after you start it up the first time. Your eyes don't effectively have a significant depth-of-field blur because they refocus on whatever you looking at.
General number of options is low. Option testing can't be that bad - PC people do it. Is it too complicated for (us) console people or is there some kind of achievement/on-line "cheat" worry -- sheesh.
7. Game contains some unreasonably hard or frustrating foes/gameplay elements that are not fun to overcome ... that are there to prove that this game isn't too easy.
Even on casual difficulty, the last foe/battle is a bit strange. Seems a bit hard to avoid damage and how many dynamite arrows to the head can any humanoid-looking thing take? If it was an android with a titanium "skull" (case) - well maybe.
There are a few timed sequences but only a few - I'm glad. A few more seconds would have nice and would have prevented me from removing all opposition (actually more than a couple) before reaching the goal. What use is a timer when you don't know far the goal is? Run as if the the wind had feet.
On harder difficulties, there are some enemies that will rush (jump over cover/barricades etc.) that will require, for example, 3 shotgun blasts to kill while you take one. If I can learn some defensive maneuvers to counter this, then good.
There are some semi-invulnerable enemy sequences that seemed jarring from the normal game-play but familiarity with your movement control and the enemy ... ends up being ok on replays. Actually the second and last were interesting.
In many areas, enemies can appear without being present initially. In general, this is a game-play gimmick that can quickly go from amusing to bad to worse. In GOW, the situation isn't too bad because the enemies usually appear far enough away from the player and one can hear that will be occurring. It fits the story.
----------------
Overall:
GOW's general combat is greatest part of the game and provides good replay value. Weapons and pacing are good. Ammo level requires some attention but isn't usually a problem - but wasting ammo when there are many enemies in the area can lead to being down river without, um, ammo. Enemies use tactics - like some use of cover and can have hang back or advance modes - but are not exactly clever. A.I. is better than most. In hectic battles in open areas with many enemies (at harder difficulties) you can be easily be overpowered without managing cover and otherwise having good offensive and defensive tactical skills. GOW provides great gameplay in general combat with good sound and quality artwork.
How about some bot support or instant action?
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video-games_xbox
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How All Shooters Should Be. First off let me say that DICE has done it again with another great game, Bad Company was great but Bad Company 2 is way better, the type of game (if you enjoy the series, enjoy the game play and put your time into) will literally blow you away.
I'll break this down as far as graphics, sound (music, voice acting, sound effects), game play and then single player and multi player (game play and DLC).
GRAPHICS - 9/10
On a big HD TV, with an Xbox 360 Elite with a HDMI cable (rather than HD setting on the Composite) this game is spectacular. From rolling sand dunes, dark and stormy skies, frozen wastelands, tropical rain forests and urban settings, BC2 pulls this off spectacularly, the graphics and the rendering are smooth, the players, weapons and vehicles look fantastic, the effects from muzzle flashes, to rain and thunder to bullet marks and the destructible buildings, everything looks great. I only give this an 9 out of 10 because if you play on a smaller TV or on a TV that isn't HD compatible it doesn't look as good, and that kind of hinders online play, but other than that, the graphics are great.
SOUND - 10/10
DICE obviously put a lot of time and effort into the sound elements of the game because everything has been pulled off great. First, the voice acting is great, no cheesy cliches or corny one-liners, the voices are real, fluid and really add life to the Bad Company 2 storyline. The background music is great too, it really sets the moods for the different maps, it isn't grainy or low quality and it fits the storyline and the type of game, it isn't over dramatic or too soft. The sounds effects are great, everything from bullet hitting different things (metal, stone, dirt, flesh) to the sound of the knife to the reloading, cocking and firing of the weapons sounds great. I fire some weapons in real life, so obviously the sound team went down to the firing range to collect these audio samples, they sound great and are executed on time, there is no delay from loading, cocking, firing and holstering your weapon. So overall, the Sound gets a perfect score, because it is perfect.
GAME PLAY - 8.5/10
NOTE: This game is not for everyone, if you are used to playing a game such as Call of Duty or Fallout 3, where you put the cross-hair on something and you do not miss or if you duck behind a wall you'll recover fast or you can take 15 bullets and be recovered 3 seconds later, this is not the game for you. The game play is extremely real, physics affect bullets so it makes sniping, or long range shooting more difficult, the Destruction 2.0 system makes most of your cover obsolete due to the fact almost everything in the environment has the ability to be blown apart, level and crushed or otherwise. The Enemy AI is pretty smart, they won't run into the open and shoot from a standing position like in Call of Duty, they are a bit more responsive, and they also take advantage of explosives and heavy stationary weapons and their effects on the environment, so do not be surprised if you try to hide behind a wall and suddenly it (and you) disappear. The only reason this gets a 8.5 out of 10 is because if you're not used to BC2, then its a bit difficult, the friendly AI is useless, while the enemy AI is good, it isn't 100% realistic, they don't really react to suppressive fire and sometimes it is god like especially when it comes to enemy vehicles. This is just how I take it, its up to your interpretation, also the lack of prone is a bit annoying, so it doesn't receive full score.
SINGLE PLAYER 8/10
The single player campaign is great, albeit a little cliched, it follows your special operations unit of 4 and your quest to track down some crazy Russian general who wants to use an EMP-tech weapon to destroy American infrastructure and stage an invasion, blah blah blah...The Single Player Campaign is fun, do not get me wrong, sure it isn't the most original and sure it doesn't really take too long to beat, and the replay value is minimal unless you want to get some kill achievements, or destroy intel, or play on a higher difficulty, replaying the game isn't really that important. Also due to the fact that you cannot access all weapons as there are online is a bit of a let down, so you can't experiment with all the types like you would maybe in Call of Duty before slugging it out online. The single player also ends off in a cliffhanger, which leads to another DLC (which if so, has yet to come out) or another game, but Battlefield 3 is not a successor to BC2, so we will have to wait quite a bit it seems.
MULTI PLAYER 9/10
The multi player is fantastic! And when I say that I mean it's unbelievable that other online shooters are not like this. The range of weapons is exceptional, everything handles really realistic, and adding bullet gravity and different environmental effects like snow or sand and glare from sunlight it makes target acquisition and killing the other player a bit more difficult then like Call of Duty where you put your red dot on a guy and you can blow him away from any distance. The vehicle combat is also well balanced, this isn't like Call of Duty Black Ops where you jump into your gunship and just blast people with minimal skill, there is more involved than dodging missiles and holding the trigger. All the vehicles serve their purpose, whether it is a LAV, with only a machine gun to transport troops and engage infantry or heavy tanks to take out other enemy armor or structures or attack helicopters, everything handles and works differently, your M1A2 Abrams won't handle the same as your ATV and your Mi-24 Hind won't fly the same as your AH-64D Apache Longbow, so the balance remains on the skill. The skill selection is pretty rewarding, the better you do with the class the more weapons and attachments you unlock, the better you do with the weapon the better your rank with it and you get bronze/silver/gold stars for different amounts of kills with ever increasing experience. You can also have level-unlockable weapons which you can interchange with the skill selections, say you're a medic that doesn't really like the light machine guns, you can swap it out for a HK G3 or a Remington 870 MCS. Another good thing is that you're rewarded for your kills, in Call of Duty maybe you get a little bonus for a long-shot, but in BC2 for sniping someone across the map you get a ton of experience for head shots and distance, also you get different amount of experience for destroying objectives, vehicles and personnel. The attachments are great, you can use full body armor or you can use more ammo, you vehicles can have faster reloads or more damaging ammo, and connecting with a squad and setting up your attachments to fit the needs makes combat a lot more tactical online. While online is great there are a couple things which are annoying, sometimes finding a game is impossible, the server crashes sometimes, the Skill Level really fluxes erratically, some games I might get like 30 kills and 4 deaths and take out objectives and bunch of vehicles but I'll go up one Skill Level and sometimes I'll get killed once and drop due to disconnection and drop by 30. The main thing is about after Level 31, leveling becomes pointless, you unlock nothing more and the experience requirements are nearly impossible to reach.
OVERALL 8.9 (9) out of 10
The physics and destruction system is great, the sound and graphics are excellent and the weapon and vehicle selection in the game is great and the voice acting and the single player is well done very humorous at times (They take A LOT of shots at Call of Duty MW2) and the multi player online is great! My only quips is that the single player was a bit short, didn't have a lot of selection as far as weapons and vehicles to get used to for online and that it lacked a co-op mode without downloading a DLC (even with the DLC there wasn't local co-op). The multi player was great except for the fact that after a certain level you stopped unlocking things and that the map packs for it are just different game modes for the same maps and that there lacked a local multi player option.
I would definitely get this if shooters are in your alley, if you like the Bad Company series, if you're a fan of Battlefield, a fan of DICE or if you want a more realistic shooter, if you're not patient and if you cannot get used to the controls for online or do not like that there isn't a more hearty single player experience, then maybe you should stick with Call of Duty or Medal of Honor or something along those lines
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video-games_xbox
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Excellent game(s) and value for 60$, definitely recommend. Borderlands handsome collection is a bundle that includes borderlands 2 and the pre sequel.
You also get all the dlcs included with both games. Digitally, both games are around 30 gigs.
Gameplay
The borderlands games can be compared to a similar destiny. I personally prefer this
over destiny anytime. Gameplay is very smooth, 60 fps 1080p is great. Sometimes
I do get fps drops and laggy moments which is usually solved by restarting the game
Or the console. The game doesn't require you to grind as much as destiny does, but
you may want to spend time gathering legendary weapons.
I love the variety of weapons and mobs, and especially all the unique
classes. Weapons each have very unique attributes like explosive shots or allowing
you to use it as a grenade everything you reload. One story run through will take usually
around 20 hours, depending on if you do side quests. After beating it, you may Pursue
true vault hunter mode and do endgame content. Replayability is huge in this game.
Story
Coming off borderlands 1, returning players will love the story of BL2. TPS is based
before BL2 but makes of an interesting story.
The game revolves around the planet Pandora, which has been taken over for a
mineral called eridium. Handsome Jack, the antagonist is an interesting character
that is stable unlike pagan min in far cry 4. He is a very cruel and funny person at
the same time. You play as vault hunters and work your way to defeat handsome Jack.
The story is great, especially with the cheesy humor it contains.
Multiplayer
This game allows for great coop sessions, in fact it makes this game just 30x more
fun! Players can join each and play just like a normal campaign. If you were to
Progress a lot, the game allows you to skip the quests you've already done for
when you go back to singleplayer. Some minor cons were that there is no pvp
based modes, except for the ridiculously unbalanced dueling and playing with
a huge level gap is a huge hassle and should not be done.
Overall
I think this game is great, no doubt. It is a great game to play, having friends to
play it with makes it a lot better but the solo sessions are still fun. It's also a game
That you won't beat and hide in your collection, it has lots of replayability and Each
time still being as fun. Having all the dlcs make it another also factor and bang for your buck.
60$ for +120$ of content? I'm in!
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video-games_xbox
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Call of Duty: Big Red One X-Box. I bought this game in Jan 2006 and I love it. If I could give it 10 stars I would.
The graphics are first-rate quality, the action is very quick, and the sounds are incredibly realistic through my sound-surround theatre in my living room. I have watched History Channel WWII shows with the same type of weapons as used in the game and the weaponry sounds are exactly the same.
There are a variety of maps to enter and join along with a variety of different campaigns such as Capture The Flag, Team Deathmatch, Deathmatch etc. I like this version better than the PC version and the X-Box Call of Duty Finest Hour (which is slow and cumbersome) because of maps, action, and the ability to converse with other players on-line. This is probably the single most important element of this X-Box game; the interaction with other players on-line. What makes this important is that each campaign, regardless of how much you have played COD: Big Red One in the past, changes each time you get on-line depending upon the group of people that you play with. So your experiences change because of their gaming experience (or lack thereof) and their ability to converse and help each other out: TEAMWORK is the keyword here. I have entered into the middle of games with first-timers that were losing 10 to 1 in scoring, but with my experience, I have help them come together to actually beat the opposing team. And some of the battles are blazing mind-blowing because both teams end up in a battle in the same area trying to gain the same ground within minutes of the game ending. The level of playing changes for everyone no matter how long you have had this game: I have played against guys who were considered Pro in this game yet, sometimes they can't kill anyone for a good score and I've beaten them hands-down in other campaigns. This of course also depends upon the other team, luck and everyone's skills.
Don't expect a high re-play value to come from the game itself. It's true that the maps get a bit redundant at times, but if the maps were any bigger, people would be running off without fighting. A good game experience comes from the team members that you play with. Each time you get on-line the teamwork and chaos changes. So even though the maps may get a little redundant, the outcomes change.
I can't say enough good things about COD: Big Red One.
On the negative side concerning X-Box (On-line only): I wish the video-made army men wouldn't run out of breath so quickly while running. I wish there were options to fly airplanes so we could fight in the air and bomb our opponents on the ground. Also, I would like to be able to enter other vehicles, not just tanks such as jeeps, trucks, etc. and sometimes it's frustrating to get killed when you think you're behind a wall, but apparently the enemy can see you. Other than this, nothing is wrong.
The money spent is well worth it. Must play on-line to appreciate this game.
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video-games_xbox
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Best Kart Racer Yet. When I first saw Sonic and Sega All Star Racing I was excited and skeptical. Excited to finally having a cart racer on the 360, but skeptical about the Sonic and Sega in the title. Over the last few years Sega has turned out some less then admirable games featuring their iconic star. Fortunately for me and many others it seems like they took their heads out of their asses and put out a very good cart racer.
Presentation
Sonic and Sega All Stars Racing doesn't shy away from Mario Kart instead it took what Mario Kart does well and built on that formula. Even the power ups one gets as they race around the track have direct similarities to Mario Kart. The red homing shell is replaced by red homing rockets, the green shells are green boxing gloves even the mushroom speed bursts are replaced by Sonic shoes.
The player is also given a great deal of variety with 20 playable racers and 24 tracks (21 and 25 with the new DLC). Besides the variety of players and tracks there are multiple game modes. In single player you have the typical Grand Prix in which the racer enters into the racing circuit winning a series of races to complete the cups. There is mission mode where the player must complete challenges or specific tasks: one example is drifting as much as possible around a track in a minute's time. Earning an "A" Rating or higher will unlock the next mission. They are great fun when you are not up to entering into a full race.
The multiplayer is a joy and also disappoints. There are a plethora of options and game modes to choose from in the multiplayer. You have racing which includes 4 person split screen and competing over live. There are also several battle modes: Regular "death match" battle mode where you compete against your opponent and try to knock them out using the games power ups and then there are King of the Hill, Diamond Grab, and a twist on the racing called knockout. I found all of the modes enjoyable, but the one issue I have with the Arena is the lack of maps. While the racing boasts 24 tracks the battle mode only has three, I assume that more will be released in the form of DLC.
Game Play
What makes the game great and a hell of a lot of fun to play is the game play itself. The controls are very tight and responsive which allows for anyone to easily pick up and play. In fact my four year old has no problem playing and winning races. The tracks are superior to any in the cart racer genre. They are well design and are different enough to make you feel like you are playing twenty four different tracks.
What really separates Sonic and Sega All Star Racing is the all-star moves. When a player falls behind they have a chance to pick up an all star in one of the item boxes which gives the player super speed and the ability to knockout any player in their way. Banjo and Kazooie whip out Mungo's wrench and begin to have "jiggys" fall from the sky. It a great part of the game and keeps the player who falls behind in the race. What the game doesn't have is the hail storm of blue turtle shells the leaders normally get in Mario Kart. If you get the lead you still have to play defensive, but you don't have to worry about a player in 6th place knocking you out to allow the player trailing you to take the lead.
Intangibles
While most racers/Cart games require a player to win certain races and cups in order to unlock the extra characters and tracks Sonic's racing game take a different approach. Every race, mission, and battle game gives the player "Sega Miles" which can be redeemed as cash to "buy" the characters and tracks in any order you chose. So if there is a certain track you want to race right away...just earn enough "Sega Miles" and it will be yours. What I did find interesting was for 400 Microsoft points you could unlock all the characters and tracks right off the bat. A great feature for some, but I preferred "earning" my unlockables.
Final Verdict
Buy...this game is loads of fun especially any variation of the multiplayer. There is enough variety and great controls to keep you coming back for more. For me nothing was more fun then trailing behind as Big Cat getting the All Star and hopping my way to the lead only to be overtaken by Beat. For cart racers who don't have a Wii you will not find a better game version.
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video-games_xbox
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A classic in the modern era. Stubbs the Zombie is perhaps one of the best games out there not for its intense gaming experience, but for the goofy laid back humor. The whole premise foreshadows a humorous game, with a random zombie appearing out of the ground...
I have written a previous review and I will post it here.
Reasons why Stubbs the Zombie is a great game:
One: Cooperative Mode - The problem with shooters nowadays is the lack of offline multiplayer. Every game designer wants to enter the new millennia and use X-Box Live. But really, this is a big mistake. Live is only for those that are completely absorbed in videogames. Plus, playing by yourself, in your room, with the shades down and the fan on, is just not as exciting as going over to your friends house. Besides the fact that at your friends house, you don't need to supply your own food, you are also able to beat the game together. You are able to laugh at the jokes together. Trust me, it is lots more fun.
Two: Humor - Another problem today is the clichs in videogames. Too many developers want to immerse the player into the game. They want their game to be as realistic as possible. This is exactly where Stubbs excels in. Stubbs is so ridiculous, that it makes the game good. Stubbs is about as believable as purple dragons, but who cares? All we want is a game that we can flip on, play a couple levels, and enjoy ourselves. Too many other games are overly competitive. The only competition in Stubbs is fighting for brains.
Three: Creativity - Another downfall for other games is the lack of creativity. Other games try too hard to think of the coolest vehicle, or the most ferocious enemy. Stubbs, on the other hand, lets the player kill the most basic enemy that exists - humans. Stubbs excels in its creativity, especially in weapons, enemies, and vehicles. No body needs some grotesque looking half-dog, half-goat or some space shotgun carved with huge detail. All we need is creative, cheese puff, fun!
Four: Setting - Another aspect that makes Stubbs such a rad game is the time period it's set in. Most other games try to make their games futuristic, or contemporary, but Stubbs uses the good old fifties. With the fifties, Stubbs includes probably the best soundtracks that bring nostalgia to many people. It is this music that makes Stubbs outshine the others. Developers tend to add the weirdest suspense/techno/disgusting music that only a deaf grandpa would enjoy. Stubbs allows the player to listen to music that is recognizable.
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video-games_xbox
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Madden is so easy to forget with football like this. Forget Madden this is the best football I have ever played. I was just going to do what I have done for the last - well I don't know how long- and go out and buy Madden and its college counterpart, especially after you could intergrate college draft years onto the pro game. But wait, what is this? A truly deep and well thought out football game that is challenging and realistic at the same time. Usually Madden pulls one or the other or shadows of both at the same time but this is truly special. The first two difficulty levels are good to learn on but going to all-pro and above will see if you are truly gifted or going back to rookie or pro where you probably won't lose. Commentary is very good especially from Chrim Berman, his part in this game is awesome. The first couple times you play you might think you are just watching Sportcenter. There is a recap at the end of a season or franchise week that will let you see all game scores that week and even highlights of other games. Very cool. Controls are very good and the game speed is perfect. I really like the instant replay in this game, finally a little more realistic and useful than others where it eventully becomes a problem rather that a pivotal part of the game. I was a little nervous about buying this because the replay value, on Madden I was always trying to get all the cards, how was this game going to keep my interest? The Crib is a nice answer. This is a fully interactive guy haven. The collectible Bobble Heads are sweet - one for every NFL Team. There are even two Mini games you can access. A tabletop football game like me and my cousin used to play at my Grandmas when we where bored and an air hockey table game. Like I said the gameplay blows the Moldy Madden away and the graphics are also slightly better. Don't consider anything other than ESPN football for the XBOX. Can't wait for a good College game from them for XBOX Live. Hopefully Microsoft isn't going to let Sony run with all the online licensing. I was a long loving Sony fan - they just got beat by a better system. Good job XBOX.
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video-games_xbox
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Great Game but not as Good as the Original. The Sequel to 2003's Game of the Year could possibly be as good as it's predecessor but it's not. It's not a bad game it's just when you have game that was as successful as KOTOR1 it's hard to work off that and make it better.
So let me entertain you with the story so far.
It has been 5 years since the events in KOTOR1 the former Sith Lord Darth Revan has not been seen since he destroyed the Star Forge in the Rakata system. Instead of the defeat of Darth Malak and the supposed death of the Sith in the Galaxy being beneficial to the Republic, it has instead weakened it, and sown descent among some of the worlds on the Outer Rim such as Onderon. You play as a Veteran of the Mandalorian Wars and an Exile of the Jedi Order, get used to being called the Exile a lot. You have wandering around Republic space since your Exile after the end of the Mandalorian and it has come to a head when a Sith Cruiser attacks your ship and knocks you into a catotonic state. You are then rescued by the crew of the freighter, the Ebon Hawk (that's right you ride the Hawk here too) but then they are attacked by the Sith and cause the death of all but 2 of the people on the ship the Exile and an old woman. Your ship is repaired and eventually saved by an old friend, the astromech droid T3-M4 is able to guide the ship to a mining station in the asteroid field of Peragus II. You awaken in a kolto tank being the only one alive all the miners in the medbay around you are dead. You then discover your rescuer an old Jedi Master named Kreia who seems to have shared the same fate as you as being exiled. This is where your story begins.
Pros and Cons!!!
Pros - There is a link from the first KOTOR to this one you will see some of the old characters from the last game in this one, hell some of them will even join you!
Prestige Classes - That's right people, when you hit Level 18 you can gain a prestige class. Now how you benefit from the prestige class depends on your starting class so choose wisely!!
More interaction with your Companions - This is a really cool part of this game, instead of having pre-trained jedi, like Bastilla, Jolee, or Juhani you can play Teacher to numerous members of the Ebon Hawks crew and craft a virtual militia of jedi. To do this you must gain influence, yep, influence, say something your companions like or appeal to their ego you will gain their influence and gain 1 step closer to making them a jedi.
Miner Pro - you actually get to have a real jedi robe with all the flowy in the back and a hood and such, just adds to the whole attitude of a jedi.
Cons!!
Lightsaber Aquisition - (1 sentence) You get your lightsaber at least 3 hours into the game maybe more if your not quick to apply to the game.
Enemies - These guys are almost too easy to defeat, if you train vigirously and become a purge to your enemies they won't last at least 2 minutes against you maybe less. So not much of a challenge for those of you that like one.
In my opinion it's an overall good game it just slips on some of the stuff that KOTOR1 made successful.
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video-games_xbox
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Totally Awesome, BOOM. Skylanders Trap Team, the latest and greatest from Activision. The new Special Characters are called "Trapmasters" their powers include being able to break up Traptanium crystals and their Traptanium weapons light up on screen (but not the actual toy) when they are near the crystals, they can open elemental gates (now only Trap Masters can open elemental gates, bummer) and they are supposedly stronger fighters.
CON'S
1. There is NO Player vs. Player battle mode!
2. No Lightcore (light up) characters so far, unless they release some later on.
PRO'S
1. There is a new Tower Defense mini-game, it's kinda like the arena battles but with a tower defense/ strategy twist. And there is 30 new and challenging arena battles.
2. Graphics/Animations are even better. The levels are highly detailed and neat looking. Imagine swap Force but on a grander scale.
3. There is actually a lot more free roaming in this game vs. the others. In Swap Force and Giants you really couldn't go off the beaten path except for when you find a secret area. In Trap Team it feels a bit closer to a Lego video game where it is possible to get lost, there are multiple roads to pick, vs. one straight path from beginning to end.
4. Trapping the villains is new and does not disappoint. The new portal allows for audio from the trapped villain to reciprocate through the portal, which gives the game a "toys coming to life" feel. You can easily switch to the villian at the press of button and switch back the same way. The Villains are quite cool, and when you put their trap on the portal it plays their theme music, they will talk to you sometimes reminding you that they are their and make comments and crack jokes. The trapped villains also have mini quests you can do to upgrade one power, this is kind of like Heroic challenges.
5. There are lots of mini games like arena battles, card games, a rock concert game and tons of other stuff to do and explore.
Overall my Skylander collection is heaping and I do not plan to buy many new characters, but utilize the older ones. The game is great for those that are new to the series and I have found over time playing there is quite a lot of new things for those who are not new to the series.
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video-games_xbox
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GTAV is back with new content & First Person Mode. **UPDATE2:** (3/10/15) Online Heists have FINALLY made it to GTA.
**UPDATE:** (1/8/15) While I am enjoying GTAV some days the online servers work great, but most days I cannot connect to a single person. I realize R* has some work to do and is busy adding in the Heist Missions via a large upcoming DLC/Patch, but all the same, some server stability in the mean time would be great. I expected a bit more polish to the much touted GTA Online from R*'s awesome dev team.
Rockstar deserves your love, not for re-releasing a game from last gen, but for adding so much new content and updating the game so much; GTAV may just be a port, but it's a damn awesome port.
Mostly all I need to say is 2 things: FIRST PERSON MODE (FPM) & HEISTS!!!
Finally you get to enjoy the beautiful graphics and experience the whole world up close and personal. Thankfully the new FPM works great lets you see the whole game in high detail, especially enjoyable are the new controls specifically for FPM which allow you to have more familiar FPS like button uses. I for one thank Rockstar for releasing games that aren't a broken buggy mess needing patch after patch just to play, but most of all Rockstar is FINALLY going to release the long awaited Heist Missions!
GTA is like the Skyrim of cars, hookers, and punching random pedestrians. It's not a game for everyone, but it's crazy and silly and has more than enough content to keep even ADD riddled little Billy happy for hours while he ogles strippers from first person perspective. Giggity
There's new vehicles, new weapons, 100 new songs on the radio, new wildlife, stock car races, and other events, etc. As well the game boasts some updated visuals via increased draw distance, more traffic, and and a higher resolution for both XboxOne & PS4 (with a slight frame rate advantage to the Xbox One version) I for one am extremely excited to be jumping back into GTAV. Obviously if you didn't enjoy it the first time it's still the same game so steer clear, to fans and others check it out.
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video-games_xbox
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A game of contrasts. First of all let me get to the voice acting. Though I have should compliment the voice acting itself, the voices are placed in ways where they appear when you are not expecting them and disappear when its clear that not only could they simply continued the voices, but the very lack of them took away from the drama. This is a downfall one would not have expected from a cooperative product of Square Enix and Tri-Ace, especially from playing either STAR OCEANS: TILL THE END OF TIME or RADIATA STORIES.
Next is the party system. The new party system allows for the control of a single character, drawing more emphasis to the connection of that one character and the story that envelops him. However, like in RADIATA STORIES you can issue commands to various characters that accompany you. However the system does not flow well in the heat of battle. Let me explain. You will have the option of telling a party member to follow closely behind you, and to perform one of two preset special abilities at your discretion, all while allowing you to continue fighting. The problem with this innovative system is that the character stops acting on their own, and will only perform the actions you tell them, some of which may take time not only for them, but for you as well. While the complexity of controlling two characters can invigorating to veterans of this genre, it is certainly not for the inexperienced.
I should also comment on the story of this game. While its ideas draw from games of old, it is a refreshing story, one that you can easily get into so long as you can hold off you frustrations with the game-play until you become more experienced with its systems. I will not spoil anything, but let me say much of the story is worth it.
So what is my ultimate recommendation. Being a veteran of the genre, I quite enjoy it, but it is not for the inexperienced. It is a game of great complexity and subtlety to great degrees, and while that adds to the game-play for me and those like me, I would definitely recommend another game for those who are new to RPG's or have little patience for learning curves. That said, it is not a bad game at all, just one that takes time to get the hang of, and if you have the time and patience, get this game.
Graphics 8/10
Sound 7/10
Voice 7/10
Game-play 8/10
Story 9/10
Pick up and play 5/10
Buy or Rent: RENT first
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video-games_xbox
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At least it didn't get any worse. I thoroughly enjoyed the first Gears of War game. Sure, the story isn't particularly deep, but it was entertaining enough to warrant several playthroughs on the highest difficulty in co-op. A fair amount of the humor was crisp and the quips weren't tired and played out. About the only thing I didn't like was that it seemed to take an inordinate number of bullets to drop an enemy, but that was at a time when I wasn't as good at shooters and just plugged away at their center of mass.
Fast-forward roughly two years. I pre-ordered Gears 2, excited about the "improvements" that the video game press had covered - bigger story, new guns, etc etc etc. When I played through, I was not impressed. The setpieces didn't flow together nearly as well as they did in the first game, the humor was beginning to become on-the-nose and obvious, and there was an entire series of levels that took place inside a worm. The weapons were still just as nerfed as they'd been in the last one, but as far as I could tell they didn't get any worse. Horde mode was an interesting distraction for a couple of hours, but once the waves reset with health bonuses it became increasingly cheap. Traded it in, got back roughly 60% of my money, and was happy.
Why does Gears 3 get two stars from me? Because I traded it in for $40.50 and got a $20 video game credit for pre-ordering, so amazon effectively gave me a buy-one-get-one with this game and a future title. As far as 2 had regressed from the original, 3 dropped off even further - there were too many characters, the narrative was incredibly convoluted, the new enemy types weren't memorable at all, and, yes, the weapons are still nerfed. I am a big fan of the One-shot - that was an improvement I very much enjoyed. I also liked how well they integrated Xbox Live's party system so that I didn't have to create new matches if my friends and I wanted to change the mode we were playing - this actually needs to become the gold standard for how parties should be implemented across titles.
But. I lost interest in the game roughly halfway through and kept playing only out of stubbornness. The "emotional moments" didn't have nearly the gravity they should have (grenades blow up a fuel truck just as well), and the last few levels in the last two acts were abysmal. The movies they stole their setpieces from were painfully obvious and gave the game a bigger sense of "unoriginality" than I could have imagined...and I've been conditioned to expect flaccid writing in video games my whole life.
If you're a fan of the series, you're going to love this game simply because it's another Gears game. If you're used to the multiplayer, you're going to love it again this time around because it's hardly changed. I don't like it because I like games where you can actually drop an enemy with a shot to the head the first time, but that's because I cut my teeth on tactical shooters that paid some semblance to realism. Am I bad at the Gears multiplayer because of the arbitrary rules they set? Yes, very much so, and that's the reason I don't like it (and similarly the reason I didn't like the Call of Duty multiplayer either).
Ultimately, this isn't a game you're going to get based on a review you read somewhere. Yes, the press is rating the game highly because Epic and Microsoft buy adspace on their site, though this is likely a decision that the reviewer made on their own. Some people may love it, but I didn't, because I expect a certain level of craftsmanship in my media experiences that Gears simply doesn't have. It's catered to a much younger audience than me (14-year-old boys) who aren't necessarily going to demand any sort of coherence to anything beyond "shoot the glowey thing a lot". I bought this game because I knew I was going to get most of my money back trading it in quickly. As that luxury isn't really available anymore, I'd say that it's really not worth your time until the price drops.
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video-games_xbox
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Decent game,but just as a rental. Overall a decent game. You are playing as Sherlock Holmes and you investigate 6 cases, draw conclusions, and decide a punishment. It is not a perfect game, has positives and negatives
I'll start with positives. As an investigation game I'll compare it with another one released recently, "Murdered, Soul Suspect". It's a better investigation type game than that of "Murdered" because there are puzzles that are moderately difficult. Drawing conclusions and using your special eye to see hidden clues is a neat feature as is the occasional imagination feature. Most cases have different elements in the investigation processes which make them interesting to play through. I kinda like the feature to decide who did it and determine appropriate outcomes. There are different endings to each case depending on your conclusions, You can find out the correct or game advised ending at the end of each case if you wish.
The negatives aren't too bad but it does take away from being a great game. The first thing I didn't like was you have to travel to location to location in the buggy and sometimes It just takes too long. You can get really annoyed if you have to go back and forth if you forget something or having to perform an analysis at home and then go back to the crime scene. Sometimes the puzzles are too easy but not all, it does give you the option to skip it if you want. Next thing that sucks a little, is the evidence is sometimes circumstantial and you have to kind of guess which is the right conclusion.
Controls: easy to use, mostly a point and click game
Graphics: Great
Story: pretty good though it's 6 different cases that don't really bleed into each other much
Game Difficulty: easy to moderate
Cut scenes and acting: Pretty good.
Game Duration: Average but I still felt satified- It took me a day or two to beat - each case lasts a few hours at most.
Mutliplayer: N/A.
Overall I was satisfied playing the game but, It doesn't lend itself well to replays. Once you beat it there really is no reason to touch it again, I'd suggest renting the game.
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video-games_xbox
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Simply THE BEST Game Ever Made. Halo is the best game ever made. It's as simple as that. If you have the money and an Xbox, buy it. NOW. It is worth every penny. In HALO, there is an alien race called the Covenant attempting to take over the world. So far, they have succeeded. Only one Marine ship remains, and you - a genetically enhanced super soldier - happen to be on it. So your cryo-genetically frozen body is thawed out and you have to save the entire human race. You use a variety of weapons and vehicles of both a human and Covenant origin. The variety is one thing that makes this game so great, another being the gamplay. The controls are a little hard to get used to at first (only the right thumbstick moves the camera and the left thumbstick moves your character is difficult at first) but after maybe fifteen minutes, you get used to it. The graphics in this game are simply amazing. If you take out the pistol and zoom in on a tree trunk, you will see each individual groove in the bark. And everything else looks so real, you might feel like you are actually there (especially with surround sound). HALO's plot is so incredibly deep to begin with, yet it gets deeper and deeper as you advance from level to level (I could tell you just how deep it gets, but that would spoil the surprise, no wouldn't it?). Along with the deep, serious plot, Bungie added lots of comedy as well (just listen and watch after sticking a plasma grenade on a Grunt). And one thing that just adds to how spectacular this game is, surprisingly, the glitches. I find myself playing just to figure out more glitches (from falling underwater when you're on solid ground, to the "Jesus Christ Jumpsuit Man" in level two - throw a plasma grenade on the marine in a blue jumpsuit at the first lifeboat from about fifteen feet away to get this). And this is not a game that is easy to beat (unlike all the games out for GameCube). Easy, is self-explanetory, Normal is considerably tougher, Heroic will leave you baffled after dying 5 times in the first level, and Legendary is just about impossible. But this game is amazing and is definitly worth [the money]. This will seem like a small investment after you rack up 5 hours playing time right out of the box. Now the only thing Xbox is missing to be ABSOLUTLY PERFECT is a South Park game...
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video-games_xbox
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Left For Better. This is one of the worst FPS games ever made. This game is somewhat fun at times except for the special infected and how the game glitches you into getting grabbed by them no matter what you do, skill has no place in this game. The tank, hunter, boomer and esspessially the smoker. One hit is all it takes, it doesn't matter if you have full health, health packs, full ammo, super guns etc....one grab and your toast. Your character (who can be lit on fire, survive explosions, fall from heights (if you can without grabbing a ledge mid flight) and be shot insane amounts of times with buckshot before dying) just lies there like a 10 year old girl and gets owned by the special infected.....it's pathetic and makes the game needlessly frustrating. Your whole group could be knocked down, not dead just knocked down and if you get grabbed by any special infected the games over....that is amazingly stupid. Why the hell can't your character fight back against these lame enemies?. The temp. invincibility the zombies have is kind of lame, it's a glitch maybe as this garbage game is obviously broken and unfinished but you shoot the bastards and they keep hitting you like your bullet magically passed threw them. The tank teleports threw walls, not busts threw them just teleports as if one shotting you to death isn't enough and teleports to the top of staircases when your running away. Computer controlled Smokers tounges can defy logic by going around corners in perpendicular shapes or threw pinholes, doors, and walls. Hunters can miss you with a pounce or pounce backwards in different directions and you still teleport under them and get owned. Skill is not required or achieveable in this game, they will get you every single time. When you get one shot you die due to the moronic AI players that stand there and watch you get lamed, it's maddening. The bots are cleptomanical retards that bust through windows, teleport through doors or walls, and teleport past you to steal every first aid pack and pills in the level. They also walk in front of your crosshair most anytime you shoot, they open any door you close and end up just being total useless idiots. I usually just gun them down and take their health packs when I need one, or they steal them using means beyond physics. The harder the difficulty the more useless they are. This game also has hovering molotov cocktails. If a horde is running at you and you throw one into it, the molotov will hover for a few seconds before exploding, ensuring any special infected are safly away from it and that your surrounded by "zombies" taking damaged before the fire kills anything. I put zombies in quotes because these zombies don't eat people they simply pummel you to death with punches and kicks. Left 4 Dead also has bloodthursty fire, yes anytime you blow up a gas can or throw a molotov the fire chases you, even sometimes when it's invisible it still damages you, maybe it's infected too? The DLC was a total joke and made Valve look tired and lazy. Survival mode sucks, you get a tiny blocked off part of a level already in the game, a crappy tiny lighthouse level all of which have an instant finale with endless ownage with baddies raining from the sky until you die. Millions of Zombies, multiple hunters, multiple smokers, multiple tanks raining down on you until your dead.....wow so much fun to die in 1-3 mins in a tiny locked area when every special infected can one shot you. The PC version actually has new campagins made by fans since Valve is too lazy to make them or even finish this glitched, poorly designed demo version mess. L4D II still has no dlc with valve again saying on the games release that they would support the games with dlc. L4D ii was a major step down from l4d which is flawed and glitched beyond logic itself. If you want a real zombie game Killing Floor is the way to go its eons better and tripwire fully supports their games with new dlc regularly unlike valve which give you one extra short map and that's it. Also no monster or zombie can rape you simply by touching you in KF when you have full health you can go down fighting. In l4d you sit there crying for useless clepto AI players to save you while they watching you die while gorging on health packs and pills. This is a pathetic, retardedly glitched, broken, frustrating piece of garbage....trust me get Killing Floor. L4D 2 builds on the same problems but just adds more special infected that only need to touch you once coupled with endless larger hordes....it's virtually unplayable. L4D 2 is simply a 60 dollar update that should have been part of L4D 1 but valve saw fit to abandon L4D after 1 half assed tiny DLC patch with one new map. This is my last valve game, I refuse to pay 60 bucks for a broken, demo beta version of games with no support which is what you get from valve.
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video-games_xbox
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EA Season Ticket Review. I was able to start playing this game Friday as part of the EA season Ticket package. After 3 days with this game I can official say its by favorite NHL Title. The new physics engine is amazing. Being able to actually skate backwards behind the net really adds to your options of playing the puck down low. Someone already gave the game a 1 star review because they weren't smart enough to figure out the hitting yet. Its really not that hard, if you are having trouble try adjusting the sliders. Either way hits in this game are better then ever.
The fixes from last year besides the actually physics are far and few in between. I'm glad you don't have nearly as many broken sticks as last year becuase that just got out of hand in a hurry. Goalies are smarter like they are every year but it will only take you a day or two to find that shot that scores for you nearly every time until you up the difficulty.
Be a Pro is the same as last year... Literally the same.
Franchise mode is largly the same except trading is so much better now. Instead of being clueless as to why your trades are being rejected you now get helpful feedback from the opposing manager. They tell you exactly what players they would be interested in trading for on your team and who they are willing to let go. Very nice addition.
NHL did learn a lesson from madden and kept their Connected GM mode seperate from the normal GM (Franchise Mode). I don't think they really needed to since NHL fans are by definition smarter then Madden fans and we would have figured it out but at least they gave us the option.
All in All its the best NHL game ever made. That not saying a lot since its the only new NHL game getting made every year but it is better then last years. Is it 60 dollars worth of better then last year... Well that up to you. I for one need Hockey in my life since the lockout is looming so I paid the 60 bucks. Other may not think the changes are big enough and you really can't argue that point since there isn't a ton of new features. However as a Hockey fan I'm glad to have something to hold me over while Bettman continues to ruin the greatest sport on earth. Lets all hope the owners finally grow a brain and realize their poster boy is ruining the sport for all of us. Happy NHL Day Everyone!
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video-games_xbox
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Game is ok, gameplay is awful and XBL is full of cheaters. As with the other reviewers: RENT BEFORE YOU BUY THIS!!!
The graphics in this game are great, the game play is however awful on the xbox 360. I have more fun playing FIFA 06 on the PSP than playing this on the xbox 360. The poor game play has resulted in lots of cheaters on XBL, which is a pity because the on-line play is great, if it wasn't for the cheating.
I would say that off-line play is probably 4 stars, but if you look at the reviews below, two 5 star "reviews" on the same day smells of EA trying to jack up the rating for this game. Just an FYI, EA won't do anything about the cheating. These are really only a problem on-line, the AI players in off line play don't cheat!! :)
This is what you can expect for XBL play:
- Forget trying to play as your favorite team, unless its top rated, or
you like to lose :)
- Almost every opponent will play as Barcelona, Manchester United, Brazil,
Chelsea or Arsenal. I've played about 80 games on-line, and I haven't
met any opponent willing to play as anyone else.
- The biggest cheat is a tackle where the opponent gets the ball even when
they are far behind you.
- Opponents obstruct (eg. you are running with the ball, suddenly the ball
is rolling away and you've stopped for no reason)
- Some teams (mainly Barcelona) no matter what you do, always win the
ball from goal kicks, regardless of formation.
- Arsenal and Chelsea cheaters run the same set of linear passes trying
to beat your defense.
- Arsenal can sneak in behind your defense in OFFSIDE position, yet its
never called. Had one EA support tech admit it was a known bug!!
- Barcelona, Chelsea, Manchester United and Arsenal all score 100% of
the time with finesse shot whenever the defender is either in line, or
slightly behind the goal keeper. This is a bad bad bad bug!
Overall off-line, the game is good. On-line however, instead of a challenge, 80% of the time its frustration with cheaters!
The PSP version of FIFA is good fun, especially with multi player mode.
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video-games_xbox
|
Red River delivers exactly what it should: Realistic fire team combat. I wrote a big review for Dragon Rising, which I loved and still do, and was excited about this coming out. Having only played it for a few hours, I will try to give the best impression that I can and reserve the right to update this in a few days after diving deeper into it. To give you my frame of mind in writing this review, I'll throw the following out there:
1) Prior military: Tank and then Scout Platoon Leader with 1AD in Iraq in 03 and 04. Some people don't think this matters apparently, but I'll hold that it might make a difference in my judgement of a military based game.
2) I love GRAW 2 and think that the COOP missions were the best part of the game. Great online community worldwide. I hated it's campaign. Too linear.
3) I love the HALO series (ODST is still my favorite) but it's online community is still the most obnoxious one I can think of, but enjoy the campaign more than the vs mode.
4) I hate MW1, loved MW2, and thought Black Ops has been the best addition so far. Campaigns are a bit idiotic, but the multiplayer is setting the standard for what it should be.
5) I loved Dragon Rising. Campaign is awesome and that you can do it COOP was excellent and it was hard! It was gritty and real and fun in that patient sort of thinking mans fight instead of running the board like the Spartan 117 guns blazing.
But, on to Red River:
5 stars for fun? No. It requires too much patience to be that much fun. Halo, Black Ops, those are games that are FUN. This is about the realism (for the most part)and forcing you to think the situation out and fight through it intelligently and viciously.
Sound: Solid. I won't rate it on stars, but with a surround sound system, it's pretty impressive listening to the bullets buzz past or the helicopters orbit around you. I will agree with other posters thus far, the swearing is annoying. Honestly, the characters can't hold a candle to the amount or creativity of the swearing my guys used to come up with, but I don't think any of it should have been involved in a video game. That's realistic too, but it's cheesy and forced here. Once again, some computer guy was watching Aliens and thought it would be cool to include as much Hoo Rah! verbiage as he could muster up because that's what military people do. We swear nonstop and say things like "DEAD!" every time we pull the trigger. It gets annoying. On the plus side, the constant grid referencing from the first has been done away with and when your team mates do speak to you, they actually give you information of value. Give and take. Dialogue is moronic, but the effects are pretty great.
Graphics/Video: Maybe somewhere they slack off here, but I haven't seen it yet. Everything looks well rendered and recognizable up close and from far away. Explosions look good, tracers are eerily good, and the environment is beautifully rendered. I did experience some of that random warping going on though with a PLA rifleman sort of skipping around a courtyard while we were rushing him. Movement seems pretty smooth, human rendering looks good, and the depth of the battlefield is just as good as Dragon's was, if not somehow a bit better.
Menu: Still kind of ugly. It works, but it could be better just to get things rolling. I would say they should look at Graw 2 for inspiration and then plagiarize/ steal it.
Gameplay: This isn't Black Ops, and you're not going to go out and Pwn anybody. It's a COOP game, which is AWESOME! Why? Because it keeps those mountain dew fueled 12 year olds off the servers once they realize they are dumber than the AI you're up against. It's humbling, or should be. Working with other sentient beings to accomplish the mission at hand instead of being glory hound campers seems to bring together a good group of gamers and helps make this online experience a lot of fun. They updated a lot of Red River's actions from Dragon Rising, and I think it's for the better:
1)You get a Splinter Cell like grenade ark now to give you an idea of where the grenade is going.
2)The controls are much easier than Dragon Risings and the squad controls were EXPONENTIALLY easier when you're trying to give an order and felt much more intuitive. You could lose yourself in Dragons order menu, Red River keeps it simple. Think of the GRAW 2 menu over the GRAW 1 menu and how much you hated GRAW 1 for putting you through that nonsense. Same here.
3)Dragons enemies were supermen, and those who played it know the frustration of hitting a PLA soldier 6 times at 200 meters just to see him shrug it off and carry on like those were raindrops you sent his way. They drop now when you hit them, just like you ALWAYS have, which seems a bit more fair to me and much more fun.
4)Realism of the weapons seems pretty on. You still have all the fire selection modes that any particular weapon system has, they sound like they should, produce fire like they should, and the ballistics seems pretty solid as well. Overall I'm quite happy and enjoyed the fact that I raked a house with a M2 .50 Cal and killed the occupant inside.
5) Boundaries: I didn't like that my screen started to fuzz a bit and I was told to get back into my Area of Operations...Flashpoint should let me go wherever I bloody well wish, especially if the PLA forces are using it. I'll figure out how to secure my own area and from where, thank you very much.
6) Vehicles: Those are less prevalent than in Dragon, but you never really used them in Dragon anyways. I wouldn't expect my SSG Marine to crawl into a Chinese made APC or tank and be able to operate anything anyways, so it's probably better it was excluded. This does bring us to AI...
7) The AI is horrible. Watching 2 HMMWVs ram into each other at an intersection is just...well it sucks. I couldn't figure out how to motivate my AI to do the right thing and go around. That seemed to be a limited occurrence, but it shouldn't happen. The ODST guys could drive a Warthog around pretty much anything, so I know the programing exists. The game is made for COOP though! Look at the cover. Is it one guy like all the MW games have been? No, it's four. Get online, make some friends, and enjoy it. The games about teamwork, not some idiot Marchinko-Army of One nonsense. The enemy AI is pretty sharp though, and they seem to understand fire and maneuver quite a bit better than your own guys.
8) This is a 1 person per system game. No split screen. Get online, or you're stuck with the aforementioned idiot AI as your back up.
9) I don't know if this should fall in Visual or Gameplay, but I don't think they have their dimensions down quite right yet either. The 200 meters in the game is a LOOOOOONNNNGGGG way out there, and anybody who's shot much knows about what a human sized target looks like at 200. Makes target acquisition and servicing tough.
10) The ability to alter your equipment now is a HUGE plus over Dragon. So much better...From your demo options to sights on your weapons to a set of MW like perks, you can customize now.
11) You can select your player type before the mission, just like Ghost Recon, and go to work with a good set of toys. If you get zapped or join in, you can select the follow on load out too. I can't express how bad that was in Dragon or how fast I looked for that PLA marksman rifle every board and ditched my M16A2 with iron sights as fast as possible.
That's probably enough for now though. Just like Dragon, I say rent it, and if you like it, buy it and jump into the community for some fun and probably long games. I think it's a great game, and fun in its way if you're patient and intelligent. As another reviewer said, if the Army wanted an Infantry sim, this would probably be it. If you don't think a single bullet will incapacitate or kill you on the real battlefield, then back to COD kiddo. We don't want to listen to you whine or betray our position, and you've probably got that spelling test coming up soon anyways.
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video-games_xbox
|
Outstanding PC open world arcade racer, but needs a good machine to run correctly. I've been looking for a good, open world, arcade-style racing game for PC for a long time. I've tried the NFS games, Grid, etc. etc. but honestly the last decent racing game I played on PC was Burnout Paradise, and that game is more than 7 years old now. I downloaded this game on the recommendation of a friend who is a serious gamer and I'm very glad I did. This is the best PC racing game I've ever played, hands down. There's tons to do, the map is huge, the number of cars available to drive seems endless, and above all, it looks gorgeous and plays smoothly. I run this at medium-high settings @ 1080p and consistently get 75+ FPS on a custom PC with i7-6700k, Z170M Pro4S, Radeon RX470 4GB and 16GB RAM.
I've seen a lot of people complain about this game crashing, but my guess is that one of two things are happening: 1) they don't have the Windows 10 anniversary update; or 2) their machine isn't up to snuff. My machine, while not top of the line, is new, and has decent HW, but I can imagine that those with older video cards/CPUs are going to have some issues. This game is definitely GPU intensive, given the level of detail and the framerates needed to run smoothly. I've been playing for about 10 days now and the game has crashed just once on me, and that was when I was experimenting with some overclock settings.
The other thing I've seen are people complaining about the Amazon purchase codes. They are correct about this. I initially bought the game here, but when I went to the Windows store to redeem the product code, I couldn't access or download the game. After going back and forth with both Amazon and Microsoft support, I ultimately was instructed to cancel my purchase here and instead buy the game directly from the Windows store. I'd recommend others do the same, as it seems that Amazon and Microsoft aren't properly communicating about these product codes. I would knock this game down one star for that, but in all honesty this doesn't appear to be Microsoft's fault.
Overall, this is a great game. There's a ton to do, and based on my progress so far and the hours I've put in, it looks like there are weeks, if not months, of challenges to overcome and vehicles to unlock/purchase. That's all anyone can ask for if they're shelling out $60 bucks for something. Strongly recommended for those looking for a modern open world arcade racer for PC, and given the lack of competition in the genre this immediately vaults to the top of any list of PC arcade racers.
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video-games_xbox
|
Not ACE COMBAT 4. Ace Combat 4 in my opinion was the best game of all the Ace Combat series. It had a (mostly) great story, terrific graphics, amazing music and the gameplay flowed together to give the player a movie-like experience. Awesome.
Not so much for Ace Combat 6. The graphics overall are spectacular, naturally, and flying around on a big screen TV in high def is seriously fun stuff. Unfortunately that's about all it has going for it. With a near-incomprehensible storyline with uninteresting characters, gameplay that is at times too easy and then almost impossible, and wingmen that are just plain useless, it's a chore to push through the entire game.
The Good:
* Visuals. Awesome!
The Bad
* Terrible story - like, really bad. Awful bad. Two or three cinematics in and I was completely lost, and didn't really care to back up and figure it out. The dialogue is over-the-top cheesy and tries way too hard to sound patriotic or remorseful.
* Missions - Too long and too expansive. Fighter pilots in reality work in teams, but not here. Where in reality a wingman would get enemies off your back, and other squadrons would accomplish mission tasks, the pilots in the air here (especially your over-chatty wingman) are just plain useless. I know the developers wanted to make a "massive, multi-layered combat environment", but such environments usually have more than one aircraft feverishly running and gunning.
* Unkillable A.I. - The "Strigon" squadron is as easy to kill as shooting at gnats with arrows. But the good news, don't even try and they'll be miraculously defeated anyway...
* Danger alerts - Oh my good lord, these are so annoying!!! Yes, I know there's yet another missile chasing me that I'm just going to out-run anyway, quit the beeping! Quit the announcements! If my wingman isn't going to help out back there, just shut up.
* Music - doesn't matter to some, but it's a personal pet peeve of mine when the music sucks. Ace Combat 4 for some reason had an amazing score put to it, but not this one.
Even with the bad though, just playing a high-def, arcade-style flight sim with unlimited missiles on a big TV is worth the included garbage.
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video-games_xbox
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