Fallout 4: New Vegas [PS3 & 360]

Fallout New Vegas was one of those games I wanted to review when it was first released but for different reasons it slipped through the cracks. After so long the developers have finally put together the ultimate New Vegas collection that includes not just the award winning game but also a number of DLC packs that contain an almost endless supply of new items to collect and areas to explore. While that’s all good and well New Vegas originally suffered from countless bugs and glitches that made a lot of people rage quit and never go back to it, thankfully the game has had a number of fixes and patches, the updated Ultimate Edition includes all of these. And so with my back to the vault and my eyes open wide I started out into the vast wastelands once more to experience what could only be one of the biggest RPG’s ever made.

The story of New Vegas is simple enough but it changes depending on how you want it all to play out, this is done primarily through your dialogue and actions with other characters. Like most RPGs its up to you to determine how a conversation or action effects the game as a whole. New Vegas itself is no different here giving you the freedom to not only be who you want to be, but to also mould the world as you see fit. At the start of the game you are just a regular vault dweller living a normal enough existence with a number of other survivor's who found sanctuary in huge underground compounds while the world world outside was struck with nuclear war bringing the earth itself to its knees.

Growing up in the vault you learn to fear the outside world and never venture out into the bleak empty wastelands beyond the walls of the vault. Things in the vault don’t go to plan and you soon find yourself having no choice but to leave the sanctuary of the vault for an uncertain future in the wastelands. Unfortunately unlike Fallout 3 the story is not as memorable, while its a lot of fun to change the outcome of events it feels like it’s always trying to play catch up yet never quite gets there.

The game does its best to gently coax you into the right direction at the start so you can learn the basics of weapons handling and wasteland survival, being an RPG you can choose to avoid the help and go wherever you chose, though while this might not be the smartest plan it really is entirely up to you. On your epic journey through the game you will encounter different people from different factions, some will like you straight away and trade with you or even offer side quests, while others will be hostile to you straight away for something as simple as being in their area of the map. While human enemies can be reasoned with through dialogue the mutants and animals subjected to years of radiation cannot be reasoned with and will attack you on sight.

Everything from wild dogs to large mutated scorpions and rats all roam the road ahead of you and while some might look easy to defeat that’s not always the case, keeping your distance and taking them out at range is one of the ways to do it but you are not limited to the type of weapons or fighting styles you want to cultivate so up close and personal can equally get the job done.

Fallout New Vegas borrows a lot from the previous game Fallout 3, if you have any experience with 3 then NV becomes a very easy game to get to grips with. Getting around the gaming world is all done on foot, after all you are in the middle of a wasteland destroyed by post nuclear war and nothing with wheels moves anymore. The great thing about moving from location to location is once you find an area on the map that has been designated by the developers as a point of interest then as long as there are no enemies nearby you can fast travel back and forth with ease. If you want to get items in the game such as weapons or health packs its as simple as trading with someone or finding them among the thousands of other items scattered everywhere, some are hidden in lockers or drawers while others can be found on the bodies of fallen enemies or characters. Like Fallout 3 I rarely found myself having to trade with people or caravans because I always found everything I needed in random locations.

Getting your characters stats and level up are a core part of the gameplay, you earn points by defeating enemies and by completing all kinds of missions be they huge story driven affairs or simple little side quests like finding certain items for someone. Levelling up grants your character different kinds of perks that are essential in making it to the end of the game. Some perks give you better lockpicking skills while others give you more of a chance to do critical damage in your attacks. There are tons of perks to earn and each one helps make not just the game a lot more fun but your character a more serious force to be reckoned with.

New Vegas uses a system called VATs which is used in combat situations, you go into VATs by a simple button press and while in there you have a number of hit points to assign on different parts of the body, when used you attack those points often leading to a messy end for the person or monster on the receiving end. Their is a karma system built into the game so acting like a saint will naturally mean people will like you more, while acting like a sinner and terrorizing the Mojave's inhabitants will mean a more hostile welcoming from people. 

Visually the game is not the best looking you will see, if anything its very similar to Fallout 3 and there have been no giant leaps or bounds in the graphics, but that’s fine because the visuals were never really broken in the first place. What is broken however is the number of freezes the game sometimes suffers in various areas of the map. The developers have released a number of patches to address these freezes but it seems like a few are still there lurking. One particular freeze kept happening to me on one of the final missions of the game, it took a number of reloads until the game finally got past it and I could get on with the fun. As annoying and cumbersome as some of the freezes and glitches can be it should still not put you off playing because for those who are willing to enter the wastelands a virtual treasure trove of adventure and danger awaits.

Just like Fallout 3 I really enjoyed the game, there was so much to do that it took me months and months to finally finish everything and even then there is a chance I missed some things here and there. New Vegas does have its faults and when it comes to the overall story it can be quite weak, but even still in terms of gameplay and lifespan it earns top marks. I’m giving Fallout New Vegas an 8 out of 10, if the story was a little more compelling and bug/glitch free it would definitely earn a 10.

Playing Catch Up: Gaming [ps3]

I have been ridiculously busy over the last few months (year?) and haven’t posted since February. I’ve been working on countless shows and gigs shooting all kinds of bands and events all over Dublin and elsewhere. As for gaming the summer has made it take a serious backseat but with the coming winter months down the line I’ll be getting back into gaming soon. And because as everybody knows the games companies always try to flaunt and flog their biggest titles for Christmas I’ll be adding a bunch more titles to my collection. 

I’m looking at the list of games I’ve reviewed versus those that I’ve actually played and so far the ones that have been played and lack a review would be the following:

Batman Arkham City
Assassins Creed Revelations
The Sims 3 Pets
Battlefield 3
Modern Warfare 3
Skyrim
SAW 2
SSX
Saints Row  The Third
Red Dead Redemption: Undead Nightmare
Fallout New Vegas: Old World Blues / Honest Hearts / Lonesome Road

Along with those I should be buying the following when they are released and reviews should hopefully follow:

Grand Theft Auto 5
Borderlands 2
Hitman Absolution
Aliens Colonial Marines
Assassins Creed 3
Far Cry 3
Metro: Last Light
Sniper 2: Ghost Warrior

Modern Warfare 3: first day impression

Another big game gets released and as a first day buy I thought I’d write yet another first impression, again this is not a review as that will come later. Most people seem to gravitate to either BF3 or MW3, it usually ends up in you either love one and hate the other. After playing both all the way through the campaign and through the multiplayer I have to say I do recommend both games but for different reasons – in a nutshell BF3 has the better multiplayer and MW3 has the better single player campaign. Popping on MW3 today I wasn’t at all surprised to see an almost identical start and menu screen to the previous modern warfare title, giving it the benefit of the doubt I went right in and started the campaign.

The game continues right after where MW2 left off, and to be honest I didn’t really like the first few missions because they were trying too hard to shock and awe me with all kinds of over the top scripted events. It’s fine to have one or two in there but having so many in one mission just makes it too unbelievable to think you really could do what was being done on screen, the rest of the campaign does have similar events but they are a bit more believable and for a Call of Duty game that’s saying a lot. The controls handled very well and I saw no real differences between them and what was used in the previous games, even if you aren’t familiar with the game the controls are easy to pick up. The weapons handled pretty well and looked realistic but firing an RPG didn’t feel right, my character barely flinched as it rocketed away.

In past Call of Duty games I never felt too engrossed in the story or in the characters but this time I found I was paying a lot more attention to the characters and really liked how they dealt with the story. While the first few missions are based in the States the next remaining batch are dotted around locations such as London, Somalia, Germany, Paris and Prague, maybe I found it easier to relate to the game because I felt closer to the European cites portrayed in the game than in the States. As for the maps themselves and the overall design I was very impressed, familiar cities of the world looked brilliant and I noticed it was less closed than I expected. Instead of just having to run through a street in a straight line it gave me the choice to cut through buildings or shops, I liked that they put all of that in and it helped keep the game more interesting and certainly less linear.

The multiplayer is the main reason a lot of people will buy MW3 and given its popularity between both casual and hardcore gamers I can see why. I’ll admit that having played the multiplayer online for a few hours I do enjoy BF3’s multiplayer more, it’s simple really MW3’s is more of an arcade shooter laden with perks and bonuses while BF3’s is more gritty and has a more urgent sense of realism to it. There is no shortage of guns and equipment in MW3 online, I started off with a fairly standard pistol and submachine gun and had no problems gunning down players unlucky enough to cross my patch. The perks are all back as are the missile strikes and attack helicopters, I didn’t much care for these in MW2 but it didn’t spoil my most recent experience.

There was a lack of campers and that definitely helped keep me playing, even random running and gunning seemed to be few and far between. The maps were ok but I only played 5 or 6 of them and I’m sure there are still a lot more to see. All in all the online multiplayer hasn’t really changed that much but it’s changed enough to keep fans of the series busy and happy. Spec Ops mode was the main reason I bought the game because I enjoy having the option to play offline in split screen, again this didn’t disappoint. The missions in Spec Ops are fun and there is a new survival more that I enjoyed, it’s early days yet but I’m sure I’ll like the rest of the content Spec Ops have to offer. So the main question would be is Modern Warfare 3 worth the price tag? As a first day buy and as a first impression I’d have to say yes, fans of the series will love it and I’m really looking forward to reviewing it soon.

Rage: game review (ps3/360/pc)

When the makers of the iconic Doom and Quake series set their sights on a modern day shooter they may have set them a little too high because while Rage has its good elements the main problem is it looks too good ..or at least it’s supposed to, the truth is a little more colourful. It’s extremely rare a game will slant my opinion on it in such a short time and I never in million years thought Rage would be the one to do it but my initial response to the game was that of surprise and not in a good way. Rage starts like many shooters in a post-apocalyptic world where you as a survivor must do what you can to make the world a better place, by that I mean shoot and blast your way through the hordes of scavengers and bandits that rule the wastelands with mad max like brutality.

The reason this time for the earth being such a mess is an asteroid has impacted and changed life as we know it, the remaining people who are left over are either organized gangs of bandits and mutants or regular people trying to make a life for themselves, you on the other hand have been secretly stashed away in an underground bunker as a sort of failsafe or last chance for the earth but the life support system has malfunctioned and the rest of your comrades have all died. The world of Rage is brutal and just as you emerge from the bunker you are immediately set upon by wastelander bandits, saved by a stranger you then have to repay him by doing little odd jobs around the area and that to me is the whole game a series of odd jobs that don’t really pertain to the furthering of any cause or even story because while Rage doesn’t lack much on the shooter side it seriously lacks a proper story or sense of progression.

Before Rage was released I keenly followed many stories and articles about how it would play and above all how it would look, many sites and magazines talked about the super textures it would feature making it one of the most advanced and realistic looking games on the market. I’d heard a lot about the textures and did expect a very lush looking and vibrant game, while the character animations do look fantastic and very life like the game itself suffers from the worst popin I have ever seen and probably ever will. The popin I’m referring to is a constant shift of focus and clarity when your character moves or looks from one direction to the next, while most games have a certain amount of popin Rage goes above and beyond the call of duty. The first thing I saw in the game and it looks stunning was the sky ..it would since it unlike the textures is just painted in but once I looked from one corner of the screen to the next it took about five seconds for the graphics to load up properly so all I saw was a blurry patch of ground or wall. While you would expect it’s a temporary thing it really isn’t and lasts the whole way through the game never even letting up for a second, the reason is simple current game consoles can’t handle super textures because the internal readers are not fast enough so naturally Rage suffers – I’d not call it a game breaker but at the same time the popin was so bad I felt the need to quit many times. Soldiering on through the game it took about three hours of playing until I felt immersed enough to making a difference. Given the game had such a huge install file with mind numbingly bad popin it did have some redeeming features so I do think it deserves a review and if like me you do give it a chance you might just like what you find.

So what makes Rage different than other similarly styled shooters, it’s a mixed bag really while it does have the usual fire and forget simplicity there are some interesting things that Rage does better than its rivals. Rage plays like a mix of Borderlands and Fallout, the gaming map is not huge and sadly even if you do find something to explore you really won’t find anything off of the beaten track which is a shame because the game comes across as an open world shooter when really it’s not. You can jump into vehicles made from beat up scrap metal and that will get you around faster but if anything it hammers home the fact that the world is restricted in its size, there are of course some plus sides to being able to use vehicles. Available in the game are a series of races which can be done once you have the appropriate vehicles and mods, that’s right you can modify your vehicles to make them more resistant to damage/faster/and even kit them out with guns and missiles and while all that sounds like fun it can be until you realize the actual races are a piece of cake to complete.

Perhaps the developers were trying to make the racing segments accessible to everyone but what they did was make it much too simple to pose an actual challenge and I would have completed them all if not for the game doing something really annoying which I’m about to address. I can name a few games which close certain aspects or mini games once you reach a certain part of the story but the scale Rage does it is unacceptable. Near the end of the game and without warning games like racing get closed down so you can’t compete in them anymore and if you were after 100% game completion you will have no choice but to replay the whole game again, while that might not sound like a big deal I found plenty of trophies/achievements were unattainable for that very reason. The mini games when playable can actually be a lot of fun, featured is Tombstone (a sort of digital chess with lashings of violence) 5 finger filet (think bishop in Aliens with the knife on the table and you got it) Strum (a miniature version of Guitar Hero) and one of my favourites a card game which relies not only on skill but on you to find and collect the many game cards hidden all over the game. While these mini games can serve as a distraction from the main game the missions themselves are so repetitive and uninspiring that there really isn’t a lot to be distracted from in the first place.

From start to finish the only mission that really stood out for me involved being a contestant in a game show where your very life was at stake, you win cash by staying alive and getting kills but with hordes of mutants trying to stop you it’s not easy. There are of course other missions that show a glimmer of hope but I found the more I tried to enjoy the action the more something else would crop up making me feel like I was accomplishing nothing and if I was no one cared. While there are some interesting characters expertly voiced the story seems to go nowhere and when I did feel a change of pace it turned out the game was over with one of the shortest and most abrupt endings I have ever seen. Even with the extra missions offered from random characters and from notice boards the lifespan of the game is far too short to make a serious ripple compared to other games that offer a similar campaign but more diverse multiplayer, Rage does have a multiplayer but again it’s limited because its mainly all about driving around shooting the competition so don’t expect the usual run and gun deathmatch fiasco because it’s not there.

Like many shooters you will find to progress you need better guns and ammunition and Rage doesn’t let you down here because not only can you acquire all manner of guns you can also build and modify gadgets that can be used to exploit the enemies weakness or simply kill them. By doing jobs you earn money but you also find money on downed enemies or hidden across the game map, the money can then be used to purchase guns/etc but better than guns were some of the various gadgets you can build such as explosive radio controlled cars/gun turrets and little robots that follow you around blasting everything in your way. It’s these little gadgets that make the game different than other shooters but for the traditional shooter fan there are plenty of rifles and machine guns to keep even the most frag happy busy throughout the game – budding robin hoods will also find the crossbow very useful. The bandits and thugs you face do make up a big part of the game and there has been a lot of thought and work put into keeping them rather unique and interesting, the ones that stood out for me were a group of Russians who were obsessed with technology so they had all kinds of traps and weapons at the ready. Something Rage implements well is the reaction of an enemy when wounded or shot, some are very fast and will dodge or jump out of the way when you attack but when you do hit them they stumble or grasp the wound in the way you would expect if it were real life.

Other than the human element you also come across mutants throughout various areas of the map and while most of them only take a few shots there are some that merit the extra special attention that only a whole bag of ammo and a rocket launcher can deliver. I expected the game would have a nice healthy amount of bosses and super enemies that would really bring the game into its own but I counted a very small few and even the ones I did meet were easily defeated in no time at all, I could have sworn I’d seen clips of bosses that were never put into the finished game and given how bad the popin was I’m not surprised. Rage at its core tries to be an excellent game offering a unique experience but the closer I looked the more I saw that held it back from greatness, there is a certain degree of unfinished product that radiates from Rage that probably wouldn’t have been so obvious if the game hadn’t been so hyped up in the first place.

Painfully numbing popin aside Rage does look visually near perfect to anything else on the market, the physics engine works brilliantly and given how demanding the visuals actually are it’s the little things like water and dust that really make your jaw drop. Racing along through the wasteland in a beat up wreak of a car with dust and debris flying is an enjoyable experience, the terrain when properly visible does look astounding and even the cut scenes are beautifully rendered to the point where you forget you are playing a game until of course you step out of the car and start going through the game on foot again and notice the sharpness and clarity popping in and out. The world of Rage is less laid back than it feels, the people who you think you are helping or are helping you have a real knack of lulling you into a false sense of security but once you leave the safe zones you are back in bandit country and they will make your stay there very short if they spot you. The game environments both inside and out are highly detailed and give you a lot to look at, there is a real sense of thoughtful construction in many of the buildings and complexes I just wish I could have viewed them without graphical errors. The main things I liked about the game were the complex character movements/model animation and the ability to upgrade all of your weapons and gadgets. As a traditional shooter Rage works perfectly but it’s not and the developers made no secret of trying to embed a story with added desperation so once you did get into it you expect a lot more especially from the ending, it’s a lot of fun shooting down whatever tries to kill you but garnishing it all with a story that goes nowhere ruins the flow and leaves the player feeling cheated.

I tried very hard to like Rage and as a shooter alone it did satisfy, my biggest advice would be to play the game and ignore what little story is there that way when nothing gets resolved you will feel less cheated. I did however like how the weapons handled and loved how powerful and solid they felt, every impact is reacted to and you can sense the carnage you are dishing out. There is a nice escalation of difficulty between the different enemies and you will find you have to adapt and become creative with combat manoeuvres in order to not get overwhelmed by the attacking forces ahead and around you. Having gadgets and creating gadgets is something that I felt made a big part of the game especially when I got to the last few missions, deploying sentry turrets and bots definitely saved my skin more than once. The rate at which enemies will adapt and avoid your bullets is truly frightening, not only will they duck or leap out of the way they will dart up and across the ceiling scaling their way either to safety or right up next to you ready to pounce with the deadly precision of a king cobra. Car mode in the multiplayer can have its fun moments but I really would have preferred some maps on foot with the possibility of death match or capture the flag, given the developers history with games like Doom and Quake you would not expect that to be too much of a tall order. What they did do however was include a co-op mode which although doesn’t pertain to the actual campaign mode itself it does let two players stand together in a battle to get the most kills, it’s a diversion but not much of one because it gets old quick.

Rage tells me a lot about the developers of the game, they avoid a strong story element and instead opt for a heavy handed shooting experience that while a lot of fun is too brief. The game controls well and the mechanics are solid and feel like they do what you want them to do but I seriously doubt they tested the game and if they did its unacceptable to ship it knowing the popin was so bad , some people suggested it would work if the popin was patched but as part of the games core it can’t be patched without gutting the engine and rebuilding it from scratch. The characters and people you meet along the way are realistic and help give the game a heightened sense of reality but at the end of the day none of them do or say anything too memorable meaning you will forget it all very quickly. It may have won a whole host of awards at shows like E3 but I feel it was unfinished and lacking depth in the story department, you may argue that shooters don’t need stories but you can tell they were trying to implement one at the start and when they reached the middle they just gave up leaving the player unsatisfied and wanting. Rage could have been one of my favourite games of the year but it has too many problems that can’t be fixed with a simple patch so I’m giving Rage a 6 out of 10. I’d not recommend it for retail but it’s definitely worth a rental, think Mad Max mixed with Borderlands ..a side helping of Fallout all served up on a bed of Doomsday and you have Rage.

Battlefield 3: day one on the frontline

This is not a review for Bf3 so don’t expect my usual high polished professionalism and attention to detail (really don’t), there will of course be a review soon enough – this is simply a brief description of what I experienced on my first day playing one of the most anticipated games of all time. Firstly I heard a lot of negative remarks about the single player campaign so I honestly didn’t expect a lot right there ..wrong. the campaign is actually very good and does tend to draw you in very quickly. The first few missions were kind of mediocre but after about an hour into the campaign it got very fast paced and very involved. The visuals in the campaign were absolutely stunning, the lighting and smoke effects were jaw dropping.

A perfect example was one of the levels set at night where I could see enemy flashlights ahead piercing through the smoke and darkness, it was hard to snap to action when the visuals demanded so much attention. The friendly AI is for the most part pretty good and they don’t seem to hog the spotlight too much leaving you with nothing to shoot. the enemy AI can be quite brutal at times but I find many shooters to be brutal until you learn the basics. The missions did seem a little linear with a lot of scripted events but it was never enough to make me complain. In short the single player campaign is not half as bad as some reviewers have previously stated, linear or not its a whole lot of fun packed full of heart pounding moments and fire fights.

Ok onto the multiplayer, the reason why many people will get the game in the first place. Guns and lots of guns! there is no shortage of weaponry in BF3, anything I used from rifles to handguns all looked and sounded very authentic with a lot of upgrades to unlock. The first time I tried the online I got blown to bits after about one minute, I quickly respawned and jumped back in to see what would happen next. Looking around the main staging area I was treated to having the option of jumping into a jet / tank and even a little jeep, naturally my curiosity got the best of me so I climbed right into the pilot seat of the first thing I saw with wings. Staying in the air was not an easy task, I stayed airborne for a minute or two but inevitably lost control and crashed into the ground. The controls for aircraft are straightforward enough but keeping them in the air is a whole other story, this was to be expected and I’m glad they didn’t simplify it for the sake of reaching a bigger audience – if you do screw up you can always parachute to safety.

Anything on wheels was easy to drive and I found tanks especially were fast and strong enough to push forward without too much flack. The maps for the game were absolutely brilliant with so many buildings and areas that the possibilities for strategic combat were pretty much limitless. I found the first few times I played with random people it was much harder to gain any ground or get kills, when I joined a match with some friends that all changed. Given the maps are so large you can of course go and do your own thing lone wolf style but if you want to last longer sticking to your squad and working as a team is the way to go. Like I said this is just a brief  summary of my first play and though brief I’d already recommend it as the best shooter I have ever played – full review coming soon.

Deus Ex: Human Revolution – game review (ps3/360/pc)

The original Deus Ex was released back in the year 2000, with its ability to blend the world of cyberpunk, intense shooting and all around action packed RPG it quickly became a must have for gamers everywhere. What followed was a whole host of awards winning the game recognition, it was unlike anything of its time. Now over ten years later the series returns with a whole new bag of tricks that is sure to hook gamers everywhere, Deus Ex has again raised the bar for video gaming perfection leaving its competitors in a cloud of dust.

Set in the year 2027, the game follows Adam Jensen an ex-SWAT specialist who works for an american experimental biotechnology firm. Tasked with the job of keeping company secrets and watching over technical aspects of security his life is soon changed when trying to stop a team of attacking mercenaries leaves him half dead. Much like Alex Murphy in Robocop he is saved when the company he works for replaces and enhances his vitals and limbs with enhanced augmented robotics. Obsessed with the attack he soon uses his new found powers to track down and deal with those responsible for what happened to him and the team he was protecting, what follows is a highly adaptable action adventure tour de force that changes depending on how you choose to play.

To pursue his targets he has to face a whole host of bioenhanced super soldiers and mercenaries whose loyalty falls on the mysterious forces who are hell-bent on directing mankind's evolution. While a lot of the story looks and feels like a cross between Blade Runner and Robocop it easily stands up on its own with all the twists and intrigue you could ever want from a game of its kind. Many games claim to have open ended stories where outcomes change depending on your decisions , while most fail Deus Ex sticks to its guns leaving a whole wealth of alternative options and ideas for even the most hardcore gamer.

The gameplay experience is huge and from the very start a lot of questions need to be answered, how you go about getting those answers is entirely up to you. Fans of games like Metal Gear Solid and Splinter Cell will find a lot on offer here, but you don’t have to be a fan of stealth to progress through the game. If you chose to charge into a room guns blazing and grenades flying you will get the effect you would expect, enemies will be alerted to your presence and open fire on your position. While this works the stealth option can help you get an advantage over your targets, a carefully placed shot from an air vent will take a soldier down while not giving away your position, either way you get the job done.

For fans of hardware there is an impressive arsenal of high-tech weaponry on offer, fans of FPS games should not expect a ridiculous amount of handguns and assault rifles. Kit ranges between a pistol, revolver, combat rifle, sniper rifle, grenades and many more hidden weapons that are found either through story progression or purchased on the black market. Cyberpunk fans will find that the best weapon is Jensen himself, he is fully upgradable enhancing many aspects of combat, movement, vision, etc. Upgrading Jensen is done through a system of implants known as praxis, rewarded for missions, found hidden around the map and even purchased in clinics these upgrades are an integral part of the gaming experience.

On my first play through i opted for stealth using silenced weaponry, sticking to the shadows when i could, the upgrades i concentrated on modified my vision so i could see through walls, made my footsteps more muted, gave me an edge over the enemy making it easier to track their movements and monitor their field of vision. The more fantastical upgrades allow Jensen to punch through weak walls, land from great heights, take down multiple enemies at once, and many more.

The levels themselves are extremely well detailed and mapped out with so many alternative routes that exploring them all will make your head spin, many levels allow you to try multiple entry points to buildings and installations, exploration is highly advised as all manner of gear and equipment is hidden in out of the way places you could easily overlook. Many areas can be accessed by hacking doors or nearby consoles, computers, safes and even robots. Unlike most games hacking appears to be more realistic with the option to take down more important targets on the network rewarding you with cash or even hidden viruses you can then use, its easy to learn and can be greatly enhanced if you chose to award praxis points to the hacking skill. There is no shortage of targets, there are computers filled with hidden emails which will not only give you insight into the shadowy story but give you some chuckles too.

Like many games there is a big emphasise on defeating enemies from grunts to bosses and there is no shortage of both. Special forces patrol installations packing combat rifles and stun grenades, bio-enhanced super soldiers prove more of a challenge sometimes vanishing before your eyes using stealth to their advantage, bigger grunts carry heavy rifles and take many hits to bring them down, robots too patrol many areas and are activated when a security system identifies a threat. Dispatching the enemy can be done in different ways but as expected the bosses prove to be a much more serious task. Some will stomp around peppering Jensen in explosives while others will use stealth and surprise to get the job done, these battles are challenging but firepower seems to be the only way to defeat them, killing the illusion of open gameplay.

Graphically Deus Ex has not been getting the most impressive response from the critics but i really don’t see the distinction, visually the game looks a lot like Blade Runner and at times the cityscapes and environments can be awe inspiring. It’s a darker world indeed its a darker vision of a future that has altered the path of mankind, blinding buildings of neon loom above Jensen as he traverses across streets populated with armed police and enhanced citizens, some offering the chance of a side mission so its worth keeping a close eye on those around you. Though at times the character animations and voice acting can seem a little ropey or repetitive it in no way takes away from the fun, and there is plenty of fun to be had. Visually many of the key characters in the story benefit from a renaissance inspired look, the architecture too blends into the game very nicely.

The music comes as a great surprise, it perfectly fits the world that Jensen inhabits and really immerses the player in a cyberpunk futuristic environment. Voice acting in the game can at times be hit and miss, while Jensen comes across as sounding mostly genuine many other characters some pivotal don’t really suit the voice they have been given. It’s really a minor con and it doesn’t affect the flow too much but its a shame more work wasn’t put into establishing a more solid line of voice acting.

Lifetime and replayability is extremely high inspiring many people to play through the game multiple times for the extra endings, missions and equipment. It’s a little frustrating that on completing the story you don’t hold onto previously acquired upgrades, however it helps keep the player interested and more driven when replaying missions. Even with a lack of multiplayer there is a lot to be excited about and over 20 or 25 hours of play for even the most hardened gamer, on finishing the game the first time i later realized I'd missed many side missions. Alternative paths and events will quickly hook the player into seeking out and experiencing all the gaming there is to be had.

The only real downside about the game is that while most of the game lets you play how you want to, boss fights will be almost unwinnable unless you use firepower and lots of it. By working like this it removes the idea of an open ended battle and the choice is more or less taken. The pros easily overshadow the rather limited cons so really its a small price to pay for an otherwise perfect game. Variety is everywhere from upgrades to the tools at your disposal, the story is brilliant and immersive in very angle, the visuals are crafted to fit the world perfectly and its more open ended than any other game of its type. Though it does have its minor issues they are greatly over shadowed by the vast and highly detailed world of Deus Ex. I loved every minute of the game, pacing as well as major decisions and story progression are all guided by your decisions alone, I'm giving it a much deserved 10 out of 10. 

Borderlands: game review (ps3/360/pc)

Borderlands is a game I over looked for quite some time, the reason? – graphics. I never really did like the idea of it being almost in the style of a cartoon because i thought it would lack real detail and depth but I was wrong it doesn’t hold the game back instead it pushes it forward. I’m sure to a lot of people this would be something they are not used to seeing but to dismiss it because of this would be a really bad idea and here is why.

Set on the planet Pandora the game gives the player a chance to feel what its like to be a bounty hunter in search of fame and glory. what was once a rich planet full of rare minerals and materials is now an almost post apocalyptic world ruled by psychopathic gangs of cannibals, heavily armed criminals and deadly creatures that all aim to make your stay on Pandora very short and unpleasant. The game is for the most part a first person shooter but it also blends in RPG elements that enhance your overall experience of how you play and how the game reacts to your character.

You can’t cosmetically build a character but you can build it up with stats and skills, by doing this you become a more powerful force to be reckoned with. There are four main categories in the game, The Siren/The Hunter/The Soldier and The Berserker. Each character has unique skills attributed to their class, The Hunter for instance is good with sniper rifles and can be upgraded to carry a hawk which he uses to attack his enemies. The Sire uses speed and cunning rather than pure muscle, The Soldier uses firepower first while the Berserker uses his fists to pulverise and pound. All of the characters carry weapons but the skills do become very useful when faced with too many enemies at once, even with bosses skills usually help to tip the balance in your favour.

Pandora seems to be a gun runners paradise. For a shooter its got all the guns and weapons you could ever ask for, pistols/smg’s/rifles/machine guns/sniper rifles/rocket launchers and high powered shotguns are all on offer. Located all over the map are hundreds of weapons and weapon mods. Guns can be found not just on dead enemies but also in lockers/boxes/vending machines/rooftops/even toilets, the list seems to be endless but there is a catch. Guns are colour coded and level coded, this means if you are not the level the gun requires you can’t use it. Its not such a big problem because most of the guns you will find in single player will be aimed towards your character, and even if they are higher than your current level they might be worth holding onto as you level up quite fast. When it comes to fire power in the game the thing that really impressed me was the inclusion of environmental guns, some guns will cause explosions/fire damage/electric shock and my personal favourite acid bursts. The more you play you learn what weapons are good for certain tasks, acid weapons are good for getting through an enemies armour – I found this especially good when faced with area bosses.

I find it hard to call Borderlands a shooter, sure it has that element and at its core it is one but there is a lot more on offer for fans of free-roaming and exploration. The maps are big enough to hide all sorts of items from stacks of cash to weapons, and their is no shortage of secondary tasks. Along the way you meet characters who offer you jobs and missions, these missions can be very varied though some might feel a little repetitive after time. Its worth doing extra missions and exploring as it builds up your overall experience in the game allowing for new skills and weapon usage. Navigating the map is easy and straight forward enough but you get around quicker using vehicles and fast travel stations, both are unlocked through story progression and make getting around less of a task. The levels themselves can be fun and are mostly large, the map has many interconnecting areas that lead to other regions containing different enemies and loot. At first the graphics don’t really succeed to impressive but over time i found myself falling in love with the visual style, it wouldn’t work with all games but i find it hard to imagine Borderlands without it.

The game features a whole host of ultra violent bad guys and creepy crawlies that will have you either grinning or running for your life. At first you encounter basic raiders with little or no armour but when the game really gets going you will be treated with all kinds of cannon fodder. I’m used to shooters being busy and full of targets but Borderlands really packs them in. There are lots of types of creatures, some are easy to dispatch while others will really put up one hell of a fight. Its a while since I have seen so many fun and challenging level bosses, there is no shortage here. The game didn’t at any time really feel unfair nor did it feel like too much to handle, it always felt like the situation I was in or enemy i faced was something i could deal with. It was in no way a walk in the park but the learning curve is extremely easy and you don’t have to be good at shooters to enjoy the game.

I don’t usually spend much time on multiplayer features of a game because most of the time you are thrown into a match with 20 or so people, some want to play seriously while others don’t care. Borderlands stands out here, you can only have four players per game but it works brilliantly. The experience is Co-op based with characters working together in story mode to progress further, I wondered if more players meant less enemies to deal with but instead the game adapts and scales up making it challenging for everyone involved. Online is a great way to help build up your character, if you are playing in another persons game and they are a higher level than you a lot more experience points are awarded. If however you don’t like the idea of online Co-op there is also a very well put together offline Co-op mode where you and a friend can go split screen, there is unlike most games no need for two consoles as its all done on just one. If that’s not enough the replay value is exceptional, my second play through had me facing harder enemies with even better loot rewards, its a lot more challenging but its worth it for the new weapons and loot you amass.

I loved Borderlands and many things about the game really stood out. For a shooter the story is very deep and you do find yourself wanting to know what’s going to happen next. The mini games and missions scattered around the map gave me hours of extra playtime, but its easy to just go exploring for loot and weapons. Lately I seem to be constantly finding games I overlooked in the past because of either bad reviews or just chatter, while not all turn out to be gems there are the select few like Borderlands that really hit the mark. Everything it does it does brilliantly, the style is amazing and the hours of gameplay on offer are astronomical. I normally don’t try and platinum a game because 100% is time consuming and not something a lot of gamers aim for but Borderlands was the exception. After spending days playing the game both in single player and in online Co-op i finally reached 100%. It doesn’t end there, Borderlands has a lot of DLC available for the game each one adding a little more to an otherwise perfect game. I’m giving Borderlands a 9 out of 10 – I’m taking one point off for some of the mini missions feeling a bit too familiar and a lack of other vehicles. If you are looking for a shooter than dares to do things differently in a stylish and funky manner then I’d recommend Borderlands. I was looking for a refreshing change and I think I found it.

Sniper: ghost warrior (ps3/360/pc)

Its not every day a game gets exclusively released on the xbox 360 that i really wanted but sniper: ghost warrior was top of the list. originally the game launched on the xbox in june 2010, it went under the radar pretty well and didn’t create much of  following. i don’t usually keep up on xbox games but after seeing it online i really liked what i saw of it, i love sniper sections in first person shooters so a whole game dedicated to sniping sounded really original. luckily a ps3 version packed with extra content has just been released (may 6th 2011) and i made sure to get it on the first day, I've been playing it for a few days now and here's what i thought of it.

The story is set on the fictional island of el trejon, a place that has seen violent civil unrest by the countries tyrannical ruler. you play sergeant tyler wells, a marine sniper kitted out with a high powered rifle and a ghillie suit. the story may be brief enough but the action is far from it, your skills and ability to blend into the environment make you the perfect weapon in this covert operation. during the game you get to know a bit more about what’s actually going on but a lot of it is predictable enough, that said there are a few surprises especially in the extra missions.

The thing that first impressed me about the game were the extremely realistic graphics. the island is full of jungles/beaches/mountains/temples/drug plantations/enemy camps, all feature at one point in the game and all look amazing. i’m used to seeing appealing graphics in games and it does seem like a lot of games are really stepping up to fully optimizing what can be done with a good engine, this game seems to have gone further although i have heard that the ps3 features upgraded graphics and visuals. it really seems like the developers did their home work on what sniper fans would actually be looking for in a game. there are so many missions where they give you the perfect map, and there you are in the perfect hiding place with a view to die for populated with enemies that can’t see you! all this of course follows with the perfect headshot.

One of my favourite features in the game was the bullet cam, it sounds simple enough a bullet travelling from the rifle is tracked with a game camera. its been done before but its never looked so good, when you do take that perfect shot the camera will track the bullet as it whiz's through the air (often covering 100’s of yards) coming to a definite halt as it embeds itself in your unlucky target. i joked to my boyfriend that i’d never get tired of watching the bullet cam in action and after playing through the whole came i can honestly admit its too good to really tire of. so much work has been put into the visuals that its almost jaw droppingly beautiful, and the best part is you don’t have to charge through because if you do you will almost certainly end up getting shot.

The weapons in the game are really well thought out and you never have to ask yourself why you have something you don’t need. at first i wondered why i was given explosives when the main aim was to be stealthy in taking down the enemy, then i realised you could find the best hiding spot and rig the perimeter so that approaching enemies who have compromised your position would be taking out. the sniper rifles you get in the game are as follows:

AS 50 – .50 BMG antimaterial rifle, it packs a punch and holds 5 rounds. (very modern warfare)

MSG90 – militarized version of the PSG1 (used in metal gear solid) lighter with better accuracy

SR 25 – semi-automatic 7.62x51mm Nato caliber

Dragunov SVD – used by enemy snipers, reliable soviet rifle with good accuracy

High Powered L96 & the Super Long Range CheyTac M200 Intervention (both are extremely accurate/deadly and exclusive to the ps3 version of the game)

Along with rifles the player gets to carry a silenced pistol and throwing knives. the ground enemy usually carry assault rifles (probably a variant of the Ak47) while watch towers and other positions are patrolled by sniper rifle wielding soldiers. the AI has apparently been worked over too giving for a more fluid experience of combat. i didn’t notice many glitches with the AI and for the most part they were sharp enough.

There were a few times where i wondered if they had 100% accuracy at long range.. with an assault rifle, i couldn’t see a sniper at the time but its only happened a  small number of times. i don’t know what the AI was like in the original version of the game, i heard it was bad but i’m assuming it was all ironed out. the bullet dynamics and ballistics are all top notch, bullet drop is a huge part of sniping at long range and your bullets trajectory will be affected by things like weather/heart rate – breath can be controlled to slow down what’s seen through your scope so that you are one step closer to the perfect shot. 

As for playability and lifespan there is a lot on offer. when you finish the main game there are a host of extra missions and challenges, in challenge mode you are given limited ammunition and a limited HUD so it all feels the more genuine and the more exciting. the story missions all feel fluid, fun and rewarding. some of the missions will involve sneaking a great distance through enemy forces in order to take out a target while others will have you eradicating enemy camps, others still might be gaining intel or backing up another force fighting alongside you. its all very well put together and each mission lasts anywhere from about 40 minutes to just over an hour. i do think there is replay value in the game because so many of the missions are very entertaining and for fans of sniping it never gets old.

So it has many positive points but it also has a few negative ones too. the auto saving can be a bit of an annoyance at time, though it doesn’t exactly affect your experience it can take you out of the zone. the graphics engine handles weather extremely well yet there are only a few levels that feature rain/fog the rest are bright and sunny, they could have implemented the weather effects more. for a sniping game you would think the developers might add in some mini games such as target practice but they didn’t. the music is a little depthless at the time but i can understand not really needing it when you are trying to concentrate on taking a carefully planned shot.

Finally there seems to be a glitch or glitches in the way that trophies are collected, this could be down to the fact that the options menu features a trophy section. at one point i was trying to get a trophy called “fallen eagle”, all you need to do is shoot 10 eagles – easy to do really and the trophy list on the menu crossed it off as completed yet the trophy itself didn’t activate. its these little negative points that stop the game from attaining a higher score, its a shame really because if all the little issues were dealt with it would be almost perfect.

I really enjoyed the game and i will probably be replaying through the various missions for some time to come. sniper: ghost warrior is a game of patience and finesse as is of course real sniping, if you are expecting fast paced running and gunning action then i’m afraid you won’t find this here and anytime you do its the enemy chasing you down. if however you like the idea of sneaking around the jungle using your environment to pull off your shots with pin point accuracy then i strongly recommend this game. i’m giving the game a 7 out of 10. no other game offers as much high powered long range sniping action, if there is ever a sequel released i’ll definitely be getting it.

Unfortunately i could not test the multiplayer as the playstation network is still down. the ps3 version features new multiplayer maps and game modes such as capture the flag. when the network comes back online i will add a multiplayer section to the review.