Some of you are probably already aware that my PC is currently in no fit state for games. Bearing this in mind, you can imagine my horror when my Xbox 360 came up with the dreaded 3 red rings of death (oh, the humanity!). For those unfamiliar, the 3 red rings of death on your Xbox 360 basically means you need to call Microsoft customer support to get your Xbox fixed.
It seems the World doesn't want me to play video games (either that, or its a conspiracy from my wife!).
:(
In situations such as this, a lesser man would break down and cry. Not moi! I immediately went out and acquired me a Nintendo Dual Screen Lite! Take that World!
Just goes to prove that you can't keep a good gamer down!
So far, I've mainly been playing Trauma Center: Under the Knife. Haven't got very far but from the little I've played, its a really good game and takes full advantage of the NDS's unique features.
The premise behind this game is that you are a surgeon (the gameplay consists of you performing surgery on different patients). Although it has a story, what really sells the game is the touch screen. Because the entire game is played using the touch screen, it really feels as if you are performing surgery on people. For example, when you cut someone open, you choose the scalpel and then drag your stylus across the area where you need to make the cut.
The tactile feedback you get from using the touch screen just adds another dimension to what would otherwise could have been an ordinary game and really boosts this into a must play (if you own an NDS). Definitely thumbs up!
Saturday, February 24, 2007
Saturday, February 17, 2007
Company of Heroes
Company of Heroes is the second game that I got to try out while I was over in Singapore. Like F.E.A.R., the game is highly critically acclaimed and has won numerous awards.
CoH is a Real Time Strategy game set during WWII - more specifically, the Allied invasion of German occupied territory. It tells the tale of Able Company and starts with their D-Day landing on Omaha Beach. Only managed to get halfway through the second mission so not really sure how far the story goes. I'm guessing it doesn't encompass the whole of the invasion but you never know!
RTS is a genre which I used to enjoy very much (back in the days of Dune 2 and Command & Conquer). However, these days, its a genre which generally doesn't interest me much. The main reason for this is that I kinda feel overwhelmed playing recent RTSs. In the newer RTSs, it just feels like there is so much going on that its hard to keep track (I know, I know - I'm getting old!). As a result, these so called strategy games end up feeling more like tactical battles.
However, when I played CoH, I had a great time. So what was the difference?
The main difference between CoH and some other RTS games I tried is that CoH allows you to issue commands while the game is paused. This lets you survey the battlefield before issuing commands to your soldiers. The end result is that, rather than running around randomly, you can really take time to plan your strategy.
The AI in this game is also done extremely well. Even if you don't micromanage your troops, they do a pretty good job of looking after themselves. More importantly, they act like they have intelligence. Example - I play FPSs quite a lot. One of the first things you learn in playing FPSs is that you never walk down the middle of the road ala Hollywood - you just get shot down. In CoH, the AI does a fantastic job of simulating this. I ordered my troops to head to a crossroads. Rather than just walking up to the crossroads, my squad of 5 soldiers split into two groups - each group hugging the hedges on either side of the road as they walked. Little touches like this really impress me and help bring you into the game.
Definitely a game which I will have to check out when I have time. Arrghh! So many games, so little time!
CoH is a Real Time Strategy game set during WWII - more specifically, the Allied invasion of German occupied territory. It tells the tale of Able Company and starts with their D-Day landing on Omaha Beach. Only managed to get halfway through the second mission so not really sure how far the story goes. I'm guessing it doesn't encompass the whole of the invasion but you never know!
RTS is a genre which I used to enjoy very much (back in the days of Dune 2 and Command & Conquer). However, these days, its a genre which generally doesn't interest me much. The main reason for this is that I kinda feel overwhelmed playing recent RTSs. In the newer RTSs, it just feels like there is so much going on that its hard to keep track (I know, I know - I'm getting old!). As a result, these so called strategy games end up feeling more like tactical battles.
However, when I played CoH, I had a great time. So what was the difference?
The main difference between CoH and some other RTS games I tried is that CoH allows you to issue commands while the game is paused. This lets you survey the battlefield before issuing commands to your soldiers. The end result is that, rather than running around randomly, you can really take time to plan your strategy.
The AI in this game is also done extremely well. Even if you don't micromanage your troops, they do a pretty good job of looking after themselves. More importantly, they act like they have intelligence. Example - I play FPSs quite a lot. One of the first things you learn in playing FPSs is that you never walk down the middle of the road ala Hollywood - you just get shot down. In CoH, the AI does a fantastic job of simulating this. I ordered my troops to head to a crossroads. Rather than just walking up to the crossroads, my squad of 5 soldiers split into two groups - each group hugging the hedges on either side of the road as they walked. Little touches like this really impress me and help bring you into the game.
Definitely a game which I will have to check out when I have time. Arrghh! So many games, so little time!
Sunday, February 11, 2007
F.E.A.R.
I see dead people.
That is my lasting impression from yesterday as I had a quick taste of F.E.A.R. on the PC (on my brother's PC incidentally). On a side note, what is it with these stupid acronyms! First Encounter Assault Recon (F.E.A.R.), as a title really doesn't make any sense - and if you don't know why, please don't ask me unless you have no pride.
Luckily the game itself seems to be awesome. Great atmosphere, really scary (hence the name F.E.A.R.). It is little wonder that this game received so many awards when it was released on the PC.
The premise of the game (from the short story segments I saw while playing yesterday) is some general has gone nutso. Normally, a very common occurrence (based on Hollywood movies). However, in this case, the general also has a telepathic link to a battalion of super-soldiers. If you ask me, the army needs a new shrink - they really need to screen the people they "volunteer" for these missions!
This is the point where you come in. You are the newest member of F.E.A.R., a team of soldiers focusing on the paranormal. Unbeknownst to the rest of your squad, you seem to have been experimented on at some stage so you have super reflexes (which manifests itself in the form of bullet time ala Matrix). Of course, this is a great setup for some superb shooting action as you face off against impossible odds.
However, what really sets this game apart is the atmosphere. The game is really very creepy. Monolith (the developers) have done a superb job in recreating a very dark and moody environment for you to wander around in. Despite being part of an elite team of soldiers, the rest of your squad don't actually do anything and you always have to go in alone (I guess thats why the squad is named F.E.A.R. - cos they're too chickens$*t to do anything!). Which means you are always on your own. In the dark. Alone (did I mention that already?).
And then, there are the dead people. When I say dead people, I mean people, not bodies (common enough sight in shooters). The game has dead people wandering around and they tell you things. And then theres the girl. For those of you who have played this game, or seen the box art, you will know who I am talking about. There is a girl wandering around who has supernatural powers (kinda like your typical japanese horror movies - long hair, big eyes etc etc). Don't know her story yet, but I can't wait to keep playing this game.
I really have to buy this game for my Xbox 360 when I have time. The atmosphere in this game is great - but limited by the fact that I am hunched over a keyboard and facing a 19" monitor (can't believe the git has a 19" mon - flash b$#*%rd).
Wait till I show him what its like on a 42" plasma with Sennheiser earphones!
>:)
That is my lasting impression from yesterday as I had a quick taste of F.E.A.R. on the PC (on my brother's PC incidentally). On a side note, what is it with these stupid acronyms! First Encounter Assault Recon (F.E.A.R.), as a title really doesn't make any sense - and if you don't know why, please don't ask me unless you have no pride.
Luckily the game itself seems to be awesome. Great atmosphere, really scary (hence the name F.E.A.R.). It is little wonder that this game received so many awards when it was released on the PC.
The premise of the game (from the short story segments I saw while playing yesterday) is some general has gone nutso. Normally, a very common occurrence (based on Hollywood movies). However, in this case, the general also has a telepathic link to a battalion of super-soldiers. If you ask me, the army needs a new shrink - they really need to screen the people they "volunteer" for these missions!
This is the point where you come in. You are the newest member of F.E.A.R., a team of soldiers focusing on the paranormal. Unbeknownst to the rest of your squad, you seem to have been experimented on at some stage so you have super reflexes (which manifests itself in the form of bullet time ala Matrix). Of course, this is a great setup for some superb shooting action as you face off against impossible odds.
However, what really sets this game apart is the atmosphere. The game is really very creepy. Monolith (the developers) have done a superb job in recreating a very dark and moody environment for you to wander around in. Despite being part of an elite team of soldiers, the rest of your squad don't actually do anything and you always have to go in alone (I guess thats why the squad is named F.E.A.R. - cos they're too chickens$*t to do anything!). Which means you are always on your own. In the dark. Alone (did I mention that already?).
And then, there are the dead people. When I say dead people, I mean people, not bodies (common enough sight in shooters). The game has dead people wandering around and they tell you things. And then theres the girl. For those of you who have played this game, or seen the box art, you will know who I am talking about. There is a girl wandering around who has supernatural powers (kinda like your typical japanese horror movies - long hair, big eyes etc etc). Don't know her story yet, but I can't wait to keep playing this game.
I really have to buy this game for my Xbox 360 when I have time. The atmosphere in this game is great - but limited by the fact that I am hunched over a keyboard and facing a 19" monitor (can't believe the git has a 19" mon - flash b$#*%rd).
Wait till I show him what its like on a 42" plasma with Sennheiser earphones!
>:)
Monday, February 5, 2007
Gears of War - Multiplayer gameplay example
I am still working on my Gears of War review. However, in the meantime, I thought it would be interesting to post a gameplay example just to give you an idea of what the game is like. The following example is taken from a multiplayer deathmatch session and is one of the rare occasions where I did quite well (normally when I go online - I get completely pwned).
Anyway, I joined a game of Execution online. Execution basically means that in order to get a kill, you have to shoot the guy until he goes down (either that or gib the guy using explosives or a shotgun at close range). Then you have to get close and curb stomp him (basically, kick his head in!!). Otherwise, the guy will get up again. Also, his teammates can revive him while he is down. This tends to make combat much more up close and personal!
In the game I was playing in, they had set the revive time at 5 seconds (I believe the host can choose from between 5 - 60 seconds). This basically allowed them to play rambo style as the revival can be quite quick (you can also speed up your revival time by mashing on the "A" button). When I first joined, the game was already underway. My group was losing 2-0 in terms of rounds (first to 6 rounds wins the game).
The tactics for singleplayer and multiplayer are very different and I got completely pwned in the first game - kept on getting killed before I could do anything. Obviously, no kills although I managed to get 1 down and 2 revivals - hence some points! Anyway, I knew this would happen so I took the opportunity to watch how they played every time I died (which was quite often).
Luckily our team had 1 player who was okay and I was able to learn a lot from watching him. So we finish the first game and start the second game (after evening out the teams a bit). Things are starting to improve and I manage to help out a lot more - even getting some kills! We start off quite well but then one of the guys on the opposite team decides he has had enough of losing and picks up the sniper rifle (lets call him snipey). A shot to the head with a sniper rifle is an instant kill and the guy was good with the sniper rifle. Basically, he was headshooting people left, right and centre (the game tells you who kills who so I knew he was getting lots of headshots) and they managed to catch up to 5-4 (we are still leading).
So, we start the tenth game. Tenth game starts as normal with Snipey grabbing the sniper rifle and headshooting people. It comes down to me being the final guy on our team. The map we were on basically has 2 bridges which are really good sniper spots.
I was close to one bridge when I saw the notification that my last teammate got headshot. I quickly checked the bridge but no sniper so I figured he must be on the other bridge. I start running towards the other bridge and sure enough, I see him on the bridge and he is aiming at me. I had already been headshot by him a couple of times even though I was in cover (I guess my head was poking out!) so I knew not to hide. Instead I kept running and tried to guess when he would shoot. I guessed perfectly.
I managed to dive just before he fired and he missed! Huzzah! This allows me to get onto the bridge without being sniped. At this point, we start running towards each other (playing chicken with guns) and he is trying to shoot me while I run in with my chainsaw (getting hit while you are revving the chainsaw means you lower it and have to rev it up again). Luckily he missed and I managed to chainsaw him (that animation never gets old!). Raarrrggghhh!!!
At this point, I was thinking "Yay, we won". However, at the end of the chainsaw, the game didn't end and at this point, I realised they had another guy. I guessed he would be behind me as I couldn't see him onscreen (I figured he would be trying to sneak up behind me during the chainsaw animation) so I quickly jumped backwards. Sure enough, he was behind me (luckily not directly otherwise he would have chainsawed me - I'm guessing he was quite far away originally) and I ended up jumping behind him. At this close range, I whip out my shotgun and we start circling each other - me trying to shoot him and him trying to melee me (he was also holding a sniper rifle).
Dammit! He got me first with a lucky shot (git shot me with a sniper rifle at close range - luckily not to the head)! I'm now on my knees and I start to frantically hammer away at the "A" button trying to getup. Luckily for me, I don't think he expected to hit me with a sniper rifle at point blank range so at the time he shot me, he was backing away. Although he started to come forward, I was able to get up in time before he could curb stomp me. So I'm back up and I start backing away as well (to give myself a chance to heal) while trying to aim my shotgun at him.
Crap! He shot me again - before I could even fire. I'm back on my knees and hammering away on the "A" button while I can see him running in to curb stomp me. He runs right up to me and is standing right next to me. In about 0.1 second, he is going to curb stomp me and I will die a horrible death!
Hooray for button mashing!! I manage to get up just before he curb stomps me. Point blank range with a shotgun. >:)
Gibbed the f$&ker!!That won the game - 6-4 to us! :D
Awesome!
Anyway, I joined a game of Execution online. Execution basically means that in order to get a kill, you have to shoot the guy until he goes down (either that or gib the guy using explosives or a shotgun at close range). Then you have to get close and curb stomp him (basically, kick his head in!!). Otherwise, the guy will get up again. Also, his teammates can revive him while he is down. This tends to make combat much more up close and personal!
In the game I was playing in, they had set the revive time at 5 seconds (I believe the host can choose from between 5 - 60 seconds). This basically allowed them to play rambo style as the revival can be quite quick (you can also speed up your revival time by mashing on the "A" button). When I first joined, the game was already underway. My group was losing 2-0 in terms of rounds (first to 6 rounds wins the game).
The tactics for singleplayer and multiplayer are very different and I got completely pwned in the first game - kept on getting killed before I could do anything. Obviously, no kills although I managed to get 1 down and 2 revivals - hence some points! Anyway, I knew this would happen so I took the opportunity to watch how they played every time I died (which was quite often).
Luckily our team had 1 player who was okay and I was able to learn a lot from watching him. So we finish the first game and start the second game (after evening out the teams a bit). Things are starting to improve and I manage to help out a lot more - even getting some kills! We start off quite well but then one of the guys on the opposite team decides he has had enough of losing and picks up the sniper rifle (lets call him snipey). A shot to the head with a sniper rifle is an instant kill and the guy was good with the sniper rifle. Basically, he was headshooting people left, right and centre (the game tells you who kills who so I knew he was getting lots of headshots) and they managed to catch up to 5-4 (we are still leading).
So, we start the tenth game. Tenth game starts as normal with Snipey grabbing the sniper rifle and headshooting people. It comes down to me being the final guy on our team. The map we were on basically has 2 bridges which are really good sniper spots.
I was close to one bridge when I saw the notification that my last teammate got headshot. I quickly checked the bridge but no sniper so I figured he must be on the other bridge. I start running towards the other bridge and sure enough, I see him on the bridge and he is aiming at me. I had already been headshot by him a couple of times even though I was in cover (I guess my head was poking out!) so I knew not to hide. Instead I kept running and tried to guess when he would shoot. I guessed perfectly.
I managed to dive just before he fired and he missed! Huzzah! This allows me to get onto the bridge without being sniped. At this point, we start running towards each other (playing chicken with guns) and he is trying to shoot me while I run in with my chainsaw (getting hit while you are revving the chainsaw means you lower it and have to rev it up again). Luckily he missed and I managed to chainsaw him (that animation never gets old!). Raarrrggghhh!!!
At this point, I was thinking "Yay, we won". However, at the end of the chainsaw, the game didn't end and at this point, I realised they had another guy. I guessed he would be behind me as I couldn't see him onscreen (I figured he would be trying to sneak up behind me during the chainsaw animation) so I quickly jumped backwards. Sure enough, he was behind me (luckily not directly otherwise he would have chainsawed me - I'm guessing he was quite far away originally) and I ended up jumping behind him. At this close range, I whip out my shotgun and we start circling each other - me trying to shoot him and him trying to melee me (he was also holding a sniper rifle).
Dammit! He got me first with a lucky shot (git shot me with a sniper rifle at close range - luckily not to the head)! I'm now on my knees and I start to frantically hammer away at the "A" button trying to getup. Luckily for me, I don't think he expected to hit me with a sniper rifle at point blank range so at the time he shot me, he was backing away. Although he started to come forward, I was able to get up in time before he could curb stomp me. So I'm back up and I start backing away as well (to give myself a chance to heal) while trying to aim my shotgun at him.
Crap! He shot me again - before I could even fire. I'm back on my knees and hammering away on the "A" button while I can see him running in to curb stomp me. He runs right up to me and is standing right next to me. In about 0.1 second, he is going to curb stomp me and I will die a horrible death!
Hooray for button mashing!! I manage to get up just before he curb stomps me. Point blank range with a shotgun. >:)
Gibbed the f$&ker!!That won the game - 6-4 to us! :D
Awesome!
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