PvP: A Love / Hate Relationship

You know me: I love competition. I like getting into the thick of it, on the frontlines, so to speak. I love me some good old fashioned competitive multiplayer and, with the added luxury of online modes in practically every single game, there is always somebody to play against. Under certain circumstance, you can make the argument that developers tacking on a multiplayer mode is a bad thing—it could be a distraction after all in the development process, having to spilt resources—but I think that coupling a decent multiplayer experience with an engaging single player will keep a gamer on you product longer, and in general may get you more sales in the long run.

Getting schooled is never fun though haha; and while it happens less often, it does still happen, sort of putting a damper on a player’s mood.

The Game

I've still been playing a fair amount of Destiny, the majority of my time being spent in the multiplayer arena called: The Crucible. Sadly, I've noticed that there is a significant lack of sub-machine guns—being my weapon of choice in most shooters—in Destiny. And since I'm not the biggest fan of the assault rifle, I've been forced to adapt my strategy, instead opting for the single shot scout rifle. Coupling that with a fusion rifle for those close range bouts, I'm pretty set.

The rush you get when playing PvP can't be beat, at least not when you are winning. Nothing tops getting sucker punched by some asshat and still having the skill or the know-how to come out on top—all while screaming profanities at the schmuck who tried to attack you from the back like a coward.

The problem is that online FPS multiplayer isn't about your guns...I mean, it is about your guns but it's more about your map awareness. Investing time into a game might help your aim; might help you to familiarize yourself with a particular type of weapon you like. But overall, it really just helps you learn the maps and that's where games are won and lost. Learning the ins and outs of a certain map, how best to attack a point or the best escape route.

The Pain

You always hear over the internet about people always being pissed off by some pre-pubescent boy mercing them. Having to hear their stupid voice over the mic (thank god we don't have that problem in Destiny). The real thing you're angry about is how much free time this child has to spend on a game you enjoy and how you resent them for it. That's all it is.

Another member of this blog has informed me that the new Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare is actually very enjoyable. I haven't delved into a CoD game since the second Modern Warfare and I would be lying if I said the sci-fi setting didn't intrigue the fuck out of me... Maybe I'll try to sucker some of my friends into buying it with me.

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Ultimate Bravery

I'm here again to show you another awesome League of Legends game type separate from the normal, ranked and ARAM queues we're all so used to. This week I’m here to talk about Ultimate Bravery and man, is it fun!

Ultimate Bravery is a game type that basically forces you to follow a build path and itemization that's not necessarily the best thing out there for your character. In fact nine times out of ten it's absolute garbage; but that's all part of the fun and ridiculousness that this game type brings to the table.

The setup is fairly simple. You start by picking a champion you want to play, going to the Ultimate Bravery website and then generating a random build for that champ. The website will give you a few things you need to follow, first of which is which spell you need to max first. Secondly it will give you mastery numbers which lets you know how many points you need to have in each respective mastery tree. It also tells you which Summoners’ spells to take. Lastly it tells you what items you need to build; so you might end up playing a tank as an ADC or a hyper carry support. That's the innate fun of the game type: you never really know how you're gonna play each champ and to be honest, it’s a lot of fun. It forces you to play outside your comfort zone and like I said about hide andseek, it really teaches you about the mechanics and skills of the champions because you're normally more reliant on your skill and ability to play the game than on the items. It allows you to play the game in a “meta” free environment which I personally think is a lot more fun.

Over the last few seasons, League of Legends has been boiled down into the current meta, and to be honest I don’t ever really see it changing, especially with the fact that Riot has embraced it so wholeheartedly. Ultimate Bravery harkens back to the days when I first started the game and was leveling my account up back in season 1—which was almost like the wild west of League of Legends, back when you didn't need a jungler and going Blitz and Annie bot lane was the most OP thing out there.

Ultimate Bravery is a simplified version of playing that focuses more on having fun than winning at all costs. I definitely think most people should give this a try and it’s a shame a lot of people don’t know more about it or even play it, cause honestly, it's some the most fun I’ve ever had playing League. I really think more people need to give it a try. If you want to get a build you can have one generated here http://www.ultimate-bravery.com/and there's also community chatroom in the League client. Just join Ultimate Bravery; there's usually people setting up games (especially during peak hours). If you’ve got time for a normal you have time for a round of Ultimate Bravery and trust me, you won't be disappointed.

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Battleborn, More Like BattleAWESOME

Through the years, gamers are exposed to a slew of game producers who release titles that just may tickle your fancy. Some of these titles infatuate us so much that we find ourselves absolutely obsessed with them. Once the producer of said awesome game follows up with an equally awesome sequel then we come across, what I like to call, the team bias. Team bias is when you will eat up just about everything a production team will spoon feed you because you're convinced that they're the best. Sometimes you're right, sometimes you're wrong; in the case of GearBox and Battleborn, you're absolutely right!

Just to get this out of the way, I am all kinds of crazy hyped for this game. Gearbox have left their mark on the world with their fantastic Borderlands series. I've played countless hours of those titles and considering that they're putting the same kind of personality into a MOBA game results in me being more than enthused. That being said, there isn't too much information released yet on Battlebornbut, everything that is sounds incredibly promising. Like I expressed, it's a GearBox original, how can it possibly be bad?

Nevertheless, this week brought forth a couple of video previews allowing us to gaze at the intensity that is Battleborn. When I first heard that it was going to be a MOBA with a first-person perspective, I was really baffled. As a fairly new player to DOTA 2, I figured the whole genre was played the same way but watching it in action, whoa, excellent! It truly looks and feels like borderlands but in a more controlled environments framed by lanes and towers. There's a campaign mode that's available and allows you to play cooperatively, as well as the standard competitive multiplayer. The trailers also allowed us a peak into the narrative. So far, we know that all the stars in the universe have darkened except for one. The different races have retreated from their home worlds and find themselves together on this last planet struggling to survive. Nothing crazy, in fact it's a standard general storyline but considering their record, GearBox is sure to make it entertaining enough.

In contrast, the character information that has been revealed is pretty entertaining. We now know that there are a number of factions that your character originates from. The Peacekeepersare a law-bound people who enforce regulations in a strict manner. The Eldrid are lovers of nature and the natural order of things. The Jennerit Empire are your born-to-war conquerors. The Rogues are simply "factionless" characters and the Last Light Consortium are profiteers who sells arms to all factions. The characters revealed were some of the most unique designs I have seen in a long while. Montana is a giant soldier who wields a Gatling-gun but has an itty-bitty head. Miko is some fungi ninja, who turns out to be of the fairer sex. Marquis, my personal favorite, is quite a dapper android fellow, complete with rifle and monocle. There are tons of other characters to discover and many more that haven't even been revealed yet. Much like the Borderlands games, they present a lively, colorful and wild array of characters. The designs alone intrigued me enough to look into the game further.

Sadly, not much else has been revealed but the gameplay looks solid and with the standard M.O.B.A. setup of having to regain levels every time you play is an interesting mechanic for an fps. We know that there are two sets of trees that allow you to experiment with your characters. We also know that each character has a special move of sorts that is unlocked around level 6 or 7. There also seems to be some objective-based missions but nothing is too clear at the moment. Regardless, I, for one, am incredibly stoked for this game. In any case, what do you all think? Will this be as popular as Borderlands or DOTA? Looking forward to seeing any and all of you online upon launch. Toodles.

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Hide and Seek LOL

I’ve been playing League of Legends for about 4 years now but I’ve never been a huge fan of the ranked system; so when I hit level 30, it never gave me much endgame content or satisfaction until I discovered the player created custom game types and the wacky crazy fun that they offer. There are a bunch of different game types and this week I’m gonna talk about one of the more common ones: Hide and Seek. I'll give you a brief summary of the rules, and some strategies that are useful.

This game is always played on Crystal Scar, in Draft Mode. The blue team plays the hunters and receives first pick; purple side plays the hiders and will get the counter-picks. The objective of the game is to hide and seek obviously, and killing the hunters is pretty frowned upon. Hiders get 5 lives and the game lasts 40 minutes. The map objectives are off limits and capturing one means the game is over and the team at fault automatically loses. The game is won when all the hiders run out of lives, or if forty minutes pass without the seekers having killed all hiders. There are a few smaller rules like: only one person on each team may have a passive slowing item active items have no restrictions so long as they slow or speed up, etc..

Hunters have to wait 2 minutes to leave the base after the game starts to give the hiders a head start, and of course hiders must leave the base before the 2 minute mark. The centre fog of war is the only place you hide, as the outside rings of the map are off limits and if a hider is found hiding in this area (different from quickly getting the health relic) they automatically lose 1 life. Any side not sticking to the rules loses 3 minutes per fault, meaning if the seekers are caught cheating once, the hiders need 3 minutes less to win the game by surviving.

Three champs are auto banned and for pretty good reasons: Evelynn, for obvious reasons (she is always invisible unless you are on top of her); Kassadin, because he's impossible to catch or escape from; and Rengar, because the cooldown on his ultimate is too short making it either a guaranteed escape or kill depending on which team he’s on. The rest of the rules are more bureaucratic so here's the list. I had on a word document on my pc that was stolen from a forum post somewhere.

Seeking Rules

• Seekers are allowed 1 passive slowing item on the team (ex: Rylais, Frozen Mallet, Iceborn Gauntlet)
• Oracles are banned until 15 minutes
• Seekers must return to their base BELOW 300 HP. Likewise they must be given the chance to do so.
• If a seeker does not return to his base BELOW 300 HP then none of the kills he assists in or gets do not count toward hider lives.
• If a seeker does not return to his base BELOW 300 HP the hiders may kill him after a short period of 5 seconds.
• Once a seeker begins to "back" they must finish the channel, regardless of a hider stumbling onto them
• Seekers may not leave their base until 2 minutes into the game, while "their base" counts as the area where enemies get hit by the fountains laser.
• Seekers may not kill a unit on "Grace". If done, the kill does not count. If repeated, the hiders lose 3 minutes.

Hiding Rules

• A hider may not use an ability unless it provides "Hard Crowd Control (CC)" (SLOW, STUN, ROOT, PULL, CAGE, FEAR, TAUNT, PUSH), MOBILITY, SHIELDING or HEALING.
• Skills that provide only a SILENCE, VISION or DMG ONLY ARE NOT ALLOWED AT ANY POINT. ("Silence" and "Vision" are soft CC and are illegal.)
• Combination skills that lead to any of the named "Hard CC", such as brand stuns, kennen stuns, Lee Sin Q or Tempest are NOT ALLOWED. Riven's 3rd "Broken Wings" is allowed, so long as she is not INTENTIONALLY using the first 2 procs to deal damage and ONLY being used for escape purposes.
• No more than 2 hiders may hide together. This is to stop the popular group and run tactic.
• If there are 2 hiders in a brush together a third is not allowed to join them even being chased, if done, the hider loses 1 life.
• The group and run tactic is also not allowed at any point, even being chased it is only allowed to get help from up to 2 more hides NEVER from 3 or more.
• Thornmail, GA, Frozen Mallet and Sunfire Cape are banned for hiders.
• Any items that don't give movement, cc or defense are automatically banned in addition to items already mentioned. If bought, caught, and confronted you must return to the base and sell the item. You may not buy any additional items afterwards. You are given "Grace" for that time.
• Hiders must hide in the center of the fog of war.
• Hiders may NEVER auto-attack (even to heal) unless it is A HARD CC SKILL (udyr bear stance, blitzcrank popup, etc.) and even then only once per application. If abused and auto-attacks occur outside of CC, a warning should be issued, afterwards the hider will lose 1 life upon the hunter's discretion, if properly warned.
• Once a hider re-spawns, it is their responsibility to state the time upon when their "Grace" ends in /ALL. If they do not, they do not receive grace and may be hunted freely, the timer still applies for 45 seconds regardless.
• Once a hider dies, they may buy until they re-spawn and up to 45 seconds afterwards during their grace period. At the point when the hider spawns, they must write in the "/all" the exact time they have re-spawned and has 45 seconds from then on to leave the base and hide. This is "Grace" and is suggested to be used to run and hide, not stay and buy.
• If you interfere while on "Grace" your "Grace" ends promptly, you are now free game to hunt.
• During the 45 seconds of "Grace" hunters may not intentionally follow hiders.
• If a hider fails to leave base within "Grace" they lose 1 life and they are immediately free game to hunt.
• Hiders may not intentionally/accidentally/subconsciously/figuratively/literally prevent seekers from backing.
• Rylais does not legitimize a hider's spell, but one may be purchased among the group.
• Teemo Mushrooms may not be "Stacked" and are limited to 2 per bush or bush-sized-map-space.
• Shaco boxes may not be "Stacked" and are limited to 2 per bush or bush-sized-map-space.

Final thoughts

The game type is a ton of fun and takes very little to get up and running. It’s also the best way to teach new players the finer points of mechanics and escaping on a lot of champions. It’s a good way to train yourself how to juke and take advantage of player movements and vision control. This is the first “for fun” game type I ever played and I instantly fell in love with it. If you're looking for something other than ARAM (All-Random-All-Mid) and the basic Summoner's Rift, I highly recommend giving this a try. It has a great community of die-hard fans and it just shows that players can make anything fun, even Dominion.

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Just Copy Steam Already

While I don’t think physical copies of games are going to disappear any time soon, you can certainly assume what the fate of physical media in the long run will be. We saw it with CDs, movie rentals took a plunge since Blockbuster no longer exists, and we already see that PC gamers are embracing this change. Don’t quote me on it, but I remember reading that 80-85% of PC games are bought digitally. Microsoft and Sony: take notice and act accordingly.

I won’t talk for many of the others on the blog or at the podcast, but I can say that Adam and I are very anti-digital when it comes to console gaming. It’s weird because we too embrace buying digital on PC, but would go out of our way to get a physical copy for console. We are a clear minority, so I assume that regular consumers will ditch physical if the price is right (cue music).

Steam sales are crazy, and there’s nothing like that on console. You will never get amazing deals on big-name, non-indie titles. Or so I thought…kinda.

Being a PlayStation Plus member grants you free games, but also provides you with some pretty great discounts. Here’s a few I personally want:

• Alice: Madness Returns $6.29
• Battlefield 3 $4.89
• Dead Space 1 and 2 $4.89 each
• Mass Effect Trilogy $13.99
• SSX $5.24

I think these are great deals, but since this is on the PS3, it feels a bit “too little, too late”. Yes, the console will still live on for a few years, but if consoles can take this idea a step further, Microsoft and Sony could actually compete with Steam/PC.

What I’d like to see moving forward, are deals similar to the ones I’ve mentioned, but on the new consoles. Just take all the launch titles and price them at $10 online. Also, try and tempt non-Xbox Live Gold/PlayStation Plus members with some great deals too. When Battlefield of Duty 2014: Advanced Hardline is being sold for $60 in-store, charge $5 less online. Consumers are technically saving publishers' money in terms of manufacturing the product, so why not pass the buck?

Tl;dr Microsoft and Sony should just copy Steam already.

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So Much Hype

Destiny releases tomorrow and out of some awesome twist of fate, it would appear as if I have the entire day off. I will note however that I did not go out of my way to plan this, but I think the universe is telling me to blow my entire day playing Destiny.

My anticipation for Destiny is pretty immense and to be honest, I'm not sure I can even remember the last time I was this hyped for a game. I was jonesing pretty hard for the release of the PS4, but that is a large event, can you even compare a console release to a game release anyway? I'm not sure it would be fair.

I think if I go back far enough, I was really excited for the release of Kingdom Hearts 2. I was in love with the first one, and from everything I was hearing off the internet, the second one was going to be so much better. Now this was also way back in the PS2 days and thinking about it, was I ever that excited for any PS3 game? I'm not entirely sure I was. There had to be one game, but easily nowhere near the level of excitement I have currently for Destiny.

Maybe the last console generation just sucked, I don't know. We only got one new numbered Final Fantasy, and other JRPGs generally remained stagnant; we also saw an over abundance of shooters released, some even sequentially like a sports game. Sure BioShock was a great series and Assassin's Creed is pretty fun, lest we forget about Skyrimwhich was also amazing. Those games, and many more, of the era were great, but they weren't show stoppers. We need more games like the first Halo to release, and heck even when Final Fantasy X hit everyone was going nuts. What happened to that feeling? Where did it go?

Looking back I think I've played more of my PS4 over the last 10 months than I played my PS3 over the last 3-4 years. Part of that might be the fault of indie games on Steam and my growth as a PC gamer, then there was also that ever-infuriating League of Legends game, but I digress...I can't wait for tomorrow, I just want to play Destiny.

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Turn Me On Unturned

This week I’m back to talk to you about a game that encompasses not one but two of my most common topics—it’s an early access game about zombies called Unturned. At first glance Unturned looks like someone's attempt at making a flash rip off of Minecraft. But if you look past the blocky graphics the gameplay is actually quite good. The game itself is stable and relatively bug-free, which if you compare it to most of its counterparts in the early access genre that’s saying quite a bit.

The game can also be played in a few different ways. There is a single player mode where you are a lone survivor traveling across an island inhabited by the zombified remains of residents and military personnel. Your goal is simple: survive, explore and salvage as much as you can. The concept may be simple but the game has no lack of items to discover and a plethora of weapons and crafting options giving it a lot of depth and replayability. You’d be surprised how much there is to find and discover. Once you establish a settlement of sorts, Unturned allows you to go on what I like to call salvage runs—essentially gassing up a car and driving around from town to town looking for new gear and weapons, while continuing to fight off hordes of zombies. It really makes you feel like a survivor. Add in the experience and leveling aspect of the game (which is used to increase your different traits: be it offensively, defensively or just survival skills in general) you’re slowly but surely becoming more attuned to your environment, which is what a real survivor would over time. And that's all just the single player aspect.

In multiplayer there are a few differences, the most important of which being PVP. Now for the uninitiated that's player-versus-player and there's a certain change in feel when you start playing PVP which is the same in every zombie movie and game...other people are dicks. The game goes from you versus the world, to you versus the world and everyone else in it. That's a huge jump in difficulty because other players are better equipped and a lot smarter than your run of the mill zombie, then add in the fact that you drop whatever it is you're carrying on death puts a big target on your head, which leads to some shaky alliances and gangs of "pre-mades" running around tearing up the place.

The last game type is arena mode, which is kind of a survival multiplayer that's zombie free but just as dangerous. There's not much to say about it, it’s a kill or be killed world out there and it’s basically a mad grab for weapons and gear; it’s fun and can get pretty exciting but it speaks for itself.

As I said, Unturned is still in development but it’s fairly polished at this state and as you’ve seen, I’ve been enjoying it thoroughly and there's no reason you shouldn’t get this game because it won’t cost you a cent. If you feel like you absolutely need to pay money for this game or you just want to support the developers, you can pay five dollars for the gold edition of the game which gives you a bunch of in-game boosts and items including: better loot drops, exp boosts and access to gold servers which have better ping and are more stable than most. I’m not gonna tell you to go out and buy this game, because you don't need to buy it, just go download it and give it a try, it’s not gonna cost you a thing and you’ll probably end up liking it. I downloaded this game on a whim after watching some gameplay footage and it hasn’t disappointed me yet. So if you’ve got some free time, give it a try and hopefully you won’t shoot me in the head on some random server.

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My Gripes With Freemium Games

I finally did it: I stopped playing Ogame for the second time now. Unlike my prior experiences with the game—getting ripped a new asshole by some d-bag and then quitting—I feel as though the largest culprit for me dropping it is a humongous lack of time / brain power I do not wish to dedicate to a game in which I get nothing out of.

Like most freemium type games, everything you do in Ogame is in real-world time. For instance, building ships takes a certain amount of time (say 30 minutes per ship), as does building up your mines to collect resources (which can sometimes take days to complete). Putting these aspects aside, since they aren't even responsible for my disdain, I mainly stopped playing Ogame because the process of protecting your resources from thieving jerk-offs is really annoying. Basically the only time anything is safe is if it's being transported between planets. Having to constantly pool my resources from all my planets and then set up a long enough transport so that I can sleep and won't get attacked is hella annoying. I know it's part of the game and while I played it I accepted it, but sometimes my life just doesn't accommodate this demanding playstyle. It would also be a huge plus if this game had a phone app.

But now on to my main gripe: What the hell is even the point? In Ogame, for every 1000 resources you spend, you gain 1 point towards a score. With these points, everyone gets put on a leaderboard and is weighed against one another. I ended with 120k+ points, ranking me in the top 300 out of 1100 players. Pretty much the sole purpose of this game is to see how high you can get. What about in other games though? What is really the all-time purpose of games like Farmville or Clash of Clans? I have no clue.

The worst part about all this is that somehow people still spend money in Freemium games! Even in Ogame the developers implemented some form of monetization. The funniest part about that is when I played Ogame originally about 7 years ago, there was no pay option. Once the freemium game model came to light on cell phones, they added it in. I understand these games are probably just not geared towards me, but like I just don't comprehend what would compel people to waste money on a game with ultimately no purpose. I would rather just go to the casino and drop all that money on red at the roulette table.

So what is it about these games? If you play one fairly regularly, what game is it and please tell me what it is you get out of it? For me, I guess I just see them as a time-sink, kinda like watching sports—it serves absolutely no purpose other than having something to do instead of nothing. Big disclaimer, I am not knocking sports in any way, I love sports and would much rather waste my time yelling at a TV screen when my team is losing than playing a Freemium game.

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Transformers Universe: Fun In The Cybertronian Sun

Ah, I've finally gotten the chance to cover a Transformersgame, a free one at that! Introducing Transformers Universe, a free-to-play action RPG developed by Jagexfor the PC. Incidentally, the term MMORPG has been given to the game, however there's a lack of roaming and instead the game provides quick multiplayer action. In other words, it's a multiplayer mode on steroids. Therefore, if you're looking for a story-line or single player option, your best bet is the two HighMoon Studiogames that I'll cover in a later review. The only sliver of a narrative here is "kill the opposing faction," works for me.

Firstly, I love Transformers and consequently, I have high expectations from any form of media that delves into the franchise, excluding Mr. Bay products which I go in with the lowest expectations possible. My initial reaction to the concept of Jagextaking over the reins of the Transformers universe was one of relief. I never played Runescape, but it was popular enough for me to hear of it, which means it's good right? Maybe not, but the company had a backing. They had a concept, developed it and by Charlie standards, they did a good job. Now, enough of this chit-chat, on to the game!

               

Transformers universe provides you the opportunity to take your preferred side in the legendary Cybertronian war. Shall you defend freedom on Optimus Prime's side or ride the waves of conquest under Megatron's regime. The game takes place loosely within the Transformers Prime universe. The aesthetics follow suit, a mismatch of the 1984 generation-1 cartoon and the bay-verse complexity. It's a decent look, though it took me a while to get used to the fact that they no longer had noses. Petty, I know, but noses are important. Do you even smell bro? Now I've made a "bro" joke and my reputation is now tarnished.

               

Furthermore, after you make your faction selection and pick out a name for your commander, you join the fray as one of three initial bots or cons. The three choices consist of a damage dealing sniper, a well rounded warrior and lastly, the medic. I personally picked Triage,the initial Autobot medic. I always found that in any multiplayer game, there was a lack of support and Triage seemed to hold his own very well. Once your choice is made, you load into your base of operations which allows you to either queue for Multiplayer matches or exit into the PvE area. At any given time, this will be the most crowded area in the game. The base definitely makes it easy to meet fellow players and form a team to meet your needs.

Let's begin with the cons, no pun intended. High Grand, which is the PvE area, is incredibly boring in my opinion. You are given a decently sized area to drive around in and complete missions that generate every fifteen or so seconds after your faction completes the last mission. Every time you decapitate easily agro-ed Terrorcons or unforgiving turrets, you're awarded energon cubes which were initially used to repair your 'bot after its demise. Due to a recent patch, the death mechanic has been changed as to no longer require repairs. This makes energon a little less desirable with its only use to create consumables. Secondly, you get relics at an incredibly slow pace. The relics are used to purchase new combatants to play as along with re-sprays for said characters.

Furthermore, the Autobots being the "good bots," it probably attracts a lot more players and I find myself constantly teamed up with beginners who have no idea what they are doing. Everyone starts somewhere and when I started off, I had no idea how the game was played either. However, it's been a few months now and I use a better 'bot than the newbies alongside a higher ranking and level and yet I still get teamed up with them. Healing three other guys who don't know what they're doing for six matches in a row gets to be frustrating. The last complaint I have is that I wish a bit more was going on in the base, if you happen to play at awkward times when no one is there.....it's surprisingly dull. That's it! On to the good stuff.

               

The character selection is wonderful. Hopping into the hangar, located in the base, allows you to see all the possible bots you can acquire and they're all beautifully designed. They all have a unique look and their own set of skills and weapons. There's just about anything for anyone at this point and with constant additions to the roster, anyone's play-style will be met. My character of choice is Meltdown who is a mechanist. This class sustains itself by healing itself when damaged, healing others, knocking back opponents and slowing 'em down. He packs a decent punch too and looks totally kickass.

The gameplay has come a long way as well. It's so seamless now, going from bot to truck feels great and vice-versa. The special effects are a treat to the eyes, what with the Decepticons getting wings and tentacles when they proc a skill. The world is colorful and believable despite using a lower graphical engine than what most people are playing with nowadays. The community and mods are all friendly and competitive. Saving up a ton of relics and getting a new 'bot is satisfying. Getting revenge kills are exhilarating. Nothing beats taking down that one 'Con who's dominated your team. Lastly, the game is in open-beta. They're constantly improving and adding more content and it's all free. There are micro-transaction options but it's hardly a pay-to-win game. You can become a "founder" which means you donated a ton of cash and they allow you to play as three exclusive characters, but they're not overpowered. As long as you're not playing the starter characters, you can take 'em on.

For my final thoughts, being a closed-Beta tester, the opportunity was given to me to see how the game has progressed and boy, did it ever. The open beta and the patches have drastically improved the game. Having a higher traffic and fixing all the oddities here and there have made this game easily recommendable. Transformers fan or not, it's an enjoyable experience. It's worth it to try out at the very least. Lots of fun, lots of action, what do you have to lose? It's free!

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It's Fate...err Destiny

I’m not sure how many people got into the Alpha for Destinybut I would like to share my first impressions so far. FYI: I have not paid attention to this game prior to the alpha, and I also suck at First Person Shooters.

That being said, I’ve played a small portion of the game’s campaign, which lets you choose between 3 classes: Titan, Hunter and Warlock. From what I can tell, Titan is your regular jack-of-all-trades kinda guy, Hunter is more of a sniper and Warlock places emphasis on magic.

I chose Warlock, since it reminded me of Mass Effect and how I’d rather have an extra weapon at hand (like biotic powers). So far, I’ve enjoyed this class and the gun selection seems pretty good.

Now I haven’t added much in terms of upgrades to my character, but there’s a decent amount of customization for your character’s face and whatnot (not like it really matters though). Moreover, you can purchase new upgrades with “Glimmer”—the in-game currency. You get this by completing missions in the campaign or in multiplayer.

Dr. Manhattan?

My campaign experience so far has been limited. I played the first 2 missions and then moved on to multiplayer.

I played some “Capture the Flag” and luckily, my team won. The lobby system is nice and quick, reminiscent of all Call of Duty games, which is a good thing. Like the Halo franchise, Bungie has included vehicles to speed transport up. I find this helpful in single player more so than multiplayer, but nonetheless, well done.

So far, Destiny seems to be great fun, especially in its Alpha release. I found no bugs, but then again I haven’t played all that much. It’s got some good FPS qualities and a big fanbase for a new IP, so I can definitely see some staying power in this game. I myself am rusty at First Person Shooters, but I may pick this one up given my positive experience so far.

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Titanfail

Ever since I was a kid, the First Person Shooter (FPS) has been my game of choice.  From Goldeneye and Perfect Dark on the N64 to Halo and Call of Duty (CoD) for the Xbox, I’ve always had the most fun with shooters over the years. I realize that most of my posts so far have been semi-rants about the old days and, at the risk of sounding repetitive, this one will be the same.

Halo 3 has always been my absolute favourite FPS, but since the separation of Microsoft and Bungie I haven’t really found a game that holds my attention as much as Halo 3 did. Games these days are fighting way too hard to be “fresh” or “original”. Terms like “all new design” are being thrown around for every trailer when really they’ve just tweaked a few things from the last game. Halo gameplay was the same as any other shooter but it added science fiction elements to change things up without taking away from the gameplay. Gravity was low, so you could jump fairly high and there are a few gadgets here and there that give you a slight advantage without overdoing it. You could use things like the bubble shield which deploys a protective dome around your character for a limited time or you could use a power drainer to deplete your enemy’s shield.  Halo never tried to be something it’s not with its additions. They included just enough features that didn’t take away from the gameplay. It remained a standard FPS with a little something extra. 

Take CoD for example: CoD 4 was Halo 3’s main competitor and the franchise succeeded in dethroning Halo as top dog. Why? Simplicity. Point, Shoot, Repeat. They had 3 killstreaks, a handful of decent perks and just overall solid gameplay. The Halo series drew everyone in because it was different yet still the same, but CoD grabbed everyone by sticking to a winning formula.  CoD stayed true to your standard shooter, which is why it sort of won the battle between the two franchises, but over the years they started to over complicate things with gimmicky perks and killstreaks and it has begun to lose it’s luster.

Nowadays FPS’ are too busy. The focus has been shifted from simplistic, skill-based gameplay to this horribly busy game style that barely resembles what we grew up playing. Between the ridiculous killstreaks and nonsensical leveling systems, I can’t bring myself to see the point anymore. Halo 3 had one the GREATEST ranking systems of all time. The game gave your profile a ranking, from 1 to 50, based on your actual skill in the game and they had a system for matching you up with players of similar skill. Now you just get thrown into whatever lobby the terrible matchmaking structure finds for you and away you go.  I’m not a shooter all-star. My kill/death ratio usually lingers around 1.5 in most games, so why in the name of God am I playing against guys who are at 4.5?

It’s been a while since I went out and bought a multiplayer shooter. CoD: Modern Warfare 2 (MW2) was the last game I sunk a lot of hours into. I really enjoyed MW2 but some things drove me insane. Perks like “One Man Army” gave everyone the ability to switch one of their custom loadouts in-game without dying but people just abused it and used it to reload their under barrel grenade launcher (aka the N00b Tube) so they could spam it around the map. The perk “Commando” gave you the ability to lunge farther when stabbing someone but the lunge distance and speed was completely ridiculous and it just pissed me off to no end. I miss playing games like Counter Strike where my skill and map knowledge mattered. I don’t want to have to sink hours and hours into a game so I can unlock all the weapons and finally be in a fair fight.

This brings me to the whole point of this post: Titanfall.

I decided to get myself a birthday present and picked up Titanfall this week.  I haven’t been able to play more than roughly 10 hours but I’m already pretty disappointed. The game does have a lot of actually cool, new features like parkour wall running and at the end of every match there is a “get to the drop ship” race where the losing team has to sprint across the map to hop on a drop ship for, what I assume, is extra experience points. The game has a sort of mock campaign mode which basically just gets you introduced to the gameplay and serves no real purpose. The entire thing is just only matches with random dialog during the game that I did not pay attention to.

Visually this game is pretty appealing even though I only have it for my 360. The titans look bad ass and the maps are all pretty well detailed. That said, the titan gameplay is pretty unexciting. Unless you’re really kicking ass you won’t spend longer than a few short minutes in your titan. The game basically feels like a toned-down Battlefield with a tacked-on mech fighting simulator. It feels too gimmicky and didn’t really succeed in giving me what I was looking for.

Ironically the “campaign” starts off with this quote: “Everyone out here is either running from the past or trying to change the future”. We need to stop running from the past with these games. There’s a reason Counter Strike: Global Offensive is currently sitting in the number 2 slot of active players today on Steam. IT’S SIMPLE.  No gimmicky perks, no ridiculous killstreaks and no having to level up to gain access to all of the weaponry.  The lack of an experience system makes players focus more on actually winning the game instead of trying to stack up their kill count. I feel as though Counter Strike encourages team based gameplay. Back when Halo 3 was super popular I remember entering a lobby and everyone had a microphone which they actually used to communicate strategy instead of berating me with insults for no reason. Counter Strike is the same now—communication is the key to success.

I’m going to give the game another shot when I get the time. Maybe I’m just being too picky or nostalgic for my old favorites. We’ll see. Until then I’m going to continue acting like a grumpy old man so GET OFF MY LAWN.

Later Days.

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Stars Gone Wild

Over the last couple of days, I was invited to take part in the beta weekend for a game called WildStar. I only heard about this new MMO a few months ago, but apparently it's been in development for nearly a decade.

Developer Carbine Studio is co-founded by 14 ex-Blizzard employees wanting to make a game that wasn't World of Warcraft. The entire game is built around action-based combat. This is unlike many other MMOs in that usually you just target your enemy and start hitting buttons to use your abilities. In WildStar, all the abilities at your disposal are skill-based, making your proficiency to dodge and land abilities the main focus instead of just having to micro-manage all your skills. I personally welcome this addition as I feel it makes the combat more dynamic and visceral overall.

Another thing WildStar does nicely is differentiating all its classes. A big reason for this is each class has a unique weapon. Some people might see this as a bad thing—I'm not one of them—since in most other MMO's, if you're a warrior, you can use axes, maces, swords, spears, etc. I can see the appeal of that, but what does it actually change? Not a whole lot. Having unique weapons really allows the developer to play with each class's style of play, instead of the big difference only being what skills your character will learn.

The Medic class I chose uses this defibrillator type weapon—at least that's what they look like. He doesn't do a ton of damage, but attacks a large area, so I can at least hit everyone I'm fighting.

The Warrior uses a massive sword along with an arm cannon—not unlike Megaman's. Much like any other Warrior, the main style of play is pretty straight forward, you just beat down people.

The Spellslinger actually combines a pair of pistols with magic sigils, definitely a lot more interesting than your typical Mage. Being highly mobile your main objective, aside from dealing tons of damage, is to never get hit.

The Esper is a master of illusions; he/she uses their psychic abilities to mess with enemies minds and employ all manner of crowd control abilities (stuns, knockbacks, roots, etc.). The weapon of choice is like Xena's chakram, just with spikes coming out of it, also instead of throwing it they use their psychic ability to control it.

Esper's Weapon

The Engineer is a bit of a mixed bag. With lots of versatility, an Engineer can stick back and launch experimental ammo from a grenade launcher, or they can activate tank mode—turning into Iron Man—and run head first into enemies. Did I mention they have robot minions? 'Cause they do! It's like a pet class, with the ability to do stuff on their own.

Last up is the Stalker who is a crazy mix of a ninja and wolverine. The Stalker has retractable claws and can go invisible. The class is built to stay up in everyone's face and does a ton of single target damage. They're kind of like a Rogue, but more badass.

All the classes sound interesting and unique, much like the game in general. Choosing a class also comes down to what race you are, which is cool and makes sense, even if it just ends up stereotyping. Honestly, the giant guy I took would never be a stalker, I just couldn't see it, but he could easily pound your face in as a warrior.

Overall the game is pretty fun: I enjoy the combat; the replay value is actually there since making a new character is a whole new experience; the visuals are a cartoony style; and the dialogue matches it perfectly. With the look and feel of it, they're essentially trying to emulate an 80's or 90's sci-fi cartoon, with the grandiose narrator and the crazy dialogue.

My main problem with WildStar, is the same problem I have with every MMO I try (which is a lot of them): I don't ever feel the need to invest a ton of time into it. Time is precious and with the amount of crap I do all the time, I just can't/don't want to spend my time only playing an MMO, as much as I might like to sometimes. There are countless other games released all the time vying for my attention, and having to spend 15 bucks a month on a game almost forces you to play it over other games.

Being in a beta state, there are some bugs, which I won't go into. What I will cover though is a grave omission I desperately hope they rectify before release: There is no "Sell All Junk" button! If you've ever played any MMO, then you know every single one needs this. For all you people who have no clue what the hell I'm talking about, "junk" is useless crap you get off enemies you can sell for money. If you've got 50 items in your backpack, having to click back and forth to sell everything gets tiresome...FAST! A lot of old MMO's, *cough* EverQuest, didn't even have the button. Heck, I don't even remember them referring to the items as junk, you just sort of had to figure it out for yourself. In this day and age however, I figured it was a standard feature, but apparently I was wrong.

All that being said, it was fun enough for me to probably play it for one to three months, which is the going rate for my attention span.

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No Pain, nOgame

I recently returned to playing this game called Ogame, which is a massively-multiplayer online browser based game—meaning all you need is the internet to play it—and it's all based in space. Being an online game, some people can be really annoying and I'll get into that in a moment. I originally played Ogame 7-8 years ago for about a year or two. I had a fairly substantial grouping of colonized planets all in one star system and my home planet had a pretty hefty defence... Then some jerk-off sent an armada at me, destroyed quite a bit of my base and I lost interest. Fast forward to now and I felt like having a time sink. I will note however that this isn't the first time I've tried to start playing this game again.

Basically everyone starts off with a single planet and you must construct mines and such to build up resources so you can improve your technology. Eventually you can colonize other planets and attack people. Think of many free-to-play cell phone games and you've got the right idea for how Ogame plays.

Game screen, click to enlarge

As I had stated before, online players can be incredibly irritating sometimes. The game is built around everybody living together, so there is bound to be some combat between players. A large portion of players that build up fast tend to farm resources off other players. The more moral of these thieves tend to go after players that are inactive, but since I joined a new server, no one is really inactive yet.

It was bound to happen: I was attacked, which I have no inherent problem with. I saw it in time (sensors FTW), and I spent all my resources so when his cargo ships got to my planet, he would pilfer nothing. Among some of the things I built to relieve myself of my resources were some rocket launchers, which are the weakest defences you can build. You would think this would be the end of it; he would see I'm actually playing, not taking his crap and instead of wasting time, he would farm a weaker target. But no I get this message instead:

Wrong move
message saying you were online = we both save time and I'll stop farming you
building missiles and trying to kill my cargos = I'll have to come back with fighters

Have a good game ;)
         
Heremor  

He's trying to steal from me and has the gall to talk to me about etiquette? I don't know, maybe I'm just being pissy, but if he wants to "farm" resources off players, that is a risk he is willing to take. I owe him nothing; if he sends out an attacking fleet, he should be scanning the target constantly to see if anything has changed. At least that's what I do when I attack someone.

Sorry, I'm not sorry. 

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