Review: Tom Clancy’s The Division – Dividing Players from Each Other

March 19, 2016March 22, 2016 / Dustin Murphy / 5 Comments

Pros:
+Well developed story and world that are truly believable
+Manhattan areas can be visited in real life if players took a map of the game
+Itemization plays a key role for players looking to play
+Customization options for clothing are intense

Cons:
-Streets of Manhattan at times feel rather empty
-Dark Zone can at times feel a bit overwhelming

Editor’s Note: Due to the game being an always online title, we’ve decided that the review will be considered in-progress until we are comfortable enough to state this is a finalized review. This means with added content and fixes, we may or may not change this review. If it is updated, we will have an “Updated” section that will compare both new and old content or bugs or what have you in the long run of things. Thanks for your understanding. As this review is in progress, it’ll be edited in the near future to add in true-end game and post-Challenge mission thoughts in the very near future.

When we think of New York, we think of a city that is strong, that can stand back up after taking a rather large blow to the chin before standing back up straight and spitting a few drops of blood out. In turn the city has been famous for returning back to its normal habits shortly after. The city is known for its tragic events such as 9/11, Hurricane Sandy, Kew Gardens Train Crash, and who knows what else to come in the long run of things. However, what would happen to New York if a virus that was altered by man had ravaged through their city streets during the peak of holiday shopping? On Black Friday, for the story sake, this designer virus has been set free on contaminated money. With the virus having been created for its highly infectious rates, but also it’s severity once the infected host is hit by it.
Much like any Tom Clancy story, The Division follows a rather familiar path for any who have played franchises such as Ghost Recon, Splinter Cell, and or Rainbow Six. In this title a secret agency has been created just for such an event where both local law enforcement and even the military have fallen. In turn The Division agents would be activated in order to help maintain peace, but to also bring forth the chance to give the world its former glory once more. This goal rings true for much of the game as fans have already taken off across the virus ridden streets where enemies such as Rioters, the Cleaners, and even the Riker’s have taken to the street in order to claim territory and survive the outbreak the best they can. Your goal? To rebuild the city, to rebuild the city your characters knew and loved. To stop a virus that has gone out of control and once more help the city stand for what it did before the weaponized super virus had been unleashed upon the world.

As our game gets underway the narrative opens strong. The virus is introduced to us, Black Friday is given as it is, and eventually the danger of the virus is stated. Shortly after we are introduced to The Division agents who can be your friend, your partner, your husband, your wife, your son, your daughter, your co-worker, or even quite literally your best friend. Once activated, the agents were trained to drop everything and head off to do their task. Their goal is unique, but at the same time quite simple as we are introduced to each of the members over time as well as the idea that the first line of agents are gone and now the second wave are going in. This is where your character comes in and plays a rather pivotal role in the restoration of Manhattan.

Much like any game recently, the story isn’t the best. Unless you find hidden cellphones, situation files, echo’s and even survival guides, your story is convoluted and troubled. Enemies will have a poor backstory meaning their history will play almost no role to you and will be rather dull. They’ll seem weak and underdeveloped, which is a problem with the game from time to time, but eventually it’ll flesh itself out. However, our first goal in New York wasn’t to discover all the collectibles as I had before the game was over, but instead did so as the game progressed, which even made establishing a home base as our first task take a rather seemingly long time. Once established there are a few things that become a drastic requirement: find a doctor to setup a medical wing, find a technician for the technician’s wing, and even find a man for the tech wing in order to get the ball rolling on restoring the city.

In this base of operations, players are able to do several things. Purchase equipment via in-game credits, sort through their stash to obtain Dark Zone equipment that has been decontaminated from the virus, and even craft items as wanted. Though that is not all that can be done in this base later in. As players progress through the game each wing can be upgraded through gathering supplies from encounters. As these wings are upgraded, new abilities and modifications for abilities begin to unlock. This includes talents and perks that will allow players to become more powerful with time in order to approach end-game content where the will truly challenge themselves through both the Dark Zone and Challenging Difficulty for missions. These new attachments also open up vendors where players can spend their Dark Zone credits and even a weapons vendor for advanced weaponry. Note that these weapons are not cheap and will require a pretty penny if you are one that’s low on credits. Farming will then become your best friend in order to buy any of his exotic gear.

While I could continue on about both progression and the base itself, the game is much larger than that, and because of that there is much more to focus on, which can lead to some issues with the length of the review, but hopefully you’ll hang on.

A Large City, a Play Void of Life, and an Empty Place to Visit

We all know that trekking through Manhattan is not an easy task by now. We’ve all possibly ventured through the cities streets in search for resources, combat, and helping take out any enemies that may be around. This includes the idea that the city should be under constant siege as enemies such as Rioter’s continue doing their jobs as street thugs. Their control of some of the cities streets is inevitable, which means they should be at every corner, around every turn, and even in waiting for Division agent’s in order to stop them while they can. Sadly with any of the games factions this does not remain true, which paints a glaringly large picture for a city in that has been ravaged by such a devastating virus, and one that is sadly falling apart at the seams.

Instead the city streets are rather empty for those wandering outside of the Dark Zone. Sure a few enemies are here and there at “Encounter” spots, but outside of that, the world is dead, void of life, and feeling rather empty outside of the few survivors that are mindless wandering around. Some of them even asking for things as simple as soda, water, and or canned food only to reward players with a reward they may have already obtained a time or three. Unlike games such as Destiny, Borderlands, and or even Firefall; The Division suffers from a problem that leads enemies to be removed as players progress through the story. While a few players have managed to see enemies out in the “wilderness” that hasn’t been the case for two of our reviewers here at B.A.T.G.R. Hopefully this is just a bug and not done intentionally in the scheme of things.

While the city, as stated, is quite beautiful, the city itself feels voids. Many buildings will be passed by and can’t be entered, but to make up for that Massive Entertainment has created new ways to enlarge their world, which includes subway systems, and even sewer systems that are largely connected to the rest of the world. As stated, however, these areas are still void of life for the most part and will leave players disgruntled if they are simply looking for a small encounter post-campaign. Something Destiny did leave intact for players post-game so that they can seamlessly encounter enemies in order to grind out bounties and secondary objectives. This is thing that The Division could take into consideration for fans wanting some replayability outside of story mission’s on challenging difficulty and the Dark Zone.

End Game Content Grinding is Present

Much like any game of the genre, end-game content as mentioned will be a big thing for those looking for replayability. For some it has been the never-ending grind in order to get the best of the best gear available through the Dark Zone before heading into the games hardest mission difficulty for each story mission only known as “Challenging”. In this mode the grind becomes even more real as players will find themselves fighting super difficult enemies, which are all legendary enemies with their yellow health bars and insane amounts of health. Let alone are they the elite of the elite, they are also ones that hit like trucks, and will wither teams of four down to nothing if players are not prepared to take them on. This unfortunate difficulty can almost be said to be as hard as the Nightfall missions on Destiny as endgame players find themselves

While I would say this is unfamiliar territory to some, the game doesn’t lighten down on the idea that was originally created by Diablo II where players would find themselves constantly in the grind to get the best gear possible, and this meant by taking on some of the games hardest bosses around. Even some of the elite enemies would become adequate targets for players to take out. This rings true for The Division as many players are farming for both exotic blueprints for armor and weapons, but also gear from Challenging missions in order to show they have what it takes to be the top dogs within the game.

The Dark Zone is Where the Game Comes to Life

When thinking of a city that has been ravaged by a virus, we constantly think of areas such as quarantine zones and biohazard labs. This rings true for The Division as players will constantly find themselves diving into the games most dangerous place to me: The Dark Zone. The Dark Zone is one place where the baddest of the baddest come out to play, but at a high risk since the virus is present, and this zone comes with the risk of dying. While those who were there when the outbreak have passed, the Dark Zone’s baddies don’t care as this is where they roam the streets, and find themselves being the kings as well as queens of the DZ. These enemies will provide a chance at some of the best game once players hit level 30.

This is also a place where Division Agents will find themselves going as they hunt down the best of the best gear possible when not diving into the missions mentioned earlier. Here players at level 30 will find themselves utilizing their mastered abilities and even grouping up to increase their chances of survival. The difficulty in this game is present around the corner, but what makes this experience all the more unique is that it is an open PvP zone. Here players who suspect you may just have what they want, or just because they can, may rain a few bullets down on your team while using their abilities to their advantage. This means one player may run a medic build while the other three run a combination of things just to up their chances at survival. While the A.I. is lethal, the thing that is more lethal are those around you as they can turn on you at any minute, and steal your loot. Let alone do they steal your loot, they go rogue, which marks them for all agents in the area to take out, increase their gains, and even run off with the loot from those rogue agents.

While the Dark Zone sounds as dangerous as it can be, the Dark Zone comes with its own set of in-game rewards through Dark Zone vendors. This can include exotic weapons or armor, legendary weapons or armor, and even some awesome apparel changes that can be found int he open world. Let alone is the experience worth having, the Dark Zone provides a unique twist to grinding out named bosses, much like in titles such as Destiny, Borderlands, and even Diablo. It’s here where the end-game comes to life as well as the PvP aspect of any game. While one would hope for modes like what Splinter Cell, Rainbow Six or even Ghost Recon have to order, we’re down for what this game has to offer since it’s a unique experience, and one that’ll keep the game around for a while.

Cover to Cover and Closing Thoughts are Here to Stay, so is The Division

While it would be easy to carry on about what makes The Division unique for hours on end, it’s not something I’d like to do. As the game carries very familiar tactics such as cover to cover, pulse to see enemies, and team oriented mechanics, it’s hard to say that The Division isn’t unique since it takes some of the best things about previous titles by Ubisoft and uses them quite well. While the story itself is weak at certain points along with its character development, but overall? The experience itself speaks louder than those few minor flaws that can be improved with upcoming content and a few game updates.

Tom Clancy’s The Division – PC, PlayStation 4 (Reviewed), and Xbox One
Developer: Ubisoft Massive, Red Storm Entertainment, Ubisoft Reflections, Ubisoft Annecy
Publisher: Ubisoft
Cost: 59.99 USD (Base Copy) | 99.99 USD (Gold Edition)
Release Date: Now Available

While The Division is weak at certain points, it’s easy to look past its weak points to find its strong points to keep the experience alive, and because of that it’s pretty easy to say that Tom Clancy’s The Division will be here to stay thanks to the loot system as well as the future content that’s on its way sometime soon. We just hope sooner than later as fans will consume the content that’s there pretty quickly given enough time as this one of the best new franchises to exist in the current state of gaming.

Our review is based upon the edition of the game we purchased ourselves. For information about our ethics policy please click here.

Final Score: 9 out of 10

About the Writer:

Dustin is our native console gamer, PlayStation and Nintendo reviewer who has an appetite for anything that crosses the boarders from across the big pond. His interest in JRPG’s, Anime, Handheld Gaming, and Pizza is insatiable. His elitist attitude gives him direction, want, and a need for the hardest difficulties in games, which is fun to watch, and hilarity at its finest. You can find him over on Twitter, Google+, and or you can find him on PSN with RaivynLyken.

Review: Far Cry Primal – When Surviving Goes Primal

March 2, 2016 / Dustin Murphy / Leave a comment

Pros:
+Astonishing graphics, animations, and detail
+An original story that deters from modern emphasis on human survival
+New weapons compliment the year 10,000 B.C. and even feel truly unique
+Lack of multiplayer truly makes the game feel alive and believable

Cons:
-Enemy camps can easily become overwhelming
-Saber tooth tiger feels at times, too powerful, or even not powerful enough
-Woolly Mammoths attack without a warning and will easily kill players

I’ll be the first to admit my past few weeks have been busy. I’ve worked on our hands-on for Tom Clancy’s The Division Beta, Warframe, and even started working on The Witch and the Hundred Night: Revival Edition for our friends over at NIS America. While not playing those? I’ve spent a lot of free time on SMITE thanks to our newest writer, Christopher Adee who handed me an Alpha key for PlayStation 4. Deciding to take a break since I’ve been rather excited for Far Cry Primal, I headed down to our local Best Buy, toss down the money for the game, and headed home. With review copies not available, I still felt obligated to bring out the review the game, but also to enjoy it while I could still be hammering out some time on other titles.

Sitting down while it installed, my mind began to wonder what would allow the series to change, and this included what the graphics engine would be like, what weapons would be available, but also what story arch could they approach with letting go of the known formula once used. Sure I expected an approach that would require me to hunt certain creatures, gather certain resources, and even upgrade my weapons, but what I wasn’t expecting was the lush, beautiful, and massive open world. One that is large, sprawling with life, and even viewed through first person so that I would become largely immersed within the world before me. As the game began to start up, I excited grabbed my PlayStation 4’s dual shock controller, plugged in my PlayStation Gold headphones, and even turned off my gaming room lights. From there my adventure began.

As the opening started, I was given my first glimpses of a rather cinematic experience, one that revealed Takkar and the tribe of Wenja hunters he belonged to as they tracked a herd of woolly mammoths. With food supplies short, they were close to starvation, which put their hunt in a dire situation. The language they used? One I’d never heard before, one that provided even more interest in this newest title, and one that has kept me interested for hours on end. Within opening minutes, the game took a rather familiar turn, Takkar’s tribe was wiped out, him being the lone survivor, I would be prompted to take on his need to survive, which includes him fighting his way through the wilderness to a play of safety. Within the opening hours of the game, I found myself immerse to the extent I was building up the tribe, forging new huts for the freshly recruited Wenja members, and even defending the home village from an Ulda attack only to later begin taming creatures such as wolves, dohle’s, saber tooth tigers, and even cave bears.

With my village built up to 121 people, my pack of animal companion’s almost completely filled up, and even weapons almost maxed out, my mind began to wonder while my focused begun to go outside of the campaign, which has been fantastic, but at the same time rather familiar. With an approach that fits rather perfectly tot he franchise, Far Cry Primal offers something beautiful, unique, and noticeably loved by the developers. The world is alive, it’s realistic, and the graphics are beyond amazing compared to many of this generations games. Even with games like Metal Gear Sold V: The Phantom Pain, Plants vs Zombies Garden Warfare 2, Rise of the Tomb Raider, and even Halo 5: Guardians – graphics have not been a problem for a few games now. Joining those ranks is our latest open world exploration that is primitive, gory, and brutal. One that makes those games almost week in graphics, animation, and lively.

With this tidbit of graphical and audio prowess, Far Cry Primal is definitely a departure from the guns, the explosions, and modernization we’ve become used to with most of today’s games. With this departure it began to grow easy to appreciate what made this game so unique and the fact it reminded me of a game that I have come to know and love – The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim. This was no easy achievement for me to hand to the game I’ve become to love, and even enjoy for hours on end. If it’s even possible to compare the two as Far Cry Primal does not call upon magical items, dragons, and even mystical beings, but instead it calls upon the ways of old, and traditions that ancient tribes would call upon during their days. While there are a few games that call upon bows, hammers, and spears, it’s not common in AAA market anymore. Thanks to Far Cry Primal, we are able to experience this and even appreciate it even more-so than ever.

Unlike Skyrim though, Far Cry Primal doesn’t just call upon the need to revive your companion, once entering mountains that are snow covered and cold? Players will find themselves worrying about Takkar’s warmth whether it means lighting a spear on fire or even one of their hammers. They’ll have to worry about sneaking through the plains that are inhabited by their enemy tribes and even worry about resources that can be used to heal themselves, their companion, and even craft their weapons. Let alone will they worry about all those mentioned things, player swill even have to worry about rescuing other Wenja and even protecting their villages and taking out enemy villages. With this bit of a twist, it’s hard not to say that Far Cry Primal hasn’t taken on a realistic twist in order to show that its world could truly have existed at one point. To be honest? I’m not too sure it hadn’t after having played the game as long as I have. But to be honest? If the Far Cry games could do this? What’s not to say that Far Cry couldn’t keep at it with the right amount of tweaking the skill tree, requirements to unlock weapons, and even modify their weapon crafting system a little bit? To be honest, the Far Cry series would be able to rival The Elder Scrolls quite easily if given a few years of development and decision making behind how many skills could be unlocked, and the likes.

Far Cry Primal – PC, PlayStation 4 (Reviewed), Xbox One
Developer: Ubisoft Montreal
Publisher: Ubisoft
Cost: 59.99 USD
Release Date: Now Available

But what makes this game more unique than past titles? The mechanics have changed a bit. Players will adjust weapons to the situation such as bee bombs to disperse large groups of enemies while switching to the heavy club to go in for close heavy combat. For range? Players will find themselves lobbing spears at enemies while even taking out the long bow for increased range. If a simple arrow doesn’t do justice and enemies are hiding behind some cover? Easy – light the arrow on fire and send it hurling their way to force them out of cover, or simply send your companion after them only to watch them get mauled while you reap the rewards afterwards. But there is something where the game does begin to struggle in the long run.

As players explore it won’t be uncommon for nature to fight back. In the mountains I found myself frustrated as the sound of a woolly mammoth trampling Takkar became all-to-familiar as I found myself muttering obscenities under my breath or even found myself all-in-all walking away for a few minutes to take a break. Once back? I soon encountered myself fending off not just woolly mammoths at night, but even saber toothed tigers, and even wolves as they went roaming across the mountains of Uros, making Takkar’s fight for survival a bit more brutal than easier. This even would show a difficulty when fighting through enemy camps, bonfires, and even territory while trying to once more tame the lands of Uros and become a master of survival while leading a tribe to the top of the food chain.

Normally this is where we would post the trailer, but due to this games blood, gore, and nudity. We’re not showing the trailer here, but if you want to? Head on over to YouTube here to view the official Story Trailer.

While Far Cry has departed from the approach it once knew, Far Cry Primal has reinvented the franchise for the better. The question at hand is, will Ubisoft follow this formula in the future and do what they’ve done now, but improve upon it? With weapons like the double arrow, the bee bomb, and even the throwing blades, it’ll be interesting to see what Ubisoft has up their sleeves for future content and even improvised content if any are to happen since a season pass is unavailable at this time.

Our review is based upon a copy we purchased ourselves due to the demand for review copies being extremely high. We still want to thank Ubisoft for the chances to do this review! For information about our ethics policy please click here.

Final Score: 9 out of 10

About the Writer:

Review: Warframe: The Second Dream U18 – Your Children Sleep No More, Natah

February 22, 2016 / Dustin Murphy / Leave a comment

Pros:
+Gorgeous cinematics using in-game engine
+Storyline that will leave players hungering for more
+New warframe Ivara offers diverse and unique gameplay mechanics
+New ship designs offer a unique blend for players to enjoy
+Designing your Tenno
+Moon tile set is a blast and brings a new breath of air to the game

Cons:
-The want for more story that takes place post Second Dream

Warframe, when you hear the name many gamers will give a nod to the game or a shake of their head. The fact of the matter is, that Warframe is one of the few games that has given me hope for the free-to-play with in-game microtransactions for people who want to spend the real money or people who simply want to mess around with the in-game market and make some money. As one of my favourite free-to-plays, I’ve had no problems getting around with spending as little money as possible since it’s launch, and intend on keeping it that way thanks to the open trade market that the developers allow us gamers to have.

But what is my articles real focal point on, you might ask, and that’s the idea that triple A free-to-play games can exist. Recently I returned to the game and was welcomed back by some of my friends at both Digital Extremes and through PlayStation Network. My return has been enjoyable thanks to my friends Amber, Alec and a few others. My welcoming back even included the games newest update, which includes a fully cinematic storyline with missions, and even cutscenes as you might imagine. This even includeded a detailed origin of our Warframes operator, the Tenno, and who they are. Titled as “The Second Dream,” the update brings in some amazing changes and even includes a revamped variant of the Stalker known as “Shadow Stalker.”

Known as a previously laughable foe, The Stalker was one that players like myself would group up, run missions, and if Stalker came after us, turn him into stringed confetti with our swords. That has since changed as he has been completely reworked due to this new update, and he now plays a larger role in the game than what he did previously. Sounds impossible? Not so-much. But I do want to advise, if you continue reading, please do so at your own will. Mechanically the game is very much the same beast as I remember it a year ago, but with a few changes to Warframes like Trinity, Excalibur, and my all-time favourite Saryn who has taken position as the new “Prime” for Update 18.

The biggest changes that can be noticed are the fact that things have been reworked, Stalker is a new monster, one that is more lethal before, and even provides a challenge from any range of combat. The prefered range of combat used for multiple occasions has been a mix of up-close with melee, and eventually range with bows or guns depending on the person’s play style. The major change to Stalker is that his loot table has seemingly changed it up a bit. His newest entry is the sword Shadow Stalker uses called “War”. This sword is amazingly powerful and even comes with its own stance mod, one that includes Stalkers weapon stance, and provides players the chance to feel, well, like the Stalker to say the least. As for the mechanics part of the review? There’s not been just a whole lot of changes that we can see as of now, but we will come back if anything noticeable happens.

SPOILER WARNING BEGINS HERE

Many of us over the years since the games launch have been twiddling our fingers, drawing up conclusions, and even discussing what each Warframe is and if they have a story. Now? That has drastically changed from what we originally had thought as we now know who the Tenno really are and why they play such a pivotal role in Warframe, but also for Lotus herself. The story starts out with us decoding a message, one that causes Lotus to go missing, and in turn we are met with a new not-so-charismatic person, but one that sees the flaws in everything; Teshin. For those unfamiliar, Teshin is a conclave master, and the one that we’ve seen a few times before hand, mostly for those who PVP like myself from time to time.

But now he has been given a larger role with Warframes newest update and story arch, one that blows the lid off everything we’d previously thought about the game. This story arch uncovers the truth about the Lotus and her hidden past. We learn that her race is nasty, they are the sentients, and ones that wanted to wipe out the Tenno due to their true power and in turn destroy what was left of humanity. Once discovering this, we find out that the Lotus calls upon one of our most hated nemesis, the Corpus leader known as Alad V. Alad V for many who don’t know has been troublesome since his first appearance. Now? He’s to help us stop an even far greater enemy by the name of Hunhow. A sentient being who has been locked away for seemingly hundreds, if not thousands of years in an ancient chamber where he has slept, and now the Grineer seek to find him, awaken him, and reverse their physical degradation due to over-cloning themselves. As our story gets underway everything eventually begins to become explained as to why the Tenno have become so important to the Lotus and why she has been adamant in protecting “her children”.

Once towards the end of the story it all begins to become explained. We learn the truth behind these child warriors, why they were asleep in their “second dream,” and even as to why their Warframes were in the original chamber and “awoke” from their “dream”. The truth is now out there, our Warframes were the only thing that awoke, our Tenno were put in stasis in order to keep them from going insane and leading the same fate as what Stalker had. With them now awake, we learn our child warriors are one of the greatest things to happen to the universe, but there are only so few of them left in the world. Their mission has been to keep peace, to maintain balance, and even follow the ways of Naramon, Madurai, Unairu, Vazarin or even Zenurik. Each of these ways lead different ways of combat for the Tenno. For the review, the choice was Naramon, the way of the tactician as it can be called since it leads to confusion, and weakness in the enemies.

These focus also give base to the past our Tenno lived. With Naramon, our Tenno were master tacticians, ones that used enemy confusion, displacement, and weakness against them. This even allows us to see our Tenno appear through their Warframe and unleash tremendously powerful abilities that weaken enemies and cause disarray among their legions. This opens up quite a bit of combat advantage for those who want to put their enemies asunder. As we learn about these ways, Natah or rather Lotus, guides us to what each one was, she even describes to us that she found the ship that housed the Tenno. She explains as to why they are even her children due to her being barren, much like the rest of her kind after slipping through the Void, which leaves the idea that our Tenno are truly going to be unique if they suffered the same consequences from going through the Void themselves.

As this review winds down to its end, it’s hard to think that a game a few years ago was primarily a mission to mission game has come full circle to begin its journey as a story-based MMO style game with a very lively group of gamers who enjoy the story just as much as myself. If there is anything to be said about Warframe, it’s that the game is very much alive, and one that will continue to evolve into a beautiful cinematic experience at this rate. One that we’ll be along the ride for.

The Review is based upon the latest update version of the game that can be downloaded for free on the PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC. For information about our ethics policy please click here.

Final Score: 9 out of 10

About the Writer:

Review: Street Fighter V – Familiar Faces, Different Streets

February 21, 2016February 21, 2016 / Dustin Murphy / Leave a comment

Pros:
+New characters offer new combat tactics
+Old Characters somewhat redesigned for the modern era
+Online ranked matching is fun, especially when PC vs. PS4 matches happen

Cons:
-Connectivity issues persist off and on for Capcom Fighters Network
-Lag can cause problems while fighting
-Ranked matches do not go based on skill level unless chosen

Author’s Note: Due to the game having just released, our review will be getting updated from time to time with the listed changes above the previous review. As the future content is released, that will be added as well as the games lifespan continues.

Since it’s release in 1987, Capcom’s Street Fighter has been a series that has taken the world by storm. It has brought some of the best players around the world to fight against each other in order to compete for best in the world. The series has also kept true to its formula by keeping the classic arcade button smashing antics alive to this very day, but one thing has changed a lot since 1987 and now. Street Fighter has gone online and even created a ranked matchmaking in order to allow the best of the best to throw some shoryuken’s, hadoukens, and even a few yoga flames at each other, but not all has been smooth with this latest iteration. This time around the game is seeing itself as a PlayStation 4 and PC exclusive, which leaves Xbox fans in the dark. Why’s this? Cross-platform play is all we can assume as PC players and PS4 players are now fighting each other for best in the world.

Much like building a house, games go through the same steps. A solid foundation must be in place, it must be smooth, strong, and supportive of what it does. Something that Street Fighter V has been trying to do since it’s launch last week. The game has seen itself stumble a few times as it begins to stand back up. The problem it’s facing? Online server issues as players begin to storm the servers in order to show down for the best in the world rankings or even take to the casual modes that’ll allow players to throw a few punches into each others faces and shake hands with their console or PC counterparts when done. If there is anything we’ve learned it’s that Capcom has taken on a large task, one that Microsoft did once before with their title Shadowrun. Now? It’s time for Capcom’s debut into the cross-platform arena and for their first attempt, it’s not half bad even though the game is still building its foundation via both fighters and online stability.

For our review the PlayStation 4 version was decided upon since our gaming rig seems to be a bit under the weather, which is quite alright as it serves its purpose when Sussie (the ASUS RoG gaming laptop we use) is up for the task. For now? PlayStation 4 did just fine. Upon our initial connection attempts to the fighting network on launch, Street Fighter V found itself with some trouble both the night before and the day of as servers were down for maintenance, and the problem persisted not just for a few minutes, but for a few hours. Once they were up? It was time to take on the story mode.

“Wait…. Where’s the arcade mode, the story was too short?”

As you might imagine, Street Fighter isn’t a series renown for its stories even though they draw is in, teach us the basics with each character, and even give us a bit of an idea as to why our characters are even in the fighting arena in the first place. Unfortunately this is told through a very short four fights with each character, and you’re done. With only sixteen characters at launch, the story isn’t exactly all that long, and it’s one that was quite easily completed within a matter of an hour. That’s right, you read it, one hour. The nice part about it, however, is that we aren’t stuck with the adventure of a single fighter, but instead all sixteen launch characters. Some of them even having been redesigned to show some aging such as Dhalsim who has gone grey, grown a beard, and still remains annoying as ever with his seemingly unending reach across the screen. Let alone has he seen changes, we also get to see M. Bison having gone grey with age, and even seen families flourish through the years. Ken now has a kid, imagine that, and Ryu is still trying to control the Satsui no Hado as in previous titles.

The troublesome part about this title isn’t that the fighting mechanics for most fighters haven’t changed at all. It’s the fact that the game does not feature an arcade mode for those who don’t want to go online and duke it out a few matches with a random NPC, but instead? They are stuck with a Survival mode, which challenges players to stay alive as long as possible, spend their score on buffs or health, and continue on their way to see how long they can survive. While this mode has difficulties to choose from, it’s just not as satisfying as it would be with a simple arcade mode so that players can choose the fighter they want, when they want them. Though this isn’t where all the troubles do begin, instead we are used to seeing costume swaps in the more recent games, and this game does depart from that in some ways. The new way is we get to unlock color pallets for completing the story mode, and additional ones for meeting certain goals in the games “Survival” mode that was previously mentioned. These colors can be unlocked using the in-game currency known as “Fight Money”. This currency can be earned in several different ways: Playing the story mode, playing ranked matches, survival mode, and even through casual matches. As easy as it sounds to unlock things, that would be completely opposite of the truth, but instead unlocks are a rather painful grind. One that’s even more-so painful than trying to beat Ludwig from Bloodborne’s first DLC on New Game++.

“If players have enough skill, there’s always a chance they’ll show up on Shoryuken..”

But where the game shines is truly the Capcom Fighters Network where players can choose to take on their rivals and duke it out to settle the score or even the ranked match where players who are the best of the best can go head to head. Eventually the best players even have a chance to go to pro tournaments where they will be recognized for their skill and eventually have it tested. We can only assume that they will take on the likes of players like Lupe Fiasco, Momochi, Daigo Umehara, LPN, and even Ricky Ortiz. These players have all been recognized for their skill and natural coordination within these games. This includes beating players into the ground, breaking faces, and taking names in matches that may only last a mere twenty seconds or less. If players have enough skill there’s always a chance they’ll show up on Shoryuken’s ranking website if they enter the tournaments. While online ranked matches may sound as fun as they do, they will test the skill of players across both PlayStation 4 and PC unless the player selects the same platform option. While this option can be utilized, it’s not suggested from personal experience as the movement between both Steam players and PSN players seems about the same in skill, and even the want to slap heads into walls when getting utterly annihilated.

Though there is a small piece of information that may grab players by the ears and will be updated into our review at a later date once it launches. Coming soon to both platforms, players will be able to take the offline Challenge Mode where players will be able to take on daily challenges in order to hone in on their skills and even accomplish tasks for prizes. While that sounds a bit dull, the wait may actually help for those who don’t like playing online, but where the focus of Street Fighter V is, there doesn’t seem to be much hope for those who just want to play offline and practice. For those wanting more story? The cinematic expansion won’t be landing till this June, which might frustrate some players, and even discourage some of the upcoming players as they just might wait out another variant of the game to release, if one does.

Street Fighter V – PC, PlayStation 4 (Reviewed)
Developer: Capcom
Publisher: Capcom
Cost: 59.99 USD
Release Date: Now Available

While Street Fighter V has see some rocky bits with its post-launch the days after have gone a bit smoother, lag between matches has seemingly disappeared, and the disconnection issues seem to be almost completely eradicated. While the roster features mostly new comers with some old timers left, the game hasn’t change much in any means, and even the use of EX abilities seems all, but familiar. Mortal Kombat X’s X-Ray moves anyone? No pun intended, but both work much the same and offer the same amount of usefulness when wanting to put a match to a quick end. Street Fighter V in its new formula seems to be quite the game, feeling a bit empty, but one that will come to fulfill its destiny to bring in a huge experience at a later date. While Capcom’s newest release is interesting, the players who get bored quickly will find themselves stepping away sooner than later as the focus seems to be on the die-hard online fighters who want to go pro. For the casual fighters, Street Fighter Vs best offering may just be the fact characters will be added in later through the shop that will us the in-game Fight Money in order to make their roster feel whole. Till that does? This latest Street Fighter at times feels a bit empty and a game that could use a bit of polishing in order to keep casual gamers from being bored.

The Review is based upon a version we purchased ourselves and was completed based on currently available content. For information about our ethics policy please click here.

Final Score: 7 out of 10

About the Writer:

Review: Bombshell – Little Chick, Big Guns, and Lots of Explosives Part 1

February 18, 2016February 18, 2016 / Dustin Murphy / 4 Comments

Pros:
+Big weapons that pun the female life
+Amazing story that gives our heroine a 90’s video game start
+Map designs using top down design offer a delightful Diablo-esque experience

Cons:
-Requires a decently powerful PC to play
-Controls on keyboard may be slightly disorienting to non-PC gamers
-Quest NPCs can be difficult to find

When looking at companies 3D Realms and Interceptor have been known some of their fantastic titles like Rise of the Triad, Duke Nukem, Shadow Warrior, Prey, Blake Stone, and many more. With their recent departure from Duke Nukem it was a wonder as to where Interceptor and 3D Realms would go. Their answer? Replacing Duke Nukem with a female character who is full of slap shot one liners, big guns, and an attitude to boot. Sherry is not your average female protagonist, instead she’s a bad ass who has weapons named things such as “The Motherflakker” and the “P.M.S.”. Names you’ll get used to as you go through the game.

The opening moments of the game go as expected. Our enemy force, in this case alien like reptiles are assaulting the White House, and our hero of the day is on her way. Driving like a mad woman we see her arrive at the scene of the “crime” and this is where our game begins. For many, Bombshell seems almost lackluster, if you read the reviews out there – it’s being compared to Duke Nukem quite heavily, and in turn this is where I’ll say stop reading if you are wanting a Duke Nukem style game, this isn’t that. Instead this is Interceptor’s adventure into a new terrain they haven’t been apart of quite yet, which is the birds-eye-view point while implementing shooter and RPG mechanics into a game.

While “boring” may come into mind to some people since the game does follow rather interesting enemy behavior’s, boss mechanics, and similar level designs; Bombshell has remained a game that is rather fun, interesting, and one of those where I’d not have minded if a story was not present in the slightest. Why? I’m a fan of these style games, I love to explore, blow things up, and even take on bosses that may, at times, present a level of difficulty, which they did not disappoint on the higher difficulties away from “Normal”. While missions will seem generic once players are taken to the alien worlds that Shelly aka Bombshell will traverse, the levels are still enjoyable and quite fun in comparison to what one may think. Ever played Diablo? The levels were pretty much the same in the first and second games, just a different paint job. While my biggest complaint with the title wouldn’t be the story or the level design, it’d be the fact that enemies didn’t variate much nor did they seem to want to do so. While enemy placements could have used a clever working to them, they still offered a challenge that lead me to dying more than once, and even throwing my hands up in pure frustration due to having died to thinks I knew I could have avoided. Things as simple as a few bullets that could have been dodged using Shelly’s abilities to my advantage.

While reading many reviews out there, you’ll see that Bombshell has been getting nagged at for what may seem like a simplistic design, one that will take you back to the 90’s era of gaming, but the thing I’ve not seen mentioned is simple. Combat mechanics, the RPG elements or even the abilities that Shelly will use, which in truth – is frustrating, so our review? Won’t be focusing on the level designs, the monotonous story that may seem remnant to a Duke Nukem title (not saying this is bad at all) or even the fact we’ve encountered a few bugs we were able to bypass in the long run.

As stated, Bombshell at its core is a top-down RPG shooter, where our lead lady will grow more powerful as you play. This includes leveling up her health, energy, and even her armor. The one thing that stuck out about Bombshell is that the game is unique, it’s not trying to be another game, but instead is going with what 3D Realms and Interceptor know best. Fun, puzzling, and exploration filled titles that will drive players to pay attention to what they are doing, but also their surroundings as they undergo combat situations and explore. The most noticeable of all this is the fact that Bombshell’s abilities do play a rather large role in her combat situation. Things such as her dash or shoulder charge will quickly render her free of enemy damage for a moment. This will even get her away from combat long enough to recharge her armor and energy to provide another blast of combat prowess. Let alone do players level her up, they also level up her weapons, and in turn make them even deadlier in combat. All of this at the cost of the in-game currency called Ky.

While some of this seems simple, many of these mechanics began to shine during the boss fights. Players will find themselves constantly dodging, moving, and even switching up weapons as their ammo begins to go limited due to ammo being hard to find in boss fights. This means players will find themselves not just utilizing Shelly’s weaponry and gadgets, but also her abilities such as her Trap, her rush, and the previously mentioned charge, which knocks enemies back. Though players will need to cautiously navigate areas in order to not die during these fights as terrain can be just as deadly as the enemies they take on.

Bombshell – PC (Reviewed)
Developer: Interceptor Entertainment
Publisher: 3D Realms
Cost: 39.99 USD
Release Date: Now Available

This currency follows a similar situation with games like Dark Souls and Bloodborne where players will need it to by medpacks, ammo, and even weapon upgrades. All the while allowing players to button hammer away in order to stay alive and take out their enemy to the best of their capabilities. If one thing is true about Bombshell, it’s not that it’s a wasted game, it’s the fact too many walked in expecting Duke Nukem out of it. the game is challenging with some puzzles that require weapons to have certain upgrades or even for Shelly to have certain abilities unlocked in order to continue.

If you are one that likes to explore and find hidden collectibles for in-game missions and listen to some witty 90’s-like one-liners? Bombshell is right up your alley and is one that provides a rather enjoyable story as well as gameplay mechanics.

Stay tuned for our second review coming from David Murphy, which will cover his thoughts on the game in our duo review.

Our review is based upon the final version that the publisher provided us with. For information about our ethics policy please click here.

Final Score: 8 out of 10

About the Writer:

Review: Firewatch – Where Hearts Burn Slowly to Ashes (Spoiler Warning)

February 13, 2016February 13, 2016 / Dustin Murphy / Leave a comment

Pros:
+Beautifully crafted story and characters
+Graphics used are perfect for the game offering a departure from hyper-realism
+The use of colors is a superb choice from lush greens to vibrant oranges
+Story will break hearts and cause tears

Cons:
–Only characters actually seen in the game? Are a body and well your own character
–Very, very short for 19.99 USD

Firewatch_SC03

There’s a point where I’ve begun to tell people that games can’t connect to us on a singular emotional level. That we are bound by our human nature into letting our minds play the tricks on us that we need. Want a good scare? Good. Go play games like Slender, Dead Space, DOOM 3 BFG, Outlast or any other disturbing game out there on the market. You’ll get the few cheap thrills you need to make your skin crawl. While being fearful is a natural emotion for us, so is the idea that it derives from our brains impulses to be scared. In ways, that is how we connect to some of the games we do. But the game I’ve decided to take on through my own wallet is not a game that derives from the use of fear or even the subtle hint of violence, but instead it derives from the heart. For me, it is rare that games can connect on an emotional level. Sure the death scene of Sniper Wolf in Metal Gear Solid worked up a few solid tears. If you’ve ever seen movies like Disney Pixar’s UP! or even the same companies film Inside Out, you already know the opening is going to hit you with an emotional punch. That’s what happened with Firewatch.

For many of you, you know the game just came out on Steam and PlayStation 4. You also know that the game is a rather story-driven, first person title, set in the year 1989. The game was developed by Campo Santo, and published by Panic. Panic being a Microsoft Studio, makes it interesting to let us even see the game hit PlayStation 4 versus Xbox One. In this title by Campo Santo, we take on the role of Henry, and overweight, bearded guy who is running away from his life. His problem becomes very real and one for many people to easily touch with. His getaway from these problems? A fire watchtower in the middle of the Shoshone National Forest in Wyoming. Henry isn’t the guy you’d expect him to be, with the voice talent of Rich Sommer in the place, we get a character whom has a deep,but gentle voice, one that is emotionally touched and leads us to believe Henry could be a very real person. For many of you, you may be stating in the back of your head that there is no way this could be your typical video game lead character. In truth? I’d agree with you to some extent, but not all of it.

Firewatch_SC01

For many of us, we get to take on the knowledge that Henry is a white, able-bodied, and male lead. One that has a bit of extra meat on him, but likes to take his long afternoon and morning hikes while doing his job as a Firewatch. At his side? We get his Firewatch leader, Delilah. Henry fortunately isn’t a character we can attribute to characters like Isaac Clark of Deadspace or even Jason Brody from Fallout 3. Instead? He’s just your average Joe, which lets us feel like we could know him in person. That’s where this games charm takes place.

Firewatch’s true charm isn’t the fact that our character is just running from his problems outside of what he is doing. It’s the fact that Henry is story driven when working with Delilah while exploring the National park. With the graphics being as stylized as they are, it didn’t take long to see why almost anyone could play this game, even people with a moderately low end PC. If you have either or just a PS4? You’ll be getting the maximum capacity out of the title when it comes to graphical prowess, which helps feed the games experience. The experience is unique as we trek through the woods, one where we find our characters discussing the reasons as to why they are even doing their job. Why the forest is the way it is and even discussing as to why Henry isn’t back home with his wife. While the narrative is rather immersive, the real charm as stated isn’t just our character development we get. Sure we have two very realistic characters, both featuring amazing voice talent and even chemistry, but we also get the idea that these two could be people we’ve known all our lives and just never really got to know.

While there were moments I found myself chuckling at the snarky conversations and the plot twists, I did find myself commonly wandering the simple thing – why didn’t we ever get to really see Delilah, but instead wandered mindlessly through the forests while trying to stop people from starting fires, uncovering age-old mysteries, and even finding missing persons letters? While the different landscapes are charming, and beautiful, the wildlife itself seemed lonesome; fire watchers must be a rather lonely bunch. If it wasn’t for the radios they keep on their person in order to communicate.

Firewatch_SC02

As stated, much of our story comes to life through our characters Henry and Delilah, Delilah being voiced by Cissy Jones (Fallout 4’s Doctor Duff, The Wolf Among Us). We get the idea her character is a veteran fire watcher. One that has been there for some time and has even gotten to know the other watchers that have come in and out of the watch tower Henry has been assigned to. One that offers a very different scenery than his home back in Boulder, Colorado. While one would expect to see other people, our only human contact comes down to Delilah outside of the set of girls we get to rudely interrupt while they are swimming in the park causing trouble as usual. While the two girls offer a few chuckles, both Delilah and Henry (sometimes called Hank by Delilah), offer us an emotional spiral as the story tension begins to spike due to the events taking place. Some of it can be from her being genuinely upset by the choices made or even the fact that she has completely stressed out. Regardless, the game gives players a genuine since of anguish as we tug at her emotional strings. This is where the game finds its central lifeline anchored in; it’s only then do you realize just how important Delilah is to the Firewatch title.

When it comes to interaction choices with Delilah between each day on the radio, players are given a chance to pick their responses. These responses do matter and are critical to the character development, but also as to how Henry and her get to their endpoint. So time does matter as do your decisions. Miss something that may be an important part? Your conversations can change drastically as she may take your version of Hanks silence as an insult. Even then there is a chance she could just sign off her radio, and go silent for the day. This time leaving you to your devices. Like any game, however, it’s hard not to see that Firewatch starts off normally. Delilah works as your supervisor. From there she gives you a few tasks at hand to help clean up the park or patrol, only to eventually have you move carefully across the park in order to investigate things going on while learning both characters back stories all the while.

Viewing past this trailer contains spoilers. Reader discretion advised.

Firewatch – PlayStation 4 (Reviewed), PC, and Linux
Developer: Campo Santo
Publisher: Panic
Cost: 19.99 USD
Release Date: Now Available

What makes Firewatch unique isn’t just how the game deals with love, loss, and new friendship; instead it deals with being human. Making human choices. These choices are kicked off by us finding out that Henry’s wife is sick with Alzheimer’s. She has gotten to the point that she barely recognizes him. So to escape from her worsening condition he has taken up the job to help out at this park. In turn our character development takes the biggest twist when two young women go missing. Fires start and Delilah becomes Henry’s new interest based upon the choices you make. All the while she helps him come to terms with what is happening and giving him the idea that maybe, just maybe, he should stop running from his troubles in order to take care of his ailing wife. While many could frown upon the idea of infidelity towards his marriage, we are given characters that are unique, human, and are flawed instead of perfect. Their flaws are what makes their story twist around so perfectly as both characters secrets get flushed out closer and closer to the end. While the ending itself, based upon your choices, may offer a bit of an emotional punch to the heart as players find themselves in Delilah’s watch tower awaiting rescue as a raging fire tears through the park.

While the game does offer unique twists upon missing teen girls, the last firewatcher who was in your tower that just suddenly disappeared, and even the notion that the park in Firewatch truly has the mysteries it does. That being said, Firewatch is a gem, one that Campo Santo has carefully crafted to give players a taste of what true gaming can be like when stepping away from all the blood, the gore, and violence in order to tap into a true human existence. It’s hard to say that I’m not one that hasn’t played games a few times over. In truth I found myself sucked into for more than one playthrough just to see how diverse Delilah and Henry could be and I wasn’t shocked to see that the choices change their dynamics tremendously. If there is an appraisal, it’s the fact that Firewatch is unique, it is carefully crafted, and offers a very real human interaction through emotional aspects. This leads Campo Santo’s Firewatch to be one of the best stories I’ve played in years.

Firewatch is out for Windows, Mac, LINUX, and PlayStation 4 at an affordable 19.99 USD.

Our review is based upon the final version that the publisher provided us with. For information about our ethics policy please click here.

Final Score: 9 out of 10

About the Writer:

Review: Megadimension Neptunia VII – Console Wars Gone Multidimensional

February 13, 2016February 13, 2016 / Dustin Murphy / 1 Comment

Pros:
+Insanely fun boss bottles
+New characters and zones add a good bit of comical hilarity to the game
+New battle mechanics for bosses recreate what a boss fight is for the series

Cons:
-Battles can be overwhelming for new comers

If you are someone who has played any RPG, you know that things do change in the franchises first and foremost. You also know that the games will recreate themselves in subtle ways to make the games worth the while, but also to provide a unique twist to things players have become used to. The Hyperdimension Neptunia titles are not excluded from this trend. When the games first launched in 2010 exclusively on PlayStation 3, we were given a JRPG series that was noticeably not going to take itself seriously – it’s a direct pun at the gaming industry, more-so the “Great Console Wars” that many of us grew up to if you are old enough to truly remember them. If not, I’m sure you’ve become semi-familiar with the current day one, which is most commonly attributed to Sony and Microsoft firing shots at each other. Behind this concept the idea gave birth to a franchise that many have become fans of. More so to the fact these games are hilarious and intend to be while playing on simple mechanics. Over the course of the past few years, all this has been revamped, and meanwhile given birth to remakes of the original three titles that made the franchise known.

We saw reboots on the PlayStation Vita known as the “Re;birth” series, which did a good job at rebuilding the franchise from the ground up. In turn we saw tweaks to combat mechanics, storytelling mechanics, and even character personalities that made the characters seem more alive and aware of their silliness. However, this latest title begins to break that trend rather carefully as it peels away from the focus upon a singular story plot to three separate story plots. Why is this? The answer is simple. They are shifting from the classic console war to the PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and Nintendo Wii U console war. More-so letting Nintendo sit this one out this time around. Much like in previous games, however, our goal is simple; players are once more helping these hysterical heroines save peoples to an entirely new dimension that Neptunia and Nepgear have been sucked into. This means their shares are gone, their CPU form is gone, and it’s time for them to become used to the CPU Shift Period, which changes some of how the CPUs will view their world. Fortunately this doesn’t rid us of our favorite antics or characters we’ve come to love, but it does introduce the new console war era into the franchise while breaking away from the console wars of the 90’s and 2000’s that the titles were renown for.

While changes are present in the story, the game itself has seen a few tweaks behind the scenes when it comes to combat scenarios while the rest remains widely intact. The biggest change is that characters are given a movement bar for combat. Here each character is given a set amount of distance they can move. Once out, those characters can’t move forward, but only side to side or backwards. They are still able to attack if enemies are available to do so with or even use items or abilities. This all does play a major role in the fact combat has been heavily altered since players can also edit character combo’s, bonuses, and placement rows. This does help in the long run once combat starts as certain characters won’t be as vulnerable when leading the charge. Interestingly enough, the biggest thing that has changed is the new system where players can put their characters into a team-based attack mode that deals rather devastating blows to enemies if they are surrounded. This does, however, require each of the CPU’s to be in regular form or HDD form for it to work. Irritating as it sounds, it pays off during difficult battles. This can be rather irritating when needing HDD forms for certain fights and needing to switch to basic forms. This attack is better utilized when planned ahead of time.

While combat remaking has been in discussion, one of the biggest enhancements, and the biggest improvement is the boss encounters. While we are familiar with the bosses being big, we aren’t used to them being big enough we are actually forced into moving across multiple platform placements for our characters to attack on. Instead, now we are given that, but alas, much hasn’t changed outside of the core mechanics for this. Let alone do they still hit hard, this tweak is rather nice, but is not utilized outside of core bosses, which in a way is saddening as it adds a nice change to bosses. While the aforementioned changes are nice, we still get to see some rather common enemies we’ve grown familiar with. Saddening, huh? Well, time will tell if that changes in any form.

While combat has seen a few changes, so has the overworld map as players will no longer find themselves simply clicking on the zone they want to go to, and warping in. Now they are challenged with going from node, to node, to node, and dealing with any random battles if they pop up. while this is fun, it is quite annoying int he long run, and will grow irritating when players just want to complete a mission or ditch a dungeon due to difficulty. If this becomes a core component? It’ll wear quickly on most players who liked the old system more. For now it’s up to players to voice what changes they did or did not like. At least the graphics have seen a rather polished look as the series have finally gotten what they want. A really, really, shiny anime style game, one that offers character sprites that look crisper, and sharper than in previous entries. While voice acting is unquestionably on par as usual, fans of the Japanese dub will be required to go download the add-on. As for Vita players? Those without a PS4 are being left in the dark if they are wanting to sample the new and some recycled music from previous titles that remain rather intriguing and all-to-familiar.

Megadimension Neptunia VII – PlayStation 4 (Reviewed)
Developer: Compile Heart, Idea Factory
Publisher: Idea Factory
Cost: 59.99 USD
Release Date: Now Available

With all this being said, it is hard to review the title since it focuses primarily on three things. Discussions in a graphic novel type setup, exploration, and exploring quite a bit to unlock new zones, abilities, and enemies that will be disposed of. If that’s your thing? This game is right up your alley and is a perfect addition to the console that is hurting for JRPG style games.

Our review is based upon the final version that the publisher provided us with. For information about our ethics policy please click here.

Final Score: 7 out of 10

About the Writer:

Review: AIPD: Artificial Intelligence Police Department – Policing a Class of its Own

January 30, 2016January 30, 2016 / Dustin Murphy / Leave a comment

Pros:
+Matches can be short, quick, and fun for players wanting a quick time burner
+Astounding graphical uses and sound quality
+Challenges do make the game a bit more tougher per round played
+Weapon variations allow for increased difficulty

Cons:
+Vibrant and flashy colors and textures could make the game tough to play for those with epilepsy and seizures or those who are colorblind
+Control scheme may be hard to understand at first unless players go into the menus
+Absolutely no story for those wanting story and depth

When first contacted about AIPD I had no idea what this game was or what the initials stood for. Let alone had I never heard of the developer Blazing Badger, I decided to check the press email, contact the PR guy in return (thanks again for this opportunity!) and decided to submit a request for a review code on PlayStation 4. While Xbox One and PC also got this game, I decided to take it out on PS4 since we have more PS4 controllers in our office than Xbox One/PC controllers. Also we weren’t sure how the game would run on our Windows 10 PCs since we made the jump recently.

When looking at AIPD as the type of game it is, it’s hard not to think about games like Geometry Wars since both games are in the same league. Both are twin stick shooters, both require a high amount of attention span, but both also use vibrant color schemes in order to keep your attention. What AIPD does lack is something that would have made it intriguing, interesting, and even more drawing for those wanting to play it. A story and multiple maps to play on versus the one singular backdrop. While this worked for games like Flow, AIPD attempts to offer a rather fun twin-stick shooter, which is honestly fun for a little while, but quickly grows to a dull bore. If you want a game to burn time between errands or before work? Then this game is right up your alley as it does offer that since average matches last anywhere from one minute to approximately twenty to thirty depending on challenges (these up the difficulty) that are picked as well as difficulty chosen.

To start AIPD is an interesting concept, it’s premise is the fact the game has no story, but what it offers in return is a classic arcade like experience. This experience is brought on by the fact this game, much like classic games such as Galaga, Centipede and some of the older more classic games, did not use very many maps in play if any. This is the case in AIPD where players will be accustomed to a singular map that does not change, evolve, or developed into a different scenery outside of the enemies coming in swarms, the enemy drops that may occur and the EMP fields that players will have to watch out for. The game is fairly straight forward in the sense that it offers several game modes that change how players will encounter enemies. This includes one where enemy heavy ships will have extra shielding or even abilities to make it a bit more difficult for the player to survive. This does tend to happen while players are attempting to survive being attacked by incoming enemy ships.

Even though the other modes are basically additions onto the Standard game mode, this review will primarily be focusing on the games core mechanics and the Standard Mode as well a mode that allows for players to make their own custom game creation. The base game is simple, as mentioned you play as an AIPD ship, from there your goal is to eliminate all threats on screen as they come at you in large groups. These swarms can easily be taken out as players learn to dodge, maneuver, and shoot at the same time. Taking out enemy forces allows for players to gain pick-ups, one offensive, and one defensive may be equipped, however you can only pick one up after using one that you already have equipped. These can include shotgun like weapons, swarming missiles, overshields, ice like barriers or even time slows. While all these seem like they might be useful at all times, that is not always the case due to the enemies that may be attacking. If too many approach? Some of the support pick-ups may not seem as effective as the offensive ones.

The one thing that did seem to make the game a bit more challenging was the fact that players can choose modifiers for bonus points after each level. These can variate between a EMP field that will form a ring, making it so that players may only use the center of the map momentarily to enemies having more powerful weapons. To offset this imbalance at times? Players can team up with four people in local-cooperative play. Unfortunately due to having only one spare controller, it was an enjoyable time just teeming around alone in order to see if scores could be beaten on the leaderboards.

AIPD: Artifical Intelligence Police Department –Xbox One, PC, PS4 (Reviewed)
Developer: Blazing Badger
Publisher: mamor games
Cost: 9.99 USD
Release Date: Now Available

Even though other modes offered things such as all environmental hazards enabled to allowing enemies to have all abilities enabled, the creative mode was where the game stood out the most in my opinion. Here players are able to choose what modifiers enemies have enabled clear down to what weapons the enemies may have. Perhaps you don’t want to let enemies have anything, but instead want a rather deadly map? That’s okay too. Got friends over and want to enjoy a rather fun time of creating a map with a few modifiers each? Go at it. There’s three slots players can use to store their created modes from. It’s just a matter of how creative players can be in order to create a rather lethal and fun time.

Due to how little there is, it is hard to state that AIPD is a game that will keep you busy for days on end. Luckily this game is like titles such as Geometry Wars where players will come back to burn a little bit of time. We just hope to see more levels and variations launched for this game now that it’s available. Till then? The game is enjoyable if played in short spurts or with friends. Some? May find this game just as fun as others.

Our review is based upon the final version that the publisher provided us with. For information about our ethics policy please click here.

Final Score: 6 out of 10

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Review: Tom Clancy’s The Division Agent Origins – Originating a New Pandemic (Spoiler Warning)

January 23, 2016 / Dustin Murphy / Leave a comment

Pros:
+Amazing back story building for players to understand the start of the game
+Smallpox played a dangerous role in the games universe
+Shows how political and social collapses occur for the new title
+New York City’s Ground Zero sets up a dangerous premise
+A short, but sweet film from YouTubers and Ubisoft

Cons:
–More character back story would have been appreciated
–Dark Zone being shown off would have created more interest

Reviewers Note: While it’s easy to see that I’m used to reviewing games, there was a few things that bugged me about the film as listed in the cons and discussed earlier in. The review currently is a “soft review”, meaning it may be added to at a later date once I get to sit down and analyze the film more than twice in one day.

When opening up a game series, Ubisoft has been the masters of creating spin-off short films that give us more detail on what’s happening, and why. They first displayed this capability with Assassin’s Creed 2’s short film “Lineage”, which had shown off how Ezio’s family was tied into the “Creed”. Again they had also displayed their finesse for doing this with Ghost Recon: Future Soldier’s short film called Ghost Recon Alpha. This time around Ubisoft has teamed up with YouTube talent Corridor Digital, RocketJump and devinsupertramp.

Teaming up with YouTuber’s, Ubisoft has been able to reach out to an established fanbase. One that allows the company and the YouTuber’s to put out content to an already established fanbase, which helps bring forth promotional and supplementary content to that fanbase. In doing so we’ve been given a glimpse at what this can do for those wanting to see what such talents can do in order to bring such a world to life.

The Division: Agent Origins tells us the story of the games four operatives that we currently know of such as John (Matt Day), Mia (Amanda Day, The Center, The Seeker) , Everett(Sasha Andreev, See Jane Run and Best Man Down), and Daryl (Danny Mason, The Club House, Jive Tales). Within the opening seconds John gives us the layout of how the Smallpox Virus spread through contaminated money on Black Friday. Doing this allowed whoever set off the attack to do so without being easily noticed. By the time anyone that could do anything to stop the virus, the death toll had reached epidemic numbers, within weeks it became a full blown pandemic and there seemed to be nothing that could stop it besides setting up quarantine zones for those that had ye to be infected by the virus. Shortly after the explanation, we learn that the United States Government had put in place a secret directive where sleeper agents would come out of hiding in order to calm the chaos and keep peace. While it sounds easier said than done, the show proves just how difficult that actually is as our leading characters quickly come under attack.

What’s most interesting is not the fact that the show picks up rather quickly with minimal origins behind each character. We learn that John is a family man. One that takes pride in both his wife and daughter, but hides the fact he’s secretly a government agent waiting to be activated. We learn that Daryl is a scavenger, a medic of sorts as he is hunting down medical supplies. Mia fits the role as the teams tactician and sharp shooter while Everett serves as the teams muscle and heavy hitter. But as quick as it sounds to establish all this, we first have to look at the fact each lived their normal lives. Daryl’s being the one we know little about as we know Mia was in hiding with her boyfriend and their conspiracy theorist friend. Everett we learn was a fireman in his mean time, helping with public duty in order to keep people safe, which didn’t seem to last long once the world around him collapsed.

As the story unfolds we get a look at two of the enemy factions. The Rikers from Rikers Island appear rather quickly within the short, but not quite as quick as the ever-so-brutal “Cleaners” who do just what they believe is right. Build everything from the ground up just as it had with time. Their method includes burning everything down in order to do so be it infected corpses, buildings with infected in it or the people that just happen to be around and might be infected. After all, the way the bad guys see it? Survival of the fittest.

Where this short shines brightest isn’t just in the fact that it doesn’t look like a low-end budget short, the short does a great job at casting actors to fit the roles of the characters that they are portraying, but also matching voices to those said characters. Let alone is their acting spot-on, the tone, the score, but even the overall appearance to the short gave the short the authenticity it needed to bring forth the game. While narrative was lacking in the sense of building a back-story for fans to understand, it does give some idea behind what The Division was meant for as a Joint Task Force in case such an event happened. While it has been troublesome to pinpoint just how much it’ll affect or bleed into the game is yet to be seen as the game is still roughly a month and a half out before we’ll get to walk the streets of a very different and dark New York City. With the direction the short film did go, it fit the role and did its job giving us an idea of how the squad got together and why they headed back out into the streets of New York. We just have to wait and see how well the gaps between game and short film do starting March 8th, 2016.

Our review is based upon the version released via Amazon Prime Video. For information about our ethics policy please click here.

Final Score: 7 out of 10

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Review: The Deadly Tower of Monsters – Playing a Monster of a B-Movie

January 21, 2016 / Dustin Murphy / Leave a comment

Pros:
+Characters are creatively introduced through uses of B-Movie story telling
+Gameplay transitions well as a twin-stick beat ’em up style game
+Use of 1970’s like animations brings the game truly to life
+Hysterical narration

Cons:
–Infrequent frame-rate drops
–Difficulty in finding mission objectives from time to time

Ever had that moment where you find yourself digging deep through the list of B-Movies on Netflix or Amazon Prime and just happen to come across those films that you’ve never heard of? You’ve probably even clicked play on one of those movies wondering just how horrendous it could be or even how surprisingly good it could be. Queue SyFy Channel for that tidbit. Well this one isn’t going to require you to wonder over towards Netflix, SyFy Channel or even Amazon Prime for that matter. Instead you’ll find yourself digging through Steam or the PlayStation Store on PlayStation 4 in order to play this rather silly game. Silly here actually is quite a good thing.

You may know some of the movies that inspired this game were B-Movies that existed for pure entertainment purposes. Many of those movies became cult classics. The game is a quintessential piece to gaming as it dismisses the idea of a serious narrative to fulfill it’s need as a game that’s actually a movie that you are playing. Were you able to follow that? Good. If you were ever able to watch B-Movies such as Buck Rogers, Battlestar Galactica, V, or even shows such as the original Star Trek you know the shows were great, the movies that came from them were great, but they weren’t high budget. That’s actually the case with The Deadly Tower of Monsters that came out of the publisher ATLUS by game developer ACE Team who has managed to bring forth a very creative title.

The opening seconds of the game is quite entertaining as we are introduced to the game as a “DVD” that has been created in order to bring on some rather goofy “DVD” audio commentary. This opening second as the game is introduced is amazingly creative as this bit of detail seems to not just flow through the menus as the “movie director” you are playing as will be narrating the whole game. If you’ve played games like Nihilumbra, Ori and the Blind Forest, and Bastion – you know what you are getting into. As the game gets underway you learn the wacky tactics that the director used, his tips, his tricks, and even how he got the actors as well as the supporting cast to do what they did.

The silly audio “DVD” commentary right from the start helps cement that B-movie feel Deadly is going for. Permeating through the menus, the “director” of the “movie” you’re playing will continue to comment on your actions throughout, much like the narrator from Bastion. This narration however is a bit wackier, and will make fun of everything from gamey elements like finding useful items instantly in unexpected places, why items disappear after you pick them up (the hero “beams” them back to his ship), and how the actors got into a particular costume. He even boasts in one early scene that having his female lead rescue his male lead is progressive, and how he was “ahead of his time” for it. It’s amusing enough to keep one interested throughout. This includes things such as how the main character, Dick Starspeed, had his weapons teleported back to his crashed ship for storage. This includes the fact eventually even Scarlet Nova and Robot are utilizing the same weaponry, but not the same ship? It’s all interesting, but it is a unique twist of things, especially since each character has unique abilities that can be creatively used to create an advantage on the “set”. A nice aesthetic to be quite honest, and even a good one.

What makes this game unique in the top down world that is dominated by games such as Diablo, Sacred, and titles much like them, is the fact that The Deadly Tower of Monsters implores the use of a Deadly Tower. The towers settings, enemies, and tone change drastically as the “director” of the “movie” begin to take the character across this planet. Inhabited by Ape-esque money men, interesting “Energy Imps,” a Ghost Pirate ship, Dinosaurs, and so much more, the game takes the idea of using many, many, classic cult B-Movies to establish itself. While climbing this tower the game is based around, players will find themselves going across multiple checkpoints while sometimes dropping off the top of the tower to uncover secrets stashed across the games world. From there players will find themselves using the games teleported to get back to where they were or using a “teleport” option to return from the ledge from whence they fell from.

But what makes this game great isn’t the fact it literally utilizes classic Sci-Fi movie ideas, but the fact it also has some of the best camera work I’ve seen in a game. Giving the idea that this game is a “movie” players can go into the games option menus and mess around with two of my favourite settings. One is changing the game from the upscaled “DVD” quality to the games horrendously (but great) “VHS” setting, which adds true VHS like camera appearance. Remember watching movies on the old tube and on VHS and getting that fuzzy appearance on the screen? There’s your “VHS” setting. Let alone does the game appeal to this by using it as the default viewing, the game also utilizes a few things that some movies back then would have hit. “Budgetary reasoning”, which “forced the director” to stop using colour for a matter of a few moments, but also the fact that the use of wires actually appears on some of the enemies. Let alone did ACE Team choose to have that in the game, they also managed to pull all the stops in this as many of the enemies in the game use stop motion while some of the scenery looks like plastic set pieces. While many would think that frame rates have gone to Hell when enemies use that appearance, it’s actually part of the game, and the creative minds over at ACE team didn’t just stop there as the game does continue on with these type things.

The thing that makes this game not just unique, but fun is quite simple, it’s the fact that let alone does the game have free-falling moments to get to places like the aforementioned Ghost Ship, it also allows players to find secret items that will require them to descend this tower. Ever wondered how much of a rush you’d get when falling down a gigantic tower and boosting at the last second to not die? This game will over just that while you try to collect rings, reach unreachable places before hand, but also the ability to revisit places just for the sake of revisiting them. Didn’t mean to fall? There was an “Air Teleport” option that allows you to return to the point where you fell from. Just note that if in a fight? Enemies will be waiting to knock you off once more whether you want them to or not.

The question at hand though is going to be simple aside from the fact that controls are easy to master, but so are the few little puzzles in the game. How long is play time? In order to beat the game on my first play through, the game got the praise it deserved, but it took me somewhere around three and a half hours to get to the end of the game with almost all secrets unlocked and all weapons upgraded. While the game doesn’t have an option for New Game+, which would be enjoyable, or a way to increase difficulties; The Deadly Tower of Monsters is a game that can easily be enjoyed a second time through. While it is fun to jump off that giant tower from just outside the planets upper hemisphere never gets old, the question of future content can be troubling especially at 14.99 USD or 33% off during the games launch week for those who are looking to buy it.

The Deadly Tower of Monsters –PC, PS4 (Reviewed)
Developer: ACE Team
Publisher: ATLUS
Cost: 14.99 USD
Release Date: Now Available

Despite all my praise though, you should know what you’re getting into. My first playthrough only took me roughly three hours to complete, and I managed to spend an extra hour looking for artifacts and completing additional objectives. There doesn’t seem to be any option for a New Game+ or the ability to alter the difficulty, which definitely stings a bit despite its strong initial run. I can definitely see replaying it every so often however, and jumping off of the top of the tower is something I did many, many times. While the diversity of skills, stats, and abilities from varying titles like Diablo would have been fun to have, the game finds itself as a action title that is enjoyable, fun, and addictive in its short campaign. If being quirky, unique, enjoyable and an unforgettable “B-Movie” experience is what this game was meant to be, it did it perfectly and is one that fans of B-Movies should not pass down despite how it looks. I know I enjoyed it and would have loved to seen a movie based off it.

Our review is based upon the final version that the publisher provided us with. For information about our ethics policy please click here.

Final Score: 8 out of 10

About the Writer:

Blast Away The Game Review

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