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Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 (PC)
by RedFlag
As with most gamers around the country, I waited will utter excitement at the end of last year to purchase COD:Modern Warfare 3. After playing the first and second edition of COD, I couldnt wait to get my hands of the new edition. However, I cant say that I was over joyed with the game completely. I had played other similar warfare ... games in the lead up, mostly new releases, and have to say, that COD 3 wasnt all that great in comparision, which I found to be a great shock.
There were some good points though. It follows pretty much the same controls of the previous games, and the plot or campaign is interesting to a certain degree. I wouldnt go as far as saying that I gave up all hope while playing, as the game did quite me interested until I completed it, so not all bad, but some of the interactions with characters in the game are totally ridiculous in my opinion.
There really isnt much improvement on COD 2, certainly when it comes to the multi-player features which is basically the same, with some added bonus's, likes weapons and such. In addition to this, you can look at how well you are complaying in comparision to other real life players using the new COD Elite functions, which simply analysis's your gameplay, and adds you into a sort of list, ranking you statistically.
I am sure there is a new COD in development, and my message to the programmers is, please make it more advanced, no one wants to pay £40 for a game which is too similar to a previous edition. A good game to play, but im sure you wont need my recommednation to buy it, the COD culture speaks for itself. Thanks for reading.
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Fallout: New Vegas (PC)
by mblain1
The scorching Mojave Wasteland is the new setting for the latest of the Fallout series. As I have mentioned in my previous reviews, I have always been a fan of Bethesda's work, and when I heard they were bring out Fallout 3 I wasn't too thrilled. To me it was described as 'Oblivion with guns'. That statement alone put me off. However I ... decided to buy the game after seeing how well the critics gave it. It was way worth the £40 I paid, and New Vegas is no different.
After playing Fallout 3 I became obsessed with the style of gameplay and the post-apocalyptic setting. (the two aspects which make Fallout so great). Fallout New Vegas begins with you in the eyes of a bound man in a cemetery. Two thugs and a man in a checker suit stand over you, until the suit decides to pull a gun and shoot you. You wake up in a house in the town of Goodsprings, with a Doctor Mitchell who has nursed you back to health. In the previous Fallout you choose your character stats with a children's book and an exam in the vault. In New Vegas it is different, you use what seems like a carnival game to determine your stats as well as a psychiatry exam where you decide what you would do in certain situations as well as taking part in a Rorschach inkblot test. After this you set out to learn who attempted to kill you, to settle the score and find answers.
The gameplay in Fallout New Vegas is very similar to that of Fallout 3 other than improved stealth mechanics, iron-sights and improved melee. The famous V.A.T.S system is back in New Vegas. This is a system where you are able to pause time and choose which parts of a body you can shoot or shooting multiple targets. The accuracy of your shot is based on one of the seven stats your player has, in this case Agility, Perception and Luck are all factors. There is also a limit on how much you can do this, the more 'Action Points' you have, the more you can use V.A.T.S. There is now also the option of gambling! What would Vegas be like if you couldn't gamble? And so they put this option in. You can enter a casino, swap your preferred currency (bottle caps, Legionnaire money, NCR money etc), for chips and choose between blackjack, the slots or roulette. These casinos offer prizes for each time you rack up a lot of chips from gambling, this can include food, drink, armour and finally a penthouse suite. However there is a limit to how much you can win before the casino will ban you.
The story (and setting) for New Vegas is, in my opinion, better than Fallout 3. It seems to have much more incentive. In Fallout 3 you try to give clean water to the city of Washington D.C. In New Vegas you are trying to discover why someone wanted you dead, what was stolen from you, and joining different factions as a all-out war is in motion. The setting is also much better. In Fallout 3 you could explore the Wasteland of D.C. and the surrounding areas. It was decent enough but New Vegas seems much more alive with numerous towns and communities surrounding the centre of Vegas, the strip. Each character has a different personality and overall it seems much more real.
Graphics and sound have always been a huge feature of Bethesda's games. With Skyrim recently hitting stores, Fallout's graphics (despite being a good 4 years old) still look amazing. The only qualms I have about the graphics are that they have barely improved in comparison to Fallout 3. The lighting of the Vegas skyline seems very different to Fallout 3 but that's pretty much it. The gun, armour and monster design looks good enough but still seems to use the old textures of Fallout 3. If you're thinking "oh well Fallout 3 had A LOT of graphical bugs, maybe this isn't the case in Fallout: New Vegas", you're wrong. Unfortunately Bethesda games have always come with a ton of bugs, graphical bugs are just a portion of the list. However Steam has released quite large updates for the game, which is probably the case with Xbox Live and PSN for example. Luckily the soundtrack makes up for this. We experienced the use of the Pip-Boy and it's radio features in the previous game, in New Vegas this is brought back with a whole new set of songs. Unfortunately the radio presenter is not half as charismatic as Three Dog, the presenter for GNR. The voice acting seems to have improved, giving the player an idea of a 'real atmosphere' within the game. Every player seems to have a completely different personality, causing us to actually feel emotion, whether it's love, hate or even sadness.
There are many features in the game improving from Fallout 3. Bringing back the companion idea pleased me a great deal, each of these companions offers different perks that become available to the player when the companion is following them. Other perks within the game seem to have improved, giving the player a much wider choice. There are around four DLCs for the game, unfortunately for me I have not been able to purchase them yet, but since I bought all of the Fallout DLCs and enjoyed them a great deal, I'm sure the New Vegas DLCs will not disappoint.
In conclusion the game was amazing. With hundreds of hours of gameplay it's definitely worth the £15 I paid. If I'd have had money earlier when it first came out, I'd have forked out the £35 for it too. It's a huge improvement on Fallout 3 and after this I cannot wait till Fallout 4 is developed. I'd definitely recommend it to any fan of RPG, FPS or Bethesda. Even if you're a casual gamer this will draw you in. It's an experience.
With stunning graphics and sound, this game is at least a 8.5-9 out of 10. Unfortunately there are no multiplayer aspects and numerous bugs which is why I have no given it the 10 it probably deserves. It's not for everyone but most gamers should be happy to own this.
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Half-Life 2 (PC)
by mblain1
This game is one of my favourites. It's amazing how a story can suck you in and a game to become so addictive.
With several awards Half Life 2 was nominated as one of the 'greatest games of all time' which may seem like an overrated view. However, this game does deserve that title.
First off I have to discuss the Source ... Engine. The 'source' of it's graphics. In 2004 when the game was released this engine was used for numerous games created by the game developers at Valve. A very famous example of this is the 'Counter Strike: Source' game which sold hundreds of thousands of copies. The engine was highly praised by critics and users alike.
The story of Half Life 2 follows on from the previous instalment in the series Half Life 1. Gordon Freeman is back but this time comes back to City 17, a dystopian, autocratic city ruled by the 'Combine' an Empire which spans across the universe. From there we seen Freeman fighting the combine, occasionally with the help of the Rebels and Vortigaunts (aliens who've made an appearance in the first Half Life, and are now part of the resistance), and meeting new characters along the way, such as Alyx Vance and the mysterious G-Man.
The gameplay element combines puzzles and first person shooting. The FPS aspect of the game is now a little outdated but still highly enjoyable. The puzzles throughout the game give the player something to think about other than mindlessly shooting. At certain points in the game the player is able to drive a buggy and a hovercraft (Airboat in game), which is extremely fun, unfortunately it doesn't seem to be in the game quite enough, but maybe if it was it wouldn't seem as fun and the novelty may have worn off.
In the game there are so many different places to explore. From the East Berlin style bloc to the evacuated, zombie-ridden town of Ravenholm. The game lasts around 20-30 hours, depending whether you rush ahead or explore every place you can, finding the numerous Easter Eggs that are present throughout the game. The good thing about the game is that you can play it over and over again, it is fairly linear but so enjoyable that it doesn't matter!
The sound is both awe-inspiring as well as highly frightening. The voice acting throughout the game is fantastic, we see that each character (other than the silent Gordon Freeman) has a complete personality, and can feel real at times. The voice acting of the rebels is also quite a big part, it's clearly been taken with care since ever rebel sounds different and it gives you and idea of so many different people who are involved in the rebellion. The soundtrack to the game is also decent, the sound can either wow you when you're looking across a vast city, or can scare you as it does in the town of Ravenholm.
As I've stated, it is one of the best games you can buy, and now it's around £10-£15 for 'The Orange Box' (A game combination of different games based on the Source Engine including Half life 2, Episode 1 + 2, Team Fortress 2 and Portal) Personally I'd rate this game at a 9/10, knocking off 1 mark for the outdated graphics as well as the bland and boring multiplayer.
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