Carnage report: Capcom unleashes it X-factor with ultimate marvel vs. capcom 3

When capcom unveiled marvel vs. capcom 3 fighting fans rejoiced, after a decade of waiting a new age of heroes had arrived and many couldn’t wait to take them for a ride against friends and foes online and competitively. MvC3 released a mixed bag of emotions from fighting fans, while players loved the new addition of players like deadpool, zero, thor and wesker; there were complaints about character tiers and the notorious x-factor. Capcom also promised improvements to the game in the form of downloadable content (dlc) this didn’t happen save the 2 downloadable characters and a few character skins packs. But capcom has responded to the complaints and controversy with the release of ultimate marvel vs. capcom 3, many fans of the first game feel the additions made in umvc3 should have simply been dlc and a part of their original $60 investment.

While this may or may not be true here is my opinion on the highly controversial release of ultimate marvel vs. capcom 3

Ultimate marvel vs. capcom 3
Developer: Capcom
Publisher: Capcom
Release: November 15th, 2011
Price: $39.99

Umvc3 in many ways does improve on mvc3, with a roster boasting 12 new characters new team combinations and match ups are possible. One thing that was a bit of a downer for the first game was that even though the roster had 38 characters the upper tier consisted of the same characters, Dormammu, Dante and wesker. Umvc3 changes that by adding not simply new characters but characters like firebrand, Ghostrider and the fan favorite Strider hiryu who all seem to have high level potential and can challenge for top tier against the previous installments champions. The game also adds different play styles into the mix, for the marvel side iron first uses a Bruce lee- Fei long esque fighting style that uses a chi system do dole out massive damage in combos. The highly questioned characters like nova, Dr. Strange and rocket raccoon also have there own versions of a trap game, luring you into attack and then countering with strong and high damage attacks or combos. This adds a new layer to the umvc3 creating a game in itself to learn the new characters and their tactics and integrate them into existing teams or creating new teams and strategies to succeed in battle against your opponents. This adds a very cerebral and strategic element to the game that I felt mvc3 lost after everyone saw the top tier characters used at EVO and other fighting tournaments.

Along with the addition of new characters making the roster count 50 returning characters have received different tweaks and buffs. This may sound bad at first but capcom really did a good job here. Certain characters were unanimously seen as overpowered in the first installment (i.e. wesker and Dante) and while certain aspects of those characters have been toned down, like wesker health they still are playable and very competitive characters. On the other hand for some characters that were deemed too weak or nerfed like Captain America, Capcom has made additions to the characters that make them more effective and competitive. Cap himself is the best example of this, with the addition of his double jump, more invincible startup on moves like hyper charging star and his new OTG shield slash players can maximize caps battle tactics, cross ups and team synergy in a way that was not possible in the games first installment.

Capcom has done this with all the returning cast in some drastic and subtle ways, characters like storm and magneto have been improved and have movement traits that add a few tricks to their arsenal. Ryu and Doom are both faster, Doom to the point that he can now be considered an on point character and use rush down tactics to pair with his awesome assists and dangerous aerial assault. Ryu now has a host of new hadoken and shoryuken variants as well as a devastating denjin mode. Overall capcom has added variety to the roster and also made sure with buffs and tweaks that characters rarely used before will see much more play and variation while still keeping the top competitors a very dangerous and viable threat.

Game modes are where the majority of the question marks appear for umvc3, while the inclusion of a spectator mode is a welcome addition to the game Capcom does not score any points here as it was seen unanimously as a fail to have previous Capcom games like super street fighter 4 and even the remake of mvc2 have spectator mode but not mvc3. If you have save data from mvc3 you will receive a galactus mode wich is fun for all of maybe 30 seconds. The usual gambit of game types for fighters are here as well, arcade, versus, online ranked and unranked matches as you would and should expect. The promised hero’s and heralds mode that will add a card game like twist with power ups and ability’s for characters in the game has not been released yet so not much can yet be said of that mode. One thing missing is the event mode from the previous game, while most didn’t pay a lot of attention to the game type it still is missing and makes us wonder why with so few game types from the get go would Capcom remove one?

Along with character changes and game modes the combat engine itself has been altered and it will lead to some serious ramifications in game if players don’t notice them. The Delayed hyper combo glitch (DHC) has been removed from the game so those who banked on that technique will have to reexamine their strategies and battle tactics. The other drastic change is to the devastating x-factor, fans of the series had a very serious love or hate attitude toward x-factor in the previous game and it was widely viewed as overpowered, giving a power boost so strong, one character could potentially massacre another team. X-factor has been toned down in power and in time of use, but the trade off is now x-factor can be unleashed in the air adding a myriad of air combos and potential innovation by players.

Overall ultimate marvel vs. capcom 3 is an improvement over the first attempt even if it is unanimous that the first game left a lot to be desired, the additions make the game worth an attempt if you enjoy the series and at $40 it is not a bad price, the new characters and balancing breath new life into a game that got dropped earlier this year at the prospect of better tittles and hopefully Capcom has learned its lesson and will keep a healthy stream of dlc coming in the future.

The dark knight makes his return in Batman Arkham City

After all the acclaim and praise for Batman Arkham asylum and two years of waiting it is finally time to unveil Batman Arkham city. Time has passed after the events in the asylum, Quincy Sharp is now mayor of Gotham thanks to some underhanded help and the eerie Dr. Hugo Strange has now opened Arkham City, a dark gritty run down section of Gotham that will hold all the prisoners of Black gate Prison and the previous Arkham Asylum. Sensing dangerous elements Batman enters Arkham City to get to the bottom of this growing plot.

The presentation for Arkham City is amazing to say the least, Kevin Conroy and Mark Hamil seem to be the two destined actors to live out the epic struggle between the dark knight and the clown prince of crime, and yet again they do an astounding job along with the rest of the returning crew from Arkham Asylum on Arkham City's amazing story full of twists and amazing turns. In Arkham City the environment itself seems to be alive, teeming with side missions and activities happening alongside the main storyline to keep you busy, trophies to collect and crimes to solve, assaults and brutal beatings happening all over the city. A phone booth killer and a mysterious figure watching the dark knight are just a few of the events that will keep the Arkham City disc spinning in your disc tray.

Unfortunately all this content can be a double edged sword, while it is great to have so much to do in Arkham City it can at times dilute the main storyline with all the random happenings around the city that seem to all be urgent when they occur. There are also a plethora of villains in this game, almost to the point where some A-list villains like two-face or Poison ivy end up playing second fiddle to the main opponents. While some would call this a strike against the game I will call it even because rocksteady has been dedicated to one goal and one goal only giving us gamers a true Batman experience and this is part of that experience, giving you the feeling the while, yes you are Batman you still are only one man in a city that is screaming out for savior and full of deadly opponents.

The first thing you will notice in Arkham City are the similarities and the differences from Asylum. The one button combat system has returned and been built up and expanded on, now Batman can takedown multiple enemies while countering and combat is smoother in AC making Batman a more polished and lethal combatant. The bulk of the caped crusaders gadgets have also returned along with new tech to keep Batman armed to the teeth, and as well as the basic functions most of the gadgets have combat capability’s and have a hot button setting so they can be effectively used during battle. These improvements empower players and truly give them the feeling of being the Batman and wielding all of his technology, suddenly walking into a room full of opponents is not such a daunting task because u have the equipment needed to succeed.

Improvements have also been made to the dark knight's aerial tactics as well. Dive bombs, flying kicks and swooping down on enemies adds new dimensions to Batman in traversing the city and in combat. Batman can dive through the air to pick up momentum and then continue to glide and soar through the snowy skies of Gotham, or in combat use the new dive-bomb attacks allowing him to come screaming out of the skyline and take out enemies. These new skills and abilities transform Batman's image from a physically dominating land master into a truly dangerous aerial predator, able to take out enemies from the ground or air with equally lethal tactics.

Another element that makes this game a great experience is the inclusion of Catwoman as a secondary main character. Those who buy the game new, or used and download the Catwoman content will get to have Selina Kyle and Mr. Wayne alternate between having the main role in the story, also Catwoman gives an interesting and very different perspective on the happenings in Gotham than the caped crusader with different morals, goals and gameplay. Where Batman is a big, powerful, extremely physical fighter and a dark brooding character; Catwoman is a smaller, sleek, more agile combatant with a very sultry attitude and her change of pace and four levels in the main storyline are a must have to get the full Arkham City experience.

Overall this game is amazing, developers rocksteady have once again given us a truly awe inspiring Batman experience. The balance between protector, detective and predator truly make you feel as if you are the dark knight and rocksteady has taken that core that is Batman and put it into an amazing storytelling experience with Arkham City. While tasks and opponents may be daunting no matter what difficulty you play on you are given the feeling that you are Batman and you can rise to the occasion through tactics, use of your tools and mental as well as physical execution, the skills that make this hero without superpowers arguably the greatest of them all. Batman is a fictional character in the DC comics’ universe, but if the dark knight were real, with that ever-present scowl on his face; Arkham City would be at least one thing for the caped crusader to smile about. Needles to say any and all Batman fans and gamers looking for a great action adventure experience should pick up a copy of Batman Arkham City.

Rage game review

Its not very often a game comes along that really pushes the limits of the current generation systems ability in the graphics department. Well thanks to ID software it seems like its finally time for the xbox 360 and ps3 to get a good workout with Rage.

Rage is a very beautiful game, as dirty, gritty and grimey as the game is the graphics are still so top notch that it qualifys for the word. The graphics are actually so good it is recommended to download the game to the 360 hard drive to fully enjoy the graphics abilitys. Its only then that you can really appreciate all the work ID software clearly put into this games graphics for the overall game experience.

Speaking of game experince that may be one of the few areas that the game lacks. Rage is amazing on the outside, the wastelands are big bright wide open spaces, and the towns though run down are vibrant and full of characters. Unfortunantly there doesint seem to be a huge emphasis on story with Rage. In fact at times its seems the missions you recieve in the form of odd jobs from the towns folk are really just an excuse to move you from one firefight to the next, and as amazing as those fights may be you expect more from a great game. Great video games are expected to have a level of innovation along with the polish and execution, while this isint a dealbreaker for Rage that innovation or x factor that really makes a game standout is missing from this tittle.

A few examples of this are the overused post apocalyptic setting and traditonal shooter style gameplay favoring small closed off zones as opposed to the open spaces seen in games like Farcry and the Halo series. Characters who are key to progressing the story can seem very bland and boring and this can really throw off the experience. As uninteresting as some of the characters are in Rage the gameplay is fastpaced and fun enough to keep you going through the storyline,wepons tools and vehicles are customizable and fun to use. Each bullet has a different effect and you will need them for the different groups of enemies you will face in the wasteland. Rage also boast an interesting multiplayer, composed of car combat, races and cooperative missions and though it isnt the main attraction its something to do after the story is over, which will run you about 15 hours max.

All in all Rage is a good game that will keep you engaged and having fun. While it has its flaws if you are looking for a solid shooter and can deal with the thousandth post apocalyptic borderlands style game then this will be a fun outing.

G.O.W 3 Aftermath

Its been almost a month now since gears3 was released in september, and that has given the majority of gamers an oppertunity to play throught the story alone or with friends, so with the queen dead and the locust seeming defeted whats left for marcus and the rest of the humans on sierra, these are all questions that epic clearly stayed away from at the end of gears3 for whatever reasons they had to not truly end the story but here are the thoughts that I have had and im sure most gears fanatics share some of the same questions

1. What will humanity do now?
With 99% of humanity dead, a destroyed planet low on resources and the main source of fuel proven to be a deadly virus how can humanity possibly continue life of sierra? Even if the locust & lambent are all dead (which we dont really know) how can this be called a "victory" for humanity and even if it is where does the human race go from here? It seems highly unlikely that humans can continue life on sierra with any level of success with the planet left completly barren.

2. What is stopping the lambent from returning
From what was explained the lambent came from immulsion, the gears version of fossil fuels on sierra, and somehow they came from it and caused the mass infection of the locust and humans, it is not explained if the immusion is used up or distroyed but assuming it isint all gone what is stopping the lambent from returning?

3. Why didnt humanity leave sierra?
Gridlocked in a nasty war that has seen 99% of the species murdered for a cause largely unknown why didnt it dawn on prescott and the government to leave sierra and venture to other planets with the rise of the locust army?
What was so precious including immulsion (which was the tipping point in this extreamly heinous war) that was worth the potential death of the species?

These are the big questions i have in the aftermath of gears3, hopefully in some form or another they will be answered, in the mean time I would love to hear from all of you on what you think went down after gears3 and whats to come for the franchise...

Brothers to the end Gears of war 3 review

After what seems like an eternity in waiting epic games and Microsoft studios once again reunite to bring us the third installment of gears of war, and it has been well worth the wait. The game continues the storyline set by the previous two installments following Marcus Fenix, Dominic Santiago and Augustus Cole a.k.a COLE TRAIN BABY!!!!! WHOOOOOO!!!! As they continue to fight off the locust armada and Marcus continues his search for his father. The story is very well crafted and while I wont give away any endings don’t be surprised if u find gears getting the halo new trilogy treatment sooner or later. While the story is a good appetizer with a dash of closure, the main course for gears of war games is always the multiplayer and this time around it is better than ever, thankfuly shotguns have been regulated and multiplayer should be a mutch more level playing field. The addition of new weapons like the retro lancer and the sawed off shotty also help to round out the gaming experience.

The standard team death match, capture the flag now called capture the leader and other suspect game variants are in gears of war 3 but by far the biggest attractions to the online multiplayer has to be the revamped horde mode and the all new beast mode in GOW3.

The reason these two game types stand above the rest is because they demand a level of teamwork and strategy that most games simply don’t. In horde mode you and your fellow Cog must fend off the locust onslaught for 50 rounds, with locust getting boosts like extra health and dealing extra damage as the rounds go on, with each kill you will earn money you can use to boost your defenses as you defend your position from the locust. A new addition to horde mode in gears 3 is the inclusion of Boss monsters, every 10 levels you will be faced with a boss monster from the story like the brumak and berserkers

(A revamped horde mode including boss monsters will push ur gears skill and teamwork to its limits)

this adds a really nice change of pace to what at times can feel like going through the motions after wave and wave of enemies. Beast mode is the newest game type in gears3 where you take control of the nightmarish locust horde and set out to destroy the remaining gears and stranded, unlike horde mode beast mode is timed and this really adds a level of strategy forcing you to use the money you have wisely when selecting what locust you will control. You can add time by killing the gears and destroying their defenses along with killing key characters from the story, which is pretty awesome in itself. Overall gears of war 3 is a great game the main story and multiplayer combine for an amazing experience and with downloadable content for multiplayer and an extension to the main story in the works you can expect gears to remain in your gaming library for quite some time. Gears of war has been a great series, it and halo along with a few other great tittles have combined to make the xbox 360 into the must have console for gamers. We don’t know if there are any serious plans to continue the series but it is a must have in every 360 gamers library…

The Value of YOUR dollar

Gaming is an amazing hobby, through video games we can go places and do thing that just are not possible in real life. From traveling the farthest reaches of the galaxy and fighting the convenient, to becoming a professional athlete or being a superhero and protecting your city from evil and tyranny. Gaming allows it all, but its not just about the games its about the people we meet and the experiences we have while playing them. This special edition of the carnage report is about the gamers, it’s about us, how we spend our hard earned money to enjoy this hobby and how what we buy can change the gaming market. First off I would like to note that while this article will address certain company’s producing games that does not mean that I hold them in a negative light and neither should you, we all should make our own educated opinions when it comes to this topic and this article.

That being said as gamers we have to be smarter about when and how we spend our money and support video games. With the release of the past console generation the asking price for new video games has reached over sixty dollars, a far cry from past games that were 49.99. In developers defense games have evolved in leaps and bounds with the arrival of new technology like the unreal engine, so its fare to say games are worth more money with the new advances. Both sides being considered certain things should not be tolerated and as gamers allowing a company to continually remake a title and demand more money for it is definitely one of those things. A perfect example of this argument is capcom and its constant rehashing of the street fighter franchise. Street fighter 4 was released February 17th 2009, it is a great fighting game that almost single handedly revived the two-dimensional fighting genre. For sixty-dollars gamers were able to reunite with favorite characters of the series as well as forge memories with new characters and expand the street fighter franchise.

Flash forward to April 27th 2010 and the release of super street fighter 4, the game had the returning cast of twenty-five characters from the first street fighter 4 as well as the introduction of ten new characters. Some of these characters return from previous street fighters like Adon and Dudley, and the game also introduced new fan favorite characters like Hakan and the newest character to join the street fighter elite Juri. Capcom said that super street fighter 4 would mark the definitive end to the street fighter 4 series and that all the added content of the different online modes and characters was too much to add onto the original sf4 disc but also lowered the price to 39.99 for ssf4. Super street fighter 4 is a great game and was received with high marks across the board from all the major gaming sites and channels. If your keeping track of the money spent so far gamers have spent at this point 100 plus dollars on sf4 not including tax, now that is quite a bit of money but with the advances of ssf4 it is a validated purchase for fighting fans. But little did gamers know capcom was preparing to release another super street fighter reincarnation.

(looks like akuma found the 7 dragon balls and wished for capcom to keep raping your wallet)


June 7th 2011, enter super street fighter 4 arcade edition which added 4 new characters, no; wait, wait a minute its really 3 old characters (evil ryu, yun & yang) and one new character Oni who really looks like he should be the next level of super saiyan in dragon ball z instead of a character in street fighter. The game simply put should have been downloadable content for ssf4 but instead capcom decided to take 40 more of your hard earned dollars to get it in retail stores. The game was identical to ssf4 right down to the opening video and backgrounds and had minimal online changes. This super recycling of street fighter 4 sadly is only one example of how capcom and other developers are using a popular franchise to take advantage of gamers and we have to make it stop. (On an interesting side note if you want another example of how capcom continually hoers out its best franchises look at marvel vs. capcom 3 and the info on ultimate MVC3, have fun getting your ass handed to you by Wesker and Dante as you try to learn the combos for
Rocket raccoon and Frank west…)

As gamers we need to support games that are worthy of sequels and further content and avoid games that don’t meet our expectations, developers like capcom shouldn’t be rewarded for lackluster efforts like SSF4AC with high sales, it sends the wrong message and lets them know that if the slap a little spit shine and monkey grease on this run down tired edition of street fighter they can continue to make millions and leave us holding the bill. If you love street fighter I am not tell you to stop playing it, I am simply saying don’t support SSF4AC, force capcom to make better DLC or better yet move forward to street fighter 5 by not supporting crappy titles. The ticker for money spent on street fighter 4 just whent past $140 if you purchased arcade addition and thats not counting purchase of any of the special editions which were in the hundreds including the fight stick(and if you did my condolences on your loss). This is the third time gamers forked over money to capcom and quite frankly unlike ssf4 which really improved on the first title, even 15 bucks for the online download is a bit pricey for one new character, three old ones and minimal "rebalancing" of the game. Once again I must restate that as gamers we have to be smarter and more importantly buy smarter so you dont get vomit worthy remakes such as super street fighter 4 arcade edition

Love, Lust and nightmares!!! This weeks special thursday edition carnage report is about Catherine!!!!

What would you do if after years of a committed relationship you awoke next to a very attractive girl who is not your girlfriend? How would you react? That is the main plotline in the game Catherine. You play Vincent, a man in his 30’s who still is struggling to make the transition into an adult and is dealing with life’s problems. Vincent is in a relationship with Katherine, a high school sweetheart who he has been dating for the past few years. One night while drinking at a local bar Vincent meets Catherine with a C and after one to many drinks wakes up in bed with her, the following night Vincent begins having horrific nightmares of constantly climbing a huge tower where if he or any of the men there die they die in real life as well.

Catherine is a story driven puzzle game the likes of which gamers have never seen, for eight days Vincent must tackle towers of blocks that vary from heavy blocks, ice blocks, blocks that explode and many other obstacles in order to make it to the top of the tower and the next night. There is no inherent right or wrong way to climb the tower, just like there is no right or wrong way to play the game with the multiple answers and choices throughout the story. The game strikes a really great tempo between the panic and chaos of the nightmares that rush you forward at a life threatening pace and the slow, calm atmosphere of the stray sheep where Vincent relaxes with friends and throws down shots. Aside from the nightmares the game takes place at the stray sheep where Vincent has drinks with friends, sends text messages and plays tunes from the games awesome soundtrack. Vincent also has the option to speak with other men at the bar having similar woman troubles, and play rapunzel, an arcade game in the stray sheep that can help prepare you for the nightmares, also downing drinks at the bar will increase your speed during the nightmares as well as give you interesting facts about the different types of liquor.

This kind of attention to detail is what really makes this game shine. Atlus clearly put a lot of time and effort into this game and it shows from the dialog, to the gameplay and main message of the game. Vincent’s nightmares and new crisis in his relationship aren’t just coincidence and they all have a much deeper meaning which echoes throughout the entire game, the things you say to both love interests will affect the game and lead you closer towards one of eight endings. Atlus is to be commended for striking outside of norm and creating a game that is truly original by tackling story elements that have always been seen as taboo by developers. Relationship problems, the journey to adulthood and infidelity towards a loved one are the main struggles Vincent has to cope with in Catherine and they are all themes you never see in games, which really is a shame because they provoke interesting questions and cause reflective thinking the likes of which most games never even attempt.

Catherine is a very different but very good game, but due to its oddities main stream gamers will probably pass but if you aren’t thrown off by its different gameplay style and presentation then you will really enjoy the game

Captain America review

Captain America review
The surprise game of the summer proves why the first avenger is the mightiest marvel.

Captain America has always been heralded as the mightiest avenger, Americas greatest hero but if you were born in the past decade or so without reading the comics you might not fully understand why, luckily caps movie premiered last month to get everyone up to speed on Americas greatest hero and like all recent superhero movies it donned a sidekick in the form of a game adaptation, which shockingly enough is pretty good. The first avenger is a really good game that shows off all of cap’s abilities, much like arkham asylum show off batman’s skills as the worlds greatest detective first avenger really gives you the feeling that you are in control of Americas super solider. The game takes place over multiple areas of a hydra castle that is acting as base camp for many of hydras military activity and development. Cap goes in kicking ass, taking names and freeing P.O.Ws (prisoners of war).

The game has some good combat, cap is extremely athletic and you will need all of his moves to defeat hydras forces, also there are a lot of extra content and achievements to be found in the hydra castle, there is also a challenge mode that is similar to arkham asylums. Unfortunately there are a few problems with the game; the enemies seem to look very repetitive after the first few chapters with only a few variations of the different enemies. Also caps animations are limited as well and as the game goes on you will begin to see the same crippling strike moves over and over, both minor but still are strikes against the game. I guess the biggest gripe would be the length of the game, for a 60 dollar price tag captain America is very short, less than a week of game play for the main story.

Speaking of the story first avenger has some pretty good boss fights and dialoge. Along the way the captain will rescue his crew that accompanied him into the hydra castle as well as encounter many of the foes from the captain america universe, including the red skull. While the game doesint really support the first avenger movie, it does bring cap back into relevancy and is a good game which is more than most ask of a movie game tie-in. Captain America the first avenger is a good game and defiantly a rental tittle but above that the game is not much more than a good first attempt, hopefully marvel and next level games will make a second captain America game and put a little more time and effort into there star spangled man .

Games based off movies, (why you should save your money for the big screen attraction)

Every summer blockbuster movies hit theaters all over the country, movies like spider-man, the transformers series; the recent batman and iron man movies all make millions in the box office. To promote these juggernauts of the silver screen many companies will release video games based on the movie, around or at the same time as the movie’s release. The idea is simple, video games are the biggest and strongest media outlet for at least the past 5 years and if you have a franchise with a comic book history like Thor and Green lantern why not make a game that will reach your target audience and get them excited about the upcoming movie? Movie based games are a great idea as a marketing tool, unfortunately they rarely create a nexus from being simple marketing tools to becoming good and compelling video games that will properly support the franchise.

A perfect example of this is the green lantern movie and the green lantern game rise of the man-hunters. For this example the movie good or bad is irrelevant but the game is there to support the movie and get the gaming community talking about the emerald knight, but the game is so horrible that if the game were anything like the movie I would never go see it (luckily it isn’t). For those who don’t know the green lantern is a superhero from DC comics who wears a power ring that gives him his ability’s. The ring can make constructs based of the wearer’s thoughts and willpower and it is said that the only weakness the ring has is its owner’s imagination (and the color yellow but that’s a story for another time). So the developers had an amazing franchise to bring into the gaming world, like most comic book movies do, the problem was the application of the franchise they had and making it into a game. Green lantern rise of the man-hunters is a terrible game, as a lantern you are supposed to have near limitless power but instead the game developers decided to drop you squarely into a god of war/devil may cry/ ninja gaiden like hack and slash game. For a character that has the power of the universe at his fingertips that is not the right type of game and on top of that it isn’t even done correctly, for God’s sake the green lantern cant even fly unless prompted or in a crappy level made specifically for flight!!!

So obviously I feel this game is garbage but there are many more that fall in the same category and there are a series of reasons. Unfortunately the majority of movie based games are not meant to be great or even good games, simply having Optimus prime or Batman on the cover of a game with a movie in the works seems to be enough marketing push for the developers to have done there job no matter what the games look like. There is also the fact that many movie game tie ins are made under the pretenses that they should be as cheap as possible under the overall franchises budget, not the right foot to start off on as a game developer. Will movie based video games ever be as good as there silver screen counterparts? Maybe but it is going to take some changes to the concept of what a video game based on a movie should be, it should be more than a marketing tool besides all the people in business and who are doing the advertisement for the movies and are a part of the game should know the best or worst marketing and advertisement you will get is always word of mouth.

Official writer on VGReaction.com

Recently i was contacted by the owner of an up and coming website, after a few conversations with him I will now be a writer for the new website VGReaction.com!!!! I will continue to post all my blogs on the carnage report first but now you can also catch me on VGReaction.com! the site is still very new but already has an active forum which I will be an active member of, please stop by the site, as usual i really appreciate any and all support...dont forget to click the links!!!!

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Like me on FB, Follow Me on twitter and join the 51army...See you starside

Fail to the king (Duke nukem forever review)

There are lots of iconic and well loved video game characters out there, they all have different genres and we love them for different reasons. Normally the icons of the gaming world are backed by amazing videogames witch is why the characters are so popular, examples of this are everywhere from Master chief of the now legendary Halo series to the up and coming characters like nathan drake from the uncharted series. The developers behind these epic games work extremly hard to ensure a bad game doesint hurt the image of a growing gaming superstar and so creators like bungie and naughty dog keep the franchise under close watch..

Duke nukem was/is one of these iconic characters, for those who dont know much about the self proclaimed king he started out in 1991 and starred in a string of games by the now deceased 3D realms. The biggest hit of the series Duke Nukem 3D is considered by some to be a game that helped revolutionize first person shooters as a genre. Dukes tough guy swagger and edgey gameplay earned him the namesake that fans have faithfully kept till today.....12 years later. Unfortunately duke hit hard times after Nukem 3D, 3D Relms attempted to make a sequel but was unable to and shortly after closed its doors for good, this left the Duke nukem franchise in the lowest circle of development hell where it remained resting not so peacefully until 2k games and gearbox software decided to go grave diving.

This bring us to the recent release of Duke nukem forever, warning to all nukem fans this will not be easy to read. Right from the opening cutscene everything about this game screams the 90's from dukes announcemnet that "he's back baby" to the boring guitar ripps. The games story is extremly forgettable and boring, the basic premise is that duke has been in development hell, I mean on "vacation" and is called back into the line of duty when the aliens he defeated 12 years ago find there way back to earth for revenge (what took them so long?)and this time they start going after earth’s women. From there the game sends you on your way through an reletively short and extremly linear story where there is no such thing as exploration except for the random bathroom where u can take a piss or a vending machine, im serious its less of a story or adventure and more of move from point A to point B while annihilating anything that comes onscreen that is not human.

While you can make the argument that most fps give you that task it isint this blatant and normally the story is what keeps you moving forward with a sense of purpose, all of which are missing in this game. Crappy graphics also add to the frustration of this game, forever looks extremly dated ancient almost which really makes me wonder what gearbox and 2k changed about the game if anything. Duke nukem forever looks like a game that should have been released for the original xbox or ps2, with all the beautiful games that have been released (Halo reach, Uncharted 2, Mass effect series) and games starting to utilize 3D Tv it really makes forever look decrepit.

The creators at 2k and gearbox were also extremly unimaginative with charater design, for how much the game boast about big guns, expolsive action and hot babes there is a very short order of any of them in the game, especially the women duke games are infamously known for. All the women in the game are pretty much carbon copys of eachother, same build maybe even the same voice actor, even the two leading ladies duke regularly interacts with are twins to show the lack of effort on the developers part. But the biggest gripe has to be the fact that in the entire game there are less than a handful of enimies to fight, this make combat feel mind numbing, very repetitive and worst of all boring. The controls are very basic and if you have played a FPS in the past decade should be no problem for you and the puzzels in the game are so simple they almost go without mentioning.

Forever also falls flat when it comes to voice acting and sound, one of the things that has kept duke alive all this time in the hearts and minds of gamers are the chuck Norris like duke-isms that are all over the web and that SHOULD be in the game, that is not the case honestly that is the farthest from the truth. Duke's boring one liners are seemingly set on repeat the entire game, sure it sounds cool at first but by the 500th time you have heard duke say "Let God sort out the mess" on the second level your about ready to play the game on mute. Add to this shitstorm of a game an unimaginative multiplayer that consist of slayer, team slayer and a duke version of CTF called capture the babe and you have a full on epic fail of a game and more importantly a waste of 63.59. (The price of games since the new console generation) If your a fan rent but please save yourself the buyers remorse and don’t purchase this game.

Its a shame that this is the offering the faithful fans of duke nukem get after all these years, and its obvious that instead of being real developers and creating a game with there own imagination while staying true to the iconic character; 2k and gearbox decided to simply spit shine and ship out a game THAT WASINT GOOD ENOUGH TO CUT IT IN THE MID 90's!!!!
Seriously this is the same game that 3D realms tried with all there might to ship out but could not and now we see why...12 years later. The same flaws that plagued it then are glaringly obvious now with new technology and games evolving in every aspect. I don’t know if duke will ever get another shot at gaming redemption or if the iconic character will have to burn for the sins of his developers, I guess we will have to wait and see if dukes fans can pull him out of the 50ft ditch 2k and gearbox dug for him. For its boring story, dated graphics and sheer lack of effort in development duke nukem gets a 2 out of 5

The dark knight returns (batman arkham city preview)

One thing I truly love about the videogame industry is the ability and oppertunity developers have to take a license we all know and love (like comic book hero's) and take them beyond our wildest imagination. Its one thing to read a truly epic comic or watch an amazing movie featuring one of your favorite superheros, but to put you in control, behind the mask and under the cowl of many of our favorite hero's is absolutly awe inspireing when done correctly. A standing testiment to this idea is the recent hit Batman arkham asylum. Arkham asylum makes you feel like you are the caped crusder like no game, movie or even comic book could hope to duplicate.

All of the dark knights powers and abilitys are right at your fingertips, from standard batarang's and batmans signature cape that allows him to glide through the skys of gotham to the creative and extremly helpful detective mode in the game that proved why batman owns the mantle "worlds greatest detective". Arkham aslymum was a great game and arkham city not only looks to follow in its footsteps but move even further in what has become the best superhero gaming franchise to date. The current specs are that the game will boast over 40 hours of gameplay as well as an extra 15 hours of extra content to keep you busy in the streets of arkham and as im sure everyone knows by now catwoman is a playable character for aproximatly 10 percent of the game.

For those who have had bad experiences with so called "extra characters" that in truth are just reskins rest assured that ms.selina kyle is her very own character and is not batman with a {much} sexier strut, catwoman comes with her own moveset, storyline, goals & opponents and approaches fighting, interacting and moving in and around arkham city completly different and independent from the caped crusaider. Injecting catwoman into the arkham franchise was a smart and very interesting move by rocksteady games. Catwomans sultry personality and quick witt should add a very sharp and sexy feel to the game (two things i never thought i would put in the same sentence as ANYTHING refering to a batman game…or batman in general) and make an amazing change of pace. Those with even a mild interest in baman should be looking forward to oct. 18th (arkham city release date) and if your a fan of the world greatest detective it shouldnt take a cole phelp's interrogation to get you into your local gamestop to reserve a copy and pick it up on release day.

Until then stay tuned into the carnage report! Like me on facebook, follow me on twitter and continue to support the growing 51 army by reading my blog and telling your fellow gamers, also plz comment on my blog I would love to hear some feedback, both positive and…..otherwise lol till then…..See you starside

Changing the game by thinking with portals: Portal 2 Review

In the gaming world parody on certain levels is inevitable, someone somewhere did something awesome and that is normally where we draw our beginning ideas from, after all we all remember our first great experience with something new and those experiences tend to affect our own. In a gaming world filled with FPS (first person shooters) Portal seems poised to do something that doesn’t happen very often, change the way we play video games. In an industry that is supposedly full of innovators portal 2 is truly innovative taking the first person view and instead of filling the screen with targets that you will eventually fill with hot lead it places you in the middle of huge test rooms filled with puzzles and forces you to think your way out, the only true enemies are turrets that shoot at you on certain levels and the puzzles themselves both of witch can be dealt with by thinking outside of the box and some clever wits; thinking in a first person game....I know crazy right?

Add the fact that for the life of me I cant think of another game that has done anything similar and ladies and gents we just may have on our hands something that is truly innovative and different. Portal started out as a side attraction in the orange box and continued to gain popularity culminating in an Internet wide meme (did anyone end up getting a slice of that freaking cake???) Portal 2 follows up and immediately drops you into this big and odd world filled with amazing oddities like goop than can make you run faster and jump higher and great characters that keep you interested and immersed in the game, wheatly and glados both are very intriguing, wheatly is hilarious with his extremely low iq for a robot and glado's disrespectful undertones and blatant remarks are funny even if you didn’t play the first game. The puzzles are very interesting with varying amounts of difficulty, most require attention to detail and being able to look at the puzzles from different points of view. Portal 2 also has a stand alone co-op mode that has its own set of intriguing puzzles that focus on teamwork between two players that adds to the games replay value. Simply put the portal series is a breath of not only fresh but new and different air into the gaming universe, the first person view along with amazing dialog deeply immerses you in the game while the puzzles truly give you the feeling that you have never played anything like this before and you really feel like you have accomplished something as the puzzles difficulty increases and you complete them. Hopefully portal 2 will be the start of a good group of games that use the first person view for more than simply fragging, and if gaming history shows us anything then I am sure that soon you will be seeing other games following in portals footsteps…

Till next time follow me on twitter, like me on facebook and join the 51Army by follwing my blogs….see you starside

The game of the decade returns

As I am sure you all are aware of by now halo will be making a more than triumphant return to all our box consoles very soon with the revival of halo combat evolved, this 10th anniversary will feature the entire original halo CE campaign as well as full on and offline co-op play the entire way through. This time around the master chief will be sporting full 360 graphics and possibly the halo reach multiplayer (in the trailer a chief-like Spartan assassinates another player) but for all those who just love the...um how do I say this..."classic" look of the halo CE from a decade ago 343 has made a classic mode, simply put u press a button and all the halo graphics are returned to the original CE format and presentation. That said the new 360 CE graphics look downright viewtiful...(yes I just said that) one thing that I think that was unfortunately lost after the acclaim and praise of the first halo was the amazing attention to detail bungie gave to the backgrounds and landscape that chief traversed in the first halo, the music and scenery truly gave off the feel that you were far from earth and on a truly alien planet.

Revisiting those amazing sites from halo CE again with 360 graphics makes it worth whatever price tag 343 want to slap on it. Halo Combat Evolved drops Nov.15th 2011 if the covenant, (or delays) don’t get in its way but as of today it is up for reserve at gamestop and your local gaming spots, make sure u pre-order and also add me on XBL and we will fragg some noobs. My Gtag is AKA Carnage51

Cant wait for halo CE!!!! The game that changed a decade is back!!!
-See you star side


                                                                   -See you starside