Category: FPS

Review: Halo: Reach

Reach Winter ContingencyWhether we like it or not, Halo is a game that changed the FPS landscape forever. It can be argued that this is for both good and ill, but the fact remains that the epic FPS sci-fi series from Bungie typically constitutes a natural disaster in whatever year it arrives. Halo: Reach has made landfall, gentlemen, and it’s time to sort out the damage.

After a couple weeks of reading other Halo: Reach reviews, there seems to be a general consensus. One, that writers like to use the phrase “swan song”. Two, that Bungie’s final installment into the Halo series culminates in what might be its greatest and most critically acclaimed title yet. Reviewing a Halo game carries with it a tricky balance of managing hype, expectations and fanboy glee, but in Reach, it’s hard to ignore all of the wonderful things that Bungie accomplished, and how they’ve changed the game yet again moving forward.

So, just how good is the game? Read on to find out. Continue reading Review: Halo: Reach

GamerSushi Asks: Bringing the Classics Online?

Mario Kart 64In our modern day of tubes, webs and whatever hamsters that ferret the packets of data across the Internet, online gaming has risen to a peak like never before. This is obvious to say in a sentence, but really, when you think about how different things were just 5 or 6 years ago, it’s actually staggering. For instance: Halo 2 was the first major online console FPS. That was released in 2004. YouTube was just a fledgling site then. You get the picture.

Anyway, in thinking about the way the gaming world has transformed as well as contemplating some old gaming favorites, I was struck by the notion of bringing the classics online. For me, it wasn’t until I started playing games online that I realized what a small fish I was in a huge pond in terms of skill. For every green shell I could connect at Mario Kart 64, there were probably millions that could run circles around me, and so forth. My skills in Goldeneye were only surpassed by my brother in our circle, but I wonder what kind of challenges he would have faced out there.

So, in continuing with that thought, what gaming classics and favorites would you choose to infuse with co-operative or competitive online play? Go!

GamerSushi Asks: FPS Control Schemes

While I love playing shooters on both consoles and PC these days, one thing I miss from my more hardcore PC gaming days is the ability for full control customization via the keyboard. It was nice to map any feature to any button, and really helped you tailor your style of play in a unique way.

Tonight, while playing another bout of Halo: Reach, Nick randomly freaked out because his controller was set differently than he normally had it. So, as a result, he asked all of us whether we played shooters inverted or non-inverted. I thought I’d bring that question here.

For me, I used to always play inverted on controllers, non-inverted on a mouse. Eventually some weird switch flipped in my brain and now I play exclusively non-inverted. I’m not really sure how this happened, but it occurred during a playthrough of Splinter Cell: Chaos Theory. I was forever changed, apparently.

What about you guys? How do you play? Go!

How do you play FPS games?

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Microsoft to Increase Frequency of Halo Game Releases

master chiefNow that the release of Halo: Reach is behind us, did you think that we were at the end of the Halo related posts? We’re not out of the woods yet, kiddies, because Microsoft has a bit of news for us. Hot on the heels of Bungie’s super-awesome swan song, Microsoft and 343 Industries (the folks taking over the Halo franchise) have announced that they have a few plans for Master Chief and pals, and the first step is to ramp up the number of Halo releases we’re going to see. Typically, it’s a fairly long length of time between Halo games, about three years, but the success Activsion has had with yearly Call of Duty releases has been a source of inspiration for MS and 343.

Corporate Vice President for Microsoft Game Studios Phil Spencer recently had a little talk with IGN about the future of Halo post-Bungie and what we can look forward to for the next few years. While Mr. Spencer did say that a yearly schedule wasn’t the rule, he did also state the the long delay between releases is detrimental for fans of the series. Out of sight, out of mind, that sort of thing (ignoring the fact that Halo 3 is still charting on the top ten played XBL games to this day, but anyways). Phil went on the explain exactly how their new business model got its roots from Activision and Call of Duty: Continue reading Microsoft to Increase Frequency of Halo Game Releases

BioShock Infinite Gameplay Video is on Cloud Nine

BioShock Infinite (or Skyoshock, if you’re feeling sassy) was announced in late July amid much fervor and rumors. Is this a sequel to BioShock? What’s going on in the airborne city of Columbia? While we did get a glimpse at some of the fantastic looking screens, we haven’t really seen anything concrete on the game up until now. This video, shown during the behind-closed-doors press release event, goes over the sort of shenanigans we can expect to see in Irrational Game’s next foray into the BioShock universe.

One thing that strikes me about the video is how great Irrational is at world building. Much like Rapture before it, Columbia is at the tail end of its life, and the entire city is in shambles. The video opens kind of slowly, but it ramps pretty quickly after that. The game is currently set for release in 2012, so we’ve got a while to go. What do you guys think of the gameplay? Excited for Infinite?

Fallout: New Vegas Gets First Developer Diary

In just one month, folks will be clamoring to jump back into the world of the Fallout universe, this time taking on the wasted west and the deserts around Vegas. I know several people who are particularly looking forward to this game, eager to dip back into an enormous quest (or series of quests) yet again.

And for all of you wishing to see a little more to fuel your need for Fallout: New Vegas, you’re in luck. As is becoming custom for new video games these days, Obsidian just released its first Fallout: New Vegas developer diary, going over the setting and story of the game. I have to say, I’m intrigued by the nature of the story, complete with its own MacGuffin in the form of a mysterious package stolen from the player.

Anyway, give it a watch. Hard to believe it’s out October 19 here in the U.S. Who’s getting this game, and what do you think of the video?

GamerSushi Asks: What Are You Playing?

Reach Screenshot

Although I think I’m going to know the answer for the half of the comments on this one, I’m going to roll with it anyway. It’s been a few weeks since we’ve asked what you guys were up to, and now is as good of a time as any.

For me, I’ve been dealing with Mass Effect 2 DLC, which, seriously, Lair of the Shadow Broker is incredible. In addition to that I’ve also been doing a little bit of Lego Harry Potter (yes, really). And most importantly, the title that has sucked away my life for this entire last week: Halo: Reach. Hopefully a review will be coming soon, but I really love the game, and haven’t been this absorbed in one for as long as I can remember. It’s owning my sleep, my interactions with people, everything. Just the way a good gaming binge should.

So what about you guys? What are you playing? And on top of that, who has Reach and would be up for a community play date sometime soon? Go!

The Many Companions of Fallout: New Vegas

Fallout: New Vegas companions

The apocalyptic Wasteland can be a lonely and bizarre place, especially for gunmen hopping around on RPG-like quests and equipped to their teeth in dangerous weaponry. Naturally, slaughtering ghouls and all kinds of other baddies in the Mojave is a grim task to face alone. So that’s why Fallout: New Vegas, like Fallout 3, allows you some tag-alongs in the form of one humanoid and one non-humanoid buddy with which to explore the expansive desert.

In a recent update on the Playstation blog, Bethesda Senior Community Manager Matt Grandstaff outlined the possible Fallout: New Vegas companions that we can look forward to meeting in the sequel to the hit Fallout 3. The list actually gives quite a bit of detail on the various friends you can partner up with, and they come in all shapes and sizes. There are dudes, dames, dogs and even a mutant named Lily who looks like Beast straight out of the X-Men.

Anyway, totally worth checking it out, especially for the non-humanoid companions. With this game only about a month away from release, who’s getting more anxious for it to finally be here? What do you think of the companions?

Source – Playstation Blog

Poll: How Do You Buy Your Games?

The other night, I gathered in a line of the nerdiest of nerds, standing in mostly single file all with the same goal: Halo: Reach. I know, we’re trying to cut back on Reach posts, and you’ll see some more impressions/reviews in the coming week (I’ve already beat Campaign), but the line got me thinking about something else entirely.

As all of the nerds (I say this with mostly affection) began clamoring for whatever merchandise was being thrown out as prizes, I wondered how they all came to arrive there, and how the hype is different for a release in this digital download age. After all, you won’t see quite as many people lining up to play an exclusively PC game, since they can just order it with the click of a mouse. In the future, when Call of Duty 11X is being released for download on consoles, the hype machine will take a different appearance than we know it right now. Even talking to all of my friends, there are a variety of different methods that people used to obtain Halo: Reach. Online, pre-order, walk-in, etc.

So, I thought I’d ask: how would you say you purchase the majority of your games, and through what service? Go!

How Do You Buy Your Games?

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GamerSushi Asks: Halo: Reach Roll Call?

Halo: ReachIt’s about time, gents. For those of you who have been waiting patiently and impatiently for Halo: Reach, the week is finally upon us, rolling like a tidal way to sweep us up in its inexorable and powerful wake. For those that are sick of any and all Reach-around news, you are equally as joyous as the pain will soon be at its end, the hype pushed behind.

Regardless of your stance towards the huge franchise that Bungie fashioned with its own hands, Halo: Reach will be a hard game to ignore, and stands as Bungie’s swan song to Halo when it drops this Tuesday. If you’re unaware, the reviews are already pouring in, and apparently the game is turning a few heads. Many are calling it the greatest Halo game created.

So, with all of this nonsense in mind, I figured it was about time to do a roll call in these parts. I’m picking the game up tomorrow night at midnight, and I’m more than likely going to play it with my brother co-op through the night and the next day until we beat it, before jumping into other modes and replaying it again on legendary with multiple combatants. That’s the plan, anyway. I’m flexible, though.

What about you guys? Who out there is going to be getting Halo: Reach? When will you have it in your grimy and gamepad calloused hands? Roll call, boys. Go!

GamerSushi Top Six: Best DLC

Every generation of gaming seems defined by either new pieces of technology or something else that broadens our definition of what a game entails. One of the new advents that’s become more widespread in the last few years would be what is now known as DLC, a bit of an adaptation of the expansion pack from PC’s gaming glory days. It’s yet another example of the transition of gaming as it has moved from the desk to the couch, and it’s taken up its own shape as a result, both on the console and on PC.

Only in the last few years have developers started to show exceptional treatment in the handling of DLC, finding ways to extend the life of the games we love in a variety of ways. In no particular order, here are our top six games with great DLC: Continue reading GamerSushi Top Six: Best DLC

Call of Duty: Black Ops Will Have Post-Launch Support, No Online Passes

Call-of-Duty-Black-Ops-DLC

EA recently launched a new initiative a while back in which a unique code (such as Bad Company 2’s VIP or Mass Effect 2’s Cerberus Network) would incentivize purchasers not to trade their games back in by offering exclusive access to downloadable content (used game buyers would have to pay a fifteen dollar fee to access such a service). EA Sports also branched out with their own version of this program with the Online Pass, a one-time use token that would allow gamers to play the online portions of upcoming sports titles like Tiger Woods and Madden. Naturally, there was a bit of a backlash, but EA is just trying to protect itself from the ravenous jaws of the used game industry. So far, this is the only solution put forward by a publisher to actively combat trade ins, but is it the best one?

Enter Mark Lamia of Treyarch Studios, currently the developer of the upcoming Black Ops and potential savior of the Call of Duty series’ image amongst gamers. He maintains that a strong multiplayer segment and good post-launch support is the key to keep people playing your game long past the point of considering a trade-in. Teryarch still has a section of their studio working on keeping World at War fun, and they expect to dish out a lot of content for Black Ops. Instead of moving on immediately to the next project, they will be focusing on keeping fans engaged in the hopes that they’ll continue playing without gimmicks like VIP passes and online access codes, even if you bought the game used. With the new additions to multiplayer features like Wager Matches, replays and bringing back dedicated servers on the PC, Black Ops looks like it’s shaping up to be a proper title.

What do you guys think about his statement? What incentives would keep you from trading a game in? Online codes for first time purchasers, or a lot of DLC regardless of how you came by the title?

Source: MCV

FireFall, the Free-To-Play Sci-Fi MMO

Somehow I missed this game during my time and PAX, and now I am made to rue my mistake. I think I might have glanced the booth for this title once or twice, but I passed it over in favor of games that were of a known quantity. What a fool I was. Apparently, in my ignorance, I was missing out on a fantastic demo for a free (our favorite word) sci-fi MMO. Not just free to play online, or what have you, but costing a total of zero dollars to download and install. Made by veterans of both World of Warcraft and Tribes, this MMO hopes to lure you in with its appealing price tag and then gain its profit back through microtransactions. While this model works well in Asia, it has yet to really take hold here in North America (with a few exceptions). This game may be the one to do it though. Take a look at the video and see for yourself:

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For a game that’s being dished out for free, this is looking pretty fantastic. It’s a combination first and third person shooter with the requisite RPG elements. You can fly around in your ship, upgrade your ridiculous looking suit, and take part in randomly generated quests (the village siege at the end was an example of that). What do you guys think of FireFall? Does it catch your fancy? Any reservations about the microtransaction aspect? You’ve got a while to think about it, as the release date is set for Fall 2011. Tell us your thoughts!

Portal 2 Co-Op Demo from PAX

A few weeks ago, Valve released a brief Portal 2 co-op trailer. While it didn’t show us any actual gameplay, it finally gave us a small but illuminating look at what the game might entail for the many Portal fans that are dying to play with one another.

Over the weekend at PAX, though, Valve did even more: they brought a Portal 2 co-op demo with them for the world to see. As Mitch mentioned in his PAX 2010 round-up, there are definitely a few surprises to witness here. For one, instead of splitting the portal guns between the two players, both can each create both sets of portals, adding a layer of complication to the puzzles. There are some other surprises there, too, but I’ll let you guys see those for yourselves.

If these puzzles are any indication of how the later co-op puzzles could escalate, color me excited. Who else is dying to play this even more than before? What do you think of the gameplay they showed?

Valve Regrets Love Affair With 360, Moves to Open Development

team fortress valve heavy
A few years back, around the release of The Orange Box and Left 4 Dead, Valve was really going hard for Microsoft. They were trotting out quotes left and right saying how LIVE was the wave of the future and that the PS3 wasn’t really a good choice for developers. Fast forward to 2010, and opinions are changing. Back in July, Valve head honcho Gabe Newell swaggered out on stage at Sony’s E3 presser and announced that not only would Portal 2 be coming to the PlayStation 3, but it would be the premier version of the game. Naturally, some hyperbole is expected at E3, but Valve seems to be doing a neat about-face in regards to their console preferences.

Part of what caused Valve to change their mind about the X-Box 360 is that the development cycle for the system is very closed off. If you’re not familiar with Microsoft’s certification process, it is a very stringent battery of tests that need to be done internally by Microsoft before anything gets released to LIVE. This adds to the time needed to get patches out, even the critical ones. Microsoft also has a habit of insisting that downloadable content costs money, something Valve has preferred to avoid. The PS3, on the other hand, presents a much more open development platform for Valve, something they’re eager to utilize.
Continue reading Valve Regrets Love Affair With 360, Moves to Open Development

Bungie Tempts Us With Halo: Reach Campaign Walkthrough

I think I’ve mentioned this little factoid on here before, but I am kind of a spoiler hound. There are very few occasions where I manage to keep myself totally in the dark about a story for any book, movie or game. Case in point, I was playing through the new Mass Effect 2 DLC last night, Lair of the Shadow Broker, and I looked up the end of the level while I was playing it. If that isn’t crazy behavior, I don’t know what is. Just to make the wait for Halo: Reach even more unbareable, Bungie has seen fit to release a walkthrough of one of the campaign’s levels called Tip of the Spear, complete with commentary straight from the developers. I’m going to try and avoid watching this, but if you’re so inclined, I’ve embedded the video below:

If you did watch the video, what did you think? Pretty interesting, or are you trying to keep yourself squeaky clean for the next six days?

Why You Should Go to PAX: Big Daddy Dances to Poker Face

There are very few occasions in which cosplay and win could be used in tandem with one another, but I think we’ve found it. Why is that, you ask? Because there is a video from PAX of a Big Daddy playing Dance Central, the dance game for XBox Kinect.

Also, he’s dancing to Poker Face, which ups the scale of humor to dangerously toxic. And the reasons for me to be jealous for attendees continues to grow…

Duke Nukem Gameplay From PAX 2010

Duke Nukem Forever

Since everybody else and their mom is posting about the shocking news that Duke Nukem Forever lives, I suppose we were obliged to get a post up as well. So here it is: the obligatory Duke Nukem Forever post.

In case you don’t know what I’m talking about, here’s the skinny: the fabled and long ridiculed vaporware has been kept alive like some sort of Frankenstein’s monster by Gearbox, creators of Borderlands. Over the weekend at PAX Prime 2010 in Seattle, Washington, the greatest of all gaming conventions had the killer reveal on the show floor, and people actually got to play the game that time forgot and mocked.

And naturally, people took lots of video. It was like spotting a unicorn in the wild, with double rainbows blazing from its pure and silky mane. Personally, I liked Duke Nukem, but I don’t identify with all of the mania. I think more of the craze is about the fact that the game exists more than the franchise itself, but I could be wrong.

So, is anyone here excited about this news? Were any of you Duke Nukem fans? Crappy offscreen handheld videos after the jump! Continue reading Duke Nukem Gameplay From PAX 2010

Call of Duty: Black Ops Brings Wager Matches

After eating my words about Call of Duty: World at War — a game I doubted for months on end — I have had an up and down relationship with Call of Duty: Black Ops. You see, occasionally I find myself excited, really enjoying some of the glimpses I get to see. And other times, I wonder if the series is getting close to jumping the shark, so to speak.

However, I might be back on the optimistic side after the brand new footage Treyarch revealed this week, showing off the new wager multiplayer mode that they’ve included in Black Ops. Basically, it’s a game mode where you take the currency you’ve earned in multiplayer matches and gamble it against other players. There are a variety of ways to do this, including single shot rounds, knife gametypes and even one where each kill upgrades your weapon up to a new tier. Really, you need to see it yourself.

Did this excite anyone else? Or just me?

GameStop Offers Extra Trade-In Value Towards Halo: Reach and Metroid: Other M

Halo vs MetroidI don’t know how it happened, but the Fall is already here. Basically, all of us have entered a collective form of group time travel, and we’ve managed to skip the summer and get straight to September. Metroid: Other M released on Tuesday, and a whole other round of games is marching inexorably forward. Soon, they will pile atop us, a colossus of entertainment waiting to be felled by our magical swords of light. You know what I mean.

While I know there is a debate that goes around amongst us about trading in video games and buying used games, I do know there is a portion of us that maintain our gaming addiction through this very practice (I count myself as one of those junkies). I’m not a big fan of the practice, but with big titles like Halo: Reach looming around the bend, some of us are trying to scrap together money however we can. For other manic trade-in users like myself, I thought I would post a handy link to GameStop’s trade in offers for September 2010.

The used games retail giant actually has a few good trade-in deals going on at the moment, including offering $40 towards Metroid or Halo: Reach for bringing in any 2 games in a slew of titles. That offer lasts until Sunday, September 5th, so get a move on if you’re interested. On top of that GameStop is offering an additional 25% for all trade-ins that go towards Dead Rising 2, Metroid or Halo: Reach.

There are some other deals, too, but those are some of the highlights. Who plans on buying any of these games? Has anyone played Metroid yet? Report!

Source – GameStop Trade-Ins and image by Ripten