Hello comrades !
Its been a long time since I posted something on this blog so I thought I would take some time to write a short story on how I slept on a beach and this wasn't just any beach, It was a Scottish beach. Now anyone who lives in Scotland will tell you that although it can be warm during the Summer it can also be very cold during the evening.
Most would just say "Why not get a tent" well good thinking but I decided to try another method. Instead I used a bivvy bag. Its basically a huge thick sleeping bag which you can stick a normal sleeping bag into and it will keep you nice and cosy. I actually really quite enjoyed sleeping on the beach to tell the truth, Looking up at the stars and the slight breeze was actually quite refreshing, That was until morning of course..
Well since it was such a nice night I decided to not completely zip up my bivvy bag which of course came to great demise in the morning. It was 5AM and it was actually quite bright already which surprised me. But before I even realised that I was woken up by this huge raindrop to my eye, It was actually kind of scary but funny at the same time as I said to myself in my head "What the fuck am I doing out here".
But the worst of it is that during the morning in Scottish Summers they're tends to be a lot of midges lurking around for breakfast. The worst part was I had to get changed and repack my bivvy bag IN THE RAIN which really sucked as I was freezing afterwards. The funny thing was though another nice man Blair had still been sleeping about an hour after we had woken up. It was quite funny yo see him look around as he was left by himself.
But anyway guys before I ramble on just thought I would share this story with you when its still fresh.
Honestly if you are looking for a good place to shop for DS games then I suggest Amazon or Ebay, because retailers are on swift downfall to doom at this point.
Picture courtesy of Kotaku.com
Bioware changed so much in Mass Effect 2; For instance the combat which going in five minutes already felt totally different to the first game, But in a good way. Bioware took what was bad about the jerky original combat system and mixed it up it something tottaly enjoyable, It plays alot like other counterparts such as Gears Of War and Uncharted in some ways but Mass Effect 2 brings new and original ideas to the table as well. In a sentence Mass Effect 2's combat is probably some of the most enjoyable I have ever played on the 360.
Bioware also did well to fix some problems in the first game, The one that sticks out in my mind the most is the texture popping which was very noticeable from the get go, Bioware have done well to improve this in Mass Effect 2 since now I think I seen the problem happen once for about a second then it was gone. Speaking of graphics Bioware has done a pretty decent job of making Mass Effect 2 feel like a new looking game, Rather than it just running on the original graphics engine. Alot of work has been done to the attention of detail on the characters, with a great use of textures and shaders they look alot more pretty than they did in the last game. However some characters at times can still look very bland. In whole though Mass Effect 2 has some great visuals to offer which will offer some really pretty eye candy moments.
However I would say the limelight of the game is infact the story arc. If you happened to finish the first game you had the ablity to adapt over your key decisions and character which implements into the story of Mass Effect 2, for instance something I did in the last game made a major difference to the story in the second game. Among that Mass Effect 2 in my view has to have one of the most enjoyable Science fiction stories I have experinced in a long time, I won't go into much to spoil the game but in a few words it has one of the deepest and most enjoyable stories on the Xbox 360 console.
That's not to say that the game is perfect, it is close but there is still a few gimmicks in Mass Effect 2 which I thought didn't work to well. I thought the mining was really dumb to be honest, it was slow and got tedious very quiclky and the only motivation to do it is to realise that in the long run it will make your team even more elite.
In conclusion Mass Effect 2 is defenitely one of the best games this year despite it being a January release title. With one of the deepest and enjoyable stories out there along with a fairly fun and unique combat system Mass Effect 2 is a must buy for any user on the Xbox 360.
Final Score: 10/10
Dynamite Cop is a perfect example of how arcade games should be ported over to the home console.
Dynamite Cop is a beat em up developed by Sega AM1 originally for the Sega Model 2. However in 1999 the game was ported over to the Sega Dreamcast. The game isn't so deep with the story, however pirates have seized a cruise ship holding the presidents daughter hostage. You play as one of the three of a special forces team sent to raid and retake the ship.
Gameplay in Dynamite Cop really feels a lot like an average streets of rage only with 3d polygons and smoother animation, However there are many factors which make this game stand out on its own. During the game you will make your way through the cruise ship and stop to fight off any bad guys you encounter, As I said it feels a lot like streets of rage but fighting in the game is pretty slick on its own, the player can use a variety of combos to take down pirates as well as using many weapons from the environment such as, tables,chairs,poles,umbrellas,swords,guns and many more.While running between areas of the ship the player will be prompted to perform a QTE such as pressing a button, Success of the QTE result in moving on without hesitation however failing will result in consequences.
The game is actually quite fun to play, the fighting mechanics, the ridiculous weaponry and the cheesy dialogue are enough to make this a fun experience, but not for very long.
There are three difficulty's in Dynamite Cop, Mission 1 being the easiest with unlimited credits and Mission 2 being the hardest with a limited number of credits. The difficulty overall though is nothing short of a cake walk, expect to finish the game in under 20 minutes even on a first playthrough., or even shorter when playing with a friend. There is not a lot of replay value in Dynamite Cop as all three missions will only last you an average 1 hour of game time. However it is a great laugh to come back and play with friends as you fight over the presidents daughter.
The game controls are really what you would expect, the player controls the character with the analogue stick and uses three of the buttons to perform a kick, punch or to jump in the air. Also the triggers can be used to pull of counter attacks from the enemy's. The controls feel responsive to the most part however my only complaint is trying to pull off a flying kick which with the analouge control can become a nuisance.
Graphically the game looks a lot better on the Sega Dreamcast than it was in the arcades, The player is forced to fight in many different areas in the ship such as cabins, loading docks to the women's bathroom, all are graphically well implemented as well as the character models who all had their unique design. Animations in the game flow very smoothly and at the time were quite realistic. However the game has its fair share of bland textures such as the water effects which just looked a mess. The game also included FMV's which really bog the game down as the characters faces just look scary and bland.
Sound design in the game is actually very well done, all weapons have their distinct sound effects as well as the normal grunts when you hit or an enemy. The score does good to build up your mood of feeling like your in an action movie, however none of the score is entirely memorable but it does good to provide an atmosphere. As for voice acting, its horrible and lacks in providing any of the characters human.
Dynamite is one of those games which is awesome to play for the first 20 minutes, however its distinct lack of replayability leaves the game only worth a look if you have never played the original in the arcades.
What's funny is that Sony Actually sell's Playstation 3 games in South America at £69 a pop which is pretty damn expensive for a video game even today. Well let's just hope the launch lineup of games isn't from the year 2000.
Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles was released in 2004 on the Nintendo Gamecube, It was a very unique and also a very fun game which did well to break away from the outline of many of the other Final Fantasy's although it still kept its true spirit at heart.
Long awaited fans will be able to get their hands on the addition to the Wii sometime on Febuary 2010. Well thats defos going in the shopping basket.
Square Enix Europe is tasked with overseeing projects from developers such as Crystal Dynamic and IO Interactive. However the Eidos brand still exists but the company has vanished. So what does this mean now that there will be a battle system in future Tomb Raider titles, or maybe even making Lara 80% more exposed, I shant hold my breath.