Archive - 2014

Mortal Kombat X Announced with Trailer

2014/06/02

E3, News, PlayStation 3 News, PlayStation 4 News, Trailers / Videos, Windows PC News, Xbox 360 News, Xbox One News

*Note: Not the Mortal Kombat X logo

Burbank, Calif. – June 2, 2014 – Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment today announced Mortal Kombat X, NetherRealm Studios’ next highly anticipated installment in its legendary, critically acclaimed fighting game franchise that propels the iconic franchise into a new generation. Mortal Kombat X is scheduled for release in 2015 for the PlayStation®4 and PlayStation®3 computer entertainment systems, Xbox One, the all-in-one games and entertainment system from Microsoft, the Xbox 360 games and entertainment system from Microsoft and Windows PC. Mortal Kombat X will make its first public appearance at Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3) 2014 in Los Angeles.

“Mortal Kombat is our acclaimed, world-renowned franchise and we are now advancing the fighting genre with Mortal Kombat X,” said Martin Tremblay, President, Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment. “NetherRealm Studios is best in class at delivering games fans love and they are taking their iconic brand to the next level with Mortal Kombat X.”

“Mortal Kombat has always been about over-the-top, visceral fighting and with Mortal Kombat X we wanted to utilize the power of new-gen consoles to give players our most intense game yet,” said Ed Boon, Creative Director, NetherRealm Studios. “The team has worked hard to make sure Mortal Kombat X delivers everything fans expect along with new characters, new game modes and an all new graphics engine.”

Mortal Kombat X combines cinematic presentation with all new gameplay to deliver the most brutal Kombat experience ever, offering a new fully-connected experience that launches players into a persistent online contest where every fight matters in a global battle for supremacy. For the first time, Mortal Kombat X gives players the ability to choose from multiple variations of each character impacting both strategy and fighting style. Players step into an original story showcasing some of the game’s most prolific characters including Scorpion and Sub-Zero, while introducing new challengers that represent the forces of good and evil and tie the tale together.

For more information about Mortal Kombat X, please visit www.mortalkombat.com and www.facebook.com/MortalKombat.

Trailer

Homefront: The Revolution Announced

2014/06/02

Jerry Paxton

Mac PC News, News, PlayStation 4 News, Screenshots / Photos, Trailers / Videos, Windows PC News, Xbox One News

Larkspur, Calif., June 2, 2014 – Wage guerrilla warfare and reclaim the streets of Philadelphia in Homefront: The Revolution, a captivating new free-roaming FPS to be co-published in 2015 by Crytek and Deep Silver.

Coming to Xbox One, the all-in-one games and entertainment system from Microsoft, PlayStation®4, PC, Mac and Linux in 2015, Homefront: The Revolution throws players into a near future dystopia. Catastrophic events have brought the United States to its knees and enabled the Korean People’s Army forces to impose a brutal military occupation. Trapped in this American nightmare, Philadelphia has become a police state, where surveillance drones and armored patrols keep her once-proud citizens at heel, crushing any dissent with totalitarian force.

To overcome their oppressors, players will have to engage in guerrilla warfare and use ambush, infiltration and hit and run tactics in thrilling un-scripted firefights. At every turn they’ll find a sprawling open-world city, in which recruiting fellow revolutionaries and building improvised homebrew weapons are just two of the keys to creating a powerful resistance force.

The Resistance flourishes far beyond the single player. Homefront: The Revolution supports up to four players in online Co-Op gameplay where you form your own resistance cell and become renowned as Heroes of the Revolution.

“Homefront: The Revolution stands out from the crowd by immersing players in a world where they’ll feel emotionally compelled to fight for their freedom,” said Hasit Zala, Game Director at Crytek. “We’re very excited to work with Deep Silver and deliver an experience that underlines Crytek’s commitment to quality whilst tapping into the huge potential we saw when we first acquired the Homefront IP.”

Homefront: The Revolution represents the first time Crytek and Deep Silver have worked together, with the two partners collaborating to release the game as part of a co-publishing agreement.

“Crytek has an outstanding track record of creating AAA action games. Homefront is a fascinating IP with huge global potential. With Crytek`s technical pedigree and Deep Silver´s publishing expertise, we will take the IP to new heights,” said Dr. Klemens Kundratitz, CEO of Deep Silver / Koch Media.

Developed by Crytek’s Nottingham studio, Homefront: The Revolution harnesses the latest features of Crytek’s CRYENGINE technology. On the ground, players will encounter a dynamic environment that looks and feels truly alive as day turns to night and storm clouds come and go – an authenticity that extends to the strikingly lifelike expressions, skin and clothing of everyone they encounter.

To find out more about the Homefront: The Revolution, and to watch an all-new trailer showing the game in action, visit www.homefront-game.com.

Trailer

Screenshots

Halloween Horror Nights Choose Your Scare Zone Announced

2014/06/02

Jerry Paxton

Geek News, Halloween, News

Universal City, California — For the first time in the history of “Halloween Horror Nights” at Universal Studios Hollywood, fans of the award-winning horror event will seal their own fate as they are called upon to vote for the most fear-provoking Scare Zone in the “Choose Your Scare” online voting competition. The winning Scare Zone concept will materialize in disturbingly real detail at Universal Studios Hollywood’s “Halloween Horror Nights” in Fall 2014.

“From June 4 to 18, 2014, “Halloween Horror Nights” fans will be invited to cast their vote via the Halloween Horror Night’s Official Facebook Page to select one of three possible Scare Zone themes: Corps, Mask-a-Raid or Ghoulz. The winning Scare Zone, which will be located on French Street, will be announced on June 19.

“For years, ‘Halloween Horror Nights’ fans have shared their thoughts on what they would like to see at the event. This year, we’re giving them a chance to participate in the creative process by voting for what they believe will be the scariest Scare Zone,” said John Murdy, Creative Director, Universal Studios Hollywood and Executive Producer of “Halloween Horror Nights.” “Our goal is to produce the most terrifying, most intense horror experience anywhere. The more scared the fans are, the louder they scream and the happier they are, so, to have them join us in this process is very rewarding.”

Fans can recruit friends to help amp up the vote count for a favorite Scare Zone choice by “sharing” their vote via their social media platforms using #UniversalHHN.

Fans can vote for one of the following three Scare Zone concepts:

Scare Zone, Option 1: Corps

“The War to End All Wars” has left a swathe of destruction through battle-torn France, and on French Street at Universal Studios Hollywood’s Halloween Horror Nights, World War I-era soldiers have returned from the dead. The constant artillery bombardment has turned the twisted network of trenches into a sprawling graveyard, and now “The Lost Generation” is rising from their muddy graves and coming home to haunt the streets of “old Paris.”

Scare Zone, Option 2: Mask-a-Raid

Masquerade Balls were a staple of the social calendar in pre-Revolutionary War France; a time for the members of the French aristocracy to misbehave behind the cover of elaborate, jeweled masks. But “mask-a-raiding” among the powdered and perfumed party-goers are members of a blood thirsty cannibal cult. Bon appétit!

Scare Zone, Option 3: Ghoulz

In 19^th century France, restrictive laws and social norms prevented medical colleges from acquiring the one asset they need most – human cadavers. To solve this “body shortage crisis,” universities employed “unsavory characters” to do their dirty work and steal corpses from cemeteries in the middle of the night. Unfortunately, the grave robbers on Universal Studios Hollywood’s French Street have developed a morbid fascination with the dead – and a taste for human flesh.

“Halloween Horror Nights” 2014 at Universal Studios Hollywood will bring together the sickest minds in horror to immerse guests in a living, breathing, three-dimensional world of terror. “Halloween Horror Nights” will feature a slate of unrivaled film production quality mazes, terror-filled Scare Zones and “Terror Tram” experience uniquely themed to today’s most definitive horror properties.

Universal Studios Hollywood, The Entertainment Capital of L.A., includes a full-day, movie-based theme park and Studio Tour; the CityWalk entertainment, shopping and dining complex, the Universal CityWalk Cinemas and the “5 Towers” state-of-the-art outdoor concert venue. World-class rides and attractions include the all new 3D Ultra-HD movie motion-simulator adventure, “Despicable Me Minion Mayhem” and “Super Silly Fun Land,” the intense, award-winning ride, “King Kong 360 3D” on the famed behind-the-scenes Studio Tour, the critically-acclaimed mega-attraction, “Transformers™: The Ride-3D,” “The Simpsons Ride^TM,” “Revenge of the Mummy^SM—The Ride,” and “Jurassic Park® —The Ride.”

The Great Horror Campout Returns

2014/06/02

Jerry Paxton

Geek News, Halloween, News

Horror attraction fans should take note as The Great Horror Campout is returning, with its first stop in Los Angeles from Friday, June 6 to Saturday, June 7. You may recall our preview of The Great Horror Campout from last year – this time, they are looking to make things even scarier.

Official Press Release

(LOS ANGELES, CA – May 14, 2014) Returning to Los Angeles on June 6th, 2014, for a second kicking and screaming year, the Great Horror Campout is expanding its uniquely entertaining and immersive horror camp to cities across the nation. From Ten Thirty One Productions, the creators of the incredibly popular Los Angeles Haunted Hayride, the Great Horror Campout is a “choose your own adventure” overnight experience unlike any other in the horror themed events genre. With Mark Cuban recently investing $2 million in the company, the biggest deal in Shark Tank history, this year’s Great Horror Campout will be even more frightening with live scareactors, fog and scent effects, water spray and splash, narrow tunnels, crouch spaces which require you to bend down while walking, sudden loud noises, and much more.

“People want engagement and complete immersion in their experiences…and Great Horror Campout is the definition of that. The night is packed with layer upon layer of active content. The days of spectator sport haunted attractions and events are over and we couldn’t be more excited about that,” states Ten ThirtyOne Productions Founder, Melissa Carbone.

Campers can decide how extreme of an experience they get by their choice of activities lasting 12 hours (8pm to 8am). In the “Chicken Zone,” campers may watch horror movies and roast marshmallows, while those seeking “High Startle” zones will want to warm up around the Bonfire or wander off to the Mess Hall.

The interactive “Hell Hunt” experience will give campers, whom wish for a more extreme experience a run for their money, as they come face to face with their worst nightmares, in order to retrieve the items for which they are hunting. The Hell Hunt will be an extremely high-octane hunt for items that will send campers bathing in the blood of a “Pope Lick,” partaking in a sacrificial voodoo ritual, digging through road kill amongst “Beasts of Bray” and more. Campers will have to use creative thinking and problem solving to find the most coveted items, especially when facing “Speed Bumps” that may leave the camper kidnapped, caged or trunked. Those “Hell Hunters” who complete the task will be crowned Great Horror Campout “Hellmasters.” Upon being crowned a Hellmaster, campers will receive a sash and an official patch with the city and year they won. The more patches earned at each Campout, the more prestigious each camper will become in the network of Hellmasters.

During Great Horror Campout, campers may be forcibly handled, moved, bound, hooded, chained and subjected to simulated torture by a cast of actors. If a camper can no longer take the horror, shouting the safe phrase “I WANT MY MOMMY” will immediately put an end to the nightmare.

Ticket Price for a 4-person tent is $139, or $203 for a 2-person tent, and includes: Overnight tent accommodations, Continental Breakfast, Parking, Hell Hunt Experience, Canvas Hell Hunt Bag, Horror Movies, and Marshmallows. Items not included: Sleeping Bags, Pillows, Flashlights, and Drinks (other than at Breakfast). You may pack your own picnic baskets for dinner.

2014 Tour Schedule:

6/6 & 6/7: Los Angeles, CA

6/20 & 6/21: Houston, TX

6/27 & 6/28: Austin, TX

7/11 & 7/12: San Francisco, CA

7/18 & 7/19: Sacramento, CA

7/25 & 7/26: Seattle, WA

8/1 & 8/2: Portland, OR

8/15 & 8/16: San Diego, CA

8/22 & 8/23: San Bernardino, CA

For more information, please visit www.greathorrorcampout.com. Like on Facebook and follow on Twitter for news.

About Ten Thirty One Productions

Ten Thirty One Productions, LLC is an Entertainment Company focused on the Horror genre. Launching one of the most popular Horror attractions in LA, “Los Angeles Haunted Hayride” in 2009, TTO has quickly grown as one of the premiere horror genre attractions companies in the country. A major component in the business model has and will always be a strong social awareness element that is integrated into the content of the attractions. For example, Environmental Conservation, Animal and Wildlife Welfare, City Park Preservation and more are issues that are addressed in creative ways in every TTO production.

PTS RM4 Scout ERG Airsoft Gun Review

2014/06/01

Jerry Paxton

Action Sports, Airsoft News, Airsoft Reviews, Articles, News, Reviews, seal of excellence

Photo by AirsoftOutletNW.com

Airsoft gun makers have been trying hard for several years to create realistic recoil/blowback systems in their AEGs. Early, piston-driven designs caused additional wear on your internal components and new pneumatic systems from companies like G&G, while not putting undue wear on your internals, don’t really add much recoil to using the airsoft gun. Gas blowback airsoft guns have usually had no problem getting recoil effects due to their design. It is that reason, along with their usage being very similar to real-steel firearms, that they are used a lot for training purposes. Unfortunately, using a gas blowback rifle has disadvantages when the temperature is taken into account. Gas blowback airsoft rifles perform poorly in cold weather as the gas inside their magazines condenses due to the temperature. So, the goal is to create an AEG which has recoil comparable to a gas blowback rifle and can be used for training no matter what temperature it is taken to. Enter: The PTS RM4 ERG.

The external design of the PTS RM4 ERG (try saying that five times fast) is nothing you haven’t seen before with other PTS rifles, but that doesn’t mean it’s any less impressive. It features all PTS Magpul furniture with official trademarks and comes equipped with a flip-up rear MBUS sight and a-frame forward sight. The outer barrel is 14.5″ inches in length and the gun features a 6.05mm tight bore inner barrel. The gun’s coloring is all muted black and gunmetal, giving an overall aggressive tone.

This Magpul-licensed airsoft gun was co-developed by PTS and Yih Kai, which is also the manufacturer for KWA. Yih Kai has long-been known for crafting well-built, solid out-of-the box airsoft guns and this is no exception. The PTS RM4 ERG weighs in at a solid 7.42 lbs and I couldn’t locate any “wobble” in it at all. For its purpose as a training rifle, the thing definitely feels as though it can take a beating. Here in the U.S., the gun is being co-distributed by KWA and PTS.

Talking about the gun’s “Kinetic Feedback System” (what they call the recoil system), this thing is incredible. For all intents and purposes PTS, Magpul, and KWA have succeeded in creating a system that mimics the recoil of a gas blowback rifle. While not as much recoil, obviously, as a real-steel firearm, the system produces enough recoil to make you work to stay on target. Additionally, the PTS RM4 ERG features one of the coolest things I have seen on an airsoft gun – when the magazine is dry, the gun does not fire and the bolt catch locks back! In order to begin shooting again, you have to reload and hit the bolt release. This feature is only available when using the specially-designed PMAGs for the rifle (more on the magazines later). Of course, the airsoft gun can use standard M4 magazines as well – but you will not get that auto cut-off feature.

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We got the chance to ask PTS Syndicate’s Andrew Ho some questions on this new airsoft rifle – here is our mini-interview:

Q) Could you explain what the Kinetic Feedback System (KFS) design process was like? What were the goals, challenges, etc?

A) The design had been under development for a couple of years. The details were all handled in Asia by the factory. I entered the picture only this year so I don’t have any details regarding any of the technical design challenges. However, the goal was to make an airsoft electric gun function more realistically than a standard AEG. Granted we have gas blowback M4 rifles that excellently replicate the function and the felt recoil of a real gun on the market but it comes with its own set of limitations i.e. expensive magazines, temperature sensitivity, un-reusuable energy source, wear and tear on the rubber seals. With an electric system, can run off a rechargeable battery instead of constantly having to buy gas propellant, you can use standard AEG magazines, it is not temperature sensitive, and it can use standard AEG magazines (with some loss of ERG functions but not performance)

Q) What are the differences between the 3GX and 2GX gearboxes?

A) That’s company marketing nomenclature. 2GX is KWA’s improved Version 2 AEG Gearbox (their early V2 gearboxes had some minor issues so when they made some changes, the marketing team came up with 2GX). 3GX is the term for the ERG gearbox.

Q) What are the benefits of the KFS over existing recoil systems?

A) If you’ve tried any of the recoil systems from other AEG manufacturers, you’ll either feel very little or sometimes virtually no difference in vibration. That’s because they typically use the bolt plate mass to increase felt recoil. Heavier reciprocating bolt plate makes for slightly more recoil. However, it puts a lot of drag onto a gearbox and increases failure rates. Either that or some manufacturer bolt plates are so negligible in weight increase that you feel nothing. The ERG system gearbox does not operate off bolt plate but reciprocates a heavy spring loaded brass and metal plug in the buffer tube. Thus you get felt recoil that approaches that of an excellent GBB rifle system. You’ll feel it immediately when you try it. Besides the KFS recoil system, the ERG will also stop firing when your magazine is empty (just like a GBB rifle or a real gun). you will have to load a loaded magazine and hit the bolt stop on the side of the receiver (just like a real AR) to get it back into action.

Q) Is the KFS something that will become standard in KWA guns in the future?

A) There is an increase in cost to manufacture this systems and some players don’t care for the additional features of realistic function. (some of us just want to play and shoot our buddies up) KWA will respond to the market’s needs. At this time, they will manufacture both types.

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Getting to the gun’s special magazines, the PTS RM4 ERG PMAG features an extended feeding spring that, when “dry” (i.e. out of rounds), extends up and into the receiver. This hits a lever inside the gun, locking back the bolt catch and preventing dry firing. Additionally, these magazines have a selector slider in them that allows the user to set its max capacity to either 30 or 60 rounds. These two features illustrate the marvelous job PTS has done to ride the line between training and gaming. Magazines are sold in sets of 3 and retail for about $40 dollars a pack. This brings the individual cost of each magazine to about $13.30 dollars – not bad! They feed very well and feature that PMAG style many players have grown to love.

The biggest thing I wish they would have included in this gun package was a PTS Magpul MOE handguard-compatible rail. They are so inexpensive, it would have been nice to put it in the box so that airsofters could utilize existing attachments right away. I picked up a MOE-compatible rail off of Amazon for about ten dollars including shipping and highly recommend it.

Overall, PTS should be proud of what they have accomplished in the PTS RM4 ERG. They have created an exceptional airsoft gun for training or gaming purposes, out of an AEG. We are awarding the airsoft gun a 5 out of 5 stars and granting it our Seal of Excellence. The PTS RM4 ERG retails for about $380 dollars and is available now.

[easyreview title=”PTS RM4 ERG Review Score” cat1title=”Overall Score (out of 5)” cat1detail=”” cat1rating=”5″ ]
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Images (please not that the T.U.C., front rail and vertical grip, and upper receiver rail riser were added by me):

Men Of War: Assault Squad 2 Review (PC)

2014/05/31

Ripper71

News, Reviews, Windows PC News, Windows PC Review

Memorial Day is celebrated in all kinds of ways. Traditionally, mine involves playing marathon sessions of war video games. I think of the sacrifices generations have made for our liberties while fighting historic battles or historic enemies. This time my main game of the weekend was Men Of War: Assault Squad 2 which is a real time strategy game set during World War II and going through famous battles from the point of view of most of the nations involved.

Description:
Men of War: Assault Squad 2 features new single player style skirmish modes that take players from extreme tank combat to deadly sniper stealth missions. Commanders can now faceoff against opponents on various new multiplayer 1v1 – 4v4 maps. To truly bring the battles to life though there is the new 8v8 game mode designed for huge battles on spectacular maps.

Features:
– Direct control every unit as if you were playing a 3rd person shooter
– Interface and AI improvements, including unit kill counts and squad icon information
– New multiplayer interface
– Camouflage depending on season
– Fully updated inventory items with new graphics and updated vehicles
– Sound improvements, including voice acting
– Steam features, including Steam multiplayer, matchmaking, achievements, cloud, player statistics, leaderboards, voice chat, Valve anti-cheat, friends invite and workshop
– Player level up and ranked system
– In-game video recording, and much more.
– 15 new single player skirmishes plus 25 reworked ones from the original Assault Squad
– Eight player co-op support and an all new multiplayer extreme game mode
– 65 multiplayer maps and five gamemodes
– More than 250 vehicles at your command
– More than 200 soldiers with unique equipment
– Five factions and various battlefields in Europe, Eastern Europe, Northern Africa and the Pacific
– Development tools such as 3d model exporter and map/mission editor, and much more.

Hands On:
The first thing I want to stress is how massive this game is for a real-time strategy game. The maps are large with multiple points to take and try to hold which makes for a slow strategic push and then there are so many maps over each nation’s campaign. My biggest advice is save often because you never know when you will make a bad move and watch dozens of your men die in seconds.

Gameplay involves various size units and types that push through great variations of objectives and enemies. One of my personal favorites was Normandy on the American side where they have established a beachhead and have to push through the town taking locations over and unlocking Rangers and Airborne along the way. They throw a lot of enemies at you and if you aren’t careful they will flank you or hit you with superior firepower. The armored vehicles come out of the woodwork and if you lose a location flag you fail the objective.

It is true that many of the maps are revamps from the first Assault Squad but the revamp has been so heavily done that the premise remains the same but the maps feel fresh. Even if the map is the same from the previous game you can play through differently time after time since it is your strategy that decides what units are used how. Will you try to zerg with infantry or take your time and build a wall of forces slowly pushing forward? Will you try to drop your Airborne at a remote location and try to take an objective or use them as quick reinforcements to drop at challenged objectives? It’s all up to you and can be different every time.

Men Of War: Assault Squad 2 takes the multiplayer aspect of real-time strategy games up and notch with matches that are 4v4 and 8v8! Usually these games are 2v2 and can be challenging to co-ordinate well enough to win, when you have 16 players on the same strategic battlefield with 65 possible maps and there is no set style or strategy you have to adjust to your team’s moves and 8 enemies out to get you. The single player is large with lots of re-playability but the multiplayer promises to never be close to the same match twice.

Add to all this Steam support and achievements, map editing, 3D model exporter and five different game modes and you easily have weeks or months of playtime without ever playing things the same twice.

Last Call:
The Men Of War franchise has a very solid reputation and Men Of War: Assault Squad 2 not only lives up to it but raises the bar for all real-time strategy games. If this is the style of game for you than this is a must play for you.

[easyreview title=”Men Of War: Assault Squad 2 Review Score” cat1title=”Overall Score (out of 5)” cat1detail=”” cat1rating=”5″ ]

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Broforce Preview (PC)

2014/05/31

Ripper71

News, Previews, Windows PC News, Windows PC Preview

7 7 7 7 7

Listen up Bro! The most brotastic game has hit Steam Greenlight! If you are a Bro like me you probably already played the free Brototype from time to but now that Free Lives has a place to call Brome. Bro, can you believe back in the 80s we used to have whole conversations like this? Yeah sometimes it was dude instead of bro but the idea was the same. Bro had a bit more machismo heaped on the top of it like bacon on steak covered in nacho cheese. The games of the time reflected that with the side scrolling shooters such as Contra fulling coming into their own. Also coming into their own was the Action Hero, an against all odds warrior who fired more bullets than the population of small countries. So Free Live did the bromazing thing of combining the two into a hilarious yet addictive game.

Description:
Broforce is an action platformer for PC featuring 1980s action heroes making up the Broforce team, an under-funded vigilante paramilitary organization. The game features ridiculous violence, pixel art graphics and a fully destructible Vietnam setting. While masquerading as a run ‘n gun in the vein of Metal Slug, Broforce’s reactive environment encourages tactical play. Each bro out of the 13 the game currently features has distinctive overpowered attacks and special abilities, and mastering them all is one of Broforce’s core pleasures. Death is instant and can be surprising, but this is balanced by the incompetence of the enemy. Explosions are plentiful and very often result in chaotic chain reactions, but this shouldn’t discourage you from permanently holding down your trigger finger. Yelling “‘Murica!” while you do so is optional.

Broforce is best played co-operatively, two to four players (though single player is an option). It can be played both on keyboard and on XBox controllers.

Vehicular action sequences, dinosaurs, aliens and epic Contra-inspired boss fights, deathmatch arenas with leaderboards and rankings, a level editor, the ability to challenge friends and share custom levels, a customizable Brofort with unlockable rooms and much more to come in the full game. The only thing left to say is: brace your loins.

Features:
– More explosions, camera shake and action than anything else, ever.
– Fully destructible terrain.
– Local Bro-op play and online multiplayer bro-op.
– Deathmatch arenas with leaderboards and rankings.
– Unlockable “bros” – each with distinctive attacks and special brobilities.
– A level editor, the ability to challenge your friends and share your custom levels.
– Design your own Brofort – with unlockable rooms and additions to defend against terrorist onslaught, or just hang out.
– Vehicular action sequences, dinosaurs, aliens and epic Contra-inspired boss fights.
– Nuanced and strategic combat, explosive action and deadly stealth.
– For every terrorist killed in Broforce, a terrorist will die in real life.

Hands On:
To truly appreciate this game in its fullest you need to have lived through the 1980s and the gaming mentality at the time. Hanging out with friends in front of the TV drinking Mt. Dew, eating junk food, and playing video games until the sun came up or you beat them. Co-Op playing was best so you could help each other bust through levels though VS. games were fun too. Some games were up scrollers, usually those involved vehicles but Contra was ruling the day with it’s side-scrolling fight fest. If you were really doing it right you would have a TV with a VCR or cable nearby showing First Blood, Rambo, Terminator, or if you were into horror maybe that eternal classic Evil Dead 2.

Free Lives got this idea and nostalgia and managed to make it into a side-scrolling brofest. The Brominator, Rambro, Bro Dredd, and Brommando just names a few of the heroes you control while tearing up terrorists and the environment. Each has special abilities that will change your play style as the game randomly spawns one for you to fight with. A couple of my fave bros are Snake Broskin and Ash Brolliams (I think Williamsbro sound better but it kinda reminds me of a Civil War battleground) but all are amazing entertaining.

You can play with a keyboard but the controls felt REALLY clumsy to me on it. I tried the player one controls and the player two but felt a bit frustrated until I finally plugged in a controller. My controller is busted but luckily the buttons I needed only took up a small portion and I was blowing up the whole world and all the terrorists with it in no time. If you have been waiting to pick up a game controller go out and get two so you can have a friend play with you Co-Op and VS. and have a blast using about the same game controls you did when playing those consoles of yesteryear. You don’t have to have played the games at the time to love this one, but it definitely kicks up the bro factor.

Last Bros:
Broforce only takes itself serious when it comes to good gameplay. Playing the game is unbrolievably fun. Each character that unlocks is a new challenge and fun way to destroy everything. You will have favorites but more importantly you will just have a great time and maybe remember some nights spent in a room in front of a television making life bonds over video games and action flicks.

Wolfenstein: The New Order Review (PC/Steam)

2014/05/31

Ripper71

News, Reviews, Windows PC News, Windows PC Review

There was the very real possibility that Allied Forces might have lost World War II. The Axis made crucial mistakes and the Allies made great strategic moves and in the technological race of the time the Allies prevailed. What would have happened though if the German’s with Hitler’s obsession with technology had managed to get our secrets and beat us to the bomb? That is the dark and dramatic tale behind Wolfenstein: The New Order where the world lives under the flag of the Nazi Germany.

Description:
Europe, 1946. World War II rages across Europe. Where once the Allies pressed advantage, the Nazi forces have turned the tide in dramatic fashion behind the technologically advanced war machine of General Wilhelm Strasse — Deathshead. When a final Allied assault on Deathshead’s compound fails, the Allies’ greatest hope falls with it.

Europe, 1960. The war is over. And the Nazis are triumphant victors. Using unrelenting force and brutal intimidation, the Nazis have brought even the most powerful nations to their knees. The Nazi regime now rules the globe with an iron fist.

You are Captain B.J. Blazkowicz, the American War Hero. After emerging into this world of darkness, you must launch an impossible counter-offensive against the monstrous Nazi regime. Only you dare stand up against an unstoppable army of Nazi robots and hulking Super Soldiers. Only you can stop Deathshead. Only you can rewrite history.

Hands On:
I have always loved the Wolfenstein franchise right back to the early 1980s before it was even a FPS. Once it became a first person shooter I really became addicted and played Wolfenstein 3D and it’s sequels for hours and hours and hours on end. Whenever a new one came out I would clear my schedule and play away.

This time the game happened to come out when I always play war games around Memorial Day Weekend AND told an alternate world history which as someone who is a History Channel junkie I can tell you kicks the game up a notch. The game is designed so that if you just care about the FPS aspect you can easily skip this alternate world tale which is primarily told through newspaper clippings found throughout the game. If you really want to get the full effect of the game and the story though you should really dive into every scrap it gives you for a chilling view of what could have been.

Gameplay is first person shooter which is what we have come to expect from the series with occasional cutscenes. The game feels like you are an Inglourious Basterd tearing through the Nazi ranks with glee until suddenly things aren’t going too well for you. That is when you find yourself having to replace your weapons (for the first time but not the last) and get a load of what the goose stepping buggers have been up to. It doesn’t take long before you are back to your old ways of killing stormtroopers and all the techno marvels they have come up with to take human lives.

The storyline plays out great, the gameplay is as hard as you want it from easy to downright crazy and even when you hit a hard spot you want to keep tackling it to see what the game will throw at you next. The graphics look great, the voice acting sounds like the characters are right out of a movie and the game is completely submersive. It is one of the best single player FPS campaigns I have played in recent years and with how many I play that is an extremely bold statement.

The only thing that I found a bummer was the lack of multiplayer action. It’s true that some games of late seem to make multiplayer modes simple add-ons or find that the players will sometimes skip the single player campaign completely. In some cases, games are developed so that there is no true single player – just themed multiplayer events (such as Titanfall). Over time, the multiplayer aspects of the Wolfenstein games have become some of my favorite multiplayer experiences. Let’s face it, you just can’t get enough Nazi killing and this series perfected it. There are always players willing to go to the darkside to give you some challenging Nazis and with this game’s two time periods you could have maps that are just real WWII weapons and maps with the alternate future ones. It’s always better to not have a multiplayer than to have bad multiplayer but in this game it really felt like a missed opportunity.

Last Call:
Wolfenstein: The New Order is a new order of fun for first person shooters. The gameplay is great, the storyline is highly imaginative, the graphics are next level and the weapons kick major ass. You want to push through and beat down the Nazi regime – if the game had multiplayer it would be darn near perfect.

[easyreview title=”Wolfenstein: The New Order Review Score” cat1title=”Overall Score (out of 5)” cat1detail=”” cat1rating=”4″ ]

Dynasty Warriors 8 Xtreme Legends Complete Edition Review (PC)

2014/05/31

Judgeman

News, Reviews, Windows PC News, Windows PC Review

I have a very solid rule when it comes to game titles, and that is games with the word “Xtreme” in it should be avoided at all costs – especially when it is spelled in that manner. You are just better off leaving that game on the shelf. Lucky for Tecmo Koei, I was assigned to review their latest and greatest edition in their Dynasty Warriors, uh, dynasty called Dynasty Warriors 8 Xtreme Legends Complete Edition. This game was a much better experience than I was expecting, and really fun to play. With this edition, you get everything that was in Dynasty Warriors 8 and in the expansion Xtreme Legends, hence the “Complete Edition” title. This is literally everything you need in one package if you want to play Dynasty Warriors 8 on the PC.

Story

The story for Dynasty Warriors 8 Xtreme Legends Complete Edition (this is going to get old, fast) is broken into six parts, following each faction: Wei, Wu, Shu, Jin, The Others, and Lu Bu. The story for each faction is different for each group, from fighting down a eunuch rebellion, to gathering allies. Each faction has their own heroes to choose from, and the story is told through cut scenes, text boxes, and in game voice overs between characters. There isn’t a single narrative through Dynasty Warriors 8 Xtreme Legends Complete Edition, you really get six.

I think that was always my issue with the Dynasty Warriors franchise, really. I hadn’t played one of these games since Dynasty Warriors 2 or 3, and remember always feeling like the story was just disjointed and never made sense to me. That feeling still persists through Dynasty Warriors 8 Xtreme Legends Complete Edition, I never really feel that there is an over arching narrative, and the characters are just not interesting enough for me to care about. I think the other issue with characterization, is that there are literally sixteen characters per faction for the first four factions, then a less amount after that. This must be what a newbie feels like when they first pick up an Xmen comic book anymore, there are just way too many people to keep track of.

Game Play

Dynasty Warriors 8 Xtreme Legends Complete Edition plays just like I remember it, with some extras thrown in. Game modes are plenty here, with Story Mode, Free Mode, Challenge Mode, and a new Ambition Mode. Ambition Mode allows you to fight for allies, resources, and weapons to build up y our own town to win the eye of the Emperor. It’s deep, interesting, and a great way to continue to play this game, even after you have finished the Story Mode.

Game play for a Dynasty Warriors game hasn’t really changed over the years, though they do through in some new moves and weapon upgrades in this one. The main idea is that you as the character of your choosing, will fight against hundreds and hundreds of enemies in trying to reach your goal. Your goal will change depending on the mission, but the game play is still the same. Charge in, fight hundreds of enemies, and finish your objective.

You kill your enemies by using combinations of weak and strong attacks, and can switch between two weapons, each with different stats, characteristics, and upgrade potential. You will also have special attacks and EX attacks, that can help speed up the slaughter. As you kill your enemies, you will find drops in the shape of money, health, armor, and weapons. These can be used to upgrade your character in between battles to help strengthen and customize your warrior.

My only issue with Dynasty Warriors 8 Xtreme Legends Complete Edition is that, if you are playing on the PC, you absolutely need a game pad. This game controls like a dead elephant if you are using a keyboard, and you can’t remap any of your keys. The game as a bad habit of asking you to do something, like mount a horse, and not even tell you which key that is. Very frustrating, but with a game pad, all those issues will disappear.

Aesthetics

Dynasty Warriors 8 Xtreme Legends Complete Edition looks good, not overly fantastic. I enjoy the different costumes that the characters can wear, and the colors of the clothes make the heroes stand out against the enemy, but each stage always feels pretty much the same to me. Canyons, towns, fortresses, or forests, the landscape feels more like a design afterthought then a concentrated effort to give the player something to look at. Your character is obviously the main focus of all the visual design elements.

The game is fully voice acted, and that is somewhat of a negative for me. Dynasty Warriors 8 Xtreme Legends Complete Edition reminds me of a bad 1970’s Kung Fu movie that is dubbed in English. Sure, the dialogue makes sense, but the energy that is put into simple lines of script feels either way over the top, or just not enough. It can be easily overlooked, but for people that are paying attention to the quality of the voice acting, it will be distracting the more you play.

Final Thoughts

Dynasty Warriors 8 Xtreme Legends Complete Edition is a good game, and is the best version to pick up if you are looking for a good Dynasty Warriors game for the PC. The game play is solid Dynasty Warriors, there are more then enough story lines, factions, and characters to keep you busy for quite a while. Even when you’ve gone through all that, you can try your hand at the Challenge, Ambition, or Free modes. The biggest problem with Dynasty Warriors as a whole, is that it is really for a niche audience. Either you will love it, and therefore already own it, or it isn’t for you and nothing I will say will convince you otherwise. If you have never played a Dynasty Warriors game and are interested in checking it out, this is the version for you. If you loved the games of the past, then you already have this game. For me, it was a good and solid game, worth recommending to someone who is open minded about battling swarms of Chinese peasants. Dynasty Warriors 8 Xtreme Legends Complete Edition is available now on Steam.

[easyreview title=”Dynasty Warriors 8 Xtreme Legends Complete Edition Review Score” cat1title=”Overall Score (out of 5)” cat1detail=”” cat1rating=”3″ ]
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DCS: F-86F Sabre Gets Release Date

2014/05/30

Jerry Paxton

News, Screenshots / Photos, Trailers / Videos, Windows PC News

DUXFORD, UK, May 30th, 2014 –The Fighter Collection and Eagle Dynamics in cooperation with Belsimtek to release DCS: F-86F Sabre as a digital download in July 2014

The North American F-86F Sabre was the most capable western fighter of the early- to mid-1950s. This swept wing, single engine jet was the most important western aircraft of the Korean War and often tangled with Russian-made MiG-15s over the infamous “MiG Alley”. It was a hard struggle not only for the Korean sky, but also between two excellent aircraft builders of the East and West. In addition to its primary role as an air-to-air fighter, the Sabre could also carry bombs and air-to-ground rockets to attack ground targets.

The Belsimtek simulation of the Sabre is by far the most authentic recreation of this famous warbird to date. Feel what is to fly the Sabre with a professional level flight model, an interactive cockpit, fully functional weapons, a detailed damage model and a richly detailed aircraft. Experience the strengths and weaknesses of the Sabre in combat and find out why seasoned fighter pilots often look back at the Sabre as the most enjoyable aircraft they ever flew.

As part of DCS World, fly the F-86F Sabre in a fully realized combat environment with working weapon systems and capable air and ground threats.

Teaser video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vo7Mr9UxmUs&feature=youtu.be

Key Features of the DCS: F-86F Sabre:

Unmatched flight physics that allow you to truly feel what it’s like to fly this legend
Highly detailed, six-degrees-of-freedom (6 DOF) cockpit
Interact with cockpit controls with your mouse
Fully modelled weapon system
Accurate F-86F Sabre model, squadron markings, and weapons.
Detailed modelling of the F-86F Sabre instruments, weapons, engine, radios, fuel, electrical and hydraulic systems
Battle the MiG-15, the Sabre’s nemesis

Screenshots