Author - Ripper71

Leisure Suit Larry in The Land of The Lounge Lizards Reloaded Review (PC)

2013/07/15

News, Reviews, Windows PC News, Windows PC Review

A bunch of us were crowded around a little computer monitor, one of the only computers in our dorms and we planned for a long night… with Larry. We all knew about the almost 40 year old virgin and his quest to fix that last bit. We all knew that you never truly got to see anything, it was a big tease. Still, we all knew it was great tongue-in-cheek fun and crowded in with a stack of his adventures – the first of which being Leisure Suit Larry in The Land of The Lounge Lizards which is a great place to start as we reload our time with him. The folks at Replay Games have remastered this classic PC game and “reloaded it” for new gamers as well as those that experience it back in the late 1980s.

Official Description:

Leisure Suit Larry is one of the most iconic characters in the history of computer gaming.

The first game in the series, Leisure Suit Larry in the Land of the Lounge Lizards, was first published in 1987 and helped build the Sierra On-Line dynasty. Featured in a score of original software titles since then (not even counting numerous anthologies, repackagings, and cameo appearances), the series’ namesake hero, Larry Laffer, is a bumbling, persistent everyman who just wants to be loved. Is that so wrong?

With the help of Al Lowe, Larry’s progenitor and designer of all of Larry’s classic adventures, Replay Games is remaking the landmark first game for an entire new generation (or two!). Expanded and enhanced in every detail and ready for both mobile devices and PCs, Larry is being reborn for the players who might’ve seen their parents (or grandparents!) playing Larry behind closed doors!

Although the games were marketed as “naughty,” Al Lowe’s Larry was comedic but never explicit, and the remake retains that standard. There’s no full-frontal nudity, no four-letter words, and no on-screen sex. But we do have our comedic priorities: Larry is a story of a man on the make, and the game drips with innuendo, flirts with perversity, and oozes sexuality from every pixelated pore.

• Expanded puzzles, locations, and gameplay
• Gorgeous, all-new high-res 16:9 backgrounds
• Over 3,000 frames of hand-drawn animation!
• Sophisticated lighting and spot animations enliven every location
• Thousands of humorous responses allow Players to enjoy exploring everything onscreen
• Hilarious branching dialogues with the main characters
• All-new Vegas-style musical score
• Fully voiced by the actors who originated the roles
• Redesigned by Al Lowe and Josh Mandel

Hands On:

At its core, Leisure Suit Larry is a point and click adventure. However, given the subject matter of the game and how it is presented to the player, the game becomes such a departure from that genre that it is easy to forget the simplicity of its gameplay. The choices you make can lead anywhere from the bedroom with a buxom beauty to a mad scientist’s laboratory to even becomng a re-animated corpse. There are puzzles to solve like where to get batteries for a remote control to distract a pimp so you can meet a working girl but, it is mostly point and click: Combine objects, solve puzzles, etc. This game is really about the nostalgia of getting back in the polyester party and trying to figure out how to turn cold as ice ladies into putty in your inexperienced hands.

The graphics are nicely cleaned up from the old days as part of the “reload” as is a complete upgrade of the sound and music. Basically, you get all the charm of the old game in a nice, clean, new package. Since the game already had tons and tons of charm to begin with, that actually goes a long ways.

Last Call:

My review of Leisure Suit Larry Reloaded is, as you can read, short and sweet. However, that’s because playing it is such a no-brainer. It is still loads of fun to play and, if you have never played it before, then you really should – not just for the history lesson which it is, but because Leisure Suit Larry in The Land of The Lounge Lizards gave us a gaming icon and franchise that every gamer should experience. The original came out 26 years ago! It is so nice to see it all shiny and new again.

[easyreview title=”Leisure Suit Larry in The Land of The Lounge Lizards Reloaded Review Score” cat1title=”Overall Score (out of 5)” cat1detail=”” cat1rating=”4″ ]
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Dark Review (PC/Steam)

2013/07/15

Ripper71

News, Reviews, Windows PC News, Windows PC Review

Last year, I was lucky enough to be at the announcement of Kalypso’s “Dark” and get my hands on the playable demo at the time. By “get my hands on it”, I mean I played it so much that some people thought I was the guy paid to demo the title and began asking me all kinds of questions about the game – many of which I was able to answer from studying it at the start of the evening. I took an occasional break to check out Omerta – City of Gangsters some more, a game I fell in love with as well, but it wouldn’t be long before I was back behind a controller moving Eric Bane through the shadows. I wrote about Dark a couple of times since then, saying what it might wind up being like. Now that the game is officially out, however, I have play the retail build and can tell you exactly what it is like!

Official Description:

Dark is a stealth-based action-adventure RPG in which you take on the role of the ultimate hunter: a vampire. Ambush your enemies from the shadows, roam the darkness and use powerful vampiric skills to dispatch your opponents. The intricate story of Dark will take you into the midst of a world of blood and darkness, where the hunter can easily become prey. Strike down other vampires, improve your character and develop formidable skills such as instantly disappearing from view to take your enemies by surprise.

Features:

Stealth and action meet role-playing: earn experience, pick your dialogue choices and develop your skills to become the ultimate hunter
Use impressive vampire skills and powerful melee attacks to eliminate your foes from the cover of darkness – go invisible, stalk your prey unnoticed and devastate them with up-close attacks
A variety of enemies await your fangs – from mortal human police and security guards to fellow creatures of the night
Make your way through lavishly appointed environments, from the city museum to the hidden fortress of a vampire lord hidden within a towering skyscraper
Impressive 3D cel-shaded graphics

Hands On:

In Dark, you play as Eric Bane, a newly-turned vampire who has to feed from either his maker or an old vampire within a certain amount of time or he will become a mindless ghoul. Kalypso stressed from the very beginning this is a third person stealth, not shooter, game at several points through its development. No matter how many enemies you kill with guns, you will rely on your newly endowed vampire skills to get you through the never ending night. It has some definite similarities to Dishonored, such as the teleporting jumps and the use of misdirection but it is definitely a game with its own feel and atmosphere. You stalk alleys, nightclubs, office buildings, and several other locations trying to find your master, or a master for the moment, and the cel-shaded graphics give the game a great graphic novel feel.

Some of the powers you get are just plain cool. There is a great “vampiric grasp” you can learn that, once you level it high enough, you do a Darth Vader like “Force choke” ending with the corpse disintegrating in a puff of purple smoke as it hits the ground. This is great because, if another guard finds the corpse, they will set off an alarm and every nearby hostile will come charging to kill you. Killing alerted guards while the hostile alarm is sounded will give you only a third of the experience of a stealthy, unaware kill so if you want to get stronger you need to stick to the shadows and sneak those kills in.

There is one problem with this that, while not a game breaker, it can be very frustrating – especially in earlier levels while you are still gaining your powers and strength: Melee combat is clumsy! I thought maybe at first it was just me or I needed to adjust some setting on my system but it really wasn’t anything of the kind. When you go in for a sneak attack, you click a single mouse button. Sometimes the sneak attack performs perfectly and you get 60 exp. Sometimes, the enemy randomly gets alerted to the attack and you only get 20-40 points. Other times, you move right in front of the enemy and they completely see you and start attacking and you have to turn around to defend yourself. In corridors or tight walkways, sometimes the camera angle switches to a shot from your crotch up and you can’t tell at all what is going on. Knowing these issues mostly occur in tighter corridors or when you try to feed rather than just attack made it so that I picked my feeding targets more carefully and trained up my toughness and ranged vampiric chokes first. After taking these simple steps I was able to get most of the melee issues minimized, if the game missed an attack I was tough enough to handle them long enough to win the fight. If I saw an enemy in a tight corridor, I would try to use the vampire choke instead of melee. There is the possibility that these issues could get resolved in a future patch as well, so here’s to hoping!

These issues weren’t enough to take me away from marathon sessions of Dark. I still enjoyed playing it, both for the fun challenges and the dark humor throughout the storyline. I’m actually planning on playing through again using a different character build. There are different talents you can learn with small trees to advance down and, in theory, you should be able to play most of the game with hardly any kills. I personally love slaughtering a whole level stealthy, but the idea of using constant shadow and misdirection instead is very appealing too.

Last Call:

I have been excited to get my hands on Dark since I saw it over a year ago. I enjoyed the final experience enough that I am already considering a second play through. Dark is a great take of the vampire mythos and third person stealth genre. Hopefully, the mechanical issues will get resolved so that I can revisit this review and give it a higher score. These issues, for me, weren’t game-breakers but for some they could be. Dark is an enjoyable journey into the shadows where only fangs gleam!

[easyreview title=”Dark Review Score” cat1title=”Overall Score (out of 5)” cat1detail=”” cat1rating=”3″ ]
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Knights of Pen And Paper +1 Edition Review (PC)

2013/07/09

Ripper71

News, Reviews, Windows PC News, Windows PC Review

It is easy for people to forget that role-playing games owe their popularity to a bunch of guys playing in their basement with character sheets, books fulls of monsters, and a handful of funny-looking dice. Guys like me. You are welcome 😉 . We would spend hours and days and weeks in games, discussing character builds and running dungeons when, at that time, the only way to really “RP” was to stare at the person behind the blind and hope you rolled twenties. Role playing came along early in the world of video gaming. In fact, some of the first games were just words on a screen like, “You are in a dark and dank room with exits to your north and up. What do you do?”. Though this was great and fun, it also signaled a certain loss of camaraderie that the role-playing game was known for. Gone were the cold pizzas, massive doses of caffeine, funny dice and, most importantly, the feeling of sitting around a table with like-minded geeks. For these reasons alone, I was excited to get my hands on Knights of Pen And Paper +1 Edition and remember the old days of tabletop gaming with the feel of early console gaming.

Official Description:

Set out on a grand adventure in this turn-based, retro style, pixel-art RPG, inspired by the great titles of the 90′s. Take on the roles of in-game players taking on the roles of their characters in a traditional pen and paper RPG session in the ultimate meta roleplaying experience.

As both the playing characters AND the game master, players can choose which battles to fight. Put together a bunch of monsters to make for a challenging fight and your efforts will be equally rewarded!

Choose from multiple classes, such as knights and mages, pick your characters to control those classes, like grandma or kid brother, and take on the loads of quests, monsters, items and equipment littered throughout Knights of Pen & Paper +1 Edition. Blacksmiths, enchanters, mining, gathering, hidden treasures and a whole lot more await, giving players a lot of room to personalize their gameplay experience.

Don’t wait any longer, the Pen & Paper world needs you!

Key Features:

The ultimate pen and paper RPG simulation experience
Put together your own role-playing group complete with the game master, the role-players and their respective classes
Fight and explore your way through a perilous fantasy world to defeat the dark mage
Level up and get your hands on more gold to unlock epic items and gear for your party
As the game master, you can set up the fights yourself and choose how many monsters to battle

The +1 Edition includes these all new features:

New dungeons to explore with monsters, traps, treasures, and powerful bosses
The Tavern, a place to stash heroes and switch out party members
More options for characters to implement during battles, adding more depth and variation to fights
Extended campaign filled with lots of new content

Hands On:

I can’t state enough just how much fun it is to play this game and get a taste of the old days of tabletop gaming again. Every time one of the characters piped up with some comment, I thought back to some conversation I had with a buddy in some dimly lit room over my favorite bag of chips and soda, shooting out our noses as we crack each other up with some geek humor. Of course, there were the times of serious role-playing when we were in the middle of a 48 hour-long campaign where we were just trying to keep from all dying, hoping someone had a couple resurrection scrolls to pull us through. Knights of Pen And Paper +1 Edition lets you get snacks and drinks for the “players” as well as decorate the room they are playing in. The creators of Knights of Pen And Paper obviously spent plenty of time around such tables themselves, because they captured the moments beautifully while at the same time making them into fun gameplay moments.

Once you get past the great atmosphere, the gameplay is a fun throwback too – this time, to the early days of console gaming. If you ever played Dragon Warrior on the NES or early Final Fantasy games, you know the type of gameplay I am talking about. MIDI music with pixel-heavy monsters where you decide each turn how best to survive to the next and where best to put your points for your talents. No giant trees of talents like MMORPGs we see now, just a handful of skills to use the best you can with the rest of your group. Choosing your “players” also plays into this because, just like in real life, the better your group works together with their individual styles, the better the fights will go for them. The cute gaming girl gets into the group cheaper, but the obsessed D&D girl helps the team better through knowing the play so well. Sure, having an experienced GM might help you survive the battles better (+ to health), but the comic book store guy knows how much fun it is to level (+ to exp). The game is a “game within a game” but you control all the elements to make it the best play experience possible.

Last Call:

Knights of Pen And Paper +1 Edition is a blast of nostalgia for both pen and paper role-playing games as well as old school console gaming. You can get it at a pretty old school price of $15 for the deluxe edition, making Knights of Pen And Paper +1 a must-play for the dedicated geek.
[easyreview title=”Knights of Pen And Paper +1 Edition Review Score” cat1title=”Overall Score (out of 5)” cat1detail=”” cat1rating=”4″ ]
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X3: Albion Prelude Review (PC/Steam)

2013/07/03

Ripper71

News, Reviews, Windows PC News, Windows PC Review

There was something I didn’t realize about Captain Kirk until recently. As captain of the fictional Starship Entertprise, he had all the responsibility and basically none of the tactile fun. Oh sure he had tactile fun in the bedroom and he was always quick to grab a phaser and head off on an away mission – but, when it came to the Enterprise, he sat in a chair and gave orders. He didn’t get to fire the torpedoes, he didn’t get to take the evasive maneuvers, it was his job to sit there and tell others what to do. As a television director I can relate to this, though I did rotate into other positions so I did get the shot, press the buttons, slide the sliders. Gaming-wise, though, I think X3: Albion Prelude might have been the first to give me the video game connections to the legendary captain.

Official Description:

War! The X universe is undergoing a period of massive change. What started as a conflict of interest between the Earth and the races of the X Universe has now escalated into a full scale war. Play a part in a war scenario bigger than anything the X Universe has ever seen before!

Corporations Compete for Control of the Future. With the war as a backdrop, corporations are vying for power and are driving the X Universe in a new direction. A technological breakthrough will soon allow massive accelerators, forming highways in space and allowing the economy to expand on an unprecedented scale. Highways, a key feature of X Rebirth, are not yet ready, but you can see them being built and participate in the power struggles around the construction of much larger self sustaining economies.

Official Features:

A new plot throws you into the power struggle between corporations at a time of war.
More than 30 new ships and stations
New Stock Exchange feature allows advanced investment strategies
Improved graphics quality setting for high end machines
Improved UI introducing charts to visualize economic developments
Support for head tracking

Hands On:

Space is huge, big, ginormous, and other such words. Being so vast, there is a whole lot of stuff you can do in it. The developers of the “X” series of games always seemed to get that point and, game after game, they try to improve on it by showing how vast it is and how much here is to do in it. It isn’t just flying around and fighting enemies, it is maintaining empires and border relations, it is building and destroying economies, it is as much about who you shake hands with as who you shoot under the table (Han shot first). X3: Albion Prelude is amazing ambitious in scope trying to be a space battle game while also being a strategy game, sim game, and just about any other real time game you can imagine all in one. To further amazement is how successful it is at doing that.

When I first started playing I didn’t realize what I was in for. I was trying to figure out the controls when I saw a ship that appeared red in my sights. Time for my first kill I thought as I opened fire. An alien face appears in my view screen and says that they were here to talk peace, why was I shooting at him? “You were red in my sights” I said to the screen and swung my ship about to continue firing. “I’m making a run for it” the alien says, I assumed at the time to me and off he goes in a much faster ship than mine. I try to give pursuit only to find a whole fleet of ships intercepting me. Really big ships. My turn to run I think right as I explode. I then get an announcement that three alien species have now declared war on us and we are probably doomed. Time to start over and rethink the game I am playing.

Fast forward into gameplay, I’m a nugget out on patrol, having figured out most of the detailed though not very intuitive controls which require me to use the mouse, keyboard and flightstick all at once and I can’t seem to get past a mission. I fly to the sector coordinates I am assigned for a space station defense but no matter what dog fighting tactic I try, and I know a lot, none of them seem to work. Going into menu upon menu I am able to make it so that after I hop through the jump gate into the sector my auto defenses can be set to attack the nearest enemy. So I pop through the jump and sit back in my chair. Like Kirk. I have told my ship to be in defensive maneuvering and to concentrate on the nearest enemies. In other words I have told my crew what to do and it is time for me to sit back and watch. The ship doesn’t engage the target in front of it, my first move most times and instead goes into immediate evasive. It can tell which ship has already engaged me upon jumping into the sector and doesn’t add to my fight but swings around to take the one on my six. I lean on the arm of my chair, fighting to not grab the stick and disengage the auto defense. I’m learning how this enemy fights, how it’s ships maneuver and how many tend to actively engage a single target in the battle. I will be a better captain for it, and I will be able to use the stick and get my hands-on kills but for now I must sit in the chair and watch.

The battle won I head back towards base, my ship on autopilot steering clear of asteroids and space ports, I am monitoring signals from different worlds. One wishes to hire a ship fit for a Queen, which my little fighter is not, I keep it in mind though, considering what upgrades to my freighter back in dock might need to be good enough for royalty. I could use the cash but upgrades can be so pricey just to oxygenate the storage hold yet alone convert it into nice accommodations. All the time I am thinking in real world days and weeks, maybe months, before I might get to own my own space station and rule the stock market.

That is just a small taste of this game, a beginning taste. It is so deep and diverse I am still in shock of how much there is to it. With each version of the X series games they have added on new possibilities, new additions to the economy, new ways to make the world as real as possible. It suits just about any taste of play and if you have a diverse taste it may suit you more than most games you have ever played.

It has its rough points: The controls are hard to get used to although the game is compatible with the Xbox 360 controller and it has crossed my mind to hook one of them up too to try to make it easier. If you take a day or two off from playing in the first couple weeks of playing you will need a refresher, you will wish you had a manual. I still feel fairly unsure on certain aspects of the game controls, with so much to do you would expect a certain degree of this but there must have been a way to streamline the controls a bit better. Also you have to plan your quit times ahead a bit or be prepared to leave your game on when you walk away, saves happen at certain space ports so if you are in a far section of space and it is time to head out for dinner you may find yourself trying to choose between floating in space or making excuses to your dinner mates on why you couldn’t leave right away.

Last Call (For Now):

I’m not done with this game yet – not by a long shot. Who knows, maybe there will be another update on it in the future or continuing their course of always looking forward the team may come out with an expansion or the next X. Now is the time to buy it on Steam though because for $40 you can own the entire X catalog, an incalculable number of hours of play. The only thing that kept me from giving this game the Seal of Excellence were the controls. X3: Albion Prelude is an terrific game that reaches for the stars and makes it.

[easyreview title=”X3: Albion Prelude Review Score” cat1title=”Overall Score (out of 5)” cat1detail=”” cat1rating=”4″ ]

Included in the Steam X: Superbox:

X:Beyond the Frontier 2.2
X:tension 2.2
X2: The Threat 2.5 incl. UPLINK
X3: Reunion 2.5 incl. “Bala Gi`s Research Missions”
X3: Terran Conflict 3.0 incl. “Balance of Power”
Bonus content with installers for Egosoft and fan made add-ons. To access the bonus material, select Library –> Tools –> X-Superbox Bonus Material from your Steam client.
Encyclopedia about the X universe (PDF)
X3 Gold Soundtrack (will be installed together with X3: Terran Conflict)

Dark Matter Beta Preview (PC)

2013/07/02

Ripper71

News, Previews, Windows PC News, Windows PC Preview

I love beta testing. If someone paid me to do it, it would probably be my perfect job. I dream of being the guy in “Grandma’s Boy” who finds all the bugs on levels 5 through 10, then plays a blistering competitive game for lunch. So far, it has not been in the cards for me. However, when I can get into a game’s beta test and start not only helping to note bugs and problem areas but, also, helping give an indie game a fighting chance, I dive at the chance. That is definitely the case with Dark Matter, a title that is currently looking for crowd funding to reach a refined state for public consumption. Here are the details of what they say needs fixing and my notes on what I think needs to get fixed to make a currently “okay” game a into a good one.

Official List of Current Issues with Beta

Current Issues – Kickstarter campaign funding will allow InterWave to correct/polish these known issues with the Preview Beta build:

· Biggest Issue: The game needs final polish.

· In addition, Dark Matter can become too difficult which can lead to frustration.

· To improve this, InterWave will use the funding from Kickstarter to improve the following key areas. This will take two months of additional development/refinement and then they will be able to launch Dark Matter:

o Improving weapons balancing

o Increasing aiming refinement

o Improving uneven level pacing

o Levels after the 14th (after killing the alien queen) are not ready yet

o Completion debugging process.

o Refinement of Enemy AI

· Better communication/information providing to players.

Hands On:

Dark Matter is a side scrolling shooter with puzzle solving elements set in a space ship under attack by alien invaders – a good old fashion “bug hunt”. Your primary weapon is a pistol, which recharges to reload and has limitless ammo. Additional weapons can be found along with add-ons, but the game requires crafting of ammo and upgrades. These crafting supplies are scavenged and dropped by enemies when killed. As you work along the dark interiors of the space ship, you might find a blown fuse you have to replace in order to open a door. Or, you may have to figure out how to cross a room full of alien bear traps – figuring these out keeps the game from being just all “run and gun” and let’s players use their brains as well as their bullets. The game is only savable at save/respawn station, as is crafting at crafting stations. The game is fun and playable now in beta form but really could do with some polish.

The fix list above is pretty accurate as to the issues encountered that need attention for a polished version of the game to reach players hands. I purposely tested the game before consulting the list to find out how much my experience matched what they said needed work. I only had a couple of collision errors and was able to “unstick” myself from the walls when it happened with just a bit of jumping around. The pistol packs just about as much punch as the shotgun without the need to craft or manage ammo. So, you can fire along your merry way, shooting at the edge of the screen where, if you listen, you can hear when you hit an enemy and keep them off screen and unable to strike. This is vital because, once they are on the screen, you may be a crack shot or even use a laser sight – you will still miss like a Stormtrooper. The laser sight would be improved with an actual dot at target but a shot at an alien bug doesn’t guarantee hitting it anyways as hitboxes needs fleshing out.

Level pacing seemed fine – areas without as many enemies build suspense, loaded levels build adrenaline. Puzzles were fairly easy to solve with the biggest challenge usually being the obstacles of enemies and winding corridors rather than thought process. Enemy AI seemed alright, but maybe a slight bit dumbed down. This extra dumbing down did help with the aiming issues, keeping the game from getting too frustrating. Overall, aiming and hitboxes are the biggest re-occurring issues. Solving those two issues will increase the fun and decrease the frustration extremely – probably more than any other issues currently in the game.

Also, the game needs a finish – it doesn’t have to have closure. Heck, it could even say stay tuned for Dark Matter 2: Darker Matter – it needs something. Also, the game experience could do with a bit more variety in the aliens you will fight.

First Round:

That is basically where the game is: Someone looking to play a final version of it will need to wait for it to, hopefully, complete its Kickstarter campaign. This is definitely not one of the projects that is trying to just get funding to cover already incurred costs – it needs some work and right where the company claims it does. It is a fun game that could frustrating without some polishing, so let’s hope it gets it so everyone can get a chance to play it!

Zynga Names Don Mattrick Chief Executive Officer

2013/07/01

Ripper71

Industry News, News, Tech News, Windows PC News

SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. – July 1, 2013 – Zynga Inc. a leading provider of social game services, today announced that the Company has appointed Don Mattrick as Chief Executive Officer and a member of the Board of Directors, effective July 8, 2013. Mattrick has been at the forefront of the industry and brings more than 30 years of executive experience developing, building and managing profitable entertainment businesses. Mark Pincus, Zynga’s founding chief executive officer, remains Chairman of the Board of Directors and Chief Product Officer of the Company.

“Don is unique in the game business,” said Mark Pincus, Founder, Chairman and Chief Product Officer. “He can execute in multiple domains – hardware, software and network, and he’s been the person responsible for game franchises like ‘Need for Speed,’ ‘FIFA’ and ‘The Sims.’ He’s one of the top executives in the overall entertainment business and he’s a great coach who has inspired people to do their best work and build strong, productive teams. He deeply understands the value of a network and the importance of creating lifelong consumer relationships. He turned Xbox into the world’s largest console-gaming network, growing its installed base from 10 to 80 million and transformed that business from deep losses to substantial profits. And he has grown the Xbox Live player network from 6 to 50 million active members in 41 countries. Going forward, I’ll continue in my role as Chairman and Chief Product Officer. I’m excited to partner with Don and the rest of our team to return Zynga to its leadership role in inventing and growing Play as a core human experience.”

“In its short history, Zynga has redefined entertainment and brought social gaming to the mainstream. More than 1 billion people across web and mobile have installed Zynga games, and franchises like FarmVille and Words With Friends have become a part of people’s daily lives,” said Mattrick. “I joined Zynga because I believe that Mark’s pioneering vision and mission to connect the world through games is just getting started. Zynga is a great business that has yet to realize its full potential. I’m proud to partner with Mark to deliver high-quality, fun, social games wherever people want to play.”

Mattrick, 49, spent six years at Microsoft – the last three as president of the Interactive Entertainment Business. In that role, he was responsible for the team that grew Microsoft’s Xbox 360 global installed base by 700 percent to more than 75 million consoles. During his six-year tenure at Microsoft, Mattrick also oversaw businesses and services focused on consumer products that included the groundbreaking Kinect entertainment products and PC and mobile interactive entertainment.

Mattrick served as the president of Worldwide Studios at Electronic Arts. During his 15-year career at Electronic Arts, Mattrick helped develop and scale the company’s leading global game franchises and brands including “Need for Speed,” “FIFA” and “The Sims.” At age 17, Mattrick founded his first company, Distinctive Software, which was acquired by Electronic Arts in 1991.

“Mark took the lead in working with the entire board to recruit Don to Zynga,” said John Doerr, Member of the Zynga Board of Directors and General Partner at Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers. “All of us at Zynga – and no one more than Mark – are thrilled Don is joining our mission to connect the world through games. This is a win for the people who play our games, the talented employees who make them and the investors who believe in our long-term value. This also is a win for Mark, who can devote his full attention to conceiving and building the best social games in the world.”

Mattrick will report directly to the Board and was unanimously appointed CEO. Mattrick will join Pincus in a newly formed Executive Committee to manage the operations and affairs of the Company between Board meetings. Don has established himself during a 30-year career as a world-class leader of game, platform and team development.

Neverwinter Review (PC)

2013/06/27

Ripper71

News, Reviews, Windows PC News, Windows PC Review

Zohar Scourmont had a very long day. He had worked the murder of a Fernor commoner and arrested the kidnapper of the High Judge and helped saved her. He was weary to the bone and heading across a field on his way home. The sun was setting and the field of tall grain lit gold with the last casts of the day’s sunlight. Zohar stopped and turned to look across them, not just to take in their majesty but to take in the new sight. A pirate’s ship, sails full, was plotting a course in the air over the grain right toward him, its skeleton crew lining the rails on the deck. It would seem his dog would have to wait a bit longer for his evening meal as would he.

That describes a single day of role playing on a persistent Neverwinter Nights server my wife and I played for three years. Those were some of the best gaming years of my life, a great server that punished leveling unless it was done by points given for roleplay by GMs. A server where the strength of your character mattered far more than your stats. I basically worked two jobs, my second being my second life as a character in this land where anything could happen. Then, Neverwinter Nights 2 came out – a clunky experience that promised so much but delivered so little that the game we loved was lost and players scattered to the wind – many so disheartened they turned to WoW and non-role playing servers.

When I heard about Neverwinter, I kept my ears opened and waited. I had seen the best and worst of the series which made me hopeful and somehow dubious at the same time. Perfect World was going to be at the helm of this endeavor, a company that had long since developed a F2P model that every successful F2P game either joined up with or emulated. Developers like Cryptic Studios made the games but PW made them profitable. So when I got a chance I jumped in on the beta for Neverwinter I did and I have been playing ever since.

Description:

Start an epic new adventure in the Forgotten Realms with Neverwinter, the free-to-play action MMORPG that combines fast-paced combat with over 25 years of Dungeons & Dragons lore. After a series of cataclysms nearly destroyed it, the city of Neverwinter is under siege from all sides. To keep the city and its people safe, heroes must fight through sprawling dungeons and open-world brawls with the most vicious of Faerûn’s foes. In Neverwinter, the adventure never ends. With the Foundry toolset, players may design and manage new quests and campaigns incorporated directly into the game world.

Hands On:

I had unrealistically high hopes for a Neverwinter Nights type game when I first started but, thankfully, it didn’t take me long to realize they were unrealistic. For F2P games to be profitable they have to follow a certain model: Low number of servers, fairly on-rails quest lines, and items that are either needed or wanted to be purchased with real life money. That is how they pay for operations, upkeep, and updated material to keep the game fresh. The question winds up being whether or not the game is developed well enough inside those parameters to remain interesting and enjoyable. The Perfect World model definitely allows for it so it comes down to whether the subject matter is of interest to the playing community and with Neverwinter it is pretty much a no brainer. There is a reason the lore is so old, people love D&D. If they are given even a halfway decent experience at it they will play and between Cryptic Studios and PW they have definitely pulled it off here.

You progress through the game doing quests. At first, you have little or no choice on which ones you take but as you level up and explore the world more you find you have more options on what you do. There are quests that you can do later or skip all together, there are dungeons you can run as groups, and there are arenas where you can PVP. Those interested in a good storyline can find it while those interested in hack and slash fun can find that too. Also, the company store has something that just about everyone will want to own. There are three types of currency: Zen, which is real life bought Perfect World currency. Diamonds, a premium currency bought with Zen. It also has standard in-game currency, money which would be the standard gold, silver and copper varities. The best and quickest owned things are always bought with Zen, high value bought with diamonds, and money is the only free currency in the game and buys you what you would expect in a free to play, pay to win environment.

You can have plenty of fun roleplaying and not spending real money in the game, but finding other RP’ers might be a bit hard and you will struggle harder. The environment is very much like WoW with micro transactions instead of subscriptions. For the casual player, this works out very nicely as you can buy things when you want and not have to worry about a monthly bill to use it. For the player with lots of money, this means quicker advancement and more prestigious items.

Last Call:

Neverwinter is a great alternative to WoW or a great choice for those who want their D&D lore but don’t mind a lack or RP. I will continue playing it though maybe a little wistfully for the days of Neverwinter Nights. It is a solid game with great play and a bright future.

[easyreview title=”Neverwinter Review Score” cat1title=”Overall Score (out of 5)” cat1detail=”” cat1rating=”4″ ]
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Pinball Rocks HD Review (iOS)

2013/06/21

Ripper71

Mobile News, Mobile Review, News, Reviews

We can’t afford a pinball machine, but our house is still known for playing a mean pinball. Most people who travel to Vegas are more interested in the shiny roulette ball than a table with flippers. We’ve made the trip with just the Pinball Hall Of Fame Museum on the agenda and accomplished little else on the visit. So whenever a video version comes along we have to give it a try, there really is no replacement for a real table but, with the proper physics, a game can be the next best thing. At the very least, it’s far more affordable and usually more portable. The folks who made Pinball Rocks HD seemed to be on the same digital page as us.

Description:

Pinball Rocks HD is a five table compilation featuring a free game loaded with new songs from today’s top rock artists and four custom branded unlocks for Alice in Chains, Bullet For My Valentine, AC/DC, and Slayer. Each game provides cutting edge 3D graphics, missions, unique bonus games and ear-splitting riffs.

Hands On:

So for your money, in this case for free, you get one table with the option to unlock more tables or more music. The table is designed to look like a club with a rock band on the stage and a hot bartender waiting to serve up drinks. The table has ramps about where you would want them going to an upper level with plenty of bumpers and lights all over the place. The soundtrack includes such bands as Chevelle and Filter and rocks pretty well without a headset but definitely hits the next level if you are wearing them. A sexy female voice does a commentary of sorts letting you know when you have completed a mission or with a slightly less sexy and more annoying voice when you have lost your ball. The plunger is a “rock on” hand which is one design I would have never have thought of for a plunger. Every time you lose your ball the music changes tracks which definitely keeps replay going and you can buy a whole bunch of different songs for your pinball jukebox or an even better idea unlock the other four tables for $2.99 each.

What is really, really key is ball physics. If the ball doesn’t feel right on the flippers, if the flippers feel soft, or movement doesn’t look like it has an actual table slant that increases on ramps – all are bad signs. If any of that is even a bit jacked up, it can throw the whole game off and make it completely unplayable to a real pinball fan. Luckily, the physics in this game are very solid. The bumpers bounce seemed a touch off from time to time but no more than a real used pinball machine can be, so in a sense it could be said to be spot on. I can honestly recommend this game’s physics (which means recommending all Gameprom’s pinball machines), though I sure wish I could get the other tables to tell you for sure… ok just to play them.

Last Call:

Pinball Rocks HD is a great take on the pinball machine with very solid physics and a rocking soundtrack that makes you feel better about losing your ball since that means a new tune on the jukebox. It is free, which is a very good selling point, with a whole bunch of great rock with the original unlock. If you get bored of the table, you can always unlock another one for just a few bucks and rock on.

[easyreview title=”Pinball Rocks HD Review Score” cat1title=”Overall Score (out of 5)” cat1detail=”” cat1rating=”4″ ]
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Rising Storm Review (PC)

2013/06/15

Ripper71

News, Reviews, Windows PC News, Windows PC Review

Sometimes it is just nice to have a good old fashion World War II first-person shooter to play. Not a new conflict to portray in shooter games, World War II has been a hallmark location for these kinds of games: A time of increasingly-stronger weapons but still a lot of close combat options. It probably doesn’t hurt that we won it either. 🙂 Battlefield 1942 and its subsequent DLC packs still rank as my top first person shooter experience, so if you can give me a Pacific theatre oriented campaign with excellent graphics and realistic weapon reproduction, I will be all over it. Thus, I have been all over Rising Storm.

Description

Rising Storm is a first-person shooter game based on the Pacific campaign of 1941 to 1945. It takes place in several famous strategic locations. The game covers the famous island-hopping campaigns in the Pacific as the US Army and US Marine Corps fight it out with the Imperial Japanese army and Special Naval Landing Forces. Featuring some of the most brutal fighting in the Pacific theater, players are able to experience beach assaults, jungle fighting, close quarters night fighting, and more across places like Guadalcanal, Iwo Jima, and Saipan. The player is able to take the part of either side – American or Japanese – battling it out online in full player versus player multiplayer.

Rising Storm is being created in a first-of-its-kind collaboration between a mod team and a professional game development studio. The Rising Storm team is made up of the best independent developers from the modding community and several members of the development team at Tripwire Interactive.

Hands On

If you haven’t play Red Orchestra then you may want to go through the training course, at least basic. The key locations are in a little different place than the average FPS which is common when you have a game that allows for squad orders. For example I am very used to hitting Z to go prone where it is the Alt button in this case. You could remap to your usual comfort but that would mean remapping the command keys as well which might make things a bit messy. Taking a couple runs through training helped develop the comfort pretty quick.

Once that is done, it is a solid multiplayer game with lots of maps that have very different environments to offer, as well as weapons and game mode unlocks. Bots can be added to throw conditions off a bit or give you someone to attack with a human squad if you prefer killing bots. You’ll find that different maps lend themselves to different weapons and if you have a weak commander you will be in pretty rough shape. Rising Storm is visually stunning making for a very immersive experience. I kept finding myself saying “I’ll play just one more round” until hours had passed and the day had long since turned to night.

Last Call

Rising Storm isn’t trying to tell you the story of WWII or even reenact key battles of the war. It is a hardcore first-person shooter concentrated on the best gameplay a game of its type can offer. They give you community favorite weapons and have addressed issues such a spawn camping that previous FPS usually have a problem with. The light mortar is a bit of a “derp gun” but, hey, what first person shooter would be complete without one? Rising Storm is a beautiful way to pass the time blowing away the competition.

[easyreview title=”Rising Storm Review Score” cat1title=”Overall Score (out of 5)” cat1detail=”” cat1rating=”4″ ]

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E3 2013 Assassin’s Creed 4 Black Flag Cinematic Trailer

2013/06/11

Ripper71

E3, News, Trailers / Videos

Those looking to dominate the tides of time and seas will love this cinematic peek at Assassin’s Creed 4 Black Flag. Proceed at your own peril!