New Destiny Retail Details

What will we explore in the new Bungie adventure?

Why Am I A Console Game?

[Short Answer] I hate you PC Folk

The Continual Problems with Battlefield 4

Why the DICE multiplayer needs another tweak...

Six Months with Microsoft Next Gen Hardware

Games Console or Entertainment System?

The Best DLC Money Can Buy

Does it have Zombies, Burials or Dragons.....?

Tuesday 22 November 2011

Xbox 360 Dash Update

It’s almost Christmas and Microsoft have a nice present for all of us Xbox owners. The new dashboard has been confirmed for launches on 6th December to all Xbox Live members.

The free update redesigns the Xbox 360 interface style, bringing it in-line with Microsoft's Windows and Windows Phone products to allow Microsoft to push their connectivity in the future.

The update also adds Kinect style functionality and cloud saving for Xbox Live Gold members. New apps are expected to launch too, including those from the BBC and LoveFilm.

You can still use the Xbox 360 controller to flick between channels that will now be displayed on the top of the screen, alternatively you can use your voice and hands to navigate and search through motion-sensing add-on Kinect.

Under the new Social channel you'll find Beacons, which allow gamers to signpost what they're doing across XBL and Facebook. Facebook posting is also added, which means you'll be able to "like" a game or send Achievements to the social network.

All of this information was found at Kotaku as Microsoft have yet to confirm.


Gaming For Cash

We all want to make money and we all want to live the good life. Wouldn’t that statement be much better if we said this instead? We all want to make money playing video game and we all want to live a good life working with video games.

In this case the person I am thinking of is Toby Smith, his unlikely business proposal on Fivesquids was an attempt t play virtual bodyguard in various Xbox 360 FPS games.

His proposal was to play as your bodyguard for 30 minutes of in game time in return for £5.00 cash. The games listed included Call of Duty 4, Halo Reach and Battlefield Bad Company 2.

The proposal advised ‘I will be by your side the entire time and will fight for you, keeping enemies away from you, protecting you when you snipe, even SACRIFICING MY LIFE to save yours. This is 1/2 hour of GAME TIME, meaning time taken to join a game won't be included.’

I wish I’d come up with this first but I’d never pay for it. I don’t often die anyway – Haha!

Skyrim Patch Announced

As I’m sure you are aware the Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim has had a few rough edges over the past few weeks. Luckily developers Bethesda have announced a patch for their open world RPG that will launch at some point the week beginning Monday 28th November.

Bethesda employee Pete Hines said that the batch will improve ‘long-term play on PS3’ as this has become quite an issue with that version of the game. When the save game becomes too large the console will not load the data and causes the game to become unplayable due to lag issues. 

Skyrim on the Xbox 360 suffers from a strange texture problem when installed to the console hard-drive but this update should fix this issue. This seems like a strange situation as the hard-drive tends to be the preferred loading point for most other console games.

Pete Hines has also confirmed that the update will not affect current saved games and characters.

The update will be available across all three versions of the game and the console versions are currently been certified by Sony and Microsoft. 


What did Skyrim teach me?

So 2011 might have been the best year to be a video gamer ever… we got great games, massive releases and new trends, features and pre-releases. As the nights draw in the gaming sessions will get longer and we have a great collection of games to spend time with too. Over the past few months we seem to get a classic ever few weeks and a few weeks ago we got the best of the bunch in the form of Elder Scrolls 5: Skyrim. I have already stumped hours into this game and have many more to give. The brilliance of this blank canvas is that it shows me exactly what I am really like by taking my real world personality to the extreme.


Wimp
I’ll be honest the first few hours I’ve travelled around Skyrim I’ve shown most things the French heel. It’s difficult to imagine what it’s like to be stalked by two sabre-toothed tigers but now I have a pretty good idea and it’s terrifying. I don’t like being beaten so I’ll usually choose a side with the team that likely to win; it’s the main reason why I don’t support the English Football team and also why I can’t bring myself to play a game of cricket.


Hoarder
I suppose I already know this really as I spend most of my money on, games, movies, Cd's and frankly a lot of shit too. Obviously this shows that my hoarding routes were already quite established before Skyrim took a hold on my life. In my personal life I would hoard as much as my Nord if I thought there was any chance that you wouldn’t miss that giant slab of venison from your table. Of course there are acceptable examples of hoarding in Skyrim especially in the case of selling for money but I think I’ve taken this to the extreme. Why do I really need 500 arrows when I’ve only fired my bow once? More to the point why do I need three bows when I’ve only fired one arrow? Why do I find it acceptable to carry 175 apples when I’ve yet to use one in my cooking pot? Ok the only reason I can give is that when I find someone in the game that really annoys me I’m going to drop all my arrows and apples in his house so he looks like dirty health hazard.


Torture
Hurting something in intuitive ways really appeals to my boredom side. I have often found myself on a long haul walk, or ride if I’ve stolen your horse, and come across a hapless creature behind a bush. I wonder whether to fire my bow for the second time in my life and take the creature out in a quick, painless way but that’s not nearly interesting enough. Instead I run full pelt at it and chase it across half the mountain range until I see it edging nearer the Cliffside. It turns wondering why I’ve yet to hurt it and for a split second thinks it’s made a mistake thinking I’m a predator. Unrelenting Force rushes from my shout and the unsuspecting creature is pushed 30 meters from the safety of the mountain where it falls crashing into rocks and breaking bones until it finally comes to a stop 10 full seconds later and 200 foot down. With that I wander down the mountain and set him (or her) on fire so their spirit isn’t cold on its way to the afterlife.

I’m not one to kill animals in my real life but then I’m also no fan of killing gangsters but GTA IV makes me do that too.

Sometimes I even get unsuspecting townsfolk of Skyrim to follow me out into the wilderness where I leave them when wolves attack. It’s not humane but it is very colourful.


Easily Led
It is a wonderful day in Riften; the children are playing, the guards are polite and the townsfolk keep giving me a glancing smile as I pass their way. The sun is shining and my mood is sweet, I couldn’t be in happier as I round the corner of the pub – urgh - some bloke bashes straight into me. I speak to him but he doesn’t even acknowledge his rudeness or realise his subordination… I draw my sword and BAM I slice his throat before his own son comes around the corner. I shout ‘Your next boy’ as the guard’s spring out from everywhere. ‘I did not mean to hurt him’, I say as the upholders of the law slowly approach. BLAM my fire spell goes off and the guards hit the floor. It’s such a shame that they all have such terrible loot too. They should really know that’s what happens when you ruin my day.

I really have lost count of the times I’ve rage attacked someone or stolen a friends belongings, money and weapons. I wouldn’t trust me, neither should you!


Money
Like Demi Moore in striptease, I’ll do anything for the right price. Skyrim has shown me that I will literally kill a whole town for personal gain - I did it in Fallout 3 and I’ll do it again. I’m the capitalists dream – Murder? No Problem, Extortion? No Problem, Interspecies Erotica? No Problem, Nirnroot Collection? No Problem. Killing a Dragon for 10 Gold Pieces? Sign me up!




I know Skyrim has been a worldwide success but I still have a few gripes about the game. I’ll keep this short and sweet so you don’t all hounds me for being a blasphemer.

Firstly what the hell were Bethesda thinking when they made mounts as useless as Oblivion. I’m still walking everywhere and I will not pay 5000 gold pieces to move 20% faster. Fuck off horse I’m not interested in your feeble four legs. I want to cast my flame spell from my saddle but I can’t, I want to swing my sword from a height but I can’t. Useless!

Fallout 3 had a brilliant inclusion in the form of NPC locations on the main compass. This has now been removed but used to ensure that you didn’t have to explore every nook and cranny searching for the one character you need to speak to. The amount of times I’ve check a castle only to find the NPC I’m after standing or sitting next to the door I originally entered through is unbelievable.

Following on from this why can’t I add the Miscellaneous Quests to my compass? It’s downright annoying having to check my map every two minutes to see if I’m heading in the right direction and putting an ‘Active’ marker on the map is as difficult to distinguish as Jedward – it’s not clever and it’s not fun.

I have also noticed that I cannot increase my knowledge in cooking. Was I already the Gordon Ramsey of Tamriel? I can increase everything else so why can’t I cook a Beef Bourguignon?

Please Bethesda can you also stop auto-incrementing my save files I find it very strange. I know this happened in Oblivion too but it makes me self conscious when I’ve saved the game 4000 times and it feels like you are mocking me for my careful nature.

Saturday 19 November 2011

Skyrim - DLC

By now I’m sure you have all had a run at the fifth Elder Scrolls game, Skyrim, dare I say it some may have completed the main quest too. If this is the case then you are either running off the remaining side quests or looking to the god of Bethesda for their first confirmation of DLC. The extra content has been confirmed by Bethesda and they have also explained that they will be looking to make more substantial pieces then they did for Oblivion.

This article will be catering towards console gamers more than those on the PC since they will have the mod facilities due in the Skyrim Creation Kit. This will allow people to create their own stories and make their own changes to the main game. There have been several smaller modifications made already from fully zoomed global maps to bears replacing spiders for those who suffer from arachnophobia. One other note to mention is that us Xbox 360 users will be getting the DLC first as part of Bethesda’s exclusive agreement with Microsoft.

I’ve seen a lot of people talking on the forums that they would like the ability to ride dragons, although I think this would be great I wonder if Bethesda would agree. I find it hard to see past the point that this might take away from the dynamics of the dragon encounters and make them seem less of the tough enemies that they were created to be. Sorry guys but I can’t see it happening.

Another strongly mentioned inclusion would be to re-insert the glitch where Chickens report crimes. This has been a hilarious point mentioned online by many people and another that I think would be unlikely due to the immersion that Bethesda wants when playing the game. Chickens don’t report crimes in real life so why would they in Tamriel.

Skyrim has of course introduced the werewolf companions into the main game and set a whole selection of quests around their growing guild. Adding such an option to the Vampire faction would also be a welcome addition. It seems that werewolves have been the more popular choice were scrawling through forums but this might even things out more as you can only be one or the other at any time. It would also be a nice inclusion to give us the chance to contract the diseases again and again so that we could experience the gameplay without being stuck with the different statistic changes that come along with it.

Obviously area improvements or additions would be the most exciting prospect. Oblivions most successful piece of DLC is the hugely successful Shivering Isle that added a whole new, vibrant area for exploration. I love adding little side quests but wandering around the same areas again and again can get a tad repetitive even for a game the size of Skyrim. Of course Solsthiem is right across the sea to the west and held some great quests for those of a higher level in Morrowind; in addition to this the size would be brilliant for the gamers that want somewhere new to hide out. Solsteim also held the first werewolves to ever be found in Tamriel and could tie in very nicely with the main game world. It would also be nice to explore the area with the improved graphics and radiant story system.

What sort of DLC would you like to see? Have you heard anything down the grapevine about what we can expect?


Played too much Skyrim?

As I’m sure any regular readers will know but the game I have been most looking forward to all year is finally here. It’s in our Xbox’s and our Computers, ruining relationships, destroying social activity time and getting people sacked from their day jobs. The last week has flown by in a blur of dragon attacks and fire spells. Anyone who has ever played Tetris for more then an hour will know that video games slowly creep into our real lives.

I remember working out whether my desk at work would completely fit together with my filing cabernet if I turned it 90 degrees on its horizontal axis… unfortunately it wouldn’t. So what signs are there to tell you that you’ve played Skyrim for too long?

1) When a dog runs towards you and your first thought is 'kill it with fire'.

2) You try to Fast Travel to work

3) If you don't have a lighter, you resort to shouting 'BOOSH' at your cigarette.

4) You start walking into the leather shop down the road and hop the counter for a go yourself

5) You put flowers, dust and nails into you lunchtime meal and note down its effects on your health

6) You walk away from people mid-sentence when you find out they haven't got anything interesting to say or sell

7) Once you've made friends with someone, you're positive you can take all their possessions without being accused of stealing.

8) You try to place a basket on the head of the corner shop owner so you can steal a bunch of flowers for your alchemy practice

9) When you go for a run and get knackered after just a few metres, you assume it's because you're wearing the wrong necklace.

10) When you ask that shady looking fellow what his prices are on Skooma

11) When something's too heavy to carry, you start stripping off clothes to see if that helps.

12) When no-one's around, you wander around carefully to increase your stealth skill, really your hoping someone is around and unaware that you're sneaking around them.

13) You only glance at the first page of every book you find, certain that any useful knowledge in the other pages will be automatically absorbed by your mind.

14) If you see a dead rat or badger, you check the carcass for money and cut off its tail, pelt and pull out its teeth to sell at your local greengrocers

15) You look above you every time you hear a dragon in the sky.

If you’ve done any of the above it is probably time for you to play something different! 

Friday 18 November 2011

Skyrim - Glitches Galore

Bethesda have always been know to ship games with strange bugs and glitches. It’s become a common place to almost expect some strange occurrences during the initial release period. Morrowind have a lot of game breakers and the occasional texture, wall, NPC issue but was all in all a very playable game. We remember being able to steal stuff without anyone caring and loved breaking the game by playing two or more of the different houses. Oblivion reduced these issues dramatically but didn’t iron out all the creases. The world was well constructed but you could kill some quest givers, climb on floating paintbrushes and duplicate items out of thin air. That being said we all expect a few minor glitches in Skyrim too but fortunately so far nothing game-breaking has been found.

Shortly after the release of the Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim it was reported that some users were having problems with texture loading. The funny thing is that Bethesda issued a note to press alongside the copies of the game and advised that Xbox 360 owners should install the fantasy game onto their hard-drives wherever possible. Obviously this forced further issues for us Xbox gamers as the game then suffers from the texture issues but this did not actually force anyone to stop playing the game itself.

Skyrim makes heavy use of cashing to the hard-drive and the initial load times could increase if the game is not fully cached already, or at least installed to the console. Bethesda have now also advised Xbox 360 players that clearing the game cache may increase save game load times. Caching takes place over the normal course of gameplay but is cleared by playing a different game or by manually clearing this in the Xbox dashboard.

In the wake of the texture issues Bethesda were quick to react by saying that a patch will be uploaded as soon as the problem has been fixed. The issue only seems to manifest if you have the Xbox 360 version of Skyrim installed to the hard drive - a process that is entirely optional. In this case, the highest resolution versions of the textures appear to stall and not load, meaning that you're definitely not seeing the game at its best. If you remove the install, and run the game directly from the DVD, the best quality artwork returns.

There are other small gameplay issues that have been experienced by many players over the passed few days. The first of which is one I have suffered from myself and is an annoyance that once again doesn’t actually stop you from playing on. Following the main quest at an early stage you are quested to leave Dragonstone on an errand with a selection of guards. On my way to the front gate I noticed that all the walls to the city had disappeared and I could now see across the tundra in all directions. The main problem was the fact that the door to the city gates was still in place without any bricks or wood to keep it stood up. Being the curious man that I am I took up my Sword and Shield and went for a wander. The thing that interested me the most was that the walls were actually non-existent; I could run around the lifeless door and even wander (albeit a small distance – I got scared) out of the city itself. After a few moments of panic, thinking that I might be pressing my luck, I ran back inside the city walls and left via the town gate where the world was restored to its carefully crafted glory. I have also seen a moose head hanging on open space in the middle of the wilderness with only a single NPC and a table for company.

The second glitch that I have heard about regularly but however not directly experienced is the strange gravity affecting certain areas. This has happened on several occasions in my friends playthroughs and many videos have cropped up on YouTube too. Basically heavy contract in an upward movement can cause the player or enemies to soar through the sky. One example of this occurred during the first time my flatmate picked up his copy of the game; a head on collision with a giant left his Argonian thief 1000 feet above the ground able to see everything for miles in each direction. When he did finally return to earth it’s suffice to say his spirit didn’t.

Other strange glitches include faceless NPC’s, flying horses and the ability to cover over peoples faces with pots before stealing objects. In fact check these out on YouTube for some hilarity and just so you know I haven’t found one yet with any spoilers but of course be careful.

Any strange or unexplainable mysteries you’ve encountered? – Sound off in the comments below.

Tuesday 15 November 2011

Xbox - The Next Generation

We all know that Microsoft have a new Xbox on the way in some form or other but can we speculate what developers have in mind. The main developers and publishers clearly know Microsoft's got another Xbox on the way from Tweets and their regular slips of the tongue. For the moment, though, all lips are sealed.

Of course the Xbox 360 remains immensely profitable, more profitable this year than any other, but the second a successor takes shape, you can look forward to a nose-dive in units sold. This is of course the reason for caution - lodging one foot in the door marked ‘tomorrow’ is sensible, but you don’t shoot an old horse if it’s still making you money.

The very earliest I expect we will hear of the next Xbox is during 2012 as the unconfirmed but highly mentioned release date is early 2013. I wouldn’t be surprised though if Microsoft decided to either bring this forward to Christmas 2012 or drop it back to Christmas 2013. We all know stock sells better in the run up to Christmas and its almost guaranteed to support the launch in a constructive manner. The other matter to think about is the fact that the Wii U will be launched at some point in 2012 and holding off for this to run its initial course will only help sales too. The Playstation 4 meanwhile probably won’t be released anytime soon as the Vita is on its way and the PS3 bill is still being paid off.

Even if the specifications for the next Xbox are a mystery it is possible to make educated decisions about what games will appear after release. You can confidently expect a Fifa, PES and the standard yearly sports titles as well as the obvious additions of Call of Duty and some sort of movie tie in to hug the newly launched console a’la King Kong. Either way I expect the following to fall onto the next Xbox some time shortly after its release.


Homefront 2
This was recently announced for a 2014 release as part of THQ line-up for that year and should run on the new CryEngine. Obviously this already looks a bit uncomfortable on current hardware so the leap to the next generation is a no-brainer.

Alien’s – The Game
The small Horsham based developer had a few interviews shortly after the announcement of their new game in which their studio director noted “we're as aware as anybody of what's coming in next generation consoles" when he was asked about the platforms this will be available on. Sounds like a good bet to me.

Halo 5
This one's an easy choice. Microsoft announced a new Halo trilogy at E3, and we somehow doubt there's time to fit them all onto Xbox 360. We've had firm confirmation that Halo 4 won't slide, but Master Chief's fifth outing is almost certainly a next generation game that might even hit during the initial release period to boost sales.

Milo & Kate
The Project Natal turned Kinect no-shower Milo & Kate is a bit of a mystery. Most have outwardly dismissed its release due to the ethical tensions that arise by manipulating a child with hand gestures while others see a different path. We all know that Kinect still has a few kinks and this last year could be being used as a bedding in period before we see a better version released with the new console. Hopefully this will also allow Milo & Kate a release too.

Assassin's Creed 3
Ubisoft have been one of the most outspoken developers and have publically asked Sony, Microsoft and Nintendo to get on with their next generation plans. The thing is they are still very shifty when being asked about Assassins Creed 3. Could this be a hint at the future for the franchise? Maybe Microsoft have already booked this as a next generation game and the developer just wants to finally get the chance to release it.

Red Dead Redemption 2
I would have been tempted to put GTA V here until a few months ago but that now seems like a certainty for the Xbox 360. What we can’t however confirm is whether Rockstar will complete a sequel to the worldwide success, Red Dead Redemption. If they do decide to make a sequel then why wouldn’t they push this back to the next generation; GTA V will certainly see most people through to the end of the current consoles lifecycle anyway.

Gears of War 4
EPIC have stayed strangely tight lipped on both the topic of next generation and about the inevitable forth instalment in the Gears of War franchise. Gears of War 4 could serve as Unreal 4’s secret weapon when the next generation of consoles finally arrive. This was exactly what EPIC did with the Unreal Engine 3 when they debuted the original Gears of War back in 2006.

Samaritan
Following on from Gears I can also see the chance of the Samaritan game finally getting made. We know that the robot trailer was a marvellous accomplishment when it was deployed at the GDC show; not even EPIC could foresee the rapturous fan feedback for the game itself. We know they have confirmed that this cinematic was just to show off what an upgraded Unreal Engine can do but it did look rather nice. I’m one man certainly hoping for EPIC to change their mind.

What games would you like to see hit our consoles next generation and are there any that you think would be helped by the leap over?

Skyrim Personal Review

It’s almost dark now as the night draws in, the cold open tundra behind me has taken the best part of the day to traverse and I’m feeling the battle damage more then ever. The bitter winds have forced me to wait and rest so I can regain my health after several tough battles with Giants herding their Mammoth and a rouge Sabre wandering the open space. In the next moment the wind picks up again and distorts the sounds of the incoming enemy, my Nord Warrior Klic turns on the spot looking through the haze of ice and snow trying to pick out the shadows waiting in the distance. My Northern eyes detect the movement and I ready my Sword and Shield; this is the last thing I need I say under my breath as I charge through the shifting darkness. I see the figure slowly walking round to my left, so I swing a heavy blow with my sword and the beast falls. That was lucky I thought as I approached the carcass - tonight I will be eating venison it appears.

The main point I noticed when delving into Skyrim was its magical undertone; it forces players to react in different ways under each circumstance. Sometimes you will be caught off guard by an angry bear while others you will be completely prepared for the worst; the whole experience is richly rewarding and the world is exceptionally immersive. The little touches make the whole experience feel alive; NPCs go about their daily tasks, holding interesting conversations with one another or interacting with the world around them. I won't spoil the activities for you but it is suffice to say that its all a massive improvement over Oblivion.

Skyrim is the Northern province of Tamriel, bordering both Cyrodiil and Morrowind but with a different environment from previous Elder Scrolls. This time the player will wander the icy world venturing to the tallest snowy peaks and the deepest darkest forests. The environment changes as the player travels between towns with forts, caves and shrines scattered across the countryside. The variety of areas, enemies and locations give the whole game a much more varied feel to the sometimes blank Oblivion.

To say the world is varied would be an understatement as you are bound to come across things no-one else has seen. I for example stumbled across a headless body hanging from a tree while friends have seen Dark Elves moving prisoners through the world as well as court jesters in overturned carriages. This all adds to the hugely rewarding experience by offering each player a unique direction using the acclaimed Radiant story engine.

The story kicks off with a bang as you are being taken to you execution, it is in this moment that the game explains its man plot devices and gives you a glimpse of what to expect. It is suffice to say that you have an epic escape but to give away anymore will spoil things for you. You are then pretty much free to explore the whole world but beware wandering too far off the beaten track does mean you'll eventually bite off more then you can chew.

The world around you is already levelled so the further you adventure the harder the enemies become or the more frequently you are attacked. It gives the game a great sense of progression that is usually missing from games of this scope. Bethesda have built a great framework for this game which really makes you feel powerful when you take down an enemy that previously smashed you all over Riften.

The levelling up system is greatly improved too as you can now improve your stats on the go and boost you character in a much more diverse manner. The character creation is affected by the choice of race still but apart from that you can push you character in any direction you like. The actually models are far less ugly too and fit in with the other NPC’s of the world much better then previous instalments. I chose a Nord Warrior (my usual first runner) who in this case wears light armour and feebly attempts to be more agile then your average Viking. I have actually found myself getting attached to his new wife too and her flourishing Blacksmiths. I’m always thinking about coming home for visits and to drop off some of my more important pieces of loot. You can now decorate your hoses too with weapons, apparel and more which adds a nice dimension to an otherwise pretty useless expense.

Speaking of loot the caves and dungeons are much more diverse and filled with almost random equipment, potions and magic. The fact that each area feels individual makes exploration even more exciting and encourages you to come back for more. The systems are deep and the areas are almost labyrinths under the surface of the world making journeys feel dangerous and questing preparations more important then ever.

Of course one of the biggest advertising points for this openworld epic was the inclusion of Dragons. These monstrous combat sequences force you to use your whole arsenal of weapons to bring the beasts down. They hug the skyline and require both ranged and close combat weaponry to bring them to their knees. Of course with every big accomplishment comes big prizes and in this case it is the ability to absorb Dragon Souls. Each soul gives the user the chance to learn one of the new powerful spells useable only by you as the last ‘dragonborn'. These shouts range from freezing enemies to causing weather changes and add a nice new depth to the proceedings. This has actually been one of my favourite new inclusions to the game and increases the usefulness of combat based characters my granting them a more diverse move pool.

Any game of this grand scope is sure to release with some minor glitches and Skyrim is no exception. So far there haven’t been any game-breakers but you could occasionally see texture drop-out and flying enemies. So far I haven’t experienced anything that has even stopped me from playing but some people have expressed their issues on forums where a lot of them resolve once you reloaded a previous save. All in all these are so rare that it doesn’t really affect the quality of the game but should be noted in case you see any weird goings-on.

Overall it is difficult to speak in much more detail without spoiling something for you. I would recommend this adventure to anyone but stress that if you dislike Oblivion or other fantasy games then this might not change your mind - though it'll give it a good go. This is definitely a contender for Game of the Year and anyone who says otherwise is not talking honestly. I would even go as far as to say this is the best Fantasy RPG ever and possibly the best game of this generation. Go and get this game now and hope that it doesn't control your life like it has mine.

Skyrim Sales Figures

Skyrim has been a worldwide success since it’s release last week and is fast becoming a great contender for Game of the Year. Forums are filled with people asking about followers, marriage and the value of Bonemeal but even that doesn’t pull us away from our game for long.

2011 is of course the year of the incredible game sales and Skyrim has been no exception. It has already beaten Gears of War 3 and Fifa 12 for first week sale and is currently on par with Battlefield 3 after only 3 days of sales. Only Modern Warfare is currently ahead of Skyrim, which for any RPG is an incredible accomplishment.

In total now Skyrim has sold a staggering 3.4 million units not including digital sales. This is 600% over the Oblivions modest 490k staggered opening on PS3 and Xbox 360. Skyrim is actually on course to completely outsell Oblivion in a matter of weeks.

To break these figures down for you it has been confirmed that 59% of the total Skyrim sales were on the Xbox 360 with a total of more than 2 million copies sold. The Playstation 3 came in behind this with 27% of the sale share and 14% being sold on PC.

Monday 14 November 2011

Skyrim Dragon Armour

The past few weeks have revealed more and more about the perks and abilities available in the recently released Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim. The one particular aspect this article will cover is in relation to the announcement of the Dragon Armour and how to acquire it.

It’s no secret that Dragon Armor is in the game as it had been speculated and confirmed by various screenshots weeks ago, but we can now confirm that the only way to obtain this treasured armour is to increase your Smithing ability to level 100.

Dragon Armour is now the strongest armour in Skyrim ahead of even Daedric which was the previous strongest in Oblivion.

The description when hitting level 100 in Smithing is ‘Dragon Armour – Can create Dragon armour at forges, and improve them twice as much’

That sounds awesome obviously, but it is now confirmed that the only way to obtain this armour is through the levelling up of skills and cannot be looted from enemies or obtained elsewhere in the game.

I’m not sure about you, but I like this idea; it will mean that players will be rewarded for spending all of their time and cash on Smithing and it will give them more of an incentive to keep progressing. Obviously for us all to take a major note of this will mean that we must start using Smithing as early as possible. And remember there is always a Blacksmith close by

What are your thoughts on this folks? Are you happy that this awesome armour is only available to those with a top end Smithing skill or do you think this armour should be obtainable elsewhere? Has anyone found any useful points of interest when reaching level 100 in any other skills?

Skyrims Egg

(Possible Spoiler Below to Easter Egg)

Prior to the recent release of the Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, Bethesda Software caused a stir by filing a lawsuit against the creator of Minecraft, Markus "Notch" Persson. Basically, Notch had been in the process of creating a game called ‘Scrolls’ and he wanted to file for a copyright under the same header. Bethesda panicked by thinking that he might make a copyright claim against their flagship Elder Scrolls series so in swift fashion they filed a pre-emptive copyright claim of their own against the new game. Notch, being a game programmer and not a digital copyright mastermind, offered to play against Bethesda in a game of Quake 3 rather than go to court, to which Bethesda grudgingly declined.

With the two parties being in the process of court actions you’d expect some at least heated stance with one another – unfortunately though this is not the case.

Below is a picture of the "Notched Pickaxe" which has a striking resemblance to the tool of choice in Minecraft and can supposedly be found in Skyrim's ‘Throat of the World’ area. It’s nice to know that, even in the midst of all the copyright issues, game developers can still pay homage to each others' work.

I should mention that this has not been confirmed as an Easter Egg for Skyrim and several people have pointed out that there were ‘Notched’ items in Oblivion too. I hope to go and find this Pickaxe for myself later as I have thus far been unable to confirm its inclusion.

As usual please let me know if you have any views on the above or have found this item for yourself.


Friday 11 November 2011

Skyrim - How could it possibly go wrong?


Skyrim is just around the corner and personally I’m looking forward to getting a good amount of time in the shoes of my muscular Nord Warrior. I’m very wary though that the Elder Scrolls series has had its bad points at times too. I love Morrowind for its large, diverse open world but I found Oblivion's world to be rather bland. From what we have seen of Skyrim the environment looks fantastic.

Of course for any game with the scope of the Elder Scrolls so many things can go wrong. Let’s look at some of the bad features from previous games and hope that Bethesda doesn’t repeat them. Of course we can’t pass judgement until we final get the released product in our hands.


Dungeons
As I’ve mentioned above the Oblivion gameworld was a bit bland - I know Morrowind has preset shrines, tombs and caves but they all felt like their own little adventure. In Oblivion though these features were too similar and made us feel like we were repeating certain tasks or revisiting areas even if we had never been there before.

Of course there were a few epic areas to explore that really felt like their own systems but I couldn’t help but notice that certain rooms replicated themselves too many times. Towards the end of my games I completely skip caves and dungeons as I didn’t feel the need to explore them anymore. I really hope that Bethesda don’t make the same mistake in Skyrim and give each area and individual feel. Morrowind had its own uniqueness within each cave system and this was created intentionally to keep you adventuring off the beaten track. I remember exploring labyrinth paths in search of glory and stumbling upon riches, artefacts and interesting plot devices. It all lead to a fulfilling game that made you want to explore the next door you came across.


Levelling System
While the scaling in Fallout 3 worked quite well Bethesda’s attempt in Oblivion didn’t quite have the same effect. At times it broke the game and required you to play it on a meta level. Personally I didn’t suffer too much due to my character builds but I saw many players start again as changed the characters by assigning skills they would never use as primary ones. This was due to the increase in level and therefore enemies brought about by the improvement of your primary skills. The higher your level the harder the enemies became.

It was only creatures either, as you progressed NPC’s levelled up too wearing strong armour and making each fight more tedious then the last. Unfortunately it also took away from the feeling of being a hero as the world around you got strong with each level of progression you obtained. In fact every single person became just as capable of saving the world as the player – which of course was a shame.
Following on from this was the random loot found on your wandering adventures. Fortunately or not these Oblivion item system levelled with you too and mean that completely a dungeon early on found you much less riches then if you went on level grinds for experience first.

Bethesda have previously announced that the game will not level around you but will have certain enemies of a set difficulty through all parts of the game. I hope this is true as the tension of running from something 5 times stronger then you means you feel a progression during the game when you finally come back to claim the same monsters head.


Mounts
Before Oblivion the biggest request from the Elder Scrolls fanbase was the inclusions of dual wielding and mounted combat. Strangely Bethesda missed a tick and didn’t include either in their final game. While the exclusion of dual wielding wasn’t that much of a problem the inclusion of horse riding without mounted combat was a pretty terrible decision.

I loved riding horses when I first picked up my copy of Oblivion but only for the novelty which quickly diminished. I must say it was a chore to keep dismounting in order to kill the next pesky Goblin that jumped through the bushes. As enemies were common when traversing the landscape this task became more and more of a bore. The whole point of the horses was to give players a way to get about quicker but the inclusion of fast travel means these really are the most pointless inclusion to the Oblivion world. And I haven’t even mentioned the Horse Armour DLC either.

Lets hope that Bethesda have got them right this time. All I want to do is swing my longsword in a satisfying, easy to use way and you will have solved this issue for me.


Flying Beasts
We all know how bad the Cliff Racers were in Morrowind; no singular word can describe the utter terror that fell over us as another creature attacked us. Whenever the combat music changed we looked to the skies first even though they were the only flying enemies on offer. What makes it worse is that these were as common as Zubat’s in the Pokemon Cave systems. Wherever you go these hellish creatures will find you; no mountain is high enough and no cave system deep enough.

These are the single worst enemy in any game, ever. There was a good reason why they were excluded from Oblivion and there was even a mod to remove them from Morrowind on the PC. If Skyrim has something similar then we will be looking at the blue skies all over again. I’m hoping the Bethesda have noted how darn obnoxious these creatures were.


Social World
The world around us in Oblivion was well constructed but did not feel very lived in. Some NPC’s walked around on the same paths everyday or spoke to the same people about the same things. We all know that a game of this size requires a few standard progress/direction work but we want the world to feel like it needs saving. In Oblivion I sometimes wondered if the world would be better without most of the population in it.

From what I’ve seen though the Skyrim system is a lot more dynamic and the subtle changes to the inhabitants should mean the whole world should feel more active. NPC’s go about their day in a much more creative manner from completing their work, talking and acting on choice and consequence sequences to immerse the player.

Getting Games Early

We all know what it’s like to hear about the next big game years before it comes out but when the last few days creep around we still all toy with how we can get our hands on a copy early. Tuesday we the worldwide release of Modern Warfare 3 and all over the world gamers had been idly sitting, waiting for their preorders. A few folk have been lucky enough once again to land a copy through some unscrupulous independent retailers who just don’t give a damn about the official release date of the game. So why is it that some retailers dispatch their games early when they are supposedly legally bound to the distribution contract?

I can understand why some stores (especially Indie stores) break the street date but at the same time it’s there for a reason. Everyone is entitled to get a free shot at selling to each customer but Indie shops are usually overlooked. I think this could very well be because of financial issues - the big shops like GAME and Gamestation are the retailers where all the customers go once they open their doors on release day.

Of course the legal contract binds the retailers to the watertight promise not to see the game before it is officially released. Of course we all know these contracts are broken on a regular basis but no-one seem to bring it up after the game has gone on sale. Unofficially it’s probably that the developers don’t really care, they will get paid whether they sell it a day early or not. It’s also highly unlikely that early game sellers will ever affect the final sales figures in a detrimental manner.

Ultimately it’s down to a stores ‘internal policy’ which judging by the current early releases tend to be a bit illegal at times. I must say that it’s only a few stores that break the rules but some of the ramifications can be a little harsh. Microsoft have previously issued warnings that players caught playing games early on Xbox Live would be banned but in some instances this could be down to the consumers unknowing. The release data agreement for example is set between the retailer and the supplier and not the consumer. Unfortunately if the stores do break the release date window then they could potentially get people banned from playing online even when some consumers think that they are legitimately buying a copy of the next big game.

It’s a cutthroat business and certainly one where the rules can be broken. On the next big game release I might see if I can wangle a copy early from some of the indie shops our way. Bit of a shame I didn’t think of this sooner.

Have any of you experienced release date issues or managed to obtain a copy in store before the listed release dates?

Tuesday 8 November 2011

When....

Every single game these days has it’s downfalls; Arkham Asylum had it’s terrible finale, Metal Gear Solid has Raiden, Halo 2 has the Arbiter and COD has the Elite Membership. Lets face it most games have an issue or two and below I’m going to outline some of my biggest gripes.


1. When people who aren’t snipers spawn in your bushes on Battlefield 3

I’ve been here for 5 minutes killing people, why did you feel the need to show everyone where I am?

2. When you slide through a crevice in Mirror's Edge and stop halfway

 I was running poetry-in-motion a second ago - now I'm just a dickhead trying to be Solid Snake.

3. When you pick a dialogue option in Mass Effect and the actual response is different

But I thought I was saving his life not giving him a bog wash until hes accidentally drowned

4. When the game checkpoints before a big cutscene, but not after – I’m looking at you Lost Odyssey

60 minutes ago I was enjoying this entertaining story set-piece but after failing to beat this boss I’ve got to sit through it again. You aren’t Lord of the Rings and I’m not interested in your extended edition.

5. When everybody else on your Halo team thinks their a star player

Bungies bots stand up perfectly well in multiplayer as long as your team has no perception of team gaming.

6. When you swing into the air in Left for Dead

I know I hit you... flinch dammit!
 
7. When you remember your Deus Ex inventory isn't big enough

I want these bullets to shoot more enemies but you’ve stopped me because I have one too many health packs. My gun is empty so these won’t even be in my inventory I’ll put them in the gun straight away

8. When you're knocked off a wall by a rock in Assassin's Creed

I don’t know why one guard feels the need to take you down when you’ve just killed 20 of his friends, 4 of his brothers, his father and his son…. Oh wait he thinks he can do better now he has a bad case of ‘revenge’

9. When the world's completely non-interactive

Rage looks lovely but I can’t create a trolley launcher or pick up that expensive looking vinyl.

10. When two things that should combine, won't combine in Dead Rising 2

You'll let us tape a machete to a broomstick, but you won't let us do the same with any other kind of knife.

11. When impressive-looking attacks have unimpressive consequences

I’m talking about you Final Fantasy – yes your summons look lovely but if you can’t take down a Flan how do you think my sword will fare.

12. When the game "does a Flood"

Here are two completely compatible statements: (1) Halo has the best enemy design of any FPS ever, and (2) Halo has the worst enemy design of any FPS ever.

13. When your AI partners kill everybody while you're working out a strategy

I'm trying to get my teeth into these tactical nuances, guys. Stop being so bloody efficient. I didn't pay for this game so you could work on your K/D ratio.

14. When you fire up a new game and there's an Xbox Live update

Oh Battlefield 3 why do I have to wait 20 minutes to play something I brought less then 5 minutes ago on day release.

15. When you rip a boss to pieces... and he beats you in a cutscene

Thank you for beating me Mr Bossman even though I just made you look like a fool. Where you just playing your cards close to your chest.

That’s it rant over….!!!!!


GTA V - Please Remember

Like most of you I am quite excited about GTA V and have been quite impressed with the trailer released this week. I wrote a little article a few days back explaining what can be seen in the trailer itself and what is likely to be included. I have now put together a list of 5 areas I think shouldn’t be included in the fifth outing.


5: Mini-games

Although Mini-games are no doubt going to be included in the final game at least make these interesting and have some sort of skill level involved. In Red Dead Redemption the card and Five Finger games were redundant and just a waste of time. In GTA IV however the mini-games were intuitive and had a feeling of skill to help them along. Hopefully Pool will make its triumphant return.

Having some achievements requiring you to play some terrible mini-games is not the way I want to spend my achievement hunting days.


4: Backstory Shenanigans

Too many games open on an epic backstory as an attempt hook people from the get go but we brought the game for how it plays and what they've heard. They didn't need a backstory then so why now? Frankly I expect game to burn slowly and build an epic scale around my playtime; I don’t want to know what has happened over the last 20 years, I just want to know what’s happening now. Many games these days try too hard and I really want the story to develop as I play. There shouldn’t be 30 minutes of story-driven content right from the off. I should be put in the shoes of my character and my actions should show the scope of the game. 

I don't mean get rid of tutorials but do something creative like Bioshock or Deus Ex. Let me get right into the action and play the story as opposed to watching cutscene after cutscene.


3: Computers

We all know that contacting people via email on a computer was as annoying as the question of why Niko didn’t get people’s numbers as soon as possible instead.

It supports the realism of the characters within Liberty City but leads to annoyingly frustrating gameplay. Scrolling webpage’s was awkward and slow… much like a dial up connection. This actually took away from the masterpiece that was GTA IV; making a game seem more real is great but remember this isn’t a life simulator: this is a game.


2: Turf Wars

Going through the fictional streets in San Andreas threw up several problems for gamers like me. I’m one of these people that needs to be 100% perfect all the time and I spent the majority of my time in game trying to stop the constant shift in ‘turf’. This was fun at first but the shear regularity and repetitive gameplay annoyed the hell out of my.

I know the feature didn’t come over to GTA IV but being back in San Andreas worries me that it might be included again.


1: Guns

People love Liberty City but to me it is really just another GTA. The one thing that disappoints me is the throw back secondary characters. Yes Nike and Roman look gorgeous but the population of the city are drab and in most cases lifeless.  It is a little ridiculous to think people didn't actually do anything but walk, drive and carry shopping.

No-one actually does anything.


Saturday 5 November 2011

Large Game Worlds

Battlefield 3 - Impressions

I have recently had a chance to play a few hours of the new Battlefield 3 game created by DICE. This has been welcomed warmly by reviewers but has also had a few issues with its multiplayer offerings since launch. My verdict is that at least from what I’ve played the shooter is fantastic. I am only a few levels into the campaign but I have also experienced the new co-operative offerings and several runs with the open multiplayer. I am pleased to say that the Battlefield 3 experience has lived up to my high expectations regarding it’s multiplayer portion but I still find the campaign a little disjointed.

The whole game has a rich landscape of subways, trains, open countryside and sprawling cities.. The weapons feel heavy and powerful and the sounds of war really immerse the players. Visually the whole package is very impressive with a decaying world affected by explosions, vehicles and gunshots. The whole Frostbite 2.0 engine runs very well and gives the destruction and add scale that even Bad Company 2 lacked.

I will mention though that the campaign once again follows a linear route that keeps you very much on the rails to make sure you see all the large cinematic scenes. The game runs nicely but I could see the campaign becoming a bore the further you get through it. The player is really pushed from one set piece to the next. Cutscenes are nicely presented and seem to hold the story quite well but I can only really speak of this from the first couple of missions. The whole campaign world feels dangerous though as you and your squad dive from cover to cover as rubble falls around your feet. The soldiers carry themselves realistically and their movement portray an active feeling of despair and danger.

The campaign seems a little unoriginally and I get the impression that DICE know their main advantages over COD is their brilliant multiplayer. It is a shame that single player shooters are slowly becoming less and less important then their online competition. DICE have always been known for their multiplayer offering which is really where the bulk of this game should be played. Co-op is fun and pits you and a friend against hordes of enemies with various objectives offset from the single player campaign. These seem like a bit of fun but never grabbed me like the online multiplayer did. This could be quite fun if you and your friend are tactically minded and want to organise their level exploration and enemy takedowns.

The online multiplayer is the main focus for millions of gamers that have picked this up. I really must say that this is gorgeous and has been tweaked since the Beta last month. I’ve played several matches now on a variety of different maps. I have to tell you now that the map designs are fluid which helps keep the action moving, they are actually some of the best maps – both large and small – that I have ever played. DICE have once again proved that they can handle their own in the online space and the variety of games on offer will keep players coming back to this for many months to come. Some of the maps are the largest ever available on console games and have spots for snipers, close up combat and of course heavy weapons and vehicles. The addition of jets is also a nice touch.

Those of you who have played the Bad Company 2 online multiplayer will be familiar with the Rush and Conquest modes as well as the controls and vehicular combat. The main additions are scope/sight glare and support fire. The game seems relatively fair and I have not yet experienced the camping issues that have plagued Bad Company 2 recently. Unlocks return alongside character progress but you can now also customise your soldiers suit and camouflage.

The multiplayer portion lives up to the reputation DICE have and extends the co-operative nature of previous outings. I would be surprised to find people jumping ship to Modern Warfare 3 when it is released next week. Battlefield 3 has a great deal of depth and should be a must have game for any online FPS fans. If you are a single player gamer only then I would suggest that you rent this first to make sure it has enough quality and depth for you to pay out the full £40.00.

As I’m sure most of you are aware the Battlefield 3 release has been plagued by drop-outs and server issues but I only noticed this on one of the occasions I picked this up. DICE recently made several changes and improvements to their online system to combat these issues which should make the server availability much quicker, decrease lag issues and help lots with the general game stability.