Another month gone by, another major release, MW3. I wasn't expecting much more than MW2.5 from this release and that's pretty much what it has been. Everything leading up to its release date looked almost exactly like MW2 with some changes to maps, weapons, perks, and kill streaks, which I'll discuss in more detail later on. Overall, I've been enjoying this game fairly well. The MP could use a lot of work, but the campaign and newly added Survival Mode are both great; I think they're better than BF3's campaign and co-op combination and I'm more partial to the BF series than to CoD's.
As always, let's start off with the negatives as I have quite a few of them. As mentioned above, this game feels like a DLC to MW2, not a good start so far. The MP maps, weapons, perks, and kill streaks all look very similar to the ones from MW2.
The perks and kill streaks are probably the biggest downfall of this franchise to me. Hear me out before all of you CoD fanboys get your panties in a bunch. Most, if not all, of all of the perks AND kill streaks could have been left out of the game all together. For technical purposes, I'm going to list all of the perks and kill streaks I feel should have been left out and my reasoning why. Let's start off with the various perks.
Sleight of Hand: I think this is one of my more complex perks that I felt could have been eliminated. One of my suggestions would have been to implement a simple reloading mechanism using your controller's/keyboard's buttons/keys. For example, on consoles, simply pressing the reload button once would perform a normal, slower reload while maybe pressing the reload button twice would perform a 'quick reload,' meaning your weapon currently equipped would reload just as fast as if you had the Sleight of Hand/Pro perk enabled for your class. For the 'Pro' portion of this perk, though, maybe implementing a double tap of the switch weapon button would reload quicker than pressing it once for a normal reload. It's just an idea, but I feel like it could have been easily added to the game and would be beneficial and create a more balanced game.
Recon: Explosive and bullet damage are shown on the mini-map? Why not just do this without a perk? I mean, you have sounds automatically trigger when you reload or something. Why can't you just implement a feature that would trigger this location automatically on the mini-map without a perk? Better yet, why even have this at all? If someone trips a claymore or a bouncing betty and dies they're not going to be able to call its location out to their teammates. If they just get injured from explosive or bullet damage, that's a different story. They could just add the 'call out' feature to let their teammates know the location(s).
Blind Eye: I understand the need to add some sort of 'counter' to air support and whatnot, but how can this even be done in real life without hiding in some sort of cover or adding some sort of jamming equipment if the air support is too high to see any people? Since MW2 started this trend, I never understood it. As far as I know, there isn't any magical invisibility cloaks that can hide you from enemy air support. As for the Pro, fast lock-on for rockets and increased bullet damage to vehicles? Really? The lock-on speed should be as fast as their real counter parts can accommodate. As for the increased bullet damage to vehicles, what are they using, some sort of armor-piercing rounds or something? I understand that, but not every gun can use those.
Extreme Conditioning: This is an easy one. Do what BF did, allow the player to run for as long as they want because, in battle, I'm pretty sure you're not going to stop in the middle of a gun fight to catch your breath; you're going to do all you can to get out of harms way and save your life. The Pro allows you to climb faster. Just allow players to press the sprint button to climb faster. Perk removed, problem solved.
Scavenger: I thought about this for a few minutes and came up with a pretty decent idea. Why not just allow players to pick up ammo from dead soldiers who carry the same weapons? It doesn't matter if they currently had the weapon(s) equipped when they died as long as you carry the same one(s). Also, it would allow you to pick up their unused equipment if you have them equipped. The Pro can be removed all together.
Quickdraw: I think this could be removed all together. To balance the game, all players should have the same aiming and equipment recovery times.
Blast Shield: This one's a tough one. I couldn't really think of anything for this except to take out the Pro part all together. It allows players to resist flashbangs and stuns. Unless you're in some sort of protected room, there's really no way to resist from these, which pretty much is what happens if you're not in the same room as the flashbang or stun. The regular portion of this perk is easy: just like in Black Ops, you would be using the 'flak jacket.' This enables you to take a greater amount of explosive damage, which is fine because I'm sure these are actual 'jackets' in real life. Don't quote me on that as I'm not 100% on it, but it seems like something practical.
Hardline: Make it easier for players to get kill streaks? No, this should not even be in the game. End of story.
Assassin: Same as for the Blind Eye perk, unless you're in some sort of cover, have some sort of jamming equipment up, or are using something that's masks your thermal heat signature this is unrealistic and unnecessary.
Overkill: You should have the option to carry 2 primary weapons or have 2 attachments at any time no matter if you choose a perk or not. Totally useless.
Marksman: Dumb. This should pertain to what kind of gun/scope you have to identify targets at longer distances. You should be able to hold your breath for only a certain amount of time regardless of a perk for all players to balance the game out more.
Stalker: Your movement while aiming down the sights should be the same for all players, again, for better balance and how can someone 'delay' when claymores and bouncing betties explode? That really doesn't make much sense to me.
SitRep: Another dumb one; should be removed all together.
Steady Aim: Again, remove to balance game better.
Dead Silence: Another dumb one. Your noise level should be dependent on how you are moving. If you are walking slowly, you should make less noise than when you're running. How can you NOT take fall damage? If you're falling from any height that would hurt any person, you're going to take some kind of damage. End of story.
Those are all of the perks. I think there are only 2, maybe 3 left with them all not having any 'Pro' parts to them. This would most definitely balance the game out a whole lot more and make players rely more on skill than a perk. Now, on to the kill streaks, something else I think should be decreased.
I've been saying this since MW2 came out. They should have stuck with the winning kill streak formula that was the original MW: 3 kills = UAV, 5 kills = air strike, and 7 kills = helicopter. All of these other kill streaks make players focus on getting them to get their kills instead of using skill to get gun on gun kills. It also actually encourages and increases camping, which is one of the biggest problems and a staple of the CoD franchise. OK, with new MW games I think you could add maybe a Counter-UAV and maybe a care package that has one of those kill streaks or ammo, but maybe make it that it refills ammo for your entire team. All air suport should be able to be shot down, too. Having a counter for everything is a MUST for any FPS MP game like CoD. This leads me into the weapons.
First off as I was talking about air support should be able to be shot down, you should have 2, MAYBE 3 options for rocket launchers: a free-fire launcher (RPG/SMAW), a lock-on launcher (NO, I REPEAT, NO JAVELIN!), and MAYBE a dual launcher that can do either free-fire or lock-on.
Handguns and machine pistols can pretty much stay the same. The majority of them are fine and actually require some skill to use well.
SMG's are pretty decent so the majority of them can stay, but we NEED THE MP5 BACK!
LMG's are fine, too, so they can stay.
Assault rifles are also pretty good so they can stay as well.
Sniper rifles are fine, but any type of 'auto aim' needs to be taken out and it should be a lot harder to snipe so it discourages 'quick/no scoping' in CoD as this DOES NOT happen in real life. Sure, snipers can fire shots quickly, but you will not see one doing 360 no scopes across the map.
With any weapons, variety is key. A good mix of weapons should be available and they need to have a good mix of attributes for each weapon. DO NOT OVER OR UNDER POWER WEAPONS! In Black Ops, the Famas was overpowered and it took away from the game. Even in BF3 the UMP45 was too powerful in the Beta, too weak in the retail release, but it was patched and now it's somewhere in the middle.
That leads me to the next topic: developer support. This is key to any MP game's success. You need to continually make the game better. Patching glitches and making sure weapons, any available perks and kill streaks are all legitimate and realistic are all essential keys to success. Don't allow hackers and modders to ruin the game by exploiting these things early on. Also, discourage camping in any way possible. I'm not sure how this could be done, but something needs to be done about this. It is getting WAY OUT OF HAND. Encourage slightly more movement and team work, but don't make it so that you always have to be moving. Sometimes you need to slow down and take a break to reload, get a better understanding of your surroundings and situation, and/or get your health back up. That last thing may need to change, though, as you don't regain health in real life in you get shot or an explosion is nearby. I understand why it's there, though, so no big deal.
I think my last gripe would be the lag in all CoD games. This is getting RIDICULOUS. This ties into the hit detection as well. If you don't have a full four bar connection, you're at a disadvantage to anyone who does. It will throw your connection off by just enough to let players with a full connection to shoot you faster. And what's up with bullets/launchers disappearing when you're shooting and someone kills you? They wouldn't disappear in real life so why in the game? Oh yeah, the lag. When you watch the kill cam it doesn't even show you shooting, but in the actual gameplay you are. This needs to be addressed ASAP!
OK, I think that's all of my gripes about the game so far. Sorry, I went off on a bit of a tangent there talking about how to get the game better, but now onto the things I enjoyed.
The campaign, I felt, was better than BF3's as it was longer and I've enjoyed all of the MW campaigns. The story was pretty awesome, I must say so myself, and the ending was a perfect ending to what has been a wild ride in the 3 games so far. I won't reveal any details to anyone who hasn't played it yet, but I definitely recommend playing through it.
The Spec Ops/Survival Mode is awesome as well. I haven't really played the Spec Ops, but we all know what that's like from MW2 and that was cool there so I don't expect much less in MW3. The Survival Mode is real cool, though. I've been playing that off and on with a buddy and it's real fun. It kind of sucks that you can only play with 2 players, but I think it would be a lot more fun with up to 4 players. Not a great big deal, though. It definitely adds a whole new level to the game and allows for a break from the MP and Spec Ops as well as the campaign. The co-op in MW3 is definitely a better co-op mode then in BF3. I tried that with a friend and it wasn't as I expected or that great. I'll save a BF3 VS MW3 thoughts post for another time, though.
Now onto the MP. With all CoD's, it's going to be a fast-paced game on smaller maps so it's usually fun. I say usually because sometimes it can be really irritating if the lag starts getting bad or if there's a lot of campers and/or noob tubers. I despise both of them so it does annoy me sometimes. Not that often, though. I do pretty well more than I do pretty bad. I care more about my W/L over my K/D so that's what I care about in the end, the win. I'm a very team-oriented player (which is why I prefer BF) so I'm looking to win over get more kills than deaths, but that usually happens anyway so I don't worry about it too much.
I usually play Hardcore Kill Confirmed in MW3, which was an awesome game mode addition on IW's/Sledgehammer's part. Although people are starting to camp more in it, it's still a fun game mode to play for me and my friends. We have a blast and we don't lose too often so it makes the game that much more enjoyable. I like how people have to go get the tags to either confirm or deny kills. This game mode is all about team points. The more you have, the quicker you will win.
I think that's about it. Overall, I thought it was a good, solid game.
GameSpot Score: 8.5 (Great)
Metacritic Score: 88 (79 reviews)
User Score: (6.7) [Damn, I don't think it's that low, but wow.]
My Score: 8
HAPPY GAMING!
GeNiO
Thursday, December 22, 2011
Friday, November 11, 2011
Battlefield 3 [XBOX 360]
I realize it's been over a month since my last post and I apologize for that, but just know I've been playing a lot of games and checking as much out as I could. Now that BF3 is officially released and I've gotten a lot of gameplay on it now I can write up my first review of the game.
Let's start off with my initial thoughts about the game as a whole and overall. Am I alone to think that EA/DICE seemed to have rushed this game? Maybe because MW3 was releasing 2 weeks afterwards? But, anyway, it seems as if a lot of the stuff in this game were rushed to get it released. The campaign was way too short and not that impressive, the co-op wasn't impressive either, and the multiplayer started off pretty good, but still had its flaws. Overall, BF3 fell short of my expectations from release, but at least the MP has been getting steady attention/support and, in turn, has been growing on me.
Like I mentioned, the campaign was incredibly short and wasn't all that impressive. I felt that EA/DICE could have done a hell of a lot better job on it than it was, but there's nothing anyone can do now that it's out. The actual gameplay wasn't too bad because you got to play around with the new Frostbite 2.0 engine, which was pretty sweet, as well as the Destruction 2.0 engine, which was also sweet. The new engine definitely shines throughout all of the game modes so that was a step up, but the actual gameplay fell short of my expectations. I beat the campaign on Normal (I play on Normal for almost every campaign I play just to get use to the controls, weapons, vehicles, and anything else new or if I just want to get reacquainted with everything) in one night in less than one sitting. It took maybe 5 hours to complete. I'm not exactly sure of the exact time it took, but it was a lot shorter than any other campaign I've played to date. As for the story, it wasn't bad, but it felt like all of these FPS war games have the same story line: Rogue bad guy/organization gets a hold of some nuclear weapon(s), some sort of special forces is sent in to locate them and remove any threats, a few twists and turns along the way, your team loses a few people, you locate everything/everyone towards the end of the game, then in some sort of epic showdown you kill the bad guy(s) and find the missing weapons and total annihilation is avoided (although sometimes some of the bombs do go off, but nothing that wipes out the entire civilization). And then the end credits roll and the game is over.
Sound familiar? Well, it should as the last few CoD's and BF's I've played have had this exact story line with a few variations. These scenarios are all well and good, but making the campaign that short doesn't really help the game as a whole. I enjoyed the campaign for the most part, but it could have been a lot longer. I was disappointed about that.
Now, onto the co-op. I only ran the co-op for a short time with a friend, but this also fell short of my expectations. In these missions, there is almost no direction on where to go or what to do. You pretty much have to figure it out on your own, which is fine to a point, but it gets ridiculous when you're supposed to go somewhere, but are sitting in the same spot because you had no clue you were supposed to. We only got to the second or third mission, which was the one where you flew the helicopter. Let me tell you this, flying in this game is almost impossible for players who aren't hardcore gamers that already know the controls and how to fly. Both my friend and I could not figure out how to keep the chopper level long enough to do anything in the mission and finally we just gave up. That's just a disappointment in itself because it looked like a fun mission, but we couldn't take trying to figure out how to fly any longer. Also, the AI in the co-op is terrible. In the first mission you have fellow soldiers that are in humvees with .50 cal turrets on top of them, but they don't do a damn thing. In my opinion, they shouldn't even be there if they're not going to shoot/kill anyone. Then again, no game to date has been able to master AI well enough to even feel somewhat close to real life so you can't fault EA/DICE that much on this front.
Well, enough with the negatives, on to the pinnacle of the BF series, the multiplayer. Although I use a console (XBOX 360 mostly) I was still pretty impressed with the MP gameplay. DICE already released BF3's first patch for a few things, which I'll address a little later, so a few of the initial things were changed so just bear with me. As a whole, I love the BF3 MP. It's great, realistic, and the visuals/sounds are absolutely stunning.
Let's just start the MP review with the things I didn't like. First, the tactical light (this issue was addressed in the patch so it's not as relevant now, but still good to know) was like having a permanent flash bang in your face when someone shined the light at you, whether it be friend or foe. Sometimes I'd shoot at teammates because I'm blind from their dumb tactical light. Common sense says to point and shoot at the middle of the light, right? Wrong. Not all the time did you even get hit markers on enemies that were flashing you with their tactical light. Luckily, DICE addressed this and nerfed the light a good amount so that you could at least see the outline of the enemy. On the light note, the laser was also kind of annoying at times, but I understand why it was used. It's good for hip firing because you can just line the laser up with your target and not have to aim down the sights. Now, on the negative side, if someone shined the laser at you you would be blind as well no matter if the laser was shined at your legs or something not by your eyes. I didn't like that, but I'm not sure what DICE can do about that to help.
Another thing I didn't enjoy was sometimes you'd be shooting someone even before they were looking at you and they'd turn and 1-3 bullets would kill you. I don't understand how that could even be possible, but I sure hope DICE addresses that and tries to sort it out. It can get really annoying when you're doing well and really trying to enjoy the game.
This is just a general dislike I've always had for the BF series, but a lot of players don't seem to know how to play or want to play like CoD, but the problem is this isn't CoD and you need to learn and understand how to play so your team can be successful. BF is a team game, CoD is not. BF requires more skill and team work to win, while CoD you can just run around like an idiot and be good. BF relies more on the Win/Loss ratio than the Kill/Death ratio, whereas CoD is the opposite. If you're more worried about your K/D, BF is NOT your game or you should just stick to the Team DeathMatch modes.
Okay, enough negatives, let's get into the positives. As mentioned up top, the visuals and sounds are all terrific. BF has always been one of the best when it comes to those and BF3 does not disappoint in those areas. Being able to destroy just about anything and everything is such a huge advantage over most FPS. It allows you to destroy cover if players start camping too much. If you need a new line of sight, create one. If you don't have an entrance/exit to a building, you can also make those, too. Throw C4 on a wall just in case you need a quick exit if things get too hairy. Carry an RPG or other kind of rocket launcher to take out enemy vehicles or blow holes in walls. Going through a building can sometimes be easier and quicker than going around, it could also be safer, too. The Frostbite 2.0 and Destruction 2.0 engines are amazing so there's really not much else to say about them.
Most of the maps are medium-extra large maps so there's going to be a lot of room to move around. A lot of people complain that it takes too long to get into any action, but those people are just noobs and need to learn how to use vehicles as transport. Even if you're not driving, hop in a jeep, tank, or helicopter and go for a ride where ever you'd like. Also remember that you can jump out of a chopper at any altitude and open up your chute to land safely behind enemy lines or by an objective (On XBOX 360, I think you just hit A to open your parachute after jumping out of a chopper or even from a tall area. I'm not 100% on this as I don't do it often so don't take my word for it, try it out.). I'm still getting use to the maps, but I have an idea of most where everything is on most of them so that's a huge thing to know and get familiar with.
As for the weapons, they're mostly great and have a good variety to choose from as you level up. The UMP-45 was too powerful in the Beta, then it was nerfed too much in the Retail release, and now DICE released that patch that increased the power a little bit, but was still less powerful than it was in the Beta. As for the other weapons, you really need to try them all out for yourself and see which one fits you best. If you like being right in the middle of all of the action, the Recon kit is not for you. Pick the kit that's right for your playing style. Also make sure you use your kit's full capabilities so if someone needs ammo and you're the Support kit, throw down some ammo. If someone's hurt and you're the Assault kit, throw down a med kit. If someone just died by you and you have the defibrillators revive them. And ALWAYS SPOT! This will help you and your team a great deal. If you're the Engineer kit, blow up enemy vehicle and repair your own. Play to your kit's strengths, but don't do go over your kit's capabilities.
I love the vehicles in BF so it's only natural to have them as a positive here. I'm a huge fan of the tank, although you really need a good driver/gunner combo team in order to be successful. A quick tip if you and a friend are in a tank, both of you should be the Engineer kit so either one of you can easily hop out and start fixing the tank if it gets damaged while the other lays down covering fire and spots enemies troops/vehicles for your team. The gunner should focus on taking out jets and choppers in the air as well as enemy troops whereas the driver should focus on taking out enemy tanks, enemy troops, and taking out buildings/walls/cover/etc. This will maximize your effectiveness in the game. Another reason to have the Engineer kit is that you can have rockets if things are getting too hairy even in the tank. You can hop out and start firing those rockets where ever they are needed.
I have yet to get enough skill in the choppers/jets, but they need to be slightly easier to play with than they are now. It takes a lot of practice to get even average skill with these and it turns me away from even considering using them. I would love to be able to fly and do some damage with them, but it's just too hard to do and takes too much time at this point. If you know someone that's good at flying, that's a huge bonus to your team. Get in the chopper with them and go mess some shit up. It's always fun doing that.
I was going to discuss the spawns earlier, but I think of them as both a positive and a negative so I'll just discuss it here. BF's spawns are more "revenge spawns" than anything else. They are designed to spawn you near an enemy so that you can maybe get a revenge kill on them, but this doesn't always work out that well. It's a 50/50 love/hate relationship with the spawns in this game so you just have to pick your spawns carefully. Take an extra minute or two to see if a squad mate is getting shot at before spawning on them. If you have to, spawn in your Deployment and go from there.
I know this isn't part of the review, but for anyone who bought the Limited Edition of BF3, we will be getting the Bark to Karkand DLC free when it's released sometime in December. Also a head's up, since Activision has a deal with Microsoft to get DLC's one week earlier than anyone else for CoD, EA has a deal with Sony to get the BF3 DLC's one week earlier than anyone else so PS3 users will be getting the Back to Karkand DLC one week earlier than those of us on XBOX 360. I'm not sure of the exact release date yet, but I'll update this when I find out. I'm looking forward to this DLC and taking it back on the old BF2 maps and having them redesigned with the Frostbite 2.0 engine and the Destruction 2.0 engine. It should be very fun and enjoyable.
GameSpot Score: 8.5 (Great)
Metacritic Score: 84 (49 Reviews)
User Score: -- (141 Reviews - There is no average score yet)
My Score: 8.5
As Always,
HAPPY GAMING!
GeNiO
Let's start off with my initial thoughts about the game as a whole and overall. Am I alone to think that EA/DICE seemed to have rushed this game? Maybe because MW3 was releasing 2 weeks afterwards? But, anyway, it seems as if a lot of the stuff in this game were rushed to get it released. The campaign was way too short and not that impressive, the co-op wasn't impressive either, and the multiplayer started off pretty good, but still had its flaws. Overall, BF3 fell short of my expectations from release, but at least the MP has been getting steady attention/support and, in turn, has been growing on me.
Like I mentioned, the campaign was incredibly short and wasn't all that impressive. I felt that EA/DICE could have done a hell of a lot better job on it than it was, but there's nothing anyone can do now that it's out. The actual gameplay wasn't too bad because you got to play around with the new Frostbite 2.0 engine, which was pretty sweet, as well as the Destruction 2.0 engine, which was also sweet. The new engine definitely shines throughout all of the game modes so that was a step up, but the actual gameplay fell short of my expectations. I beat the campaign on Normal (I play on Normal for almost every campaign I play just to get use to the controls, weapons, vehicles, and anything else new or if I just want to get reacquainted with everything) in one night in less than one sitting. It took maybe 5 hours to complete. I'm not exactly sure of the exact time it took, but it was a lot shorter than any other campaign I've played to date. As for the story, it wasn't bad, but it felt like all of these FPS war games have the same story line: Rogue bad guy/organization gets a hold of some nuclear weapon(s), some sort of special forces is sent in to locate them and remove any threats, a few twists and turns along the way, your team loses a few people, you locate everything/everyone towards the end of the game, then in some sort of epic showdown you kill the bad guy(s) and find the missing weapons and total annihilation is avoided (although sometimes some of the bombs do go off, but nothing that wipes out the entire civilization). And then the end credits roll and the game is over.
Sound familiar? Well, it should as the last few CoD's and BF's I've played have had this exact story line with a few variations. These scenarios are all well and good, but making the campaign that short doesn't really help the game as a whole. I enjoyed the campaign for the most part, but it could have been a lot longer. I was disappointed about that.
Now, onto the co-op. I only ran the co-op for a short time with a friend, but this also fell short of my expectations. In these missions, there is almost no direction on where to go or what to do. You pretty much have to figure it out on your own, which is fine to a point, but it gets ridiculous when you're supposed to go somewhere, but are sitting in the same spot because you had no clue you were supposed to. We only got to the second or third mission, which was the one where you flew the helicopter. Let me tell you this, flying in this game is almost impossible for players who aren't hardcore gamers that already know the controls and how to fly. Both my friend and I could not figure out how to keep the chopper level long enough to do anything in the mission and finally we just gave up. That's just a disappointment in itself because it looked like a fun mission, but we couldn't take trying to figure out how to fly any longer. Also, the AI in the co-op is terrible. In the first mission you have fellow soldiers that are in humvees with .50 cal turrets on top of them, but they don't do a damn thing. In my opinion, they shouldn't even be there if they're not going to shoot/kill anyone. Then again, no game to date has been able to master AI well enough to even feel somewhat close to real life so you can't fault EA/DICE that much on this front.
Well, enough with the negatives, on to the pinnacle of the BF series, the multiplayer. Although I use a console (XBOX 360 mostly) I was still pretty impressed with the MP gameplay. DICE already released BF3's first patch for a few things, which I'll address a little later, so a few of the initial things were changed so just bear with me. As a whole, I love the BF3 MP. It's great, realistic, and the visuals/sounds are absolutely stunning.
Let's just start the MP review with the things I didn't like. First, the tactical light (this issue was addressed in the patch so it's not as relevant now, but still good to know) was like having a permanent flash bang in your face when someone shined the light at you, whether it be friend or foe. Sometimes I'd shoot at teammates because I'm blind from their dumb tactical light. Common sense says to point and shoot at the middle of the light, right? Wrong. Not all the time did you even get hit markers on enemies that were flashing you with their tactical light. Luckily, DICE addressed this and nerfed the light a good amount so that you could at least see the outline of the enemy. On the light note, the laser was also kind of annoying at times, but I understand why it was used. It's good for hip firing because you can just line the laser up with your target and not have to aim down the sights. Now, on the negative side, if someone shined the laser at you you would be blind as well no matter if the laser was shined at your legs or something not by your eyes. I didn't like that, but I'm not sure what DICE can do about that to help.
Another thing I didn't enjoy was sometimes you'd be shooting someone even before they were looking at you and they'd turn and 1-3 bullets would kill you. I don't understand how that could even be possible, but I sure hope DICE addresses that and tries to sort it out. It can get really annoying when you're doing well and really trying to enjoy the game.
This is just a general dislike I've always had for the BF series, but a lot of players don't seem to know how to play or want to play like CoD, but the problem is this isn't CoD and you need to learn and understand how to play so your team can be successful. BF is a team game, CoD is not. BF requires more skill and team work to win, while CoD you can just run around like an idiot and be good. BF relies more on the Win/Loss ratio than the Kill/Death ratio, whereas CoD is the opposite. If you're more worried about your K/D, BF is NOT your game or you should just stick to the Team DeathMatch modes.
Okay, enough negatives, let's get into the positives. As mentioned up top, the visuals and sounds are all terrific. BF has always been one of the best when it comes to those and BF3 does not disappoint in those areas. Being able to destroy just about anything and everything is such a huge advantage over most FPS. It allows you to destroy cover if players start camping too much. If you need a new line of sight, create one. If you don't have an entrance/exit to a building, you can also make those, too. Throw C4 on a wall just in case you need a quick exit if things get too hairy. Carry an RPG or other kind of rocket launcher to take out enemy vehicles or blow holes in walls. Going through a building can sometimes be easier and quicker than going around, it could also be safer, too. The Frostbite 2.0 and Destruction 2.0 engines are amazing so there's really not much else to say about them.
Most of the maps are medium-extra large maps so there's going to be a lot of room to move around. A lot of people complain that it takes too long to get into any action, but those people are just noobs and need to learn how to use vehicles as transport. Even if you're not driving, hop in a jeep, tank, or helicopter and go for a ride where ever you'd like. Also remember that you can jump out of a chopper at any altitude and open up your chute to land safely behind enemy lines or by an objective (On XBOX 360, I think you just hit A to open your parachute after jumping out of a chopper or even from a tall area. I'm not 100% on this as I don't do it often so don't take my word for it, try it out.). I'm still getting use to the maps, but I have an idea of most where everything is on most of them so that's a huge thing to know and get familiar with.
As for the weapons, they're mostly great and have a good variety to choose from as you level up. The UMP-45 was too powerful in the Beta, then it was nerfed too much in the Retail release, and now DICE released that patch that increased the power a little bit, but was still less powerful than it was in the Beta. As for the other weapons, you really need to try them all out for yourself and see which one fits you best. If you like being right in the middle of all of the action, the Recon kit is not for you. Pick the kit that's right for your playing style. Also make sure you use your kit's full capabilities so if someone needs ammo and you're the Support kit, throw down some ammo. If someone's hurt and you're the Assault kit, throw down a med kit. If someone just died by you and you have the defibrillators revive them. And ALWAYS SPOT! This will help you and your team a great deal. If you're the Engineer kit, blow up enemy vehicle and repair your own. Play to your kit's strengths, but don't do go over your kit's capabilities.
I love the vehicles in BF so it's only natural to have them as a positive here. I'm a huge fan of the tank, although you really need a good driver/gunner combo team in order to be successful. A quick tip if you and a friend are in a tank, both of you should be the Engineer kit so either one of you can easily hop out and start fixing the tank if it gets damaged while the other lays down covering fire and spots enemies troops/vehicles for your team. The gunner should focus on taking out jets and choppers in the air as well as enemy troops whereas the driver should focus on taking out enemy tanks, enemy troops, and taking out buildings/walls/cover/etc. This will maximize your effectiveness in the game. Another reason to have the Engineer kit is that you can have rockets if things are getting too hairy even in the tank. You can hop out and start firing those rockets where ever they are needed.
I have yet to get enough skill in the choppers/jets, but they need to be slightly easier to play with than they are now. It takes a lot of practice to get even average skill with these and it turns me away from even considering using them. I would love to be able to fly and do some damage with them, but it's just too hard to do and takes too much time at this point. If you know someone that's good at flying, that's a huge bonus to your team. Get in the chopper with them and go mess some shit up. It's always fun doing that.
I was going to discuss the spawns earlier, but I think of them as both a positive and a negative so I'll just discuss it here. BF's spawns are more "revenge spawns" than anything else. They are designed to spawn you near an enemy so that you can maybe get a revenge kill on them, but this doesn't always work out that well. It's a 50/50 love/hate relationship with the spawns in this game so you just have to pick your spawns carefully. Take an extra minute or two to see if a squad mate is getting shot at before spawning on them. If you have to, spawn in your Deployment and go from there.
I know this isn't part of the review, but for anyone who bought the Limited Edition of BF3, we will be getting the Bark to Karkand DLC free when it's released sometime in December. Also a head's up, since Activision has a deal with Microsoft to get DLC's one week earlier than anyone else for CoD, EA has a deal with Sony to get the BF3 DLC's one week earlier than anyone else so PS3 users will be getting the Back to Karkand DLC one week earlier than those of us on XBOX 360. I'm not sure of the exact release date yet, but I'll update this when I find out. I'm looking forward to this DLC and taking it back on the old BF2 maps and having them redesigned with the Frostbite 2.0 engine and the Destruction 2.0 engine. It should be very fun and enjoyable.
GameSpot Score: 8.5 (Great)
Metacritic Score: 84 (49 Reviews)
User Score: -- (141 Reviews - There is no average score yet)
My Score: 8.5
As Always,
HAPPY GAMING!
GeNiO
Tuesday, October 4, 2011
NHL 12 - Be A Pro (2011) [XBOX 360]
Since this month has been pretty hectic so far with the releases of NHL 12, FIFA 12, and the BF3 Open beta, it's been hard to write previews/reviews, but I'm getting around to the Be A Pro mode in NHL 12. Hockey's always been one of my favorite team sports and, over the last several years, has become my all-time favorite sport all together. When NHL 12 received its release date I was excited. I already knew they were going to come out with another game this year, just wasn't sure when. So, when more and more details started coming out I was way more excited to see what they did. NHL 11 was a great game, BUT it lacked in several areas, which 12 seemed to have listened to its fans and corrected a lot of them. There are some areas in which I'd still say need improvement, but, overall, 12 is definitely the best hockey game I've ever played and definitely one of the better sports games I've ever played.
I don't know what it is, but it seems to me that every EA Sports game I play has below average passing, whether it be NHL or FIFA, both games have reflected this to me. I understand not every pass is going to be perfect, but how many passes that aren't even close to their target in these games is just astounding. Seemingly "easy" passes turn into a counterattack by the other team. It does get annoying and frustrating after a while of experiencing this. Fortunately, though, these passes don't happen as often as they did in NHL 11.
Another thing I think EA Sports games lack is commentating. Both in FIFA and NHL they're good, but I think they could be a lot better if they worked on them more. It seems EAS just reuses last year's commentating and only add a few lines to the new year's release. I don't know about everyone else, but I enjoy listening to the commentators and what they have to say and how they react to different plays. It adds one more piece of realism to the game and provides for a little more excitement.
The all new mechanics to the game are great, but they lack in precision. What I mean is that the accomplish the overall goal of what real hockey players do, but it's not anywhere near how precise they are done in real hockey. For instance, when checking an opponent along the boards, sometimes you'll be in the middle of actually flicking the hit stick when they all of a sudden turn their bodies and there's absolutely nothing you can do to avoid checking them from behind and subsequently getting a penalty, whether it be a minor, double, minor, or major/game misconduct penalty. This gets frustrating as I don't mean to play as a dirty player. I like performing clean checks and only fighting if I think it's necessary to help my team win. Checking isn't the only are the precision lacks. Besides passing, when interacting with other players (teammates or opponents) it doesn't always feel "fluid" or "real." I love the direction they're going with the interactions, but it definitely could use some tweaking.
There are a few other things I felt could be worked on so I'll just throw them all together as I don't have much to say on each one. They definitely improved the players' AI, but they lack a huge amount to even be considered competent. When bringing the puck down one of the wings, one of your own teammates will bring it upon themselves to block your path even though there's no one in your path and you're at about the same spot as your teammate. It makes no sense to skate in front of you, which causes you to get checked or to lose the puck and the coaches say it's your fault. Another "AI" issue I saw is the way your teammates DON'T move when on the forecheck (offense). Normally, players would move around to try to get position on their opponents, but in this game, they barely move at all. Sure, they might battle for position in front of the net a lot more now, but they don't do much else. I found that this constant "battling" in front of the net leads to too many of your teammates blocking your shots and that's frustrating as well. They should have the ability to know when you're in front of them and the net to move enough so you have a clear enough shot to get it on net or at least to hit the goaltender. The last issue I can think of is when after the play stops and the referee blows the whistle, one of your teammates can very easily just bump into the goaltender and he goes flying, causing your team to get a penalty almost every time. I love the new goalie interactions, but this is just too ridiculous. This does not happen very often in real hockey so it shouldn't be happening anywhere near as much as it does in NHL 12.
I know it seems as if I'm bashing NHL 12, but I'm really not. They are some flaws in the game, but those aren't the only parts of the game so there are a lot of positive features as well. A good majority of the game remained the same so there really isn't much need to learn the controls if you played 11. With all the tweaks they did implement, there have been some pleasant ones as well. The new shooting mechanics are a nice, realistic addition as now you can actually score in a more realistic way such as balancing on one skate and wrapping a shot around a player/goalie to score. On breakaways, or if you're a player who can deke well, you'll notice the ability to be able to move the puck in ways you've never seen before, but they actually do it in real life hockey so it's awesome to see some of these things come into play with NHL 12. I had a goal where I was impressed by how it actually played out like a real play rather than something set in stone in a video game. I came from the side of the goalie, had an opening, started to deke around the one defenseman that was in my way and my player actually wrapped his stick around the goalie to get the goal. It was beautiful to see, actually. The checking mechanics are, for the most part, a lot better this year as well. Although some checks don't play out as "real" the majority of them do. I love how they made your own player interact with the check as well as the player you are checking. If you're a smaller player and, no matter how hard or big of a check you dish out, your player reacts in a realistic manner, such as if you try to check Chara with a smaller player, you're not likely to check him off of his skates, but you're more likely to fall down as a result. Even on huge hits where you do lay someone out, you can fall down, too, and I think that that makes for a challenge in itself as you can take yourself completely out of a play if that happens. Sometimes I think your own player takes a little long to get up and back skating, but the checking mechanics more than make up for that. I didn't really notice any difference in how the puck reacts, but I also didn't really think it needed much tweaking as the puck mechanics were pretty decent last year. Deflections aren't always 100% accurate so it's exciting to see some narrowly miss or deflect way off target. Some go in and you have no idea how, but that's just hockey, unpredictable.
Even though I just started my own Be A Pro, I just go out of the Juniors and made it into the NHL drafted by the Colorado Avalanche starting the 3rd line. Not too shabby for myself, I must say. Playing in the Juniors was another cool addition they added. it was a good way to practice and get ready for the NHL. If you're ready, you'll play on a NHL team. If not, you'll be sent back down to the AHL to get ready. I like the new game & shift goals they set for you. It's something to play for throughout the game and the time period they give you. It does need to be tweaked in a few areas, but nothing major that makes it a disappointment or just in the way.
Although there are more flaws and good things about this game, they are way outside the scope of this blog post. As I experience more and more, I will post updates as I can. Definitely check out this game; it's worth getting and playing.
As always,
Happy Gaming!
GeNiO
I don't know what it is, but it seems to me that every EA Sports game I play has below average passing, whether it be NHL or FIFA, both games have reflected this to me. I understand not every pass is going to be perfect, but how many passes that aren't even close to their target in these games is just astounding. Seemingly "easy" passes turn into a counterattack by the other team. It does get annoying and frustrating after a while of experiencing this. Fortunately, though, these passes don't happen as often as they did in NHL 11.
Another thing I think EA Sports games lack is commentating. Both in FIFA and NHL they're good, but I think they could be a lot better if they worked on them more. It seems EAS just reuses last year's commentating and only add a few lines to the new year's release. I don't know about everyone else, but I enjoy listening to the commentators and what they have to say and how they react to different plays. It adds one more piece of realism to the game and provides for a little more excitement.
The all new mechanics to the game are great, but they lack in precision. What I mean is that the accomplish the overall goal of what real hockey players do, but it's not anywhere near how precise they are done in real hockey. For instance, when checking an opponent along the boards, sometimes you'll be in the middle of actually flicking the hit stick when they all of a sudden turn their bodies and there's absolutely nothing you can do to avoid checking them from behind and subsequently getting a penalty, whether it be a minor, double, minor, or major/game misconduct penalty. This gets frustrating as I don't mean to play as a dirty player. I like performing clean checks and only fighting if I think it's necessary to help my team win. Checking isn't the only are the precision lacks. Besides passing, when interacting with other players (teammates or opponents) it doesn't always feel "fluid" or "real." I love the direction they're going with the interactions, but it definitely could use some tweaking.
There are a few other things I felt could be worked on so I'll just throw them all together as I don't have much to say on each one. They definitely improved the players' AI, but they lack a huge amount to even be considered competent. When bringing the puck down one of the wings, one of your own teammates will bring it upon themselves to block your path even though there's no one in your path and you're at about the same spot as your teammate. It makes no sense to skate in front of you, which causes you to get checked or to lose the puck and the coaches say it's your fault. Another "AI" issue I saw is the way your teammates DON'T move when on the forecheck (offense). Normally, players would move around to try to get position on their opponents, but in this game, they barely move at all. Sure, they might battle for position in front of the net a lot more now, but they don't do much else. I found that this constant "battling" in front of the net leads to too many of your teammates blocking your shots and that's frustrating as well. They should have the ability to know when you're in front of them and the net to move enough so you have a clear enough shot to get it on net or at least to hit the goaltender. The last issue I can think of is when after the play stops and the referee blows the whistle, one of your teammates can very easily just bump into the goaltender and he goes flying, causing your team to get a penalty almost every time. I love the new goalie interactions, but this is just too ridiculous. This does not happen very often in real hockey so it shouldn't be happening anywhere near as much as it does in NHL 12.
I know it seems as if I'm bashing NHL 12, but I'm really not. They are some flaws in the game, but those aren't the only parts of the game so there are a lot of positive features as well. A good majority of the game remained the same so there really isn't much need to learn the controls if you played 11. With all the tweaks they did implement, there have been some pleasant ones as well. The new shooting mechanics are a nice, realistic addition as now you can actually score in a more realistic way such as balancing on one skate and wrapping a shot around a player/goalie to score. On breakaways, or if you're a player who can deke well, you'll notice the ability to be able to move the puck in ways you've never seen before, but they actually do it in real life hockey so it's awesome to see some of these things come into play with NHL 12. I had a goal where I was impressed by how it actually played out like a real play rather than something set in stone in a video game. I came from the side of the goalie, had an opening, started to deke around the one defenseman that was in my way and my player actually wrapped his stick around the goalie to get the goal. It was beautiful to see, actually. The checking mechanics are, for the most part, a lot better this year as well. Although some checks don't play out as "real" the majority of them do. I love how they made your own player interact with the check as well as the player you are checking. If you're a smaller player and, no matter how hard or big of a check you dish out, your player reacts in a realistic manner, such as if you try to check Chara with a smaller player, you're not likely to check him off of his skates, but you're more likely to fall down as a result. Even on huge hits where you do lay someone out, you can fall down, too, and I think that that makes for a challenge in itself as you can take yourself completely out of a play if that happens. Sometimes I think your own player takes a little long to get up and back skating, but the checking mechanics more than make up for that. I didn't really notice any difference in how the puck reacts, but I also didn't really think it needed much tweaking as the puck mechanics were pretty decent last year. Deflections aren't always 100% accurate so it's exciting to see some narrowly miss or deflect way off target. Some go in and you have no idea how, but that's just hockey, unpredictable.
Even though I just started my own Be A Pro, I just go out of the Juniors and made it into the NHL drafted by the Colorado Avalanche starting the 3rd line. Not too shabby for myself, I must say. Playing in the Juniors was another cool addition they added. it was a good way to practice and get ready for the NHL. If you're ready, you'll play on a NHL team. If not, you'll be sent back down to the AHL to get ready. I like the new game & shift goals they set for you. It's something to play for throughout the game and the time period they give you. It does need to be tweaked in a few areas, but nothing major that makes it a disappointment or just in the way.
Although there are more flaws and good things about this game, they are way outside the scope of this blog post. As I experience more and more, I will post updates as I can. Definitely check out this game; it's worth getting and playing.
As always,
Happy Gaming!
GeNiO
FIFA 12 - Career Mode (2011) [XBOX 360]
So, I bought FIFA 12 and it arrived on the same day it was released. I didn't expect that nor plan for it as it was the same day I received my early access to the BF3 Open Beta. Nevertheless, I went with the BF3 beta and left FIFA 12 for the next day. I like playing as one player, preferably a created player reflecting me, so I immediately jumped into the Career Mode to test things out. I've heard many people mention this, but the conclusion seems to be the same with the majority: the new tactical defense makes things difficult in the beginning, but as soon as you learn to use it it becomes a lot better. I've somewhat experienced this as I play as a Centre in Career Mode. I usually don't get too close to our own goal under normal circumstances. I really don't have anything negative about the game except for that, like all EA Sports games I've played, the passing could be a little better.
I like the new player interactions and movements. It adds a lot more realism to the game than FIFA 11 had. The commentary could be improved a great deal, I think, but it's players preference. Personally, I enjoy hearing what the commentators have to say throughout the match. Not a big deal as I could always just put on some music and play that way. The dribbling tricks remained pretty much the same so there wasn't much new learning to do in terms of how to do it on your controller. I've always liked the small amount of time you get to practice before a match. I use that to practice those dribbling moves just in case I get into that kind of situation. I have yet to master all of the celebrations, but those are also cool to play around with. The way the ball interacts with the environment and players seems to also be much more realistic. It bounces slightly more to reflect its real life counterpart. Scoring is always fun so definitely try out all of the ways to do so as well. I've had some exciting goals where you actually feel like you worked for the goal.
Well, I'm not too far into my Career yet, but I will update more as I go further. Oh, before I forget. FIFA 12 also has this feature that connects all FIFA 12 players for each of their favorite teams and every week a new winner is announced. I'm not sure if they reward that team/those players, but that would be pretty cool in the future. If you like soccer, football, futbol, or whatever you call it, definitely check this game out.
Happy Gaming!
GeNiO
I like the new player interactions and movements. It adds a lot more realism to the game than FIFA 11 had. The commentary could be improved a great deal, I think, but it's players preference. Personally, I enjoy hearing what the commentators have to say throughout the match. Not a big deal as I could always just put on some music and play that way. The dribbling tricks remained pretty much the same so there wasn't much new learning to do in terms of how to do it on your controller. I've always liked the small amount of time you get to practice before a match. I use that to practice those dribbling moves just in case I get into that kind of situation. I have yet to master all of the celebrations, but those are also cool to play around with. The way the ball interacts with the environment and players seems to also be much more realistic. It bounces slightly more to reflect its real life counterpart. Scoring is always fun so definitely try out all of the ways to do so as well. I've had some exciting goals where you actually feel like you worked for the goal.
Well, I'm not too far into my Career yet, but I will update more as I go further. Oh, before I forget. FIFA 12 also has this feature that connects all FIFA 12 players for each of their favorite teams and every week a new winner is announced. I'm not sure if they reward that team/those players, but that would be pretty cool in the future. If you like soccer, football, futbol, or whatever you call it, definitely check this game out.
Happy Gaming!
GeNiO
BF3 Open Beta [XBOX 360]
After several days of on and off playing of the BF3 Open Beta, I feel there is some more I can write about to update my previous preview/review post on the BF3 Beta. Again, I absolutely need to remind everyone that this is still a BETA! There still is going to be flaws, bugs, etc. so please be patient and let EA/DICE work out the kinks. The retail date isn't for another 3 weeks so they still have time to fix the major problems as well as address as many of the smaller ones as possible before the release date. Even after then, they can still release patches and updates for the game so that any bugs or glitches can be sorted out in a timely manner. Personally, I can't play any beta games everyday. It's just too difficult to do for me. I understand it's a beta so I don't go overboard with the criticism, but there is only a certain amount of annoyances one person can take in a day so I usually alternate between the BF3 Open Beta and one of the many other games I play on a daily basis.
Now that I've ranked up some more and unlocked a few more guns, customizations, and equipment I'm starting to like the game more and more. Don't get me wrong, I was already stoked for BF3 when I first heard about it who knows how long ago, but being able to try it out early (even just the little bit that the beta is) has added so much more to that excitement. For those who didn't hear yet, a few days ago I heard that DICE wasn't exactly ready yet or something (not exactly sure on the full details), but they had to release something so they released an older build to the game so it's speculated that they're far ahead in terms of development and smoothing out the issues. Again, I'm not certain on all of this, but it's just what I heard. I was also able to run some games with friends the past couple of days so that added to the fun of the game.
A couple of days ago I was able to unlock the SCAR and the UMP and I feel they make the game a lot of fun, too. I can't wait to get to use all of the weapons, vehicles, and equipment. I love how the DICE team setup the loadout customizations. I've always been partial to the "level-up" system that most FPS utilize because having a high rank doesn't always mean that you are one of the best; it could just mean that you've played the game a lot, too. Either way, I feel DICE did the best they could do and it works for BF3, fortunately. I would rather more and more people become BF players. You can almost get exactly what you are most comfortable with and excel most with because, well, isn't winning the name of the game? You just have to be patient and play the game until you can try everything and find your niche. I feel parts of my niche are already formed, but I haven't found all of the pieces yet; it's a creative way of giving the players what they want as long as they play for it.
With the same map and game mode over and over you really start to get a feel for everything after a few days of gameplay. More and more players play more confidently now than when I first started playing the game. It definitely adds to the difficulty, but that's where the "competition" comes into play. Some people wouldn't think it, but you can actually make some money playing video games. Look up "video games" or "gaming" or any other gaming-related term in the news and I'll bet you can find something. Anyway, I've ran into at least 2 separate map glitches outside for the first set of M-COM Stations. One is over by A and the other was somewhere along a walkway in the middle. The glitch was just that I went under the map and couldn't get back up. It's funny, though, I was actually able to kill enemies just hanging out under the map. It was kind of funny, but annoying at the same time, I wanted to play the game. One other thing I think they could fix is how some surfaces that should be easily ran over become a problem and even the jump-over action sometimes doesn't work even though it said to press the button to do so. Besides those, I don't recall any other map problems. Maybe some small fixes for the terrain and all the stuff in the subway would be good, too. Oh, the actual player doesn't move fluidly. He's more choppy than smooth, I would say. Sometimes it doesn't look like what they're actually doing or something along those lines.
I know those last 2 paragraphs were kind of backwards, but I will end on a good note. With playing more, I'm even more excited for this game, as most of you should be, too. I wasn't able to play the PC version of the Beta, but I am really looking forward to using some of the vehicles, especially the new ones. As for the weapons, I think some of the beta versions should be tweaked if not done so already. I'm also looking forward to the other maps. With everything EA and DICE have done, I'm excited to play all of the maps, not just one. The player movement is pretty nice as well. I think they're going in the right direction on that front. The beta player movements are pretty intense when they work so I can only imagine what the final product is going to be like along with all of the wonderful Battlefield music and sounds. With everything that's been going on and being talked about with the multiplayer, it's understandable to push the campaign to the side. I usually run through the entire campaign before jumping into any multiplayer, but that's just me. That's something to look forward to, though. I think that's about it for now.
Important Dates:
October 10, 2011 - Open Beta ends
October 25, 2011 Battlefield 3 Retail Release
If you're even remotely interested in this game, go buy it and try it out for yourself. BF deserves to be a top contender, but people just need to play it.
As always,
HAPPY GAMING!
GeNiO
Now that I've ranked up some more and unlocked a few more guns, customizations, and equipment I'm starting to like the game more and more. Don't get me wrong, I was already stoked for BF3 when I first heard about it who knows how long ago, but being able to try it out early (even just the little bit that the beta is) has added so much more to that excitement. For those who didn't hear yet, a few days ago I heard that DICE wasn't exactly ready yet or something (not exactly sure on the full details), but they had to release something so they released an older build to the game so it's speculated that they're far ahead in terms of development and smoothing out the issues. Again, I'm not certain on all of this, but it's just what I heard. I was also able to run some games with friends the past couple of days so that added to the fun of the game.
A couple of days ago I was able to unlock the SCAR and the UMP and I feel they make the game a lot of fun, too. I can't wait to get to use all of the weapons, vehicles, and equipment. I love how the DICE team setup the loadout customizations. I've always been partial to the "level-up" system that most FPS utilize because having a high rank doesn't always mean that you are one of the best; it could just mean that you've played the game a lot, too. Either way, I feel DICE did the best they could do and it works for BF3, fortunately. I would rather more and more people become BF players. You can almost get exactly what you are most comfortable with and excel most with because, well, isn't winning the name of the game? You just have to be patient and play the game until you can try everything and find your niche. I feel parts of my niche are already formed, but I haven't found all of the pieces yet; it's a creative way of giving the players what they want as long as they play for it.
With the same map and game mode over and over you really start to get a feel for everything after a few days of gameplay. More and more players play more confidently now than when I first started playing the game. It definitely adds to the difficulty, but that's where the "competition" comes into play. Some people wouldn't think it, but you can actually make some money playing video games. Look up "video games" or "gaming" or any other gaming-related term in the news and I'll bet you can find something. Anyway, I've ran into at least 2 separate map glitches outside for the first set of M-COM Stations. One is over by A and the other was somewhere along a walkway in the middle. The glitch was just that I went under the map and couldn't get back up. It's funny, though, I was actually able to kill enemies just hanging out under the map. It was kind of funny, but annoying at the same time, I wanted to play the game. One other thing I think they could fix is how some surfaces that should be easily ran over become a problem and even the jump-over action sometimes doesn't work even though it said to press the button to do so. Besides those, I don't recall any other map problems. Maybe some small fixes for the terrain and all the stuff in the subway would be good, too. Oh, the actual player doesn't move fluidly. He's more choppy than smooth, I would say. Sometimes it doesn't look like what they're actually doing or something along those lines.
I know those last 2 paragraphs were kind of backwards, but I will end on a good note. With playing more, I'm even more excited for this game, as most of you should be, too. I wasn't able to play the PC version of the Beta, but I am really looking forward to using some of the vehicles, especially the new ones. As for the weapons, I think some of the beta versions should be tweaked if not done so already. I'm also looking forward to the other maps. With everything EA and DICE have done, I'm excited to play all of the maps, not just one. The player movement is pretty nice as well. I think they're going in the right direction on that front. The beta player movements are pretty intense when they work so I can only imagine what the final product is going to be like along with all of the wonderful Battlefield music and sounds. With everything that's been going on and being talked about with the multiplayer, it's understandable to push the campaign to the side. I usually run through the entire campaign before jumping into any multiplayer, but that's just me. That's something to look forward to, though. I think that's about it for now.
Important Dates:
October 10, 2011 - Open Beta ends
October 25, 2011 Battlefield 3 Retail Release
If you're even remotely interested in this game, go buy it and try it out for yourself. BF deserves to be a top contender, but people just need to play it.
As always,
HAPPY GAMING!
GeNiO
Tuesday, September 27, 2011
Battlefield 3 Open Beta Day 1 Review (9/27/2011) [XBOX 360]
Well, Day 1 of the Open Beta for Battlefield 3 is officially here. I received my e-mail invitation this morning and have been playing it for a few hours so I'm going to write up a small review of the things I've experienced thus far.
First off, remember that this is a BETA! There are going to be flaws, glitches, etc. This is what betas are for; to test and fix. Now, with that being said, there are only a few flaws I've experienced so far. One of the biggest ones is the sound. The sound (when you can hear it) is amazing, the best I've heard in a video game so far, I think (by the way, I use Turtle Beach headsets or a surround sound system so I can get the best of both worlds). Sometimes, though, the sounds cuts out completely or almost completely and it's as if you can't even hear yourself walking/running even when it's dead silent in the background. This isn't a huge recurring problem, but it's definitely necessary for hearing enemies around you and to get the full experience BF3 has to offer. The second "glitch" I've noticed is that when people die their bodies kind of float slightly off the ground and move. Now, I'm not sure if this happens all the time or just at random times, but I have seen it happen a few times although I don't always stop to look at the dead bodies all the time as there are bullets flying, grenades being throw, and rockets blowing everything up around you so it's not always a good idea to stop and admire your surroundings. Lastly, I'm not entirely sure this is even a "glitch" or if it's just been something on my end, but it seems as if the M16 and M4 are more powerful guns than the AK-47 and Ak-74u. Why I say this is because in my last several matches I had instances where I was shooting someone with one of the AK's even before they turned towards me and they kill me in a few shots. It was getting frustrating, but that also could have been because my team was horrible and seemed not to know what BF was and how to play. Again, I don't know if that was on my end or if it was something in the game so if you play it just look out for that.
Now, onto all of the things I wasn't too fond of so far. The first thing was the first set of M-COM Stations on Operation Metro, which is the only map available in the Beta (Rush is also the only game mode available right now). I don't mind Rush, but the way this map is setup is not to my liking. The first pair of M-COM Stations are set outside in what looks like a park by a lake. It's a big map with a lot of places to hide and such so you really have to check your corners once you get playing. The thing that I don't like about this area is that it's too open for me, meaning there is a lot of space for snipers to setup and pick you off. Keep in mind, EA and DICE put in the ability to go prone (lay down) in BF3 so now snipers can lay in bushes and it's extremely difficult to spot them. Right now I'm partial to the addition of prone. I love the ability to do it myself, but I'm not going to be using it to just camp in one spot. I'll use it to reload or to regain health or something of that nature. Now, if you're using the Support Kit, by all means lay down, open up the tripod, and lay down some covering fire, but there's no need to sit there the whole game.
The second/third thing (since I kind of added going prone with the first pair of M-COM Station locations) is the third and final pair of M-COM Station locations. Well, the locations aren't bad, but the buildings on the other side of the subway have way to many windows and doorways to get into buildings making it extremely difficult to defend those M-COM Stations. I don't like camping, but I do like the ability to stop for a moment to reload, regain health, drop ammo/health kits, or just to pick off offenders/defenders if they're crowding in one area (I've done this a few times already and, boy, is it fun). Besides those things, though, I don't really have anything else I didn't really like.
Now here comes the good stuff and there is a bunch of them. First, let's start off with the graphics and sound/s. Let me say, the trailers/previews showed exactly what to expect. The graphics are outstanding and the sounds are just as amazing. When you can hear the sounds, you hear everything going on from footsteps, gun shots, explosions, yelling, all the way down to the last sound someone makes before they die. DICE has always had a good feel for adding great dialogue and the multiplayer is no exception. There are some funny lines you'll hear so keep an ear out for them if you're able to. They also help in finding enemies as your teammates might say they're pinned down or something of that sort. You really need to listen as much as you're looking and feeling (if you have vibrate enabled for your controller you'll be able to feel explosions and when you get hit by gun fire). I really haven't had much time to look for shadows and whatnot, but the graphics as a whole are great. Things such as bushes could use some work, though, as they look more like paper than vegetation.
Destruction 2.0. Now this is something I was looking forward to. I got to witness a glimpse of this for a few matches where we were able to put huge holes into the sides of buildings and to also remove a pillar in the subway (that was pretty cool being on both sides as it took away cover from an enemy and was also cool how it was able to be chipped away by bullets and explosions). I can't wait to see it in its full glory, though.
As for the map, the subway is definitely the best part of it all, for me at least. It has close and medium range distances for firefights as well as a lot of places to get in and out of combat, which comes in handy a lot. If you're getting shot at, your cover is getting small, and you can't find the shooter, find a place where you can get out of that area and maybe flank the enemy. I've done it a few times and it works beautifully. I could go on and on about the many different areas of the subway, but that's going to take too long. Just know there is a subway train, platforms, stairways, a few small corridors, and the subway tunnel you can navigate around. The subway train goes straight through the middle and there's platforms on both sides with the corridors and stairs on one side.
As for the weapons, I haven't unlocked them all, but I did get the M16A4, M4A1, AK-47M, AKS-74u, SVD sniper rifle, MP443 pistol, 870MCS shotgun, combat knife (tab the knife button to stab an enemy, hold to keep the knife out = awesome addition), RPK-74M LMG, G17C pistol, M1911 pistol, M1911 Silenced pistol, M9 pistol, MK11 MOD 0, PP-2000, FIM-92 Stinger, and the ever popular RPG rocket launcher. Those are the weapons I've unlocked so far, but I don't know if there any others so I will keep this updated.
As for the equipment, this is what is said to be in the game: M67 grenade, T-UGS (looks like some sort of trip mine or sensor of some sort, not exactly sure), SOFLAM (no idea what that is, but it's not in the Beta), M18 claymore (oh boy, I can't wait to get my claymores), M224 mortars (not in Beta), C4, MAV (not in Beta), M15 AT Mine, Defibrillator, and EOD Bot. Let me say that I've had a lot of fun with the rockets. They're not too powerful, but enough to kill enemies too close to each other. I've gotten a few multi-kills with rockets and that's always awesome (don't worry, I only do it once in a while when I can't get a clean shot at someone or there are multiple enemies).
Weapon Customizations: these are awesome. From bipods to laser sights to flashlights, anything you'd like to put on your weapons you can. They have different scopes to choose from, but you have to unlock them so that's pretty cool to have. Laser sights help when hip firing at close quarters. You can also toggle between single shot and automatic, which is awesome, but make sure you know how to do that before getting into combat as you don't want to be holding the trigger down and only one bullet fires (lol, I did this and had no idea what happened, then I figured out how to toggle between the two; on XBOX 360, press DOWN on the D-PAD; UP on the D-PAD toggles your laser/flashlight customizations on/off; LEFT on the D-PAD brings out your rocket launcher if you have one; and RIGHT on the D-PAD brings out your tool if you have one, such as the vehicle repair tool).
Another thing I personally liked that EA/DICE changed was that you can no longer just aim anywhere and continually click SELECT to Spot enemies. If you do this more then, I think, 3 times in a row without finding someone it doesn't work. It gives you an audible sound that informs you of that. If you do spot someone, a yellow triangle will appear above their head and on the mini map. SPOT WHENEVER YOU CAN AS THIS HELPS NOT ONLY YOURSELF, BUT YOUR WHOLE TEAM!!!
OK, I think that just about wraps up everything I experienced so far. As I said, I will update this with anything new I run into if I do and I apologize for making this kind of long. The BF3 Beta is pretty awesome so far so I'm a little excited about it and for everyone to be able to experience it themselves when the Open Beta comes out on September 29th, 2011.
IMPORTANT DATES!
SEPTEMBER 27, 2011: EARLY OPEN BETA FOR PEOPLE WHO BOUGHT MEDAL OF HONOR
SEPTEMBER 29, 2011: OPEN BETA FOR EVERYONE ON XBL, PSN, AND PC
OCTOBER 25, 2011: OFFICIAL RETAIL RELEASE FOR BATTLEFIELD 3
As always,
Happy Gaming!
GeNiO
First off, remember that this is a BETA! There are going to be flaws, glitches, etc. This is what betas are for; to test and fix. Now, with that being said, there are only a few flaws I've experienced so far. One of the biggest ones is the sound. The sound (when you can hear it) is amazing, the best I've heard in a video game so far, I think (by the way, I use Turtle Beach headsets or a surround sound system so I can get the best of both worlds). Sometimes, though, the sounds cuts out completely or almost completely and it's as if you can't even hear yourself walking/running even when it's dead silent in the background. This isn't a huge recurring problem, but it's definitely necessary for hearing enemies around you and to get the full experience BF3 has to offer. The second "glitch" I've noticed is that when people die their bodies kind of float slightly off the ground and move. Now, I'm not sure if this happens all the time or just at random times, but I have seen it happen a few times although I don't always stop to look at the dead bodies all the time as there are bullets flying, grenades being throw, and rockets blowing everything up around you so it's not always a good idea to stop and admire your surroundings. Lastly, I'm not entirely sure this is even a "glitch" or if it's just been something on my end, but it seems as if the M16 and M4 are more powerful guns than the AK-47 and Ak-74u. Why I say this is because in my last several matches I had instances where I was shooting someone with one of the AK's even before they turned towards me and they kill me in a few shots. It was getting frustrating, but that also could have been because my team was horrible and seemed not to know what BF was and how to play. Again, I don't know if that was on my end or if it was something in the game so if you play it just look out for that.
Now, onto all of the things I wasn't too fond of so far. The first thing was the first set of M-COM Stations on Operation Metro, which is the only map available in the Beta (Rush is also the only game mode available right now). I don't mind Rush, but the way this map is setup is not to my liking. The first pair of M-COM Stations are set outside in what looks like a park by a lake. It's a big map with a lot of places to hide and such so you really have to check your corners once you get playing. The thing that I don't like about this area is that it's too open for me, meaning there is a lot of space for snipers to setup and pick you off. Keep in mind, EA and DICE put in the ability to go prone (lay down) in BF3 so now snipers can lay in bushes and it's extremely difficult to spot them. Right now I'm partial to the addition of prone. I love the ability to do it myself, but I'm not going to be using it to just camp in one spot. I'll use it to reload or to regain health or something of that nature. Now, if you're using the Support Kit, by all means lay down, open up the tripod, and lay down some covering fire, but there's no need to sit there the whole game.
The second/third thing (since I kind of added going prone with the first pair of M-COM Station locations) is the third and final pair of M-COM Station locations. Well, the locations aren't bad, but the buildings on the other side of the subway have way to many windows and doorways to get into buildings making it extremely difficult to defend those M-COM Stations. I don't like camping, but I do like the ability to stop for a moment to reload, regain health, drop ammo/health kits, or just to pick off offenders/defenders if they're crowding in one area (I've done this a few times already and, boy, is it fun). Besides those things, though, I don't really have anything else I didn't really like.
Now here comes the good stuff and there is a bunch of them. First, let's start off with the graphics and sound/s. Let me say, the trailers/previews showed exactly what to expect. The graphics are outstanding and the sounds are just as amazing. When you can hear the sounds, you hear everything going on from footsteps, gun shots, explosions, yelling, all the way down to the last sound someone makes before they die. DICE has always had a good feel for adding great dialogue and the multiplayer is no exception. There are some funny lines you'll hear so keep an ear out for them if you're able to. They also help in finding enemies as your teammates might say they're pinned down or something of that sort. You really need to listen as much as you're looking and feeling (if you have vibrate enabled for your controller you'll be able to feel explosions and when you get hit by gun fire). I really haven't had much time to look for shadows and whatnot, but the graphics as a whole are great. Things such as bushes could use some work, though, as they look more like paper than vegetation.
Destruction 2.0. Now this is something I was looking forward to. I got to witness a glimpse of this for a few matches where we were able to put huge holes into the sides of buildings and to also remove a pillar in the subway (that was pretty cool being on both sides as it took away cover from an enemy and was also cool how it was able to be chipped away by bullets and explosions). I can't wait to see it in its full glory, though.
As for the map, the subway is definitely the best part of it all, for me at least. It has close and medium range distances for firefights as well as a lot of places to get in and out of combat, which comes in handy a lot. If you're getting shot at, your cover is getting small, and you can't find the shooter, find a place where you can get out of that area and maybe flank the enemy. I've done it a few times and it works beautifully. I could go on and on about the many different areas of the subway, but that's going to take too long. Just know there is a subway train, platforms, stairways, a few small corridors, and the subway tunnel you can navigate around. The subway train goes straight through the middle and there's platforms on both sides with the corridors and stairs on one side.
As for the weapons, I haven't unlocked them all, but I did get the M16A4, M4A1, AK-47M, AKS-74u, SVD sniper rifle, MP443 pistol, 870MCS shotgun, combat knife (tab the knife button to stab an enemy, hold to keep the knife out = awesome addition), RPK-74M LMG, G17C pistol, M1911 pistol, M1911 Silenced pistol, M9 pistol, MK11 MOD 0, PP-2000, FIM-92 Stinger, and the ever popular RPG rocket launcher. Those are the weapons I've unlocked so far, but I don't know if there any others so I will keep this updated.
As for the equipment, this is what is said to be in the game: M67 grenade, T-UGS (looks like some sort of trip mine or sensor of some sort, not exactly sure), SOFLAM (no idea what that is, but it's not in the Beta), M18 claymore (oh boy, I can't wait to get my claymores), M224 mortars (not in Beta), C4, MAV (not in Beta), M15 AT Mine, Defibrillator, and EOD Bot. Let me say that I've had a lot of fun with the rockets. They're not too powerful, but enough to kill enemies too close to each other. I've gotten a few multi-kills with rockets and that's always awesome (don't worry, I only do it once in a while when I can't get a clean shot at someone or there are multiple enemies).
Weapon Customizations: these are awesome. From bipods to laser sights to flashlights, anything you'd like to put on your weapons you can. They have different scopes to choose from, but you have to unlock them so that's pretty cool to have. Laser sights help when hip firing at close quarters. You can also toggle between single shot and automatic, which is awesome, but make sure you know how to do that before getting into combat as you don't want to be holding the trigger down and only one bullet fires (lol, I did this and had no idea what happened, then I figured out how to toggle between the two; on XBOX 360, press DOWN on the D-PAD; UP on the D-PAD toggles your laser/flashlight customizations on/off; LEFT on the D-PAD brings out your rocket launcher if you have one; and RIGHT on the D-PAD brings out your tool if you have one, such as the vehicle repair tool).
Another thing I personally liked that EA/DICE changed was that you can no longer just aim anywhere and continually click SELECT to Spot enemies. If you do this more then, I think, 3 times in a row without finding someone it doesn't work. It gives you an audible sound that informs you of that. If you do spot someone, a yellow triangle will appear above their head and on the mini map. SPOT WHENEVER YOU CAN AS THIS HELPS NOT ONLY YOURSELF, BUT YOUR WHOLE TEAM!!!
OK, I think that just about wraps up everything I experienced so far. As I said, I will update this with anything new I run into if I do and I apologize for making this kind of long. The BF3 Beta is pretty awesome so far so I'm a little excited about it and for everyone to be able to experience it themselves when the Open Beta comes out on September 29th, 2011.
IMPORTANT DATES!
SEPTEMBER 27, 2011: EARLY OPEN BETA FOR PEOPLE WHO BOUGHT MEDAL OF HONOR
SEPTEMBER 29, 2011: OPEN BETA FOR EVERYONE ON XBL, PSN, AND PC
OCTOBER 25, 2011: OFFICIAL RETAIL RELEASE FOR BATTLEFIELD 3
As always,
Happy Gaming!
GeNiO
Saturday, July 9, 2011
inFAMOUS 2 (2011) [PS3]
I loved the concept of the first inFAMOUS and with the second one released this year I was only expecting much more. Fortunately, Sony and Sucker Punch didn't drop the ball and disappoint me with inFAMOUS 2. There were only a few things I wasn't really feeling. The fighting "power" wasn't exactly on par for what kind of powers the main character, Cole MacGrath, had. It felt as if it was almost impossible to defeat some enemies without taking a lot of time and energy to do so. Even on the easiest difficulty it remained so. I would have thought that after what happened in the first game and how Cole should have had his powers grow more powerful, but that wasn't exactly the case. Don't get me wrong, his powers did grow and whatnot, but not on the level I would have liked to have seen.
One of the other things that stuck out to me was the movement mechanics, meaning Cole didn't move around as smoothly as I thought he would compared to the first game. I understand that the first one was a trial and error kind of game, but the second one didn't seem to improve much, or at all, on the movement mechanics. Sometimes I'd be trying to do something specific and Cole wouldn't react the way he should or something just wouldn't happen all together. It was frustrating at times, but, luckily, it didn't happen too often.
Honestly, those are the only two worthy issues with the game that I have. As always, though, I never want to end a review on a negative note (unless a game really is that bad) so coming up below are some of the things I can remember that were great about the game.
I really liked how they incorporated the good/evil type of feel to the game. You could either chose to be a good guy or a bad guy. That was a very cool feature to have. Personally, I was the good guy. After I beat the game I started playing as a bad guy, but I stopped playing shortly after so I really haven't gotten that far as a bad guy yet.
The powers in this game are sweet as well. A lot of new toys and powers to play around with. The electrified "baton" was a nice new addition. You can beat people up in a whole new way. Anyway, you really have to play the game and use the powers to get to know them.
There's all new missions and characters as well as some old friends from the first game. If you haven't played it yet, I'll leave all of those out so you can figure it out for yourselves. For the missions, they have this new thing that allows people to create side missions, which is a cool concept, but I didn't really like how they played.
There's not much else to say, but I liked the game and would definitely recommend it to most people.
Game Spot Score: 7.5 (Good)
Critics Score: 8.4 (44 Reviews)
User Score: 8.9 (1,341 Votes)
My Rating: 8
Happy Gaming!
GeNiO
One of the other things that stuck out to me was the movement mechanics, meaning Cole didn't move around as smoothly as I thought he would compared to the first game. I understand that the first one was a trial and error kind of game, but the second one didn't seem to improve much, or at all, on the movement mechanics. Sometimes I'd be trying to do something specific and Cole wouldn't react the way he should or something just wouldn't happen all together. It was frustrating at times, but, luckily, it didn't happen too often.
Honestly, those are the only two worthy issues with the game that I have. As always, though, I never want to end a review on a negative note (unless a game really is that bad) so coming up below are some of the things I can remember that were great about the game.
I really liked how they incorporated the good/evil type of feel to the game. You could either chose to be a good guy or a bad guy. That was a very cool feature to have. Personally, I was the good guy. After I beat the game I started playing as a bad guy, but I stopped playing shortly after so I really haven't gotten that far as a bad guy yet.
The powers in this game are sweet as well. A lot of new toys and powers to play around with. The electrified "baton" was a nice new addition. You can beat people up in a whole new way. Anyway, you really have to play the game and use the powers to get to know them.
There's all new missions and characters as well as some old friends from the first game. If you haven't played it yet, I'll leave all of those out so you can figure it out for yourselves. For the missions, they have this new thing that allows people to create side missions, which is a cool concept, but I didn't really like how they played.
There's not much else to say, but I liked the game and would definitely recommend it to most people.
Game Spot Score: 7.5 (Good)
Critics Score: 8.4 (44 Reviews)
User Score: 8.9 (1,341 Votes)
My Rating: 8
Happy Gaming!
GeNiO
Tuesday, June 28, 2011
NHL '12 [FALL 2011 PREVIEW] [XBOX 360 & PS3]
The NHL series is pretty much the only sports game series I play. I've tried others (MLB 2K10, MLB: The Show 10, Madden), but none really capture their respective sports like NHL or FIFA, for that matter, which is the only other sports game series I play more than just trying out. I'll probably wind up getting FIFA '12 as well, but that's another preview post for the blog.
Well, I first want to congratulate Steven Stamkos for making the NHL '12 cover this year. It's always interesting to see who they choose for the cover and I think Stamkos definitely deserves it. He was one of the best players this past season.
I really haven't heard/seen much on the new game yet, but what I have heard/seen has been fairly promising. I don't want to get my hopes up too much like I did for '11 since it fell short of those expectations when I got it.
With last year improving the checking, deke, and faceoff systems, I expect EA Sports to continue to work on those as well as improve other areas, which I already have seen some things about those.
So far, the most interesting thing I've heard/seen has been the "physical system," meaning when at faceoffs if you're not the center you get more physical and battle for position before, during, and after the puck is dropped making it that much more realistic. Realism is probably one of the biggest factors behind sports games to me. I'd rather have a sports game that is fairly close to the real thing as possible. I'm sure the "physical system" comes into play in other areas, but the faceoff was most prevalent. By the way, I'm not even sure if that system is called the "physical system;" I'm just calling it that.
I loved how EA pretty much revamped the physics engine last year and they're continuing that this year. You'll now be able to break the glass along the boards if you check someone into it hard enough, knock opponents over the boards into your own or your opponents bench, and there is greater influence of goalie screens and contact, meaning you'll be able to run into the goalie and he'll most likely move with your contact and whatnot. Along with all of that, I'm not sure if hard enough slap shots into the glass boards will shatter them as well, but hopefully they include a system in which hard-hit pucks will put cracks or even break the glass when shot into them. I know that's something I would like to see and was surprised they didn't include last year (My Be A Pro player has his offensive stats maxed out currently and has the hardest, most accurate shot available in the game and I've hit the glass several times really hard where you can clearly hear that it did). With checking opponents into benches, it has been said that benches will now react to the check as well. For example, if you check an opponent into your own bench, your teammates sitting on the bench may become slightly hostile towards that player until he gets back on the ice (I'm not sure HOW they will react specifically, but an interview with one of the people working on the game touched slightly on that in a video I saw on YouTube). For the goalie screening affects and everything, in that interview video, they also touched on the net coming loose when ran into just like a real game. I think that's awesome and will add something to the game. I know there have been a few times when I ran into the net where it would have came loose and would have been cool to see a stoppage in play to reset the net.
EA has said they are working on revamping the "Be A Pro" mode as well, which is mainly what I play and judge the series off of. It allows anyone to become an e-NHL player, pretty much. You now get goals for the game/each shift that you'll need to try to accomplish in order to take the other team out of the game and give your team the edge. Along with the "Full Contact Physics Engine," which is what EA officially calls the "physical system," the Be A Pro mode should be a lot more fun and realistic this year.
70,000+ cheering fans under falling snow at Pittsburgh's Heinz Field: The NHL Winter Classic. This is something I'm looking forward to this year. I love how they brought back the Winter Classic in real life and now this year's NHL '12 will include being able to play it as well. With the game, the 2 teams playing get new Winter Classic jerseys to play in. That should be cool to see/play with.
Goalies will now be more active when in net. They will peak around screens, push screening opponents out of the way, and continue to make crazy desperation saves. They had a few in NHL '11, but they're working on continuing improving that system and add more to it. That should be pretty sweet to see what they came up with. Along with an improved goalie system, goalie's will now be able to step out from the net and get into a fight with the opponent's goalie. That should be interesting - and awesome - to say the least.
A new feature I saw was the "Action Tracker, which tracks everything that happens/happened on the ice. All events are saved and can be watched later via replay. That sounds pretty cool, interesting, and useful. We'll have to see how it pans out in the upcoming months.
Here's the link to the NHL '12 site so you can check out all the updates and whatnot as well as see anything I might have missed: NHL ' 12 Home Page
Anyways, NHL '12 looks amazing so far. Hopefully it stays that way when it comes out on September 13, 2011.
Happy Gaming!
GeNiO
Well, I first want to congratulate Steven Stamkos for making the NHL '12 cover this year. It's always interesting to see who they choose for the cover and I think Stamkos definitely deserves it. He was one of the best players this past season.
I really haven't heard/seen much on the new game yet, but what I have heard/seen has been fairly promising. I don't want to get my hopes up too much like I did for '11 since it fell short of those expectations when I got it.
With last year improving the checking, deke, and faceoff systems, I expect EA Sports to continue to work on those as well as improve other areas, which I already have seen some things about those.
So far, the most interesting thing I've heard/seen has been the "physical system," meaning when at faceoffs if you're not the center you get more physical and battle for position before, during, and after the puck is dropped making it that much more realistic. Realism is probably one of the biggest factors behind sports games to me. I'd rather have a sports game that is fairly close to the real thing as possible. I'm sure the "physical system" comes into play in other areas, but the faceoff was most prevalent. By the way, I'm not even sure if that system is called the "physical system;" I'm just calling it that.
I loved how EA pretty much revamped the physics engine last year and they're continuing that this year. You'll now be able to break the glass along the boards if you check someone into it hard enough, knock opponents over the boards into your own or your opponents bench, and there is greater influence of goalie screens and contact, meaning you'll be able to run into the goalie and he'll most likely move with your contact and whatnot. Along with all of that, I'm not sure if hard enough slap shots into the glass boards will shatter them as well, but hopefully they include a system in which hard-hit pucks will put cracks or even break the glass when shot into them. I know that's something I would like to see and was surprised they didn't include last year (My Be A Pro player has his offensive stats maxed out currently and has the hardest, most accurate shot available in the game and I've hit the glass several times really hard where you can clearly hear that it did). With checking opponents into benches, it has been said that benches will now react to the check as well. For example, if you check an opponent into your own bench, your teammates sitting on the bench may become slightly hostile towards that player until he gets back on the ice (I'm not sure HOW they will react specifically, but an interview with one of the people working on the game touched slightly on that in a video I saw on YouTube). For the goalie screening affects and everything, in that interview video, they also touched on the net coming loose when ran into just like a real game. I think that's awesome and will add something to the game. I know there have been a few times when I ran into the net where it would have came loose and would have been cool to see a stoppage in play to reset the net.
EA has said they are working on revamping the "Be A Pro" mode as well, which is mainly what I play and judge the series off of. It allows anyone to become an e-NHL player, pretty much. You now get goals for the game/each shift that you'll need to try to accomplish in order to take the other team out of the game and give your team the edge. Along with the "Full Contact Physics Engine," which is what EA officially calls the "physical system," the Be A Pro mode should be a lot more fun and realistic this year.
70,000+ cheering fans under falling snow at Pittsburgh's Heinz Field: The NHL Winter Classic. This is something I'm looking forward to this year. I love how they brought back the Winter Classic in real life and now this year's NHL '12 will include being able to play it as well. With the game, the 2 teams playing get new Winter Classic jerseys to play in. That should be cool to see/play with.
Goalies will now be more active when in net. They will peak around screens, push screening opponents out of the way, and continue to make crazy desperation saves. They had a few in NHL '11, but they're working on continuing improving that system and add more to it. That should be pretty sweet to see what they came up with. Along with an improved goalie system, goalie's will now be able to step out from the net and get into a fight with the opponent's goalie. That should be interesting - and awesome - to say the least.
A new feature I saw was the "Action Tracker, which tracks everything that happens/happened on the ice. All events are saved and can be watched later via replay. That sounds pretty cool, interesting, and useful. We'll have to see how it pans out in the upcoming months.
Here's the link to the NHL '12 site so you can check out all the updates and whatnot as well as see anything I might have missed: NHL ' 12 Home Page
Anyways, NHL '12 looks amazing so far. Hopefully it stays that way when it comes out on September 13, 2011.
Happy Gaming!
GeNiO
Sunday, June 12, 2011
NHL '10 & NHL '11 [XBOX 360/PS3]
I never made a blog post for probably my favorite video game series of all-time so I'm just going to merge '10 and '11 together for this post.
NHL '11 was a huge improvement from '10, but I still feel as if some features fell short this year. I love the new face-off and checking systems. They're so much more realistic and add so much to the game as a whole experience. I'm not really sure when they added the "real-time progression" feature so that although you may lost points in individual stats (Be A Pro) your overall rating stays consistent. The same goes for all of the players throughout the game. I like that a lot since it allows you to build your player(s) up to whatever you may want/like/need.
As always, the graphics are usually in the top notch category so that continued with '11 this year. I didn't notice it until this year's game (if it was in '10), but the ads around the inside of the boards around the rink change over time with relevant ads. I thought that that was a pretty nifty and clever way of integrating them like a real hockey rink. The players look even more real, as would be expected for a game series that has won over 22 sports game of the year awards, and their movements are more realistic as well. One thing I noticed, though, is that when you're sitting in the penalty box and watching the face mask visors on other players as they go by they sometimes show up in front of the box's door. Besides that, the graphics are good and I look forward to '12's debut later this year.
I do have some pet peeves with this game, though. First of all, the goalie passing in this game is horrendous, which is not so in real life hockey. Some goalies are actually quite good with handling and passing the puck that it's a shame that all of the goalies in the game are horrible.
Secondly, EVERY ONE AND THEIR MOTHER thinks that they can deke, which is ABSOLUTELY NOT the case in real life hockey. Some players can deke very well; some can deke okay; and some can barely deke at all, if they even ever try, which is likely the case for defenseman defenseman.
Third, the overall passing is pretty bad as well. Now, I understand a few passes here and there not making it to their intended targets, but all the time is just frustrating as hell.
Next, EA Sports "claimed" to have made the AI a lot better, but it actually seems worse to an avid player like myself. Every game there seems to be an unusual amount of an inability to play hockey on a professional level as it should be. Seemingly "simple" plays turn into complex, difficult plays that shouldn't be at all.
The last pet peeve I can remember right now is sometimes when one of your teammates or an opponent is doing board play and an opponent or a teammate is pressing them against the boards and you go to poke check the puck when you get stuck in place and can't move, then you're open to get rocked by an opponent checking you. That's annoying.
Anyway, I think that's about it, but before I go, I cannot wait for NHL '12 to come out in September to check out what's new and whatnot and continue playing probably my favorite sport, hockey.
Game Spot Score: 9.0 (Editor's Choice)
Critics Score: 8.9 (37 Reviews)
User Score: 8.9 (533 Votes)
My Rating: 8
Happy Gaming!
GeNiO
NHL '11 was a huge improvement from '10, but I still feel as if some features fell short this year. I love the new face-off and checking systems. They're so much more realistic and add so much to the game as a whole experience. I'm not really sure when they added the "real-time progression" feature so that although you may lost points in individual stats (Be A Pro) your overall rating stays consistent. The same goes for all of the players throughout the game. I like that a lot since it allows you to build your player(s) up to whatever you may want/like/need.
As always, the graphics are usually in the top notch category so that continued with '11 this year. I didn't notice it until this year's game (if it was in '10), but the ads around the inside of the boards around the rink change over time with relevant ads. I thought that that was a pretty nifty and clever way of integrating them like a real hockey rink. The players look even more real, as would be expected for a game series that has won over 22 sports game of the year awards, and their movements are more realistic as well. One thing I noticed, though, is that when you're sitting in the penalty box and watching the face mask visors on other players as they go by they sometimes show up in front of the box's door. Besides that, the graphics are good and I look forward to '12's debut later this year.
I do have some pet peeves with this game, though. First of all, the goalie passing in this game is horrendous, which is not so in real life hockey. Some goalies are actually quite good with handling and passing the puck that it's a shame that all of the goalies in the game are horrible.
Secondly, EVERY ONE AND THEIR MOTHER thinks that they can deke, which is ABSOLUTELY NOT the case in real life hockey. Some players can deke very well; some can deke okay; and some can barely deke at all, if they even ever try, which is likely the case for defenseman defenseman.
Third, the overall passing is pretty bad as well. Now, I understand a few passes here and there not making it to their intended targets, but all the time is just frustrating as hell.
Next, EA Sports "claimed" to have made the AI a lot better, but it actually seems worse to an avid player like myself. Every game there seems to be an unusual amount of an inability to play hockey on a professional level as it should be. Seemingly "simple" plays turn into complex, difficult plays that shouldn't be at all.
The last pet peeve I can remember right now is sometimes when one of your teammates or an opponent is doing board play and an opponent or a teammate is pressing them against the boards and you go to poke check the puck when you get stuck in place and can't move, then you're open to get rocked by an opponent checking you. That's annoying.
Anyway, I think that's about it, but before I go, I cannot wait for NHL '12 to come out in September to check out what's new and whatnot and continue playing probably my favorite sport, hockey.
Game Spot Score: 9.0 (Editor's Choice)
Critics Score: 8.9 (37 Reviews)
User Score: 8.9 (533 Votes)
My Rating: 8
Happy Gaming!
GeNiO
Sunday, March 13, 2011
Battlefield 3 (Fall 2011 - PREVIEW) [XBOX 360, PS3, PC]
This very well may be the most anticipated game ever, for me at least. The Bad Company spinoffs were amazing, BC2 improved on BC, and so forth. I never really played the original Battlefield games, but I've only heard good things about them, that it pretty much invented the FPS genre, which started the Call of Duty franchises and whatnot.
I watched all of the preview trailers and looked at all the photos available and it seriously looks absolutely AMAZING. If you haven't checked any of them out, I'd HIGHLY recommend doing so as soon as you can. I'll provide a link to the website somewhere for everyone to check out.
Let's get into what I've already seen so far.
Realism: Okay, there is no other developer that can makes games as real as EA and its subdivisions. All of the BC games I've played along with their sports games are all the top games for realism. That's a huge plus in my book. You can also have regular modes probably so I'm sure everyone will have something to like in this game.
Story/Gameplay: I know these are two entirely different things, but they go together for me here. The stories in every game that can have a story that EA makes are always good ones and the gameplay is unrivaled. Call of Duty? Nope. Halo? Nope. This is where it's at.
Weapons/Perks/Maps: These are all pretty much in the same category so I'll treat them as such. Battlefield maps are usually large, open maps with different sections throughout so everyone can enjoy whatever they like doing (recon, engineer, medic, assault). The weapons and perks are always awesome and everything has a counter, making the online play that much more enjoyable. Call of Duty can't say that at all.
The graphics in this game look absolutely ridiculous. This goes along with the realism factor, but it's still good to mention.
Oh, I almost forgot to mention, the new Frostbite 2 engine by DICE. This is going to completely change gaming...again. Everything will be destructible and the lighting effects are, so far, the best I've ever seen. You will literally be able to see when someone passes by a source of light, wind effects will be seen, and the way people and animals move, walk, run, etc. are the most realistic any game has ever offered.
Check out those trailers if you want to see what I'm talking about. There's also a section for the Frostbite 2 engine to check out as well.
I've already pre-ordered my Limited Edition copy of this game for the Fall 2011 so you should, too.
Here's the link to EA's site for Battlefield 3: BATTLEFIELD 3 - FALL 2011
That's it for now.
Happy Gaming!
GeNiO
I watched all of the preview trailers and looked at all the photos available and it seriously looks absolutely AMAZING. If you haven't checked any of them out, I'd HIGHLY recommend doing so as soon as you can. I'll provide a link to the website somewhere for everyone to check out.
Let's get into what I've already seen so far.
Realism: Okay, there is no other developer that can makes games as real as EA and its subdivisions. All of the BC games I've played along with their sports games are all the top games for realism. That's a huge plus in my book. You can also have regular modes probably so I'm sure everyone will have something to like in this game.
Story/Gameplay: I know these are two entirely different things, but they go together for me here. The stories in every game that can have a story that EA makes are always good ones and the gameplay is unrivaled. Call of Duty? Nope. Halo? Nope. This is where it's at.
Weapons/Perks/Maps: These are all pretty much in the same category so I'll treat them as such. Battlefield maps are usually large, open maps with different sections throughout so everyone can enjoy whatever they like doing (recon, engineer, medic, assault). The weapons and perks are always awesome and everything has a counter, making the online play that much more enjoyable. Call of Duty can't say that at all.
The graphics in this game look absolutely ridiculous. This goes along with the realism factor, but it's still good to mention.
Oh, I almost forgot to mention, the new Frostbite 2 engine by DICE. This is going to completely change gaming...again. Everything will be destructible and the lighting effects are, so far, the best I've ever seen. You will literally be able to see when someone passes by a source of light, wind effects will be seen, and the way people and animals move, walk, run, etc. are the most realistic any game has ever offered.
Check out those trailers if you want to see what I'm talking about. There's also a section for the Frostbite 2 engine to check out as well.
I've already pre-ordered my Limited Edition copy of this game for the Fall 2011 so you should, too.
Here's the link to EA's site for Battlefield 3: BATTLEFIELD 3 - FALL 2011
That's it for now.
Happy Gaming!
GeNiO
Wednesday, February 2, 2011
Battlefield: Bad Company 2 (2010) [XBOX 360/PS3]
My hands down FPS of 2010. Yes, it is a better overall game than Black Ops and I don't play Halo so I can't comment or rate it against any Halo games. I'm sure Reach was an amazing game for its fans, but I never got into that franchise and just have never play more than a few matches on an older Halo, which I can't even remember which one it was.
So, what does a game have that's a better overall FPS than a Call of Duty (CoD) game? Well, a better campaign and a better online multiplayer experience. I'm a HUGE team player so this is exactly my type of game. The only problem is that not many of my own PSN or XBL friends own/play this game so I rarely get a chance to enjoy this game for a longer period of time. I'm usually pushed to playing NHL '11 or Modern Warfare 2 (MW2), which I still believe is the best CoD game in the entire series.
Let's start off with the campaign. If you've played the first Bad Company (BC), then you'd know where the story left off and where about it's about to pick up. If you haven't, it's impossible to get you into the story. In short, the main characters were criminals enlisted as an option against jail time in the military as a "secret" company (Bravo Company - the military denied their existence and wouldn't help them if they got caught or into deep shit in battle) and they battle their way through different missions, which are all awesome. The story was kind of short, but it was still fun and an overall good one.
Now, onto the bulk of what makes BF: BC2 the best FPS shooter. With its massive maps and its unique online modes, it's sure to have something for everyone. This is a team game, so if you're a run-and-gun noob then don't even try to play this game. Unlike CoD, you don't have "classes," but rather "kits." Each kit is a different "class." It goes Recon (sniper, but also should be used to scout enemy soldiers, tanks, helicopters, and other vehicles - the Recon kit also comes with binoculars to drop mortar strikes and C4 you can plant on vehicles to blow up), Engineer (some different specialty weapons, but also used to fix damaged vehicles to help your team stay alive and moving forward), Medic (self explanatory, but comes with light machine guns and medic kits to heal and/or revive downed teammates - if you choose this kit make sure you do exactly that), and the Assault kit (assault rifles, but also carry rockets and such so if you see an enemy vehicle, blow it up - the assault soldiers are the ones getting into the "trench fights" almost). These kits need to be evenly spread out amongst your squad AND your team. If you have an all Recon team, nothing is going to get done as it should. If a squad mate chooses Recon, pick something different. I almost always run with the Recon kit because I like to stay far back and take enemies out from afar. I also like dropping mortar strikes, scouting enemy soldiers/vehicles and calling them out, and just watching out for my squad/team.
In these huge maps, everything is destructible, meaning you can bring down EVERY BUILDING! This means if you put enough fire power into a building you can collapse it on top of any enemies inside and kill them. This works well if a building is becoming a nuisance in an objective or your team's getting killed too many times from there. Drop a mortar strike, shoot tank rounds, shoot rockets, etc. at the building and it'll surely come down and no longer be a problem. Also, anything on the map can be destroyed so if you have a patch of woods in your line of sight in a tank or as a Recon soldier, take them out and get that clear line of sight to be effective. Don't like the idea of having a bridge from one area to another? Blow it up and make enemies go around and take more time to get to the other side. Be careful in your decision(s), though, as this also means your team cannot use that bridge either. Just like a real battlefield, every action will not only affect the enemy, but your team as well. Destroy as much or as little as you want. That is ultimately up to you. If you're going to destroy shit, though, make sure your team isn't utilizing whatever you are destroying, especially in Hard Core modes as this will kill your teammates, too, and you'll receive negative points. Of course it sucks when you kill a teammate, but sometimes it happens and you can't help it. Apologize and move on. Try harder to not make that happen again.
I want to point out one of the most realistic parts of this game: the sniper rifle. If you've ever shot a gun in real life or even just know something about gravity and whatnot, you'd know that over time/distance a bullet will lose velocity and start to drop. You must take this into consideration in BF:BC2 as when firing bullets drop over a distance. This comes into play a lot when using the Recon kit. Want a head shot? Depending on the distance of your target, move your crosshair above the enemy's head. Problem: Your target is moving. Well, also like real life, you NEED TO LEAD YOUR TARGET! If he's running in one direction, aim in front of your target's path and slightly higher than your targets head and fire. You'll be pleasantly surprised on the end result. I've gotten some amazing head shots in this game just by being a good Recon soldier.
That leads me into something I don't really do, but I will just because it might help upcoming Recon soldiers or current ones that don't know this or want to try it out. My technique is that I use the binoculars to scout and find targets, call them out, shoot them, or drop a mortar strike. You never know what something might work so drop mortar strikes whenever you can in an area where there will most likely be enemies.
Two things I would have changed: allowed players to go prone (lay down) and allow players using the binoculars to use them to look through/scout after using the mortar strike (mortar strikes are limited and have a recharge time to be able to use it again). Those aren't huge because you can look through a sniper scope if you're using the binoculars and you can stand and kneel. Both would have been appreciated, though.
Now that I've been talking about this game, I just threw it into my 360 and am about to play a couple of matches. Recon here I come.
P.S. DICE, the maker of this game, released a "Vietnam" DLC that's absolutely AMAZING! If you weren't convinced before, this is more than worth getting the game.
Game Spot Score: 9.0 (Editor's Choice)
Critics Score: 8.9 (53 Reviews)
User Score: 9.0 (4,564 Votes)
My Rating: 9.0
Happy Gaming!
GeNiO
So, what does a game have that's a better overall FPS than a Call of Duty (CoD) game? Well, a better campaign and a better online multiplayer experience. I'm a HUGE team player so this is exactly my type of game. The only problem is that not many of my own PSN or XBL friends own/play this game so I rarely get a chance to enjoy this game for a longer period of time. I'm usually pushed to playing NHL '11 or Modern Warfare 2 (MW2), which I still believe is the best CoD game in the entire series.
Let's start off with the campaign. If you've played the first Bad Company (BC), then you'd know where the story left off and where about it's about to pick up. If you haven't, it's impossible to get you into the story. In short, the main characters were criminals enlisted as an option against jail time in the military as a "secret" company (Bravo Company - the military denied their existence and wouldn't help them if they got caught or into deep shit in battle) and they battle their way through different missions, which are all awesome. The story was kind of short, but it was still fun and an overall good one.
Now, onto the bulk of what makes BF: BC2 the best FPS shooter. With its massive maps and its unique online modes, it's sure to have something for everyone. This is a team game, so if you're a run-and-gun noob then don't even try to play this game. Unlike CoD, you don't have "classes," but rather "kits." Each kit is a different "class." It goes Recon (sniper, but also should be used to scout enemy soldiers, tanks, helicopters, and other vehicles - the Recon kit also comes with binoculars to drop mortar strikes and C4 you can plant on vehicles to blow up), Engineer (some different specialty weapons, but also used to fix damaged vehicles to help your team stay alive and moving forward), Medic (self explanatory, but comes with light machine guns and medic kits to heal and/or revive downed teammates - if you choose this kit make sure you do exactly that), and the Assault kit (assault rifles, but also carry rockets and such so if you see an enemy vehicle, blow it up - the assault soldiers are the ones getting into the "trench fights" almost). These kits need to be evenly spread out amongst your squad AND your team. If you have an all Recon team, nothing is going to get done as it should. If a squad mate chooses Recon, pick something different. I almost always run with the Recon kit because I like to stay far back and take enemies out from afar. I also like dropping mortar strikes, scouting enemy soldiers/vehicles and calling them out, and just watching out for my squad/team.
In these huge maps, everything is destructible, meaning you can bring down EVERY BUILDING! This means if you put enough fire power into a building you can collapse it on top of any enemies inside and kill them. This works well if a building is becoming a nuisance in an objective or your team's getting killed too many times from there. Drop a mortar strike, shoot tank rounds, shoot rockets, etc. at the building and it'll surely come down and no longer be a problem. Also, anything on the map can be destroyed so if you have a patch of woods in your line of sight in a tank or as a Recon soldier, take them out and get that clear line of sight to be effective. Don't like the idea of having a bridge from one area to another? Blow it up and make enemies go around and take more time to get to the other side. Be careful in your decision(s), though, as this also means your team cannot use that bridge either. Just like a real battlefield, every action will not only affect the enemy, but your team as well. Destroy as much or as little as you want. That is ultimately up to you. If you're going to destroy shit, though, make sure your team isn't utilizing whatever you are destroying, especially in Hard Core modes as this will kill your teammates, too, and you'll receive negative points. Of course it sucks when you kill a teammate, but sometimes it happens and you can't help it. Apologize and move on. Try harder to not make that happen again.
I want to point out one of the most realistic parts of this game: the sniper rifle. If you've ever shot a gun in real life or even just know something about gravity and whatnot, you'd know that over time/distance a bullet will lose velocity and start to drop. You must take this into consideration in BF:BC2 as when firing bullets drop over a distance. This comes into play a lot when using the Recon kit. Want a head shot? Depending on the distance of your target, move your crosshair above the enemy's head. Problem: Your target is moving. Well, also like real life, you NEED TO LEAD YOUR TARGET! If he's running in one direction, aim in front of your target's path and slightly higher than your targets head and fire. You'll be pleasantly surprised on the end result. I've gotten some amazing head shots in this game just by being a good Recon soldier.
That leads me into something I don't really do, but I will just because it might help upcoming Recon soldiers or current ones that don't know this or want to try it out. My technique is that I use the binoculars to scout and find targets, call them out, shoot them, or drop a mortar strike. You never know what something might work so drop mortar strikes whenever you can in an area where there will most likely be enemies.
Two things I would have changed: allowed players to go prone (lay down) and allow players using the binoculars to use them to look through/scout after using the mortar strike (mortar strikes are limited and have a recharge time to be able to use it again). Those aren't huge because you can look through a sniper scope if you're using the binoculars and you can stand and kneel. Both would have been appreciated, though.
Now that I've been talking about this game, I just threw it into my 360 and am about to play a couple of matches. Recon here I come.
P.S. DICE, the maker of this game, released a "Vietnam" DLC that's absolutely AMAZING! If you weren't convinced before, this is more than worth getting the game.
Game Spot Score: 9.0 (Editor's Choice)
Critics Score: 8.9 (53 Reviews)
User Score: 9.0 (4,564 Votes)
My Rating: 9.0
Happy Gaming!
GeNiO
Call of Duty: Black Ops (2010) [XBOX 360/PS3]
Alright, it's been quite a few months now that Black Ops has been released (11-9-2010), so I wanted to give my review on it as I did the preview. I also realize that the first map pack was released early for XBOX 360 on 2-1-2011 so I'll go over that as well. By the way, I've already purchased and installed the first map pack, but only have had limited use on the maps so I'll give an additional review on it at a later date as well as any other map packs Treyarch may/may not release.
Let me first start off by saying I wasn't exactly expecting too much from another war game from Treyarch as World at War wasn't exactly the best first person shooter (FPS) out there when it came out. I think I've mentioned it before, but I almost always play through the campaign once to get a feel for the controls, weapons, perks, gameplay, etc. before jumping into any online mode(s). I just want to touch on the campaign first real quick because I feel like it was one of the two things that I think are the better points in this game. Back when preview videos were still coming out and live gameplay at E3 was going before this was released I was intrigued by the small portion of campaign played and it really didn't disappoint when I got it in my own hands. I actually skipped over the option of getting it on its release date and had the "Hardened Edition" shipped to my house, which came with additional downloadable content (DLC) and a "Black Ops" medal. It was a pretty cool setup, but I think they should have focused more on the multiplayer than the appearance of everything else. I'd definitely recommend checking the campaign mode out at least once before, during, or after you jump into the multiplayer.
Now, on to the online play. Well, I can't really say much about this, but there are maybe a few things that Treyarch has added that would have really made Modern Warfare 2 a near perfect FPS war game. Having the currency system was a neat change instead of having to get to certain levels to obtain weapons, perks, kill streaks, etc., but I can do without all the extra garbage that you can purchase. It's nice to have, but not at all necessary and a total waste of space, time, and there could have been other better features added/removed/changed besides those extra unnecessary features. I did not like, however, how you had to get to a certain level in order to play Hard Core modes. I'm a HC-Only player and that was extremely disappointing and annoying. Luckily, I got the game a couple of days after its release and some of my friends just invited me in the HC modes. One thing I ABSOLUTELY hate is the "Last Stand" perk. If I'm putting 5 or 6 bullets into you, you're not getting back up to fire a pistol most likely and the way they animated the opponents to fall then get a pistol out is just completely idiotic. If you've played this game then you know what I'm talking about. It's just aggravating. As for the maps, some of them are okay, but I'm not too fond of the majority of them at this point. That's about it for the online play right now. I don't want to seem like I'm completely bashing it.
Let's not end this review on a negative note, so let's talk about ZOMBIES!!! Yes, Treyarch is well known for putting zombies in World at War and they've returned in this one as well. If you bought the special edition game, you received the 4 zombie maps from WaW so there's a little more replay value in there. I still feel as if Treyarch could have made the actual act of killing zombies more fun and gruesome, but they stayed the same as WaW and that was kind of a let down, but the gameplay is usually always fun to play.
If you don't like the online play, buy/keep this game for the campaign/zombie modes. Try harder difficulties for the campaign and try playing with different amounts of people (yourself, another friend, 2 friends, 3 friends). The key to these types of games is communication. I will personally vouch that if you have an average team, but a superior communicative team you will have a very good chance at winning. If you at least have one or two above average players and the superior communicative team then you're almost guaranteed a win. In sports they say "Defense wins championships." and that's quite true here because if you're playing defense (communicating where enemies are/where you get shot/die, communicating where enemy equipment like claymores are, watching your teammates' backs, placing claymores in strategic places, sharing care packages/emergency air drops, etc.) your chances of winning dramatically increase. Remember, COMMUNICATION IS KEY! Yes, this means you absolutely NEED A MIC! It sucks when there are 1 or 2 people on a team with a mic and no one is communicating and everyone is just running around. Luckily, in CoD games, this type of approach can work unlike in other team-orientated games like Battlefied: Bad Company 2 where it's very hard to run and gun and also pull out a win. That's one game I'd say takes the crown over any CoD game. Yes, I said over ANY CoD GAME.
Game Spot Score: 9.0 (Editor's Choice)
Critics Score: 8.8 (65 Reviews)
User Score: 8.3 (4,900 Votes)
My Rating: 7.5
Happy Gaming!
GeNiO
Let me first start off by saying I wasn't exactly expecting too much from another war game from Treyarch as World at War wasn't exactly the best first person shooter (FPS) out there when it came out. I think I've mentioned it before, but I almost always play through the campaign once to get a feel for the controls, weapons, perks, gameplay, etc. before jumping into any online mode(s). I just want to touch on the campaign first real quick because I feel like it was one of the two things that I think are the better points in this game. Back when preview videos were still coming out and live gameplay at E3 was going before this was released I was intrigued by the small portion of campaign played and it really didn't disappoint when I got it in my own hands. I actually skipped over the option of getting it on its release date and had the "Hardened Edition" shipped to my house, which came with additional downloadable content (DLC) and a "Black Ops" medal. It was a pretty cool setup, but I think they should have focused more on the multiplayer than the appearance of everything else. I'd definitely recommend checking the campaign mode out at least once before, during, or after you jump into the multiplayer.
Now, on to the online play. Well, I can't really say much about this, but there are maybe a few things that Treyarch has added that would have really made Modern Warfare 2 a near perfect FPS war game. Having the currency system was a neat change instead of having to get to certain levels to obtain weapons, perks, kill streaks, etc., but I can do without all the extra garbage that you can purchase. It's nice to have, but not at all necessary and a total waste of space, time, and there could have been other better features added/removed/changed besides those extra unnecessary features. I did not like, however, how you had to get to a certain level in order to play Hard Core modes. I'm a HC-Only player and that was extremely disappointing and annoying. Luckily, I got the game a couple of days after its release and some of my friends just invited me in the HC modes. One thing I ABSOLUTELY hate is the "Last Stand" perk. If I'm putting 5 or 6 bullets into you, you're not getting back up to fire a pistol most likely and the way they animated the opponents to fall then get a pistol out is just completely idiotic. If you've played this game then you know what I'm talking about. It's just aggravating. As for the maps, some of them are okay, but I'm not too fond of the majority of them at this point. That's about it for the online play right now. I don't want to seem like I'm completely bashing it.
Let's not end this review on a negative note, so let's talk about ZOMBIES!!! Yes, Treyarch is well known for putting zombies in World at War and they've returned in this one as well. If you bought the special edition game, you received the 4 zombie maps from WaW so there's a little more replay value in there. I still feel as if Treyarch could have made the actual act of killing zombies more fun and gruesome, but they stayed the same as WaW and that was kind of a let down, but the gameplay is usually always fun to play.
If you don't like the online play, buy/keep this game for the campaign/zombie modes. Try harder difficulties for the campaign and try playing with different amounts of people (yourself, another friend, 2 friends, 3 friends). The key to these types of games is communication. I will personally vouch that if you have an average team, but a superior communicative team you will have a very good chance at winning. If you at least have one or two above average players and the superior communicative team then you're almost guaranteed a win. In sports they say "Defense wins championships." and that's quite true here because if you're playing defense (communicating where enemies are/where you get shot/die, communicating where enemy equipment like claymores are, watching your teammates' backs, placing claymores in strategic places, sharing care packages/emergency air drops, etc.) your chances of winning dramatically increase. Remember, COMMUNICATION IS KEY! Yes, this means you absolutely NEED A MIC! It sucks when there are 1 or 2 people on a team with a mic and no one is communicating and everyone is just running around. Luckily, in CoD games, this type of approach can work unlike in other team-orientated games like Battlefied: Bad Company 2 where it's very hard to run and gun and also pull out a win. That's one game I'd say takes the crown over any CoD game. Yes, I said over ANY CoD GAME.
Game Spot Score: 9.0 (Editor's Choice)
Critics Score: 8.8 (65 Reviews)
User Score: 8.3 (4,900 Votes)
My Rating: 7.5
Happy Gaming!
GeNiO
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