Senin, 21 Mei 2012

Alan Wake Review

Hi my name is Nik and today i am taking a look at one of my favorite horrors:


In this horror you play a writer named Alan Wake, who has to battle dangerous enemies and overcome his fears in search of answers to simple questions. What happened to him  and where is his wife? 
The story starts with a nightmare, where Alan is being chased by some lunatic with an axe. Short after that you wake up on a barge, that is on its way to Bright Falls - a peaceful, little town, or so it seams. You get the key to some cabin, go inside and then the nightmare becomes reality! After that you wake in some wrecked car, all covered in bruises and blood. You see the date in a gas station - a weak after your arrival in Bright Falls. And so the simple questions are born. What happened to you and where is your wife?  




The enemies in this game are called Taken. People or objects that are under the influence of the Dark Presence - force witch wants you back in your cabin or dead. In order to kill a Taken you first must use some light source, usually a flashlight, to get the Dark Presence of him, witch is acting like a shield,  and then you shoot him till he "dies" and vanishes in to thin air. In order to do that you have a large selection of weapons and all of them feel unique, for example the shotgun has nothing in common with the hunting rifle. They have big kick to them, the firepower is there, and you can feel it every time you shoot.
One of the interesting mechanics of the game is that in order to reload faster you have to pump the "R" key. So this gives it a little "god of war" vibe - its not just a standard "R" to reload for two seconds or something like in normal shooters.  


Now for the problems - this game has very few. The only one that i can think of, is that in episode 5 the game becomes more shooting then story and that is the driving force. Don't get me wrong the shooting is good, but the story is better.  
Graphically the game is beautiful - grate fog effects, excellent motion blur (the first i ever liked in a shooter), detailed textures and top of the line lighting, make this game one of the best games looking games i have seen. The PC port is so good i can't think of any complaints, witch is close to impossible. It is so good it has a FOV slider in third person game and that is rear.


So to top it all Alan Wake is a gorgeous looking, story driven, third person horror, with a excellent PC port. As horror its not very scary, even from me and i hate horror game and movies, If you are looking for that i suggest "Amnesia - The Dark Descent".

 I hope you liked my review of Alan Wake.
If you did please comment and share with your friends.
  Have a nice day.
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Sabtu, 19 Mei 2012

Freelancer Review

Hi my name is Nik and today i am taking a look at my favorite game of all time:


Freelancer is the best space-combat game i have played. The story starts with the very mysterious destruction of the space station Freeport 7. You play as one of the few survivors, Trent, who has lost everything, his ship, his home, his money. The resque ship leaves you at the planet Manhattan (New York system) and you start looking for work. Not long after, all of the survivors start disappearing in very strange circumstances and you for some reason end up in New York's most wanted list, so you flee the system is search for much needed answers.




But the gameplay is the really impressive part - fast , fluid and divers. You have a large selections of guns that you can use - laser, particle, neutron and all sorts of energy weapons. Also at your disposal you have mines, torpedoes, missiles and more, for some extra damage. 
The systems and the things in them are also divers and unique. You have planets, space stations, asteroids, space debree, particle cloud and much more stuff witch make every system feel unique and interesting.


Graphically the game is nothing special from todays point of view, but its not terrible as many people think. Sure the faces are not as detailed as i would have liked and the lips syncing could be a little better. But non of that is too important, because the ships, the gun effects and the space bits in general look much better then the ground sections.


The problems i have with the game is that the enemy AI is kind of strange.When you are chasing them, they make no effort to shake you off, so they are too easy to kill. Sometimes they do some impossible maneuver and get behind you, without any effort. And sometimes, this is the most annoying of the three, even when you are in a party with four - five people, all of the enemies will attack just you for several seconds, witch is enough to take your shield down or even kill you, if you don't use repair bot or shield battery.

So to top it all off freelance is a game with very good story line, memorable characters and grate gameplay. The game has some miner problems with the AI, but they are not too big.

Gameplay video

 

 I hope you liked my review of Freelancer.
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Kamis, 17 Mei 2012

Hitman Blood Money Review


Hi my name is Nik and today is time to review a game i love: 

In Hitman Blood Money you play the elite assassin  known as agent 47. As 47 you have many ways to complete the mission. You can be a sneakyassassin getting in, taking out your target and getting out before anybody, even notices you. Or you can be a mass murdered - getting in, killing everyone and leaving no living man, when you are gone. You have a large selection of weapons at your disposal -  fiber wires, pistols, shotguns, sniper rifles, machine guns and several other sneaky gadgets. You can also use anything else you find in the level like knifes, hammers, shovels and much more.




The story is told by flashback cinematics before and after every mission, witch is quite interesting, just like the story is quite good(i will not talk more about it, because i dont want to spoil it). The gameplay is fun as hell when you are sneaking slowly towards someone, in order to strangle him or when you are shooting every enemy in sight. Every weapon feels like you are downing damage with it, if feels like it has some weight to it. There is non of the COD style when you feel like you are shooting plastic balls at people. 


The levels are large, nonlinear, so you have multiple ways to get to your target and multiple places to hide the body. The game also looks and sounds astonishing, several graphic bugs and texture clipping here and there, but nothing too big.
The only problem i have with the game is that the PC port could you a bit more work. For example the inventory screen is a big ring, that is obviously designed for consoles. Also more gamepley option, like toggle sneak, would be nice. And also some of the AI is really acting unnatural like they can see things, even if you hold them behind your back, or they repeat the same line for two, three times in a roll. But its not really a game braking problem, more like annoying.
To top it all of Hitman Blood Money is exiting, nonlinear third person shooter and if you love games like Deus Ex: Human Revolution you should give Hitman a try.

I hope you liked my review of  Hitman Blood Money.
If you did please comment and share with your friends.
  Have a nice day.
Rabu, 16 Mei 2012

Torchlight Review

Hi my name is Nik and today i am looking at a Diablo clone:


Torchlight a action RPG, set in the town of Torchlight - what a shocker. The basic story is that the town has problems in the Ember mines - you are an adventurer who takes care of the problem. This gives is a grate Diablo I feeling - one town, one dungeon, one goal.  There is ,of course, more to it then that, but i dont want to spoil it.




There are three classes for you to chose from - the Destroyer - a melee oriented warrior like class, the Vanquisher - a range combat and trap using hunter, and my favorite the Alchemist - a mage with range attacks, who can also summon minions. Every character has three talent threes and each is very different  from the other two. 
One of the interesting things is the pet system, much like Fate's pet system, in the start of the game you pick a pet, cat or dog, you the main thing they are used is going to town and selling items - that way you dont waist your time with that. The pet can also eat different kinds of fish witch make it faster, bigger and stronger for several minutes.


Graphically the game is nice, colourful and bright. The graphic quality isent the best, but its very good for a 15 dollar game. The music is very much a copy from Diablo I, witch is a good thing for people that liked Diablo I more then Diablo II, like me.
The only two problems i have with the game, is that the dungeons at the start are too linear and too small, but after 3-4 flour that is not really a problem anymore and that after 1-2 hours it gets too repetitive and boring, so no long 10 hour sessions on this title.
To top it all of Torchlight is a very good hack and slash RPG, with very nice gameplay and good graphics. The game has a lot of modes and if you preorder Torchlight 2 on steam, you get the first on for free.  

 I hope you liked my review of  Torchlight .
If you did please comment and share with your friends.
  Have a nice day.
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Wooden Platforms - putting the wood into action

It's been a while and I decided to get back into the tutorials with a request for wooden platforms as used in the wood material tutorial:



http://netbook-game.blogspot.com.au/2011/11/making-materials-wood.html


A lot of this tutorial is repeated here in a slightly less detailed way - you might want to reread the older tutorials if you run into problems.


Note:

If you work with bitmap output in mind I would suggest creating the platform as a bitmap first. This way you have the proper dimensions to work with. Import the bitmap and create the starting rectangle to match. 



One platform for everything might work - but adding variations to your games art greatly enriches the look and feel. 

I hope this was helpful and you enjoyed it as much as I did writing again.


Get the source art (svg file) of this tutorial for
USD 5.00

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Senin, 14 Mei 2012

Orcs Must Die Review

Hi my name is Nik and today i am taking a look in to one of the most addicting games of last year:

So Orcs Must Die is a game about killing orcs - simple as that. There is some basic story - you are a warmage that defends the portals to the human world, called rifts, from orcs. The really good part of the game however is the killing of the orcs part and that is so satisfying and so addicting everyone that like killing things in games will love it (i know i do).




The game is a very interesting mix of tower defense and a third person action game - you lay traps on the orcs path, but they are not enough to kill them all, so you have to help them, with some of your weapons, like the crossbow, blade staff, fire bracers and several other weapon. But there is a much grater list of traps then weapons - spike trap, tar pits, arrow walls, floor scorcher and much more will give you a very good selection of ways to kill orcs. When you complete a level you get skulls, up to five depending on how well you did, and with this sculls you can buy upgrades for your favorite traps.


Graphically the game has this nice cartoonie stile witch suets it very well- its not crysis but the textures are good quality and you get good frame rate on the PC version. The game sounds nice and goofy witch compliments the humor and graphics stile. The only problem i have with the game is that it doesn't have Co-Op multiplayer, but they are fixing that with   Orcs Must Die 2 witch should come out this summer.
One last answer i should probably answer is Orcs Must Die vs. Dungeon Defender and the simple answer witch i think is right is that Orcs Must Die is a better singleplayer then Dungeon Defender, so if you like Co-Op get Dungeon Defender, for single player get  Orcs Must Die.
So to top it all of  Orcs Must Die is one of the best orcs killing simulator with a nice and unique graphic stile, nice sense of humor and grate gameplay.
You can get Orcs Must Die for PC and Xbox 360. 

If you want to check out my other Game Review Click Here.

Gameplay video 


  I hope you liked my review of  Orcs Must Die.
If you did please comment and share with your friends.
Have a nice day.
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Sabtu, 12 Mei 2012

The Walking Dead Review

Hi my name is Nik and today is a day for another game from Telltale games :



You are probably thinking "oh great another mindless zombie shooter", well fortunately its not. The walking dead is a point and click zombie survivor game. You play a character named Lee, who in the start of the game is in a police car and you are on your way to jail. You have a little talk with the cop driving you and while he isent looking at the road a zombie appears in the middle of the street, the car hits it and crashes. When you wake the car is upside down the cop is dead and your leg is cut. You manage to get out of the wrecked car and you start looking for survivors. Not long after you find some and you have one goal -  survive. In some stages of the game you have choices like "how to save is you are alone and you have two people being attacked" and the best part is that you have limited time to make the choices and that goes for any  choice in the game - even in a simple conversation you have time within you can say something, if the timer runs out - you stay silent. The story has nothing to do with the TV series, except the world and the zombes - no spoilers to the people that haven't watched it yet.
Graphically the game looks nice for a cel-shaded game witch reminds me a lot for borderlands.The music is a very nice for the style of the game-it keeps you in anxiety even when you are save.
So to top it all up The Walking Dead is a very nice looking and sounding, zombie survivor game with a lot of originality and a nice story.
You can get the game on PC, Xbox and PS3.


 I hope you liked my review of The Walking Dead.
If you did please comment and share with your friends.
  Have a nice day.
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Rabu, 09 Mei 2012

Sky Drift Review

Hi my name is Nik and today is a good day to take a look at:


As you probably figured from the name Sky Drift is a game about racing with airplanes, someone compared it quite accurate to mario kart in the sky. This game is all about things only - speed! All of the planes fly very fast and you have to make sharp turns true in tight places - its grate. But the speed isn't your only weapon against your opponents, you can use rockets, cannon (machine guns), mines and shockwaves witch you puck up as power-ups. The other power-ups are shields and repairs. You can hold two power-ups of any type and if you pick a second of the same type it will get much stronger.


Of course as any racing game this one has boost, you can get boost by flaying close to the ground or walls, killing enemy planes or destroying boosts that you have (level two boosts give you move boost when destroyed). The game has 6-7 maps(on same races you get the reverse versions) witch doesn't sound like a lot, but the maps are diverse, beautiful, and changing so you cant really get bored by them. You also get a selection on 9 planes (with 4 skins per plane) and each one them files different and unique. 
There are three types of races - Power Race witch is the standard all power-ups three or four laps race, Surviver witch is elimination with all power-ups mode and then there is Speed Race, witch is my favorite, you don't have any power-ups, but there are speed ring threw the map and when you go threw a ring you get a boost of a speed - more rings equals more speed. There is also a fourth type witch is only in the finale level of the game and its a mixture of  Surviver and  Speed Race - speed rings and elimination in one.


Graphically the game is beautiful - grate lighting effects, some of the best motion blur that i have seen since NFS: Most Wanted and a dam good estetik make this one of the best looking racing games ever. The sound track is heart pumping fast drum and base, techno or rock - depending on the level. There is no story line is this game, witch is a good thing cuz that means more for flaying not listening to stupid crap you don't want. The only problem i have with the game is that its difficult to play with a keyboard, so even for PC i recomend having a gamepad or xbox controller 
So to top it all up Sky Drift is a fast racing game with power-ups, beautiful graphics, grate soundtrack and a very nice level design.
You can get the game on PC, Xbox and PS3.

If you want to check out my other Game Review Click Here.

Gameplay video


 I hope you liked my review of Skydrift.
If you did please comment and share with your friends.
 Have a nice day.
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Senin, 07 Mei 2012

Super Meat Boy Review

Hi my name is Nik and today i am going to take a look at the most rage infusing game i have played:



So super meat boy is a precision, high speed platformer and its dificult as they come, but very rewarding when you get a level done. The "story" is preity simple you are meat boy, who is actually made from meat, you love a girl named Bandage. She has being kidnapped from Dr. Fetus - you must save her. So it's cheese, but what is more important its short.
The meat of this game(you see what i did there) is its gameplay. The movement is precise and its very easy to get used to. The only real problem with it, is that its terrible with a keyboard, so even on pc, you have to have a game pad or a xbox controller. The keyboard controls are so bad, they warn you in the start of the game. As far as obstacles go everything can kill you - lava, fans, salt, spices, trowing disks, bottomless pits and much, much more. One of the innovating game mechanics is wall sticking and its exactly what it says it is - you stick to a wall and  start sliding down the wall, you can jump from it, at several angles to get the best results.

The game has online leader boards and a replay save system, witch is very handy for showing of to friends or uploading videos to youtube. Graphically the game has smooth animation quality and good texture quality, but its not a triple A title level of graphical fidelity. The soundtrack is grate- its fast, its heart pumping, its the right atmosphere for the game. And one last thing, this game is long and when i say long i mean over 300 levels long, so you have a lot of content for your money. 
So to top it all up super meat boy is a very hard, but very satisfying platformer, with very little problems.
You can get the game on PC(Win and Linux), Mac OS and Xbox Live Arcade.

Gameplay video

I hope you liked my review of  Super Meat Boy.
If you did please comment and share with your friends.
Have a nice day. 
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Minggu, 06 Mei 2012

Still alive...

Sorry about the long break between posts... I am in the middle of some turmoil at the moment and a iOS project blew out of scope artwise and turned from a quick 'couple of days' job into a full blown production. With the end of in sight more tutorials will be coming as soon I got my feet back on the ground. ;) 



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