Steam Sale?!

Summertime is here and you know what that means right? STEAM SUMMER CAMP SALE! Yes, it is that time of year and Steam is releasing games that you may or may not want at low, low prices. I just recently purchased Mass Effect and Mass Effect 2 for 20 bucks, that’s a really good deal! I’m a sucker for good prices on games, but can you blame me? I can’t really pass up games at ridiculously low prices, and neither can most people.
This, hopefully, will become a trend in gaming, pricing games that people really want to play but have no desire in paying full price for very lowly. If that happens more, it expands the video game community’s library and turns them on to publishers that maybe they had never heard of or didn’t download games from because of pricing. I know I certainly wouldn’t have downloaded the Mass Effect bundle if it came out at the combined full price of each game, but for 20 dollars I would have been a fool to pass up.
I commend Steam for having such a great sale such as this one, sadly it ends July 10 but, there’s always hope that come winter time they will have a Christmas sale! And probably many sales in between that, but most likely none to this magnitude until they can come up with a clever name and legit reason to have a super sale. So be on the look out for Steam’s next big sale, you might just find a diamond in the rough amongst their vast game store!

Modern Warfare 3 a Saving Grace?

I brought this question up to some of my friends tonight while we were having a reunion, will Modern Warfare 3 redeem Call of Duty as a game that isn’t just about 1 gun being overpowered and an unbalanced multiplayer? Personally I believe it will, Modern Warfare 3 looks amazing to say the least and I always loved the modern feel over the more dated feel. Even though Black Ops took place during the Cold War Era, it still felt as though it was a little dated, especially after playing 2 modern games that were in the Call of Duty series. I was reluctant to play World at War but ended up doing so, and not liking the WWII stuff anymore, I’ve personally moved on from it. Hopefully, at least in regards to multiplayer, Infinity Ward realizes that they need to take elements from the multiplayer styles of both the first 2 Modern Warfare games and Black Ops, if they do that, their multiplayer will be unrivaled.
I’m curious though as to what it is going to be like in multiplayer, will it become the type of multiplayer that plagued Modern Warfare 2, aka quick scoping and stopping power ruling the game, or will it become more like Black Ops and make more guns even, more kill streaks even, and more perks even? I know lots of people disliked the Black Ops multiplayer, for what reason I don’t know, but I thoroughly enjoy it, I still play it to this day. Whatever direction Infinity Ward wants to take Modern Warfare 3’s multiplayer I’m sure I will love and adapt to even if I don’t agree with it at first, but I also recognize lots of people won’t ever be satisfied with anything less than perfect, and really who can perfect a multiplayer game? It’s bound to be unbalanced SOMEWHERE.
So I pose this question to you, what would YOU like to see in Modern Warfare 3’s multiplayer, certain elements of all the Call of Duty multiplayer’s combined or a completely revamped system?

NBA 2k11

As part of my 2 free rentals I used up from Gamefly, one of them was NBA 2k11. I was in love with this game from the moment I started playing it, the easy to pick up controls, the great graphics, the intelligent computers, it was a great game. To top it all off, you got to play as non other than Michael Jordan. He is the cover-boy for the game, and even has his own mode where you can relive some of his greatest feats and try to duplicate them perfectly. As much fun as I had with the Jordan Challenge mode, I found myself playing through a season with a user created team of my favorite athletes. Where else can you see LeBron, Dirk, Dwayne Wade, Jordan and Chris Paul on the court? But enough about my ridiculous (or should I say riDIRKulous) user created team. Let's get down to the meaty stuff of NBA 2k11.

The game runs SMOOTH. Controls are easy to learn and it is one of those games you can jump in and play at any time, no matter what. What makes it even better is after just one game, you are in the flow of things, you can find yourself sitting there, shooting 3's with Dirk and then saying to yourself, "With a shot this great, no wonder the Heat got beat by the Mavs!" The graphics are amazing, and the crowd is pretty intelligent for a sports video game crowd, they cheer when big shots are made, they boo when an opposing player is at the foul line, NBA 2k11 really captured what a basketball game is like.

My only complaint about 2k11 is the fact that, as fun as the Jordan Challenge is, if you aren't a really amazing player the challenge is very difficult at times. There are the easier ones like beat the Boston Celtics in the Finals, but then there are the ones where you need to replicate Jordan's crazy stat lines. But if you ever feel the need to whoop on some hapless team *cough*Cavaliers*cough* you can always fire up the mode where you can play as one of Jordan's amazing teams and blow out some overly matched present or past NBA team.

All in all, NBA 2k11 is a very solid game with amazing replay-ability. I usually never play basketball games, I stick to Madden and FIFA, but after hearing all the great things about this game I had to try it out for myself and was very much impressed by it. I'd recommend it to ANYONE who loves a good sports game, or just a good game in general.

Is World of Warcraft dying?

A question that each MMO must face at some point, is it time to give up on World of Warcraft? Is it time we give up on the biggest MMO ever created? No. Some may argue that WoW is done changing, that with Cataclysm we have seen all that Blizzard has to offer in terms of changing the way the game is played. I say to that, so what? The game is still fun isn't it? I personally can still spend countless hours chipping away at my experience bars on my characters for that small sense of satisfaction that is progressing to another level.

But I can see where people lose interest in WoW. I will admit I have to take little "vacations" from the world of Azeroth or I too become super bored with the game. But like anything, you have to play WoW in moderation. You can't sit there everyday, from morning til night playing the game. You will burn yourself out on the game and in turn, you will not want to play anymore. I've seen it happen multiple times to some of my best in game friends.

So what do you think, is WoW's reign as king of the MMO's coming to an end? Or will the release of the newest patch, Patch 4.2 rejuvenate the world of Azeroth?

IGN ranks Mass Effect 2 as their #1 Xbox 360 game.

I just read through all 25 of IGN's top 25 Xbox 360 games and coming in at number 1 was Mass Effect 2. I have to agree with them on this one. If you own a 360 and don't have or have never played Mass Effect 2 something is wrong, with you.

Mass Effect 2 throws you back into the control of Commander Shepard and you are humanities only hope for survival. I loved Mass Effect 2, everything about that game made me want more and more, and I was happy to hear and come to a realization without a press release that there would be a Mass Effect 3. Everything you do in Mass Effect 2 decides how the game is played out, and that is what makes it so amazing. We all saw the choice type system in Knights of the Old Republic, but Mass Effect 2 perfects it. You really do feel like what you do in the game matters.

IGN hit the nail on the head with ranking Mass Effect 2 their number 1 Xbox 360 game. To read all 25 articles go to http://xbox360.ign.com/articles/104/1045042p1.html and see what you think. Do YOU agree with them like I did or how would you change up the list? Let me know in the comments or on twitter @lasersgo.

Music and Gaming

Do you listen to music when you play video games? For some it gets them in the mood to play games and for some music just distracts from the experience of the game. Personally if I am not listening to something and a game isn't fast paced I get bored with it. Then there are times where the game itself needs to be heard, like specific dialogue needs to be listened to so you can find out where you need to go next, and in that case I don't play music at all. I do feel that video games and music go together hand in hand because if you look at games like Madden or any sports game really they each have their own soundtrack with real songs and not just songs made for the game. And in those cases the music gets you in the mood to play the games and even helps boost music sales, but that's a different topic. But what are your thoughts, what do you do? Do you listen to music and game or do you prefer the in game sound over music when you game? Post in the comments or reply to me on twitter at @lasersgo.

The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim

I'm just going to say it right now, The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim is probably my most anticipated game of the upcoming year. Skyrim looks like it is going to be everything Oblivion was, and then some. I was in love with Oblivion and would play that game for hours on end, but something about it never captivated me completely, even after the multiple DLC's that came out for it.

Skyrim looks like it is going to change that for me. I never got into Fallout 3, I tried, I really did. Something about the post-apocalyptic didn't appeal to me, but the fantasy world of dragons and goblins really makes me excited. It just feels like something epic when you are firing lightning at a dragon and wielding your glowing sword that makes it so you inflict burning madness on enemies. Okay, maybe the sword part is an exaggeration but it's a fantasy world, anything is possible.

Every gameplay video I've seen from Skyrim that was released at E3 looks amazing, the graphics look sharp and even though some may say, "All it was was them running around looking at the pretty graphics!" I disagree with that. Maybe just running around is what you see on the outside, but they are showing that their game engine can handle the immense pressure put upon it to look amazing while moving freely throughout the world.

For now, I can only dream of how amazing Skyrim is going to be. And yes, I will soon be pre-ordering it and getting my map that comes with it. As time goes on and I see more screenshots and gameplay of Skyrim I'll let you all know how I feel about it, and it will probably be more praise like this whole article seemed to turn out to be. But, what can I say, I'm a sucker for a pretty game set in a fantasy world.

Is the iPad the next big thing in mobile gaming?

Personally I think no, with the DS still being a hot commodity and the PS Vita coming out soon it is going to be hard to dethrone the big gaming companies with a tablet as the next big thing in mobile gaming. My friend and I had a discussion about this, with her bringing up the point you aren't going to take your Vita with you to work but you will your iPad and while at work you can mix pleasure and business with your iPad. I agree with that point, but solely as a gaming device the iPad has a lot of work to do. I've seen games run on the iPad, and they look good and sometimes play just as good, but the problem isn't the games and the graphics, it's the constant crashing of game apps. Many a times I have tried to play Red Faction on my friends iPad and many a times it has crashed mid game. The iPad may become a gaming titan in the future at some point, but for the immediate future if you're a true gamer you will probably go out and buy a PS Vita, even if you have an iPad.

Modern Warfare 3 v Battlefield 3

http://bit.ly/mj41ac follow this link to gamemarshal.com to see their comparison of MW3 and Battlefield 3. Personally, I want to get Modern Warfare 3, but won't be opposed to playing Battlefield 3.

Contemplating buying a tablet by Christmas time.

Looking at an ACER that I saw at Best Buy. Looks promising but no idea if I should just hold out on a newer tablet that may be coming in the future. Thoughts anyone?

E3

So the annual E3 expo has come to a close in Southern California and IGN has their list of the Best of E3 Awards up, and I have to agree with almost all of them. Bioshock Infinite seems to have stole the show, but what I'm most excited for is Mass Effect 3. I love Bioware and everything they do, and that game looks like it's going to be amazing. There are more titles I'm excited for such as Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3, Star Wars: The Old Republic, FIFA 2012, Elder Scrolls V, Battlefield 3, Gears of War 3, and the new Legend of Zelda game. But what really captivated me were the new tech things that the big 3 companies were rolling out, the Playstation Vita, Kinect Fun Labs, and my personal favorite Wii U. That thing looks sick. More to come when I read up on more of the new releases that will be coming out, but for now it looks like the future is SUPER bright for the gaming industry and gamers alike.

First Review: Star Wars: The Force Unleashed 2

At it's core Star Wars: The Force Unleased 2 is a typical hack and slash type of game. Input your Star Wars force powers and you get something that is unlike anything you've ever seen before, that is unless you played the first game in this series. Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed every moment I spent playing this game, but there are times when you tend to think, "Didn't I just do this, but with a different backround?" The answer to this question is almost always "yes" but you tend to overlook that when you are having fun blasting stormtroopers off of bridges with your supercharged force push or when you use jedi mind tricks to make a stormtrooper shoot his buddy in the face.

Let's get to the real meaty stuff of the review now that we have all that out of the way. First, we will start with story.  The story is a very simple one, you are once again in the role of Starkiller, Darth Vaders' superpowered apprentice. Vader tells you that you are a clone and you don't believe him at first, I mean who would? You soon escape his grasp before he tries to kill you after telling you that you are not worthy of being his apprentice and are a failed experiment. After escaping you make your way around the galaxy to find Juno, your love interest, you may remember her from the first game. Starkillers journey to find Juno and kill Vader takes you to familiar places. The story is not strong, but it is not full of plot holes like I figured it might be when I first started playing it. The story was a very engaging one for not being that strong of a storyline and impressed me as much as I think a game of this caliber could.

Next, the gameplay. As I said before, TFU2 is at it's core a hack and slash game with a few force powers thrown in. You find that once you max out all your force powers and saber skills that you become some type of unstoppable death machine hellbent on killing stormtroopers with ease. This is really fun, for the first play through. After that it becomes repetitive. Finding new crystals to unlock different colored sabers with different abilities is fun, but what makes it a pain to unlock is that to get the 2nd crystal to unlock both sabers being a different color with a different ability is you have to complete challenges that aren't too easy to beat. I know I shouldn't complain, at least there is some challenge in the game. But at times it becomes ridiculously hard to kill 100 enemies with just force powers.  Overall I think the gameplay could have been refined some.

Finally, the graphics. For not having the best gameplay ever, the graphics in TFU2 are amazing. In HD the backdrops and force powers look extra incredible and it sometimes looks too good to be true. You have to imagine with all the money poured into these types of games that the graphics are going to be top notch. And the cinematics look even more spectacular than the regular gameplay, but it doesn't deter from the fact that the in game graphics look amazing.

Final verdict: If you are looking for a fun, easy, one play through game Star Wars: The Force Unleashed 2 is your game. You won't spend countless hours with this one, as it is a very short game, but you can enjoy it, just remember to try and mix up how you kill those stormtroopers!

Story: 7

Gameplay: 5

Graphics: 10

New Black Ops DLC coming

So Activision/Treyarch are about to roll out another DLC package for Call of Duty: Black Ops. The Annihilation map pack will include 4 new multiplayer maps and a zombie map. WOO ZOMBIES. It is speculated Annihilation will cost about 1,200 Microsoft Points. This looks like a solid package that I will probably have to pick up when it comes out. Release date for this DLC is scheduled to be June 28.

Just read an article about free to play MMO's...

Don't get me wrong, I love the idea of free to play MMO's, but the idea that you can have your free to play but if you pay a little fee you can get better stuff sucks. For me, it's either level the playing field by making it so it's only cosmetic stuff or make it so you can't buy stuff at all. At least then if you don't have money to pay for the top of the line stuff, it doesn't matter; all you need is in-game moolah. This may seem like a rant, but I commend companies on being ambitious enough to switch from pay to play to free to play, I just don't think it's right to have buyable things that make your game experience better. If I had it my way it would be a level playing field for all, or no playing field at all.

CoD black ops elite beta?

So a friend of mine informed me I should opt into the Call of Duty: Black Ops Elite beta. No idea what this is but I'm going to see if I can get in and report on it.

Restarting my blog here on Blogspot

Will be copying and pasting all of my past blog entries here and using this from now on.