Resident Evil 4 Review

I finished this game several months ago on the PS2, so I suppose a review is in order.
Bra-ains

Resident Evil 4 continues with the series' over-arching enemy: zombies. Yet the plot is nice and fresh, with a surprising depth of plot development and inertia. The main character, Leon Kennedy, is sent to a semi-deserted rural area to find the United States' President's daughter. Guess what: the job is more complicated than he thought at first and OMG, zombies!

Of course this is expected, but the story and script writing is excellent. The voice-overs are also good. The only problem with the script and voices are Leon's one-liners. While the protagonist has to say something to retort an enemy's brags, lines like "Rain or shine, you're going down" don't exactly do the trick. Yet, at times the lines are just so bad that they are actually endearing.

The antagonists in the game are also done well; I hate that Napoleon-esqe 20-year-old! The game shines here as well as the numerous boss battles.Shooting Zombies in the Face is Fun

The combat and storage system in this Resident Evil is the best one in the series, and that's coming from someone who's played part of the fifth, watched someone play part of the first, and looked at the packaging of the second. But all of my qualifications aside, the hit detection in this game is spot-on and the suitcase system is impressive.

Further, the Easter eggs and treasures to be found in 4 are plentiful and fun to find. Also, can somebody explain how the merchant keeps getting in front of me so he can sell me things?! As for graphics, there are hardly any PlayStation 2 games that look prettier. This game looks good and is a lot of fun.Even 4 has Faults

Yes, every game ever made has faults, but with RE 4, these are pretty minor. There are just three: first, Leon's hilariously bad one-liners. Two, at times separate climaxes of the story don't get the emphasis they deserve. Three, the final boss battle, in my opinion, was a little too easy and a little too quick.

The Final Verdict

Do you like good stories? Do you like fun? Do you like shooting zombies in the face with a rocket launcher? If so, then pick up Resident Evil 4.

The Final Score: A 9/10: Excellent

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Max Payne Review

It has been a few summers since I played through Max Payne, but the memories of it have stuck. The game remains one of my favorites, all these years later, and stands as one of the pinnacles of the previous generation of video game consoles.

The Cascading Snow...

The first thing that strikes you about Max Payne is its tremendous script and story telling. Fashioned in a graphic novel-esqe display, the story is narrated by the film noir words of Mr. Payne. The writing has a crisp quality, and the voice acting of James McCaffrey, playing Max Payne, is impeccable. The voices of his supporting characters are excellent as well.Lost in the gun play is the true quality of the story. An officer of the law running from his former colleagues, Max Payne shoots his way through the snowy streets of New York after his wife and child are murdered. Discoveries await you in the frost bitten city and the story keeps the intensity pumping.

Bullet Time

You know it, you love it, it's the all important, all encompassing bullet time. The first game to introduce bullet time, the ability to slow down time in harry situations, it is made to perfection. While the controls can be a little jumping at times, the slow-mo gameplay can be a thing of beauty.
Otherwise, combat is mostly satisfying, with a fair amount of weapons and plenty of bad guys to shoot. Interaction with the environment is also a plus, with the ability to rummage through cabinets, dressers, and closets for ammo and pain-killers. It's always cool to turn on a faucet or listening to a radio.

Baseball Bat Boy

The atmosphere inside the game is one of acute perfection. Tense, full, and pulse-quickening, you are gripped by the story. Even semi-side stories, like that of the comic Baseball Bat Boy, add to the story and make you almost tremble with anticipation.
Nobody's Perfect

Sorry, Maxy, even you're not perfect. The main problem I had were the slightly jumpy/sensitive controls. When you are running around on the rooftops of apartments and skyscrapers, it stinks to make a slight mistake and go careening down a 50-story building.

Regardless of this mistake, Max Payne remains a great game to play even eight years later. Great story, good gameplay, and an original way to tell a tale all combine to make an excellent game.

The Final Score: 9/10: Almost Flawless

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Final Fantasy VII Review

Now, how do I approach a review of one of the most widely popular games of all time? Oh, I got it, I'll put a picture in to ease into the article.
Whoops. I guess a fiery image of Sephiroth seemingly engulfed in flames is hardly a way to ease into things, but it's too late now. Yes, people, Final Fantasy VII is indeed one of the greatest games that have ever been made, and no, I'm obviously not the only one who thinks so.

The story, the music, the cast, and the memories make for a great game, one that catapulted RPGs into a major player in video games. But before I go into semantics, let's get this review done.
As you may have heard, the story of Final Fantasy VII is superb, even if it is at times hard to follow. The main character, of course, is Cloud, a so-called 'ex-SOLDIER'; the main villain is, guess who, Sephiroth, who was previously Cloud's superior. What ensues within is a struggle between the characters you love, the antagonist you hate, and the evil corporation Shinra.

In the beginning, Cloud is an unwilling participant of the terrorist group AVALANCHE. Headed by Barret, Cloud joins the squad to fulfill a promise to his childhood friend, Tifa. In a short amount of time, after some exciting explosions and what-not, you come to learn that the long-thought-dead super-soldier Sephiroth is still kicking and killing people left and right. What do you have to do, lowly Cloud? That's right, stop a one-man murder machine who intends to destroy everything and everyone in his path in order to get what he wants. Easy enough, right?

What follows is one of the greatest stories (with twists!) in video game history.
The characters in Final Fantasy VII are some of the deepest and fleshed out in video game history. This is the kind of stuff I like, getting to know your characters, feeling attached to them, coming to understand them. And having two of them as not necessary to beat the game? Holy crap.

Musically, this game stands with the very best to this day. Who can forget the chills when you heard One Winged Angel for the first time? No one, that's who. Shock and fear, love and energy; all are mastered in this Final Fantasy.

This game has an amazing load of side quests as well and the best leveling-up system I've ever come in contact with. Your emotions can run high and your mouth can grow dry with the way you feel about what's happening in the game.
As with everything that has ever been in existence, there are some incredibly small faults. The characters... yup, they're really blocky, but what do you expect from an early PS1 game? The pacing could be better, you shouldn't be raising chocobos when a (spoiler) is headed at you, blah blah blah.

So again, what can I say? Yes, it lives up to the hype, and no, it is not over-rated. What can I say, it's one of the greatest games ever made.

The Final Verdict: A 9.75/10, Almost Perfect

(And what the hell, just make a damn remake already!)


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Fallout 2 Review

Fallout 3 came out last year to much fanfare on its way to being one of the best reviewed games of the year. Even I reviewed it; actually, it is in the top viewed articles of all time. Anyway, I think it's about time that I reviewed its predecessor, Fallout 2.As I'm sure all of you know, the Fallout Series is set in a post-Apocalyptic United States. While number three was set in Washington, the first and second were in the west coast. Either way, the settings are pitch perfect the ruins of once great cities against a backdrop of nuclear-created deserts set the tone from the first few hours. This characteristic is strong in Fallout 2.

Fallout 2's RPG elements, and fun for that matter, are the greatest in the series. Like in the first and third installment, there are a ton of perks. But unlike its brothers, you can level-up your character past level 20. I love to see my character struggle in the beginning only to become a sort of new-aged Super Mutant killing machine.Another strong element in Fallout 2 is the strength of its main story and quests. Looking for hours upon hours of quests? Check. Looking for a story that makes sense, but will still keep you excited? Check. Big map to explore? Check.

Oh, and possibly the most creative aspect of Fallout 2, which I don't think has been rivaled since its inception: Karma. Good, evil, or somewhere in between. The possibility for variation is extremely great. Maybe you want to be a good person, but want to be a slaver. Go nuts. Or maybe an evil piece of crap, who happens to have a soft spot for ghouls. Do what you want, there are thousands of options, but keep in mind that every decision affects the game's ending. Speaking of which...You may or may not know how Fallout 3 ended. Well, if you don't, I won't spoil it for you, but it sucked. Oppositely, the endings for both Fallout 1 and 2 were extremely satisfying. Another strong suit of the game.

But, of course, Fallout 2, is not a perfect game. Many times wading through dozens of items is a chore since there are only an up and down arrow to go through them. Also, dear God, get a patch before trying to play. You don't know how frustrating it is to run into game threatening bugs hours into the game. And sadly, not even with the newest patches are all the bugs fixed.

But Fallout 2 is undoubtedly and hands-down a classic that easily has stood the test of time.
Final Score:
8.5/10, Very Good


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Halo 3 Review

Although Halo 3 has been out a long time, I'd like to share my opinion on the matter because there is a new Halo game coming out.I would rate it an 8 out of 10 just because it is a great first person shooter but it lacks the story line that Halo and Halo 2 possessed. Masterchief is a badass as we can all agree on, of course, but I believe some things need to be better. To me the weapons have gotten boring; although they did add a few good weapons, the old ones that were overpowered are still that way.
I enjoy SWAT on Xbox live the most, just like swords and rocket type maps, because it shows an equality in weapons and shows the skills of those with the weapons.

Call of Duty, being the major competition, is hard to beat with its nonfictional base but i like whooping alien ass... hah. So how about the new Halo game coming out? To tell the truth, I'm excited about that, plus all the other new good games coming out in the future.
Master Chief is Chuck Norris in the future... his DNA was used to create the Spartan race.


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Dota Hero Builds

As one of the most popular maps in Warcraft 3, Dota (defense of the ancients) attracts many players due to its interaction as a team based or 5v5 competition for victory. Of course some problems in the game for people unfamiliar with heroes is the item builds to get for the heroes. There are many straight forward builds and there are also many different builds, for example making a Str hero a caster instead like Earthshaker or Doombringer. This can easily be discussed as of how to build heroes by combat, tank, support, and caster. These are my 4 categories for building heroes but not ever hero should be built the same way or in the same order do to the existing abilities. There is always going to be a more expensive build but in some cases a cheap build is better because it gives advantages in farming early in the game. This consists of getting treads over boots of travel. Although boots of travel is a late game item, with treads a hero may be able to farm gold much faster to complete the next item in mind. Planning ahead of what a hero is good at like farming is always a key when building a hero. Let me categorize a few items for the 4 different builds.

Combat: This is where dps comes into the picture. Many AGI and STR heroes can go combat when Intel does not so much go combat but more of a combination. AGI items like butterfly is perfect along with sange yasha and of course even stygian. Of course having two orb affects is difficult, vlads is always a good thing to have on a melee hero. A few other battle items as orb affects might consist of Mask of madness or even just getting a helm of the dominator to complete later into a satanic. Battlefury is a great items for dps in most melee heroes do to its cleave ability and its amazing help when farming. These are just a few basic items when starting a dps hero, of course you can always add a MKB and Buriza later on but as starting items its always best to get an orb affect.

Tanks: Tanks are mainly STR or even INTEL heroes but not so much AGI. If an AGI hero has too low health and dies easy i would always recommend getting a tank item. I believe one of the best items for tanking in the game especially early and mid game is a vanguard. Vanguard is basically just amazing for these two stages in the game. Also for late game it would always be best to switch to a heart. Some other tank items consist of Assault curiass which adds a lot of armor but will also help the tank with some dps. For example, sange yasha might increase the speed and attack speed of the hero but a hero with another type of orb like satanic will have the advantage because now they have more armor, life steal, and the attack speed not to mention curiass has a support aura for the team. It might be expensive but it is very worth it. There arent a lot of tank items in the game but for the most part a vanguard and heart will do it. Intels have the tank items of blood stone shivas and of course skadi. Scepter can also be a tank item for a str and intel hero depending on if it affects the ultamite of the hero.

Support: A support hero could be any hero but mainly intels. The best items for support consist of Mek, Guinsoo, Orchid, and Euls. This could also consist of arcane ring for team mana. A support hero builds around disabling other heroes to help the team or to heal the team. Although Orchid and Guinsoo can also be considered Caster items they are much better for supporting a battle.

Caster: A caster is more of a dps intel hero or even a strength hero who utilizes mana. Mana regen is a casters true necessity. This is also why i said orchid and sheep can be caster items because of amplify and sheep. Most importantly the mana regeneration. Shivas, Dagon, and necromonicon are also caster items because they allow extra damage through a cooldown. Necromonicon can see invisible people so that is just a plus but its explosion damage is really just fantastic. Necromonicon is a very under used item and is not considered the best when you can get a shivas or dagon which is burst damage.

This is my view on Dota hero builds and if there are any specific questions I'd be glad to answer for a specific hero build or the better builds for mixing the two above.


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Final Fantasy VII Coming Out on PS3

No, sorry, not a remake (yet), but Sony announced today that one of the greatest games of all-time, Final Fantasy VII, is going to be available via PSN, or the PlayStation Network.
That's great news for people who own a PS3, and those on the PSN. Hopefully, this may mean a remake...maybe...possibly.
Myself, I don't own a PS3, but if they remade FFVII, then I would almost assuredly buy one, even though my only current "job" is writing on a blog.
In other news, Square Enix showed new game play of Final Fantasy XIII, and unveiled Final Fantasy XIV, which is, apparently, only going to be an online game. Personally, I think it's a waste of time to make a game only for online, but what do I know?

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Stalin vs. Martians

Oh. My. God. This must be the greatest game to ever grace the glorious earth. I can hard believe it, but yes, this is a real game trailer for an up-coming game called Stalin vs. Martians in which aliens invade the Soviet Union in 1942, and there is a hundred-foot Stalin in the game. Feast your eyes:



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Play Music Catch 2!

I was bored, when I happened to play this game on Kongregate: Music Catch 2. It's quite a beautiful game...like poetry in motion, flowing, living. I like it!


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Max Payne 3

We're all waiting for the newest sequel to Max Payne. Enjoy!

Mass Effect Review

I recently bought Mass Effect at Game Stop. My hopes weren't terribly high, although I knew of its excellent reviews when it came out. Game reviews have a tendency of giving high scores for popular games (for example, GTA IV and very recent Madden games). So was this game worth my time and is it worth yours? The answer is a resounding yes.

From the first couple of hours, I was engulfed in a story of galactic rouges and the volume of the worlds within the game. From the beginning, I knew this was the game's greatest strength: storytelling. The voice acting is some of the best I've heard for any video game, the movements of the characters were fluent and realistic, and the lip-syncing is straight out the best I've ever seen, and yes I've played GTA IV and Fallout 3. The story took me on a ride once I stepped foot on Eden Prime, a human colony in space, and even now I want more.

But the story becomes so much more. Galactic peace and galactic extinction hang in the balance with your actions. And yes, they are your actions. You choose how to go about things, when to go about things. Your actions matter, from getting other characters killed, to saving aliens thought extinct, to the death of one of the supporting characters. Your actions have resounding effects and are bolstered by nearly flawless storytelling.
Variation among weapon and armor upgrades also shine for this title. Dozens upon dozens of upgrades for ammo, heat, aiming, weapon stability, and extra shields for your armor are just a few of the many upgrades. And this does not even speak of the many types of armor and guns themselves.

I only had two problems with the game, one minor and one moderate. The minor one that I had was, once in a while, there was noticeable slowdown in the game. Normally it was smooth and fluid, but sometimes in battle it would slow down, or quickly flash a "loading" at the bottom of the screen, momentarily stopping the game. The moderate problem I had was the way battles were executed. You lead a squad of three, you control yourself and the other two are NPCs. Unfortunately, the NPCs are not always the brightest people, many times shooting blindly at walls in front of them, or even you. Also, the battles can end in the blink of an eye... with your death. Sometimes battles can be quick and hectic, so make sure you save often.In the end, this was an excellent game. I am quite happy that there is a planned trilogy, and I cannot wait to play the next one. So, a used game of Mass Effect is only fifteen bucks (used) at Game Stop, go pick up a copy.

The Final Verdict: 9.25/10, Nearly Flawless

Fallout 3 Review

As a fan of both Fallout 1 and 2, I was nervous to see whether or not this game followed properly in their footsteps. I am glad to say, yes...or at least until the end of the game, yes. Unfortunately, this game is fantastic with a terrible ending.

As you emerge from the vault after escaping to look for your father, lights shine bright, blinding you for a split second. As they fade away, you come face to face with the Capital Wasteland. This beginning, joined with excellent narration and the voice of Liam Neeson, prepares the player for an exciting experience. And it was just that.


















So how does Fallout 3 follow in its predecessor's footsteps? As before, there is Karma, Perks, leveling up, etc. But most important are the choices you can make in this game: your choices actually affect gameplay and outcomes of people and settlements. The choices and quests are plentiful, the "speech" ability is excellently executed, and the environment is large and lush. Another two excellent additions: Harold from Fallout 1 and 2 makes a return and Dogmeat is back.











The game has plenty of hours to offer to gamers...but that brings us to the game's end. I won't give away the ending, but after hours of exploration and enjoyment, the end comes quickly and painfully. No chance to change it, no chance to continue after it, no chance to enjoy yourself at the end. Remember the endings in Fallout 1 and 2? Not present in Fallout 3; you get approximately one minute of narrated pictures that tell the tale of your journey from the vault. That's it, no more. No summary of the towns you went to and how you effected them, just a glossing-over of how you were and what you did outside of the vault. Disappointing is an understatement.

The Final Verdict: 8.25/10, Very Good