Steam Big Picture - Preview

I've had my chance recently to play around with Steam's new feature Big Picture everyone can if you head over to View -> Settings -> Beta participation: -> CHANGE... then subscribe to the steam beta.

Big Picture works a lot like the Xbox360's built in system or the PS3 I just say the Xbox because I think it has more of that kind of feel to it, it's a media center for your PC allowing you to play games from your couch all with the HD Quality of the PC. Really the way they have it setup is pretty neat it's easy to navigate and find what you need, there is even a nicely built in web browser it functions much like chrome with the frequently visited sites, favorites, etc..

Guild Wars 2 - My Thoughts

Warning if you are fawning over GW2 you may not want to read this.

They Bleed Pixels - Review

Reviewed for the PC played with Xbox360 Controller.

Pros

• Incredibly Difficult
• Interesting Lore
• Completely Skill Based Game
• Retro Game Pulling from Old Platformers
• Adorable Graphics
• Lots of Gore???

Cons

• Retro Graphics
• Incredibly Frustrating
• Not For Everyone

Blog Update

It has been a long time coming since I updated the visual scheme of my blog but with the seasons changing over, the weather getting colder and with learning how to photoshop I figured I'd put in some new images and update the look of the site. ^^

I'm fairly happy with how it has turned out so far, I'm always open to suggestions let me know what you guys think! and if you have any ideas drop them below. ^^

My next few reviews coming out will probably be for They Bleed Pixels, Borderlands 2, and then Secrets of Grindea in the far off future when that game is released. I am looking forward to writing them. ^^

I also realized due to my ad blocker program being installed I couldn't see ads put in the layout lol, so I didn't see them. >.< Which I imagine looked horrible, but I removed them all. ^^

Project Zomboid - Review (Alpha)

Reviewed for the PC played with Mouse & Keyboard.
Pros

• Very Expansive World
• Engaging Atmosphere
• One of the few "Zombie Simulators" available on the market.
• Sandbox Game
• Top-down View
• Retro Graphics
• Modding Available
• Open Alpha Development
• ^Alphas available to everyone allow the players to shape the end product making for a better overall game.

Cons

• Top-down View
• Retro Graphics
• Lack of Story/Progression Towards a End Game
• Alpha
• ^I'd hate to list it lol, but you need to understand this is a alpha.

Darksiders 2 - Review

Reviewed for the PC played with Xbox360 Controller.
Pros

• Wide Variety of Genres
• Borrows Elements From Great Games
• Long Playtime (Singleplayer Action)
• Loot Galore

Cons

• Identity Confused Game
• ^ So many elements added in but none fully fleshed out properly.
• Wide Variety of Genres

"Darkness called… But I was on the phone, so I missed him. I tried to *69-Darkness, but his machine picked up. I yelled "Pick up the phone, Darkness!," but he ignored me. Darkness must have been screening his calls."

Batman Arkham Asylum - Review

Reviewed for the PC played with Xbox360 Controller.
Pros

• From the Batman comics
• Great Story
• Well Developed Gameplay
• Characters are Well Designed
• Amazing Graphics
• High Quality Audio

Cons

• Purely Batman Atmosphere (For those who don't like Batman)
• Low Replayability
• Maybe to slow pace for some people

Dishonored - Preview

You are the once-trusted bodyguard of the Empress. Framed for her murder and driven by revenge, you must become an infamous assassin, known only by the disturbing mask that has become your calling card.

As you navigate a world torn apart by plague and oppressed by a government armed with strange new technologies, the truth behind your betrayal is as murky as the waters surrounding the city.

The choices you make will determine the fate of the world, but no matter what happens your old life is gone forever.

Dark Souls - ???

A revised version after I realized there are people who probably like the game lol.

I just got done with Dark Souls, and I was wondering what people thought on the game? If anyone has played it? I see a lot of 9.5 and 9 reviews. But honestly it just eludes me how it got such a good review. It's not a bad game, and it's certainly aimed at a very select audience.

But I mean even within that audience surely they must realize that the only hook to it is that it's challenging, in which case the only thing challenging is the lack of information, not knowing monsters with melee weapons can extend their arms in some graphical glitch type way to send unblockable attacks at you that do half your health in damage. And then you die and fight back through a bunch of easy mobs since you already know what they do up to your corpse and do the same thing again with the next ridiculous enemy you find.

Mass Effect 3 - Review (PS3)

Pros

• Appeals to a wide audience with multiple ways to play.

1. Great involving story with many dialog choices to make.
2. Has the option as well to play as a straight action game where you will not have to make any choices.

• Amazing visuals even on console systems.
• A lot of character development available to make your character to suit your play style.
• Content taken from Mass Effect 2 and 1 works flawlessly.
• Removal of pointless time sinks like hacking, scanning planets for resources, etc..

Cons

• (PS3) Lots of graphical stuttering, I would suggest not playing on a console platform if possible.
• Lots of bugs on the new content they have developed for mass effect 3.
• Abilities occasionally glitch out.
• Some missions are broken making them near impossible to complete without doing things in a specific way.
• Pretty much the same as Mass Effect 2 and 1 with a new story.
• Published by EA.

NOTICE - Blog Update

You know when I first started this blog I did it because I was tired of all the mainstream sites telling me how I was supposed to feel about a game or anime, giving it 7s and 9s arbitrary numbers with little to no meaning.

But sadly I have ended up in the same pattern because it seemed like the most effective method to convey how I feel about a game or anime, but the whole point in my blog was to convey things on a personal level.

Share my experiences with the readers get them excited about games or animes they might not try otherwise, increase their horizons as a gamer or watcher, sadly I feel I have failed to do this with my past reviews.

So at this moment I am working towards developing a better system that involves the person as a individual and to write more about my personal experience rather then information you can obtain anywhere on the internet.

So far I have a few ideas that I will be trying out in future reviews, as well as I might update old reviews if I find a system I really like.

Guild Wars 2 - Preview

Guild Wars 2 is being created by ArenaNet and so far it is quite a interesting game. It is a fullfledged MMORPG, in Guild Wars 1 you were often instanced off from the rest of the world, While this was not a huge problem to me it felt more like a Multi-player game with a visual chat lobby then a MMO. 

It is still currently in beta so there should still be chances to try and participate in the game's creation before it is actually launched. I personally have not made it into the beta so I won't have many pictures or videos to give you myself, however I have been following a few people creating Guild Wars 2 videos from the beta which I will link you to.

Infamous 2 - Review

Infamous 2 is quite a interesting game, you play as Cole a normal guy who was delivering a package when it exploded, the explosion was a Ray Sphere or at least I think that's how you spell it. This Ray Sphere gave Cole superpowers, more so it gave him the power to control electricity.

Being someone who controls electricity there is various things you can do with said electricity, for instance using it to horribly fry people to death, or using it to surf along power lines, or even gliding for short durations. However you will run out of electricity eventually then you will need to siphon some more from well anything that has electricity in it. TVs, AC units, Cars, even random pedestrians you can use to bio leech electricity from.

Mass Effect 3 - Demo Impressions

After playing the Mass Effect 3 demo I have come to realize a few things about the gaming industry. For instance game developers these days have no interest in making their game a lasting experience, now i'm not saying you can't get 10 hours out of a game I mean even 100, but the problem is they don't update them, they make their old ones obsolete when all they really need to do is update it and it'd be great.

Take Diablo 2 for instance released in 2000 and Blizzard is still providing updates for it. But then take Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 they keep releasing new ones when they add like 1 or 2 things, make some new maps and market it as a new game for 60$ when we all know the single player in those games are worth nothing the only thing good about it is the multiplayer which isn't worth 60$ for a small update.

Diablo 3 - Update (Beta 13)

In the latest patch of Diablo 3 they have chosen to rework the way the skill system works, in this update I will be focusing on what the patch has brought rather then the game as a whole, if you'd like to see the full review head over to, Diablo 3 - Review.

So this is the new skill tree well for monk anyways, as you can see they have divided up the skills into fields so rather then being able to take 6 of any actives your choices will be more limited, this is a good and a bad thing. Lets look at the Pros and Cons of each.

League of Legends - Update

For those we don't know League of Legends(LoL) was released by Riot Games back in 2009. Since then they have improved gameplay and appearance of the game but while the quality of the champions and skins have improved unfortunately so has the prices.

Regularly costing 975 Riot Points(RP) for skins and champions; 975RP cost about roughly 8USD. This can get quite expensive to purchase things if you plan to buy them with real money. However you can buy them with Influence Points(IP) 6300 for one champion, IP can be acquired through playing the game though it takes about 50 games to get 6300 IP so if you plan to earn your champions you are going to have to play a loooot.

Tera Online - Preview/Link

Again, sadly I have not been able to make it into this beta, but i'm very much so looking forward to trying this game. But I figured i'd make people aware of it, because it may be a great game waiting to happen.

Steparu - Tera Online Review

If I manage to make it into a beta at a later time i'll most likely be providing a review but until then.

Blade & Soul - Preview/Link

Sadly I have not managed to make it in any of the betas for this game, so I am not capable of writing a review for it, however i'd like to make people aware of it's existence and link you to a reputable review that will satisfy your curiosity.

Steparu - Blade & Soul Review

If I manage to make it into a beta at a later time i'll most likely be providing a review but until then.

Amagami SS - Review

Amagami SS could be classified as a lot of things, it is based off a Dating SIM and there is multiple heroines there is 4 episodes per girl. I can't really classify it as a Harem because he never really has more than 1 girl a a time. It is a very emotional anime though, there is drama, comedy, tension, anticipation.

Personally I did not think i'd like Amagami SS, when it first aired I had absolutly no interest in it, but later on I decided to give it a try and I really just loved the entire thing, I didn't think 4 episodes would be long enough for each girl and that'd it would just be some mashed together fan-service. But it turned out amazingly, all the girls are unique and entertaining to watch.

PP (Password Protector)

I'm sure there are a million password programs out there, but a lot of them cost money and don't really support the things I needed it to do so I made my own, if you'd like to use it just leave a comment below. I'll explain how it works and what it does now.

Some Pass IDs blurred due to privacy reasons, but you can still get the general idea.

This is the main screen which is brought up by hitting your F4 key, from here you can Add New Passwords, Delete Old Passwords, Update Passwords, Use Passwords, and Bind Passwords to a key for quick use.