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Left 4 Dead: Crash Course Review

Left 4 Dead 2 is out in only a few weeks time, and the last DLC for Left 4 Dead, Crash Course, is finally available for download. The new DLC includes a new campaign consisting of two chapters, and what’s best, it’s free. That is, if you’re playing Left 4 Dead on the PC, Xbox 360 owners will have to fork out $7. It’s sad, but Valve wanted for the DLC to be free on console as well, against the wish of Microsoft. Anyways, to the review…

In Left 4 Dead: Crash Course, the story picks up where the No Mercy campaign ended, with the downed helicopter, from where you mist fight you way to a getaway vehicle. The new campaign can be played like previous campaigns, in single player, co-op mode with fellow humans, and versus mode, where one team are the survivors while the other team are the zombies. The gameplay is as crazy and tense as it always was in Left 4 Dead, however this time, the new locations are considerably darker than before, leading to a lot surprises with enemies jumping out of nearly every dark corner — this is especially useful to the ones playing the infected zombies in versus mode. More »

NBA Live 2010 review

The last few season, the NBA Live series has been in serious decline, and EA has worked hard towards getting out of that slump with NBA Live 2010, finally giving some competition for the rival NBA 2K10, which we reviewed yesterday.

You’ll notice right away that NBA Live 2010 does improve on a few things quite drastically, like the presentation. The visuals have received an overhaul, everything from the animations to the crowd and the stadiums look great, the player models however, while improved over last year’s edition, still lack behind in detail and realism compared to NBA 2K10, but overall, it’s still a pretty game. Gameplay wise, the action is definitely more fluid, and while some animations can seem out of place, it’s still better than last year. However, it’s not about being better than last year, where NBA Live 09 was virtually the low point of the series the past few years. Instead, it’s about how the gameplay compares to the rival NBA 2K10. The Live counterpart does have a more fluid play, but the 2K version seems far more immersive, mainly due to the realistic look and feel of it. However, NBA Live 2010 does feature a lot simpler gameplay, a lot easier to get a hold of, and you’re only using one button to shoot, regardless whether it’s a dunk or layout, jump shot or hook shot. However, this too has its flaws, as your player will often do something else than you intended. If you’re looking for a short jumper, the player on screen might take a hook shot if the defender is too close to him, and thereby take a much tougher shot when a simple one would have done the job. More »

Steam offering 4 player Borderlands discount

Steam is known for its offers, ranging from bundles to weekend discounts, and the digital distribution outfit is jumping on the Borderlands bandwagon with a 4-player offer. It includes 4 copies of Borderlands that you can buy and split the cost with your friends, and then take it online for some co-op action. The 4 copies will run you $135, while buying them separately will run you $180. So you’re getting Borderlands at only $34 a copy, which is a great deal. If you can find 3 other players to split the cost with.

Forza Motorsport 3 review

Forza 2 has been the go-to racing game for the Xbox 360, and a serious contender to Gran Turismo for the title as best racing sim. With Forza 3, developer Turn 10 does everything Forza 2 did, and makes it even better. It’s not only the best racing game on the Xbox 360, it’s the best racing game currently available, and possibly the best ever made.

Forza 3 offers 400 cars and 100 tracks, all built from scratch with a brand new game engine. Remember Forza 2, how the cars all had “jagged edges” because of no anti aliasing? Well that’s gone, as the cars are beautifully rendered (Turn 10 claims 10 times more polygons than Forza 2 per car, with full damage modeling as well) and the game runs at a constant 60 frames per second. technically, things are certainly looking good. The gameplay however, is where Forza 3 really shines. More »

Top 10 multiplayer FPS games of all time

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While some indulge themselves in MMORPGs, at the other side of the spectrum of multiplayer games, first person shooters have had players battling in fast paced action for a far longer time — no quest reading or storytelling here, it’s guns blazing and the laws of headshots. Here’s our top 10 pick of the greatest multiplayer first person shooters of all time.

10: Team Fortress 2 (2007)

Valve’s successor to Team Fortress not only received a complete visual overhaul, it also became one of the most stylized multiplayer shooters of today, complete with its own sense of humor. The continuous (free) updates from Valve have kept players involved for a long time, with new weapons and maps added frequently.

9: Battlefield 1942 (2002)

Swedish developer DICE broke on to the gaming scene with Battlefield 1942, which would go on to become one of the most popular online shooters for the next few years. For the first time, gamers could participate in large scale, 64 player matches with big assortment of classes, tanks, planes, jeeps, battling over huge maps — it was warfare like never seen before, and it took the FPS scene by storm.

8: Halo 3 (2007)

Microsoft’s first Halo game on the Xbox 360 was received with one of the biggest launches in gaming history, and the polished multiplayer, which offered a ton of modes, detailed rankings, achievements and maps, have secured the game a top spot in the most played Xbox 360 games ever since. On top of that, the new The Forge mode made it possible to edit the maps as well, adding a new layer of gameplay.

7: Quake 2 (1997)

Quake 2 is widely considered the game that popularized the multiplayer shooter on the PC, and was one of the first to offer custom created content, such as maps, to be shared among fans and modders. It was also one of the first games to be officially selected in the Cyberathlete Professional League, a testament to its legacy.

6: GoldenEye 007 (1997)

While Quake opened the eyes of the general gaming crowd to the PC multiplayer first person shooters, GoldenEye 007 did it for the console crowd. It wasn’t the first console FPS game to offer multiplayer, but it was by far the first hit and a major breakthrough. Released in 1997 on the N64, the multiplayer part wasn’t originally a part of the game, and developer Rare assigned the job to a single programmer, Steve Ellis, who created the multiplayer version virtually by himself from the single player mode.

5: Unreal Tournament 2004 (2004)

Following the release of UT 2003, which received a mixed reception from the fans, Epic Games almost started from scratch and created what would become the most popular UT game ever, especially among modders, who were given the tools not only to create new maps, but completely different games, like Red Orchestra and Frag-Ops.

4: Tribes (1998)

In terms of multiplayer shooters, Tribes was a huge success, and was a game that pioneered some multiplayer FPS aspects that exist to this day. The game had a ton of exciting modes, revolutionary gameplay, not to mention 40 maps, some of which were huge, even by today’s standards.

3: Quake 3 Arena (1999)

Quake 3 Arena is perhaps one of the most fast paced multiplayer shooters ever made, and is generally considered the “founding father” of all the frag fests. It was the first Quake game that was exclusively multiplayer-oriented, and was minimalist in eye candy and aesthetics, only focusing on what really matters: gameplay.

2: Battlefield 2 (2005)

DICE brought the chaos and large scale warfare of WW2 into a modern day scenario, and Battlefield 2 became and instant classic, perfectly balancing the line between realism and accessibility — far better than any other military multiplayer shooter had done before. Or since. And despite being considerably buggier than competing games, the sheer quality of the gameplay — not to mention the detailed statistics and awards system — has meant that the game is still one of the most popular online shooters, despite being 4 1/2 years old.

1: Counter-Strike (1999)

Originally released as a mod to Half-Life, Counter-Strike immediately took the world by storm and has since consistently been the most played multiplayer shooter in the world. And with the update coming with Half-Life 2, CS: Source, the new visuals have kept it at the top spot. A proper sequel, Counter-Strike 2, is expected to be released with HL2: Episode 3 next year, and will most definitely continue the reign on the online multiplayer FPS scene.

Battlefield 1943 PC pre-orders begin

Not to be outdone by Valve’s Left 4 Dead 2 pre-order, EA has started offering pre-orders to the upcoming PC version of Battlefield 1943. The PC version will support 32 players, joystick support and will come with a server browser, according to EA.

Battlefield 1943 was released on Xbox 360 and PS3 earlier this year, but the PC version was delayed to 1Q 2010, which is almost a year later.

Left 4 Dead 2 pre-orders available

Valve has started offering pre-orders for Left 4 Dead 2. The ones who pre-order will not only get early access to the demo (which is kinda pointless, since they’ve already bought the game), but they’ll also get an exclusive in-game melee weapon: an American baseball bats. And if that’s not enough reason, pre-orders come with a 10% discount.

Public Uncharted 2 multiplayer beta available today

Naughty Dog has recently announced that that public multiplayer beta for Uncharted 2: Among Thieves will be made available on the PlayStation Network at some point today.

According to the PlayStation blog, 4 maps, 4 competitive modes and 2 co-operative modes in addition to Cinema for replay viewing and a Stage map for machinima making  will be included with the 1.3GB multiplayer demo.

Not planning on downloading it? You crazy.

Counter-Strike creator developing new FPS

Of the the original creators of Counter-Strike, Mihn Le, has revealed that he’s working on a new FPS similar to Counter-Strike, called Tactical Intervention, which is build on the Source Engine.

Mihn Le, alongside Jess Cliffe, created Counter-Strike back in 1999, as mod to Half Life. Valve acquired the rights in 2000, and brought them over to Seattle to work on the game. Mihn Le has since worked on his own, and is now working in South Korea with a small team on the new game, which should be out by the end of the year.

Battlefield Heroes hits 2 million players milestone

Despite rather negative reviews, it seems that money talks — that is, if it’s free, it’s got a great shot of being popular. EA’s free to play cartoonish-styled Battlefield Heroes has reached another milestone, with more than 2 million players who have signed up so far.

Back in June, EA announced that they had hit the 1 million player milestone, meaning we can expect 3 million by the end of the year, if the growth continues at this pace. To celebrate the milestone, EA is releasing a free “Heroes of the Fall” update, which will include a new map and will be released on September 30.

Halo 3: ODST review

Arguably the biggest franchise on the Xbox 360, Microsoft and Bungee are back with another Halo game, this time however, without the familiar hero Master Chief. ODST was originally intended as a standalone expansion pack, but after adding a few new features, like Firefight, and changing its name, it’s been bumped up to a full-priced game. Does it justify a $60 retail price? Yes and no. Yes, if you’re a die hard Halo fan, no if you’re a die hard FPS fan — because your $60 are probably better spent on Modern Warfare 2, especially if you already own Halo 3, but that’s another discussion.

In ODST, you play as “Rookie”, a rookie soldier who’s dropping in for the first time with the Operation Drop Squad Troopers (ODST). However, things don’t go as planned and you find yourself alone, surrounded by enemies and must now fight your way through a city to reach your comrades. More »

Need For Speed Shift Review

The past few games in the Need For Speed franchise haven’t impressed fans and critics alike, and EA is looking to make up for it with NFS Shift. This time, it’s a rather competent racing developer that’s “behind the wheel”, so to say; they were the ones behind the very competent racers GTR 2 and GT Legends, so it’s no surprise they were given the task of rebooting one of the longest running racing franchises in gaming.

Need For Speed Shift is the 13th Need For Speed game, and it appears that this time, the developers were looking to just get it right, not re-invent the wheel (pardon the pun). The career mode begins by throwing you on a track alone in a BMW, in order to test your skills (the game adapts the difficulty when you complete the track). While that’s a great idea, it’s frightful when you’re driving the first time, the controls are all over the place and you feel like quitting before even completing the first lap. Suffice to say, the first impression is rather bad. After fiddling with the setting and learning to proper handle the cars, it gets better, but we would have expected a better learning curve from such experienced racing developers. More »

Aion servers already overloaded

The upcoming MMO Aion, not released yet, already is running into server problems. It seems that the folks that pre-ordered the game and that have access to it now, are forced to wait, sometimes several hours in order to play the game — and this is even bore the game is released to the general public.

If you’re one of the (un)lucky ones to already have Aion, hope that other players might find it discouraging and leave, cutting your wait time a bit. Stay tuned for our Aion review in the upcoming days.

TF2 “Guard Dog” concept liked by Valve

The Team Fortress 2 community is one of the most vibrant ones, and Valve has a history of appealing to them, like including fan made maps into official updates. This time though, a fan made class update, the Guard Dog, might not make the cut.

It’s a concept that introduces Guard Dogs in TF2, which can attack and protect, and even fetch medic kits. Check out the full, TF2-update style page here. Valve has posted the update on the official TF2 page, giving it a thumbs up as a concept.

Top 10 games to look forward to this holiday season

It’s almost that time of the year; the period of a two month interval where tons of highly anticipated video games are released. And even though lots of games this year have been pushed to early 2010 because it was simply too crowded, there’s still a ton of great, quality AAA titles which will be released in the upcoming months. Here are our ten picks:

10: Avatar (November 15)

James Cameron’s upcoming sci-fi epic Avatar has been in production for years and sci-fi fans around the world are looking forward to its December premiere. The game adaptation, developed by Ubisoft, uses the same technology as the film, and will be in 3D as well.Very little is known about the game, mostly because it follows the movie closely, which itself has been a tightly kept secret.

9: NBA 2K10/NBA Live 10 (October 6)

The rivalry between NBA basketball series NBA 2K and NBA Live has been ongoing for several years, and for the 2010 versions of the respective games — which will be released on the same day — the stakes are even higher. 2K Games and EA have added a ton of new features to their games, which will make this years line up even more compelling to basketball fans around the world.

8: Aion: The Tower of Eternity (September 22)

Korean developer/publisher NCsoft is known for creating lots of MMOs, from Lineage, to Guild Wars, to the failed Auto Assault. Aion is their latest creation, and unlike many other MMOs, the main attraction here is that combat will, for the most part be airborne. Unfortunately however, unlike Guild Wars, Aion will be subscription based, and will cost $15 a month to be a part of.

7: Halo 3: ODST (September 22)

Halo 3 ODST (”Orbital Drop Shock Troopers”), doesn’t follow the main protagonist Master Chief, instead, it centers around an unknown soldier, “The Rookie”, who crash lands on a hostile planet and must find his teammates. While it’s not a true sequel, rather something in between Halo 3 and the upcoming Halo Reach, it’ll most certainly satisfy hard core Halo fans this holiday season.
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