Natural Selection 2 Thoughts

Well hello there, nice winter weather is here and Santa is almost ready to deliver your presents. But wait, it's not that time yet, so I have decided to make an effort with this blog and make a post on the game Natural Selection 2.

So let's begin... well, let's try and survive this, as I have learned to do the same with Natural Selection 2. The game is split between hardy marines and cute little aliens, all of whom fight to try and gain control of different areas of the map. Think of capture the flag, but more complicated. The marines, as you would expect, pack assault rifles, pistols and a melee weapon. Although this is the standard equipment set up, there are variations which are unlocked as your team commanders researches them. The gameplay for the marine is pretty standard. You run, shoot, repair and progress at a much faster rate, especially if you have a competent commander (which both sides need to have). I had the most fun playing the marines, as that's what I'm normally used to doing while playing games; shooting. It's also easy to get used to and most new players will automatically gravitate toward this side, like a nerd to an MMO. However, because I was already used to shooters I got bored and the gameplay became quite stale. So what did I do? Yes, that's right, I changed side! No way, I would never, well yes I did.

The aliens are very unique, partially due to each alien having it's own unique traits that help your side. The skulk for example is weak... and I'm not saying this lightly, they are abysmal. They can be killed in a single clip and have no other defense in the early game worth mentioning. They do, however, have great speed and can climb walls, so while I played with this type, I would normally find myself having an unusual relationship with the ceiling. I found these aliens frustrating to play as, their attacks are weak and you very rarely have a chance of killing a marine, unless he is clueless and just stands there looking at you. The gorge is what you would call the engineer healer, or something onto those lines. I actually found myself doing something useful while playing as these fat slimy beasts. I haven't played with the other three types, mainly because I used too many resources and dying a lot. I guess that would be my fault that I'm terrible, or I just can't get around how the aliens work. It might even be that the aliens are rather weak late game, compared to the marine counter part. I could count the number of wins the aliens achieve in one hand and I would need about ten hands to count the number of wins the marine side achieved.

While this is good for people who are used to shooters, it is a little unfair for those who are forced to play as the alien side and it will inevitably leave a bad taste in their mouth and give them the wrong impression. The game itself is good, it works well and allows you to play a different game style if you feel the need. Though for me personally, I didn't like it all that much and I would much prefer to play Chivalry: Medieval Warfare.

Graphics Card becoming extremely expensive?

Hello everyone, it's been a while to say the least, hasn't it? Well I am back with another issue that has dawned on me. As a PC gamer, I always do research to see if there are any new articles or information regarding releases to graphics cards. So one day I was looking on the web when I came upon an article about the GTX Titan; the fastest single core GPU on the planet.

As any other person who is interested in this would do, I decided to look further into this card. What surprised me most was not the performance, but rather the price. Of course his GPU is for gaming enthusiasts, but even at that, how can £815 be justifiable for such hardware? Are we now at the point that if we want GPU's do perform better we will have to pay over the odds to obtain them?

For me personally it all comes down to Nvidia themselves. At this stage their only competition (even that might not be around in a couple of years time) is AMD. While AMD does have good price/performance ratio, which is also better than Nvidia's (this is coming from a Nvidia user) they just don't have a single strong GPU that gives really spectacular performance. Therefore, like any business would/will do, they will put up the price to the maximum, as seen with the GTX Titan.

Until AMD can do the same and thereby, drive down the price of such cards, the premium price will stay. Not only this but most PC gamers will buy these cards because of their reputation of being the best on the market, even if it does cost a significant amount. The standard PC gamer will not look into alternatives such as, CrossFire or SLI, which in most cases can not only achieve the same level of performance but can go further beyond, depending on the cards being used.

But unfortunately Nvidia's monopoly on the graphics card department allows them to price their cards at the price they want and they know we will buy them.

Consoles or Desktops?

This is a topic which is under much debate in recent years. There are two groups of people who argue against each other, console gamers that either play the PS3, Xbox or Wii and their enemies the PC gamers. While not everyone just plays a console or a PC, the majority either play one or the other.

If you had of asked me about a year ago whether PC gaming was failing or experiencing a revival, I would have probably said that it was in major decline. But what has made me change my mind? Well basically there are a lot of great games that are just so much better on the PC than on a console. Hell, some games can't even go to a console because they are just so advanced for the aging console hardware to handle. Planetside 2 is the perfect example of a very fun and in-depth tactical game that is just impossible to bring to a console. Likewise with DayZ, a very large interactive world full to the brim with zombies. The pure scale of the game is leagues ahead of console hardware.

But why are consoles still dominating? Well let's think about this logically, they are usually much cheaper than a good PC. If I open up ebay right now a new Xbox 360 costs roughly £199.99 compared to a good PC which could cost upward to around £700 maybe even more! Also you don't need to worry about having to upgrade because your graphics card or cpu is getting old. Also they're easier to move which can be a factor on whether a person gets a PC or a console. What would you rather bring with you, a  console that is lighter or smaller or a desktop which are enormous and frankly quite heavy?

But what does the PC have going for it? Console gamers would say there is nothing, probably because they haven't even played a console before. Besides the better graphical detail, PC games often allow their customers to download user made mods and maps which they can use both online and offline. Not only that who needs disks anymore? When I had my Xbox 360 I hated when I wanted to play a game, but it wasn't in its case. On PC we have steam were you buy and download straight to your computer! No more looking for games!

But which one is actually better? It's depends on how often you play in my opinion. What's the point in buying a £1000 desktop if you are only going to play for a couple of hours a week? If you play only a limited number of hours a console will be more than enough. If you are dedicated and spend a lot of time playing video games then a PC would be better. For simplicity, the various consoles are better, but for more in-depth game experience with a lot of user made content (which can be outstanding) then a PC is better.

You may be asking whether or not I have even played consoles or played on a desktop. Well I can whole heartedly say that I have! From 2008 until 2010 I had a Xbox 360, I also had a wii and a PS3 for a couple of months, but got bored of both quickly. From 2010 onwards I have played on the PC. I can honestly say I have never looked back! When my friends tell me "I wish you had your Xbox 360 so we could play like the good old CoD4 days" I nod and say "I don't."

What do you prefer to play and why? D you think that desktops and consoles can coexist?

Elgato game capture HD

Elgato game capture HD is a relatively new, game capture card that allows gamers to record their experience from a multitude of devices. For example, you can record Xbox 360, PS3, PC and IPad gameplay. Not only that, but with the correct cables, you can even record android devices!

Therefore, after boxing day I will be ordering one f these devices and using it to record my gameplay. It makes my work a whole lot easier as I don't have to worry about recording lag or low fps. It also allows me to record in fantastic quality, far higher than programs such as Dxtory or Bandiam, which really require a SSD to be able to record in the highest quality. Not only that, but the file sizes are much smaller than Dxtory and Bandicam respectively.

Do you have an elgato game capture hd? What are your thoughts on it?
Amazon UK: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Elgato-1GC108801000-Game-Capture-HD/dp/B0082J1YCE/?_encoding=UTF8&tag=wwwelgatoco0d-21&linkCode=ur2&qid=1338279828&camp=1634&sr=8-1&creative=6738

Problems facing WarZ

WarZ is classed as an MMORPG zombie survival game. It always players to try and survive a world filled with zombies and other players. Players can either team up and tackle the world together, or fight against each other for loot and other valuable items. Clans have been implemented so that friends can play together and organise tactical raids on various location.

While this all sounds well and good, it really is not. The game has more bugs than any game I have seen so far. One example would be how I can slide vertically up a building depending on what way I run into it. Another example would be the ability to hide under parts of the ground and camp. The game is in its 'Foundation release' which means that the game is in alpha but officially released as a proper game.

Another problem is the PVP element. Player vs player in the WarZ is also very broken, the game feels more like a War Inc deathmatch with zombies thrown in, rather than a zombie apocalypse game. Most times when you see another player, they will shoot on sight  and not worry about thee consequences of their actions. There is no incentive for players to work together as loot in scarce and players just don't want to share their loot.

WarZ has from its early stages had a marketplace where players can buy items through the use of micro transactions. This is contradicting the whole point of a survival game. What's the point in trying to survive in this apocalyptic place if you can buy most of the essentials needed for surviving? It also gives other players quite the advantage. For example if there is a 16 year old kid, it will be unlikely that he will be able to buy items from the marketplace. While on the other hand, a 21 year old may be able to buy items, such as food, melee weapons, bandages and armor. This means that the first player will have to play for long and be at the mercy of the second player.

Clan are also a major problem. A person has to play on the same character for a total of 20 hours before they are eligible to create their own clan. Not only that, but players will also have to pay REAL money to increase the number of slots available to use in their clan. This is outright ridiculous. I have never seen a game (that you have to pay for) forcing players to buy more slots. Planetside 2 and F2P game with over 250,000 characters on per day do not even do this.

This list could go on, but I thought that this was the most important problems to mention. For me personally I have lost faith in WarZ. I really thought it would be able to beat DayZ, however, after seeing how the game plays and how Sergy treats his customers I no longer feel that this game deserves my time. I would recommend that you DO NOT buy this game.

Far Cry 3

Far Cry 3 is probably one of the most enjoyable games I have played in a very long time. The gameplay is amazing, the plot is engrossing and the graphics are out of this world fantastic.

Far Cry 3's plot starts off with your character, also know as Jason, being subsequently captured by Vass that is mentally unstable and therefore, unpredictable in how he acts and says. While people who haven't played this game, may find this stupid it really allows for characters to be rinsed out and explored. After escaping from Vass and finally falling into a river, you are then rescued by a mysterious man named Denise. After a brief introduction to the world around you and some people, you are free to explore and do either the main missions or side missions. These side missions range from gather items, hunting animals, killing pirates, racing and other novelty missions. The main missions consist of saving your friends who had been captured along with. The player will need to get help from other people, hunt to upgrade items, for example you have to hunt certain animal so that you can make larger ammo pouches.

The gameplay is quite like most other First person shooters. You can look down your sights, shoot, run, take cover, throw grenades and melee. However unlike most other games, you do not have these skills right from the get go. You will receive experience for each kill and doing missions. When a person levels up they gain a skill point which they can use to unlock a certain ability. For example one of the first abilities you will unlock is the ability to cook a grenade and then throw it. You can spend skill points on other abilities, such as slide to cover, takedowns, long breath while under water or even to gain more health. The health and damage system are quite realistic, however, not to the extent were one bullet will kill you. At the beginning of the game, you will find that you can only take about 5-6 bullets before nearly dying. Later on in the game though, you will have the opportunity to add more health bars which allow you to absorb more bullets before you need to heal. To heal you will need to make health syringes from green leaf, which can be found throughout the world. They can be found almost anywhere and do not require any skills to be unlocked before being made.  While health syringes can be used to heal, they are not the only way. If you do not have syringes, you can heal yourself without, but the health restoration will not be a good and you will find only 2 health bars being refilled instead of all of them.

The graphics are phenomenal. When you look at the terrain, the water and the characters, you can tell that a lot of time has been put into the presentation. Nothing looks bland, everything looks bright and colourful and the island looks rich. The textures are rendered well and so far I have not seen any textures failing to load. Even on the Xbox 360 and PS3, the graphics are outstanding.  

Far Cry 3 is definitely a great game, far better than its predecessor Far Cry 2, which became stale quite quickly. There is always something to do here and you will lose many hours, whether that's from hunting animals, killing people for side missions or doing the main missions. This is right up there as a contender for Game Of The Year.