Tag Archives: online

PS3 Review: Dynasty Warriors Strikeforce

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Posted by Rob on March 3, 2010 – 6:08 pm
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Once of my most favorite games from the PS2 was Dynasty Warriors 4. I had never played any of the previous games in the series, and it was by far one of the best co-op games the PS2 had to offer. It was a perfect hack-and-slash game where you and a friend could just run around with swords and cut up minions and tough bosses. I’m not joking when I say that one of my most fond gaming memories was when Steve and I first laid eyes on the badassness that is Lu Bu. That being said, I have played the older and newer games from the series, and I have always compared them to Dynasty Warriors 4. The older ones were a bit too slow, and the newer ones tended to focus more on strategy and unit management more than just tried and true mindless hack-and-slash action. Luckily, Dynasty Warriors Strikeforce is extremely successful in focusing a lot on the action, while at the same time intergrating a great RPG aspect, bringing the game to be the best in the series.

For those who are not familiar with the series, let me just take a moment or two to explain why it’s so awesome. Dynasty Warriors is loosely based on actual Chinese history, and you take control of one of many historical figures who were in China when the game takes place. To be more specific, it is based on the text “Romance of the Three Kingdoms” Now, I say loosely because there are near-invincible characters, magic, and, depending on which faction you play as, may not be entirely accurate (ex- your faction lost a battle historically, but you won that battle when playing.) So the game revolves around you choosing a faction (Wei, Wu, Shu), and taking their officers into battle against rival forces. Since it takes place in ancient China, the weaponry is basically swords, spears, bows, etc., with some other ones thrown in (like fans and clawed gloves.)

But enough of that. Let’s get into what makes Strikeforce such a great game!

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Tuesday Night = Uncharted 2 Co-op Night

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Posted by Rob on February 24, 2010 – 9:14 am
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The past couple of weeks, after Lost (which is 10pm), I have been meeting up with a couple of guys from co-optimus, and we have been playing Uncharted 2 online. For the last two-three weeks there have only three or six of us, so we broke into teams of three to play either the survival mode or the gold rush mode.

Last night started out with just three of us, and we played through one mode of survival. After that, four others joined us, and we started playing a variety of different team elimination matches. Unfortunately, all the true co-op modes only support up to three players, so with seven we had to abandon co-op for the greater good of everyone playing together.

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All in all, Tuesdays prove to be a fun night where I get to play with some fun people. I have been having a blast playing Uncharted 2 online (which I haven’t been doing so much before I started playing with the crew), and it is a great game to play online with friends. The co-op modes are definitely best played with people who you know and can talk to, because communication is key.Whether you need to be saved from a “ninja attack” or you need to be warned of incoming chain gun-wielding enemies, communicating with the others is the only way to successfully survive the co-op modes.

Bioshock 2 = Great Multiplayer Experience

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Posted by Rob on February 22, 2010 – 6:29 pm
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Now I know that in the past Ive said that I hate playing FPS in online competitive matches. This is due to the fact that I tend to just really suck. I don’t have enough experience playing against other players, and that leads to me generally getting killed more than I kill others. Now I received Bioshock 2 when it came out, but I had not checked out the multiplayer mode since I hate playing online. But I was bored last night, so I decided to give it a whirl. I was not disappointed.

Between last night and today, I have logged in close to two hours online. I have definitely been doing well, and often come in within the top three places in the team-based deathmatches. Since I do fairly well, I enjoy playing it. There are a few traits to the online mode which I think are what attract me to it.

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PS3 Review: Aliens vs. Predator

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Posted by Rob on February 20, 2010 – 5:27 pm
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As you may know, I had some real issues with the AVP demo that came out two weeks ago. While the demo proved the game had a good premise and some great ideas, complex controls and the fact that it was impossible to get a game going left me a bit concerned for the final product. Well, I received the disc from Gamefly on Thursday, and have since then given most of the different game modes a whirl. Unfortunately, the demo gave a very accurate pretense on how the finished game would be…a game with great ideas, but executed badly.

First off, the story/background to the game is virtually non-existent. The game takes place shortly after the events of Alien 3, but I would not have known that had I not read it somewhere online. There is no background story at all, and the cut scenes, while looking and sounding good, do little to explain what the heck is going on. Im going to take a stab at it and say that humans find some ancient Alien/Predator temple and start creating mutant Aliens. The Marines and Predators come in to put a stop to it, resulting in a three-way battle royale to be the last species standing.  There are three single player campaigns (Marine, Alien, Predator), and each three tell the same story through the respective species point of view. For example, as an Alien you are defending the hive from the invading factions, and as a Marine you are called in to clean up the mess. That being said, I’ll start this review up with the single player campaigns.

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PS3 First Impressions: Bioshock 2

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Posted by Rob on February 10, 2010 – 1:07 am
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Yes, the long wait is over as Bioshock 2 was released upon the world today. I was really looking forward to it, as the first game really blew me away like no other game had done in such a long time. Also, because I was so interested in the game, I refused to watch trailers and read in-depth reviews since I wanted to wait and experience everything as fresh as possible. Im a little under two hours into it, and thus far I am pleased, and I can honestly say that Bioshock continues the trends started by the first game.

The game takes place ten years after the first, and you play as a Big Daddy. Thats all I will say about the story. Right off the bat, the controls and the look of Rapture itself take you back to the first game. If you played the first, you will feel right at home, as the game looks and plays just like its predecesor. If you never played the first one, then why the hell are you reading this? Go out, play the first one, then get back to me.

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Finally Got Some Alien Time in Aliens vs. Predator PSN Demo

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Posted by Rob on February 8, 2010 – 8:20 pm
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As I mentioned earlier, I had a bit of a hard time getting a match going in the AvP demo that launched on Thursday. I tried throughout the weekend at random times, and was unable to get another match going. Today I tried again, and I finally got into a match. I basically set it up and while it searched for a match, I walked into the other room and played around on the computer. After about six minutes, I began to hear other people on their head sets, which meant that I had finally gotten into a game.

First off, I must correct a previous statement. In my other post, I complained that you were unable to choose your character in the demo, and that both times I was assigned to be a Marine. That is only half true. You are able to choose your own character, but you have to be quick. For some reason, the developers didnt want an 8-Alien or Predator battle royale going down, so once the first few Aliens or Predators are selected (I do not know the exact number), the remaining players are automatically assigned to be Marines.

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Frustrations with Aliens vs. Predator Demo on the PS3

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Posted by Rob on February 5, 2010 – 5:28 pm
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Ive been anxiously awaiting the release of AVP. I love the Alien/Predator series, and played the AVP game on the Atari Jaguar back in the day at my friend’s house in middle school. The game is right up on my Gamefly queue, so I will definitely be snagging it when it releases in two weeks. However, the demo released yesterday on the PSN, and I was excited to get my hands on it and try out the three races (Alien, Predator, and Colonial Marine) in the deathmatch demo. Unfortunately, the demo is plagued with failure, and I have been unable to enjoy it.

Apparently, the game servers were not prepared for the amount of people who downloaded the demo yesterday. As a result, it has been impossible to find a game to join. I tried at four different intervals to get a game going yesterday, and succeeded in getting two matches total going. After each match was over, the initial host left, so I was booted out and then unable to find another game. This inability to find a game to play is very annoying and frustrating. I hope it gets fixed so I can start checking out the game more.

My other complaint is with choosing a race. Both times I was unable to choose a race, and was stuck playing as the Marine. This is upsetting because the Marine is the least original. Playing as the Marine is just like playing any other FPS. While the Aliens crawl around and go in for melee kills and the Predator stays invisible and hunts, the Marine plays as you would in any other FPS.

But enough of my complaints. From what I did see and experience, it was a blast. It is a very intense FPS, and very fast paced. The Alien players are able to move extremely quickly, and can climb walls and hang from ceilings. Their main attack is melee based, and playing as the Marine I suffered several tails through the torso and eating of my face. The speed of the Aliens is what allows them to get up close for these devastating attacks. Oh, and in case I didnt make it clear, these are one-hit kills. So yeah, the Aliens are nasty.

I didnt see much of the Predator, and from what I did, he was just invisible. Well, not totally invisible, as you can faintly make out his outline. However, I killed quite a few Predators, and I didnt meet death from any, so I dont know how their attacks are. What I do know is that many of the Predators stronger weapons are scattered throughout the map, and you have to track them down to use them.

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PSN Review: Critter Crunch

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Posted by Rob on February 2, 2010 – 3:47 pm
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I played and enjoyed the Critter Crunch demo. It was bright, colorful, cute puzzle game with a unique premise. However, I wasnt enjoying it enough to pay full price. But once PSN put it on sale for $3.49, I jumped at the chance to snag it. I mean, $3 for a new game is pretty sweet.

So Critter Crunch takes place on an island. You control an adorable little “critter” named Bigs. The main premise of the game is following the island’s food chain, in that the smaller creatures get eaten by the larger creatures. You have to keep this in mind as you play each stage. The stage is set up with several varying roles of creatures coming down at you. To the left is Bigs hunger meter. The point is to feed little creatures to big creatures. Doing this makes them pop, and they drop an item that, when collected, will increase your hunger meter. Once you fill up the hunger meter, you complete the stage. However, if one of the rows of creatures hits the end of the row, its game over.

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Thursday= Resistance 2 Co-Op Night

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Posted by Rob on January 29, 2010 – 3:25 am
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Just finished a four-hour co-op session of Resistance 2 with a few of the folks over at co-optimus. We started at around 10pm, and I was the first to bounce at 2am, but the rest were still going strong. There were five of us total, plus the occasional guest who joined in for a round or two. I got my Solider raised up to level 14, but the Spec Op is still stuck at level 10. Man, I really dont play the Spec Op very well.

I really do enjoy playing Resistance 2 online, for the co-op. Im not as big a fan of the competitive. I hope that Resistance 3 (whenever it comes out) borrows from this, and establishes a good online co-op mode. So I just figured I would write a quick little post up to calm down before hitting bed.

Tonight was a success, and I hope we have more organized game nights in the future. I believe that Tuesday night next  week is going to be dedicated to co-op and competitive Uncharted 2, which should be fun since I havent delved too much into it. If you read this and have a PS3, just add me. You know the PSN name: BigBadBob113!!!

Tough Decision Coming Up: Aliens or Samurai?

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Posted by Rob on January 26, 2010 – 12:51 am
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February is fast approaching, and with it comes about a bajillion (ok, maybe four-five) games that I really want to play. BioShock 2 is already out of that equation, since I pre-ordered it from Amazon for some sweet deals. I paid $52 for it, plus get $10 off a future purchase. That came out to be cheaper than if I had kept it from Gamefly.

So the question is, which of the remaining February releases will I hold out for on Gamefly? I narrowed it down to two choices: Aliens Vs Predator and Dynasty Warriors: Strike Force. I will be getting Dead Space in in a few days, and that will tide me over until February 16, when both AVP and Dynasty Warriors releases. Of course they both had to have the same release week, right? So it comes down to which one I should snag.

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PS3 Review: Brutal Legend

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Posted by Rob on January 22, 2010 – 6:21 pm
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I finally got around to renting Brutal Legend from Gamefly. Its been on my queue since launch, but I kept moving it around to get through the new release madness at the end of last year. It was a decent game, and I could see a lot of people enjoying it, but some of the more in-depth game mechanics turned me off.

So as I mentioned in my review of the demo, Jack Black gives voice to Eddie Riggs, a metal-loving roadie who dies, and is then sucked into a fantasy heavy metal land torn apart by war and demons. The story is pretty solid and funny, and there are a variety of characters based on real metal performers (such as Ozzy and the guy from Motorhead.) You run (or drive) about this fantasy world which is actually an open-area sandbox, with plenty of areas to explore.

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Dragon Age: Origins Will Be My Fourth Platinum

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Posted by Rob on January 9, 2010 – 9:28 am
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Im officially calling it now. The next platinum trophy I get on the PS3 will be Dragon Age: Origins. I was looking over the trophy list, and none of them are out of reach. If anything, it will just be time consuming. Luckily there are no online or challenge trophies, so they are all obtained through normal gameplay. Also, there is no trophy for beating the game on a particular difficulty or anything like that. All in all, it will be a relatively easy platinum, and I will enjoy working through it to get it.