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Thursday, February 16, 2012
11:55 AM - February 16, 2012. Posted by RaychelSnr. Written by Glenn Wigmore
While THQ as a whole is having some trouble these days, the developers behind the UFC series have been dutifully plying its third iteration. It's a bit unusual that the team was given a longer development cycle for this game, bucking the annual trend, but it probably has something to do with wanting to make a bigger splash than UFC Undisputed 2010 as well as slightly tighter purse strings for THQ across the board.
After spending some time with the game, it certainly seems like the additional months of development have enabled some meaningful changes to the gameplay as well as the inclusion of many more fighters in the Octagon and, this year, PRIDE. The addition of bantamweight and featherweight classes are exciting, to be sure, as are UFC newcomers Allistair Overeem and Nick Diaz, but it's quite cool to see veterans of the PRIDE era along with completely unique presentation for that mode (ring setup, announcers, entrances, music, scoring, rules, etc.)
Read More - UFC Undisputed 3 Initial Reviewer Impressions
Monday, February 6, 2012
10:18 PM - February 6, 2012. Posted by RaychelSnr. Written by Glenn Wigmore
There have been many golf video games on consoles in the past three decades, and certainly a few in particular stand out. Today's golf video games pretty much amount toTiger Woods and a few arcade-style releases. But of course you have the old PGA Tour games, the simple yet fun Golf back on the NES, Golden Tee (especially when having some beers) and even Microsoft Golf. More recently, the non-continuation of the Links games from 2003-2004 still bothers some players.
However, one game from the past that has quietly gone under the radar is Pebble Beach Golf Links, released back on the Genesis and SNES in 1992. By no means a flashy, branded release, this game is focused on delivering a simulation experience on just one course. To that end, this title, particularly in the Genesis release, succeeds at that goal.
Read More - Wiggy's Wayback Machine: Pebble Beach Golf Links
Wednesday, December 21, 2011
12:05 PM - December 21, 2011. Posted by RaychelSnr. Written by Glenn Wigmore
Fans of the UFC have had to wait a bit longer than usual for the upcoming release of UFC Undisputed 3, but hopefully the slightly extended development schedule has given the folks at THQ time to tweak a few extra gameplay systems while adding to the new features that they've announced. From what we already know about the game, there looks to be a lot to get excited about.
Read More - Five Reasons to Be Excited About UFC Undisputed 3
Read More - Five Reasons to Be Excited About UFC Undisputed 3
Friday, December 16, 2011
12:20 PM - December 16, 2011. Posted by RaychelSnr. Written by Glenn Wigmore
It can be a bit of a chore to level up your character in FIFA 12, especially if you want to use him in the competitive realm of online play. No matter which way you slice it, there will be a large time commitment, but if you set up things the right way and pay attention to specific aspects of player creation and tweaking, you can get your pro to a competitive state in a lot less time.
Read More - FIFA 12: Be a Pro Guide
Tuesday, December 6, 2011
10:10 PM - December 6, 2011. Posted by RaychelSnr. Written by Glenn Wigmore
Xbox Live Arcade has plenty of board and card games, but some of them have skimped when it comes to features and presentation. Full House Poker doesn't pretend to be anything that it's not, and it excels within the confines of the digital download world.
Read More - Full House Poker Review (360)
Tuesday, November 22, 2011
11:18 AM - November 22, 2011. Posted by RaychelSnr. Written by Glenn Wigmore
Need for Speed: The Run is a bit of a curious experiment from developer Black Box, as it seems to want to keep some of the elements that the series is known for — arcade racing, police chases, an “underground” vibe — but add some Burnout-esque touches and a cinematic story mode. The problem is that none of these design choices resonate in a meaningful way, with a story mode that operates in a vacuum and some fairly inconsistent vehicle handling.
Read More - Need for Speed: The Run Review (360)
Monday, November 21, 2011
09:01 PM - November 21, 2011. Posted by Steve_OS. Written by Glenn Wigmore
As far as racers go, Need for Speed: The Run has a fairly lean selection of modes. The main mode, called “The Run,” is there to give you a focused single-player experience with some narrative elements that also has a small amount of replayability from its leaderboards and the different cars you can you use. Also present are a challenge mode that puts you on tracks from the main game, but with slightly tweaked goals, and an online mode with a reasonable selection of online playlists and unlockable rewards.
Read More - Need for Speed: The Run - Game Mode Impressions (Written by: Glenn Wigmore)
Friday, November 18, 2011
02:50 PM - November 18, 2011. Posted by RaychelSnr. Written by Glenn Wigmore
There's no doubt that one of NHL 12's best features is the team-focused goodness of the EASHL. As has been detailed before, there's a great deal of depth in the mode, and the proverbial carrot of additional XP points for your skater or goalie keeps things interesting. Additionally, the playoff system that has been introduced in the last two iterations of the game has provided a nice goal for teams of all abilities.
However, this doesn't mean that the mode is without fault. There are certain areas that still annoy many users on a consistent basis, and other feature omissions prevent the EASHL from truly becoming the “RPG” mode that EA would like it to be. What would make the EASHL better?
Read More - EASHL Wishlist for NHL 13
Thursday, November 17, 2011
09:42 AM - November 17, 2011. Posted by RaychelSnr. Written by Glenn Wigmore
After spending a bit of time with Need for Speed: The Run, it's readily apparent that publisher Electronic Arts' contemporary habits have had an influence on this iteration of the long-running franchise. Your mileage may vary on whether that influence is something you want, but either way you can expect the ubiquitous EA online pass, a persistent profile with news updates, Burnout-style takeouts and XP gains (even though those aren't the focus of the game) and a story mode that appears quite similar to the “edgy” yarn that Fight Night: Champion attempted to deliver.
The Run offers a few modes of play, including the titular story mode, some challenge tracks and a suite of online races. The interface seems to work relatively well, allowing you to get into what you want fairly quickly. I was pleased to see minimal interference from the usually pesky EA servers, and the “autolog” that tracks your persistent stats, levels and unlocks does a good job of showing how you're doing.
Read More - Need for Speed: The Run - Initial Impressions
Tuesday, November 8, 2011
12:07 AM - November 8, 2011. Posted by RaychelSnr. Written by Glenn Wigmore
It's kind of crazy when you think back to all of the hoopla that Microsoft put behind getting EA Sports signed onto Xbox Live back at E3 2004. Ironically, it was Don Mattrick representing EA Sports on the stage back then, and he's now the head honcho for Microsoft's interactive entertainment division. The fact that money was spent to coerce EA into putting their wares on Xbox Live is sort of comical, as EA was already doing their thing on the PS2 with minimal fanfare.
The main sticking point was that EA wanted control over their games, which they had on the “open” Playstation platform. Microsoft's “walled garden” approach was often cited by EA executives at the time, particularly Bing Gordon, as being a roadblock to getting their games on the service. Gordon even once joked: “Didn't you say the only way we'd get The Sims on Xbox Live is if we added guns?”
Even though Gordon was just making a silly comment to annoy executives like Peter Moore and Ed Fries, EA was actually deadly serious about their concern for Microsoft's management of Xbox Live. They wanted to be able to have their servers communicate directly with gamers. They wanted to manage stats, friends lists and matchmaking, but more importantly, they wanted control over marketing directly to their users with downloadable content and third-party promotions.
Read More - The Curious Case of EA's Servers
Thursday, October 27, 2011
03:00 PM - October 27, 2011. Posted by RaychelSnr. Written by Glenn Wigmore
About five to 10 years ago, it seemed like an awesome, albeit far-fetched, idea to picture sports games that would allow you and your friends to take on other organized teams from across the world. With the advent of online leagues in FIFA and NHL, this type of online competition has become commonplace. With the EASHL, it's important to be aware of all of the wrinkles in the league so that you don't get overwhelmed by more established teams that have been playing for several years now.
Read More - The EASHL Survival Guide
Wednesday, October 19, 2011
12:49 PM - October 19, 2011. Posted by RaychelSnr. Written by Glenn Wigmore
While tweaks to your lineup and strategies can subtly improve your chances at NHL 12, nothing quite beats having a mastery of what to do while actuallyplaying the game. No set style or attack pattern is going to be effective against everybody, but there certainly are key concepts to apply and pitfalls to avoid when taking on NHL 12's reasonably challenging AI, as well as the wide spectrum of online competitors.
Read More - NHL 12: On-Ice Strategies
Thursday, October 13, 2011
12:38 PM - October 13, 2011. Posted by RaychelSnr. Written by Glenn Wigmore
Before worrying about the finer points of where to aim your butt on a hip check, it's important to understand some of the top-level strategies that you can employ in NHL 12. Many users forget, neglect or are straight-up unaware of the various ways you can manage your lines, on-ice formations or player tendencies. These are the decisions a coach would make, and they can actually make notable differences when you hit the ice.
Read More - NHL 12: Managing Your Team's Lines and Formations
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