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Even more wallpapers

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Hey! Just another quick blog for ya to entertain you until I write up my next blog which will be more than just wallpapers. :D I have a lot of blog ideas but they seem like way too much even going through the roof so I'm trying my best! However in the meantime, I found this draft blog which I had saved for... over 2 months! It only seems best that I publish this blog so that I can move way forwards with all my writing... and don't commenting on your blogs too. :)

So here are some wallpapers which aren't as well known as many but that doesn't hinder how amazing or creative they are. I found these designs through my journeys across the mammoths internet search known as... Google! So therefore I take no credit for these wallpapers. Just felt like sharing them to the IGN community if you ever want to use them for wallpapers for your trusty (or rusty) PC, PS3, etc. Plus, don't forget the full ipc links so that you see the quality and size for your pic  So enjoy!. :)

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Maybe this could be the next modern day Assassin's Creed! 0_0

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Thanks for reading... or watching rather. Hope you enjoyed! :)


Summer Gaming vs Summer TV vs Summer Reading!

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Hey guys and gals! This is a blog that I was meant to release a few days ago but I've been commenting a lot on articles and such and when I do... I can't stop. :D So now that I finally have time to write this blog, I can say that the whole world seems to be undergoing a heatwave which may even surpass current records! Further on, my sources from California (which is currently the hottest place on Earth... aside from volcanoes and Norwegian wallpapers) that temperatures have reached an amount so high (about over 50 degrees celcius) that they feel like they're melting from the heat. However it's even possible in the future that it could even slow down and thus distabalize the great ocean conveyer which transports cold and warm water around the Atlantic and thus around the globe due to the extra pressure of heat energy reaching the waters and in a worse case scenario, the whole system will shut down therefore making the Northern Hemisphere, if not the whole world covered in snow with the fact that an Ice Age has arrived which means the world has essentially become Snowball Earth.

However, enough of the apocalyptic unlimited snowball fight action in the possible future, it's time to the utilize our entertainment accessories within our homes if we're not out jogging or swimming to the closest ice cream store. Yes! It's time to balance out summer gaming, summer TV... and summer reading. Right now, many of you maybe enjoying your warm holidays of from school and have plenty of time to do all sorts of things. So I'm gonna talk about all the stuff I have been and going to do in the remaining days I have of this holiday and at the end I'll ask you what you're gonna do for your summer but time is at the essence so lets get to it! BTW Remember there are a few wallpapers in this blog if you wish to use them and I don't take an credit for them so enjoy. :)

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Summer Gaming

Ok, first off we have summer gaming which is pretty much searching for the latest games that you wish to play when at the time of release, we were either studying or simply snoozing away. So we may buy the games yet to come in the Summer and sometimes many we have just waited a little while for as a reward to make the summer the best yet and with all the games set for released, I'm not surprised why everyone's getting so hyped up. Especially for (coughs) Infamous (coughs). However for me, it's different matter. I always say that I wish to buy a few of the latest games but at the end of the day (or rather end of the holiday), I end up buying lots of digital games and DLCs which go through the roof! That's right! That means buying the latest PSN cards from the local supermarket.

One of the first things I have bought this summer is...

Yep, Assassin's Creed 3's latest and possibly final DLC due to annualizing the series gives the DLC a short lifetime. To be honest I have only bought the third part. I can't really explain why but it just felt more interesting to me with the whole what if reality coming to an ultimate close and much more worth a buy even if there were many parts that wouldn't be able to satisfy me. It's basically like buying Ratchet and Clank 3 before the other games as an example. No matter if you don't enjoy it, you'll have a whole bunch of cool new weapons ready at your disposal and even more insane that the previous games. I mean weapons that can turn enemies in to Chickens and then when upgraded, powerful Phoenixes. However after buying this DLC, I can safely say that this is underrated, just like the full game and in many ways unnoticed.

I can't give my opinion for the rest of the parts but from what I saw in part 3, I can't stop flying as a bird, stealth assassinating as a fellow Wolf and creating shockwaves like a hungry bear does on occasion. It may not be the usual fighting templars as part of a conspiracy with a hidden blade kind of thing but it sure takes to the series to a brand new level with Connor using the animal spirits for his own powers and in a way, his own persona. I mean Connor is like a wolf except he doesn't howl very often... well not during the daytime anyway. It may not have many side missions but ultimately, it does it's job in what appears to be alternate reality where Washington becomes infused with power and... well you get the idea.

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So before I turn this in to review, it's time to look at the next game I'll be playing for the summer. :)

This is a game I bought way before I even made an IGN account (the prehistoric era) and is the racing game which kinda makes me think twice about buying another racing game. Sure there are multiple genres within the racing section like Formula 1, and rally games but most these days are based around the same thing. Race in a more realistic world and fight off people after you and such. I'm not sure if I can see much innovation to the racing genre anytime soon. Many games like The Crew may do so but the game itself is already using ideas from Test Drive Unlimited 2 where you can create your own team socially so still not much new... unless you count the massive open world of the whole of the USA, who can resist?! :D

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However Split/Second went in many different directions where drift and draft points add up to points which allow you to alter the racing environment around you from a little explosive barrel dropping from a helicopter to an entire aeroplane crash landing in to the runway. It's that crazy! There are many racing games that have tried to become more unique like Motorstorm: Paradise but even it's sequel Motorstorm: Apocalypse was like a sloppy Split/Second. That's why I'll playing plenty of this game since it has some intense action you want find in any other racing game yet but also some awesome modes where you have to survive from a bombardment of helicopter missiles to throwing em back! Eat that! :D

Enough of that! Time to show you what the game's really like from a youtube perspective. :)

So there you have a game that's action packed and has awesome, intense music to keep you going throughout the whole way. It's like a Michael Bay film that's actually good. I know that's hard to believe. To be honest I haven't been much of a reviewer since I believe we always change our opinions and what games we played when we were young and attitudes towards games will mean people will always argue even if you have reliable opinions. Although I have a feeling that I may my write my second ever review about this game!!! Not anytime soon though so don't get your hopes up. You may think I'm kinda doing reviewing right now? Well, not exactly. Just saying why I'm gonna play these games which may even get you interested. :)

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Now on to the latest game I'll be soon to play and what you'll see on my NoSequel4U PSN account... if I'm on your friends list of course. :) Of course, I'll be playing plenty of other games including my favourite open world games (coughs) Infamous... and Assassin's Creed (coughs). However in the meatime, I'd like to talk about why I'll be playing this next game. :) Your in for a treat!

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Now I can't really say I've been the most loyal or avid gamer of Lego games by Traveller's Tales. I did play Lego: Star Wars before many people even knew about it... and my friends had internet! However over time, I have saved a lot of my money for a PS Vita which I was meant to buy last year since it didn't have many exclusives at the time but a whole load of multiplatform games including F1 games and several HD collections. No, I don't have a PS Vita... yet. You could say a whole year late although I'm thinking of buying one soon so don't judge me so quickly. :D Unless my PS3 breaks down, the money's going towards a replacement pronto!

However enough of PS Vita issues, many people believe that Lego games are just for children. Well it is more focused towards children just like many games are like Ratchet and Clank and Kingdom Hearts since there are many things that will interest the audience without many more but that doesn't mean that older audiences can't play the game which many people believe. To be honest, at first I didn't enjoy the more non-linear gameplay as opposed to it's previous installments since even so, it felt kinda repetitive and I realized that I started playing the game sometime around Christmas but then I went back to it around 6th February (according to my PS3 save files) and never went back again... until the beginning of the summer holidays where I completely regret leaving it for a more free timed day. Not a good idea to stay off a game for that long...

 

Unlike the previous games... the Lego characters can talk but not only that, they have more unique powers, they can equip all kinds of devices which adds a more RPG style (not saying there's gonna be explosions anytime soon) to the series and the open world just makes it more vulnerable to an attack... known as quests and therefore, even if there may be some repetitive things during the game, there always seems to be something fun which will change your mind about the aspects of which the game has to offer but I can say that the one thing that kept me going was the non-stop humour. It was like every cutscene had at least one thing that would at least give you a giggle. Finally, a game in the seventh generation where the humour isn't relied on sex jokes or the Mass Effect 3 ending. So here's the full cutscenes if you're interested to take a peek at what I'm talking about. :) Although remember, this contains all the cutscenes so if you don't want to be spoiled of humour you'll see, don't watch it all but I can say that the cutscene starting at 1:02:45 is one of my favourites so far. :D Aside from the Pizza delivery service at the Black Gate.

Summer TV

So now that we've move on from summer gaming, lets look at the potentials of summer TV. I don't mean the news where we hear about stories about the banning of triangle flapjakes due to the fact that it hit someone in the eye during a food fight but has made a full recovery. I mean there's a whole load of new dramas and comedies soon to be released including many new dramas for British TV but there are many things looking back over the years which couldn't hurt to watch again. For now my PS3 USB recharger cable is broken. Well I hope it's my recharger because PS3 controllers cost a fortune! That is unless you go to internet shopping so that you can buy controllers £20 cheaper. :) So now I use the spare controller from America which doesn't even have a PS button, the buttons are all jagged and the up and down directional buttons go left and right? 0_o Which is why watching a TV series on the PS3 isn't such a bad thing... I have on DVD of course.

So first up on my list to watch is...

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I don't really know how to start of this series but if I can get some words out of my speechless mouth, is that it truly is one of my favourite TV series of all time! However many of you may not know much about it so this is where I'll give you a bit of info.

Stargate Universe takes place during an attack on a planet which ultimately leads them to an unparalleled journey through the Stargate (acts as a quick teleportation device through a wormhole until it reaches the other Stargate it's dialed) where it reaches a spaceship known simply as Destiny with what seems to be no return to Earth or any planet they're familiar with. However what adds to this nightmare is that the Spaceship was launched countless of years ago across numerous galaxies at which it seems like it's on a never ending path, not to mention it's pretty much a floating tin can but this is where the character's personalities are revealed where they'll show their inner demons and ultimately being forced to work together seems to be the only way of survival at which the Stargate will activate with a planet in range so that the crew can gain supplies such as food and metals aboard the damaged vessel.

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This may be a series I will talk about in many future blogs but what I can say is that despite the fact that's been able to cling on to many Stargate fans and new audiences, it seems that many fans of Stargate: SG-1 and Stargate Atlantis have lashed out against this series due to it's darker themes and more serious cast. I can understand their hate since it's completely new so it's likely to separate fans opinions with controversy but then again it's brand new series within the series therefore becoming a sub-series with new themes of desperation, hope, love and most of all survival which makes The Last of Us looks pretty... horrible. Ultimately it became cancelled but I don't think many Stargate fans thought this through. Stargate Universe was the last hope for the whole franchise so without something making money, there can be no SG: Atlantis movie, nor any continuations and if it was to continue, it will likely be from a reboot by J.J Abrams or Chris Nolan which would be even worse since it be made even more realistic with more unlikable characters Nice going! :(

However in my opinion, the story is very smart since it interconnects it's later stories in the series, making you think that everything from an alien encounter to finding a pari of glasses will somehow help in the future of this journey therefore in essence, becoming their destiny and what's more is that it's set in Space which is my No.1 tourist destination but also a gamer and who can possibly forget the fabled Robert Carlyle? :)

DR. NICHOLAS RUSH

^ The actor on the left plays the character known as Dr. Nicholas Rush on the first SGU pic furthest to the right who as many characters in the series, ha a unique personality and history, also the hairstyle among the males since most have shaved all there's off. :D However he stands out as one of the main characters since he knows a lot more about Destiny's mission. I mean, it's it's life's work however this also brings in the minor characters since he believes in the "End justifies the means" so he's more likely to be hated among the rest of the crew.

In a way, I'm glad I watched this series since it's not very well known yet beats Walking Dead and Game of Thrones by far but I would have to remind you that it's probably easier to watch the series from the beginning... like many other series. It's difficult to say what my first episode was however I believe the first full episode I watched was this one. Many of the others were about 10 minute glimpses. (Sighs) Advertisments! However this was a great way to start my love for the series. BTW If you don't want to be spoiled about the series if you're in the middle of watching it, please avert your eyes from this video. :D Also ship to 1:02 to avoid the recaps of the previous episodes.

If you're eager to watch to the rest of the episode, the next parts are just on the right hand side of the page or you could just visit the uploader's channel. :)

As for my favourite episode? It's hard to say but I'll say Twin Destinies because it begins a whole bunch of stories and me and time travel have always been a neat combo. :)

9:38 He must have done this time travel thing before.

I do have my fingers crossed for a SGU season 3 and/or possibly even a movie but until then, I'll be watching all the episodes on my trusty (in a way, rusty PS3) with a broken controller. :P

So after about half a blog about talking about my favourite drama series, it's time to talk about another half of my blog with my favourite animated series... and it's not something to do with Disney. Yes, it's...

The Simpsons!!! Although this is when Homer isn't in his Pie-Man costume . Me and this series go back a long way. Even though it's such a long time ago since I watched the first episode, I remember it being the one with the 100 dogs or so kidnapped by evil tyrant Mr.Burns which I was able to do impressions of in primary school. Maybe I still can...

However I never really stayed with the series. At the time, we barely had any channels but as part of my new pocket money of £20 a month starting in Augast 2006, I got Ratchet: Deadlocked but after I decided just to let my parent buy Simpsons season boxsets every month, regardless of if they were cheaper than £20. I wasn't really stoked about change as much then but the reason I wanted Simpsons season boxsets was the fact that at the time in the local supermarkets, season boxsets of all kinds of shows, animated comedy to sci-fi drama seemed really cool to me and being to watch The Simpsons anytime I want would make me feel part of something in a way. I'm sorry of that sounds crazy but I loved it on the first day of each month where I would rub my hands together ready to watch a whole bunch of episodes the following afternoon. It's been such a while for the series... yet they never seem to age. ;)

My love for he series growed with being able to watch many episodes, all the extras, info from awesome Matt Groening. Basically I was like a Simpsons encyclopedia and over time I was interested in many other series like Futurama for one (where I got the jumbo boxset for my birthday in 2007. :) Although there were many others in the pamphlet within the boxsets from Scrubs to Bones and many which sound interesting but I have a feeling that they may have died away. :(  Maybe it's time to check them out and write a few blogs about them.

I was meant to watch season 15 since my birthday (you know, my latest one) but I've had so much studying to do so now I can finally watch these boxsets late at night with a whole bunch of crisps at the ready for easy munchings. :D

I have heard many things about the series losing it's humour and now it's attracted new audiences that prefer random things in humour since a lot of people may not have been watching but from what season 15 has shown me,that's not the case. I would say it started going downhill for the series at about season 20... same time we got a PS3 and I started playing a whole load of Infamous rather than watch beloved Simpsons.

I know that this series has come under pressure by online services and such which is why whenever I buy the boxsets, I see that the pamphlet still has a message from the Simpsons creator, congratulating me from buying the DVD collection during these dark times for the DVD medium. I felt proud. ^_^ However most of the animated comedy series that have survived are from the 1990s or early 2000s like fellow frenemies like South Park and Family Guy since many new ones either don't have many people tuning in or not being a well received series or both.

Overall, this has been a great series of mine for over 6 years and I have many favourite moments with this series including one which I always used to talk to my fellow Simpson friend about.

Maybe I could dedicate a few of a hundred hours of my life to watching season boxsets... no way I haven't lost my gaming time just yet. :D

Now on to the next TV show which is also an example of one of the newest series I'm watching these days which is...

Hawaii Five-0!!!

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This is a reboot to the original TV series but ever since it released in 2010 (42 years after the original premiered), I haven't seemed to miss an episode... give or take a few but don't worry! I have them all recorded on Sky. :D Not only does this programme look stunning on HD with water better than Uncharted (yes it is possible but only just) but has a great cast of actors, a great backround story where the main character, Steve McGarret is searching for a man named Wofat (I think I spelled that right) while leading Hawaii's special task group known as... you guessed it!!! Hawaii Five-0. :)

CSI is a series where it's really tried to keep up competition yet to me, I prefer Hawaii Five-0 much more than any of the CSI series. It does have is't moments of humour but after the original series, I think the developers and writers decided to touch up on many things including changing one of the characters to a female since it would get a tad boring with 4 male characters but also, they have added many new members to this latest line of special task forces and a whole bunch of themes from a terrorist attack to a backround story of finding Wofat all the way to North Korea! Plus those interested in Lost, well I think you may have noticed one of the characters already but also the actor who played Sean Lock... interested? So what better way to enjoy the summer than watch one of my favourite countries... aside from the top one, Norway of course. ;) Of course there are many other series like Hannibal and Mad Dogs where watching 4 guys running around the dessert isn't pretty strange but Hawaii Five-0 has been a series I watched for a while although maybe I could talk about those other series in the future. :)

So finally we reach the final section which is popular for many and is known as...

Summer Reading

This is something I never really truly realized and thought that I was wasting time with just reading and staying indoors. This is completely wrong and I have noticed that this term is much more common in USA, across the pond. On my Bday in 2010, I got a whole bunch of books as part of the Percy Jackson series after reading the Assassin's Creed 2: Renaissance (Italian words are in the back now) and then I pretty much started reading much more about Greek mythology which is why I recommend reading since you can learn so many facts around the world.

So after not reading for a while (which probably isn't a good sign) I decided to pick up a book of whatever, thriller, historcial or fantasy, I ended up choosing...

To be honest, books about planes or submarines usually made me switch off but not this one! First of all, the front cover is an eye opener. Second, it's a thriller which means an intense story full of action and the best part about a book is it doesn't have an multiplayer. :D Therefore the authors can be as creative as possible and every person who picks up these books will have a different idea about what the character's look like, the surroundings and even what you believe the character's attitudes are. Something special to a novel that a movie or a game can't pull off.

Anyways, reading this book has made it a non-stop page turner for me. Beginning during the events of the sinking of submarine in 1943, the events are transported to 2014 where the main Dirk Pitt runs an organisation known as NUMA (National Underwater and Marine Agency) to save and protect the seas however this next adventure leads him on a journey to find the ship of a crew as part of a high tech submersible weapon. The author Clive Cussler makes numerous mentions of himself which are pretty funny which make you turn back and forth to the front cover. However I have searched for his novels and it seems like he's releasing about 3 novels every year where in total, he has created 5 series which means he's on a roll and the fact that he has made a series about historical findings of the civilizations like the Incas just adds to this authors list of awesome novels.

I am also paying much attention to my old Horrible Histories, Horrible Science and my personal favourite, Horrible Geography. They aren't actually horrible books... it's what they talk about it horrible yet gruesome and full of all kinds of jokes yet quick and easy facts. I remember when I read one book which took me a whole week when I was smaller and nothing went in my mind. I read a book a few weeks ago and know I have full knowledge about the topic after reading it... in just a day...and a bit. Just to let you know, I have about 50 of the books... and I've only read about 2... so I'd better get reading!

There are many other books I may buy like the new Percy Jackson's series, Heroes of Olympus where I've only read one book but I'm captivated by all the cool powers of demigods and all. However most likely at the moment, I'll see to it that I'll buy one of Clive Cussler's books in the future. Quite possibly the Inca Gold one. Maybe even the whole bunch of Simpsons comics I have left to read. Pie-Man will return!

Okay, so I've just written a pretty big blog. No need to panic! It will post as long as I use my technique. :D Plus this isn't my longest blog so you haven't seen nothing. ;)

So to finish off, what will you do during the Summer in terms of these factors so what games will you be playing, etc? Summer Films can be included but since I have over 3000 DVDs not including blu-rays, videos or most importantly video games, it's probably best for me to show a list of a few movies another time. For the best. :)

So thanks for reading and hope you enjoyed. :)

Guess the country

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Hey everyone! Today, I have for you a fun blog until I get my next long written blog ready where all you have to do is very simple. Look at the pics and analyse in your brains what on Earth this country could possibly be. All the pics shown apply to one country so there is only one country to answer here. Just to make sure I don't get about 10 responses saying Mars or Burger King. Of course feel free to use the wallpapers too (I don't take any credit for the pics) so enjoy. :)

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So which country do you think all these pics and photos apply to?

Also maybe I could do similar ones in the future if you enjoyed this blog like guess the city, state and even planet. :) Maybe even give out some info as well as pics. This is meant to be a taste for a few country blogs including my ancestry county, Norway... which could be the answer to this blog question. :D I probably shouldn't say anymore. Don't want to blurt out the answer now. ;)

Thanks for reading. Hope you enjoyed. :)

 

More MyIGN game info!

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Hey guys and gals! Today I have decided to talk a bit more about my ideas for the MyIGN console but before I go on to many other games I have in mind, I would like to talk to you about the sub-series I have already talked about for certain franchises but never went in to full detail. The reason being was because I was meant to make a blog for each game but it seems I'll just have to write up long blogs with many of them included to make time for several other blogs which include fun, funny vids and of course ice cream blogs. ;)

So here are bunch of the games I would like to talk to you about in terms of their story and gameplay just so you have an idea and yes, I have decided to add in some multiplayer. However it's not just the usual deathmatch but all sorts of stuff I have planned for top-tier entertainment. Enjoy! :)

So first up on my list is something associated with a well known treasure hunter and sometimes mischief maker among his enemies. Yes it can only be...

Uncharted: Enter Abyss

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However don't get your hopes up that you'll be playing Nathan Drake or lovable rogue Sully (It's possible but I won't spoil anything) but instead a new character in the series simply known as Drake and the story of the game begins when he is thrown on a small island less than a mile in the middle of nowhere but from the boat he was thrown from tells him that he trusted him so much. Drake pleads that he will die without his help as well as the rest of the world. After an argument issues, it's clear that this person on the boat is from somewhere from Scotland and had a past with Drake dating all the way back to their childhood with a fascination with pirates. As in the old version of pirates who drank, partied after claiming a small settlement and contained assassins who seemed to be very cool in terms of paying for all their expenses. How nice of them. :)

This character is known as Alan and became a best friend to Drake ever since Drake saved him from crashing waves after falling of a small ledge on the coast and from that moment on, they shared their fantasies as pirates where Drake seeming to be more focused on Mythology and treasure hunting. However the played is left unknowing how he became leader of a pirate organisation, focused on going back to the old ways and destroying the present day pirates.

Essentially Drake was being marooned which is a punishment where the punishee is left on a desert island and given a bottle of rum and a Flintlock Pistol with one cartridge remaining meaning it's true he's still stayed true to his roots. Despite Drake's warnings about the end of the world, Alan bids him far well and Drake is left with a circular device, presumably of Aztec origin and begins issuing calculations but work to no avail. Overtime he becomes frustrated from the heat beaming down on him, the roasting sand and the fact that an unknown would destroy the world while he laid on a rock of sand.

Over the game, he begins to have flashbacks and pass out at many instances where he'll wake up from time to time where he'll once again try out some more calculations to activate this device and once again fall back to a nice sleep. :)

So basically many moments of the game takes place "in medias res" which refers to the story being viewed from the future via flashbacks or conversations of stories. In this case, vivid dreams of what hapenned to him before he was left for dead... no reference to the game... there's no zombies!

A few days before, Drake arrives at the island from the first Uncharted where he has Francis/Nathan Drake's journal to help with getting around and solving puzzles. However at the time he learns that Alan has made it to the location too with a whole bunch of pirates at the ready to do some fighting and they're not too pleased to see Drake. Over the game, the pirates build up their own settlements and sometimes, Drake works with them since there are many splinter groups looking for their own treasure where he can join in with side missions and even trade resources from what you've on the island. He also meets up with a woman from Asia named Sari which means essence in Indonesia who decides to work with Drake since the pirate faction has become to powerful to fight alone. Although they both seem to be weary of each other, their partnership grows as they keep fighting together where at moments, Drake does tell her about his past which he hits a point where he hears a woman's voice screaming in his head which is where he refuses to talk anymore.

After overhearing many conversations with pirates and even government operatives, the player begins to question who Drake really is and who he stands for, if any and many of these talkers seem to know that he has a dark past to which it's left up to the player what hapenned in the past. Over the game, you find out that Drake and Alan's friendship was not shattered or put at risk because from these small skirmishes. It was more like a small rivalry at most since they decided to search for artifacts in different ways where Drake would be more discreet and respectful for the technology he finds... but there is another reason which we will find out shortly...

However since the pirates are staying there until they found their fabled treasure and since a storm destroyed their equipment and transport, this has cut them off from the outside world. Maybe they didn't have a good connection on their phones or just forgot to top up their minutes. At any case, this causes them to drive in to insanity since during the game, they will waste all their ammunition and thus the enemy will begin to be immune to Drake's little gestures and everyone will be beginning to use more basic weapons like spears and even throwing rocks. Ultimately the Descendants arrive and try to take Alan's bandana! So he calls in some pirate ships!

This ends up with the government invading the island after a climatic battle of trying to chase down Alan with a capsule containing a virus he obtained from El Dorado where the government tells him he is free to leave where he disagrees, leaving the player wondering who he's working for. He continues to chase Alan but becomes knocked unconscious with Alan ranting about the fact he's working for the government where Alan reminds Drake of a dark memory which makes sense for their rivalry. So be prepared for anything now...

During Drake's and Alan's early teenage years, they decided to go to the coast whilst on holiday where Alan finds a flintlock pistol and lets Drake give it a try after a few shots himself. No one's around obviously and Drake says it's too dangerous but Alan keeps encouraging him and he just gives in. At the same time, Nathan Drake (yes I mean the real one now) is walking with Elena, holding hands, promising that he will never fight for treasure but with Alan talking, Drake accidentally fires and hits... Nathan Drake. Alan pulls back Drake and hides behind the sand dune but Drake can't help but watch like a statue, positionless yet staring at a scene he can't describe. He hears the sobs of Elena crying out watching Drake bleed to death but she can't see... Drake. Sorry if this is confusing. He begins shacking where Alan pleads with him to run away with him. After Elena leaves with the dead Drake in her arms, he realizes that something fell out of his pocket. He walks over slowly and picks up what was left behind, noticing it's a journal. Whilst Alan tells Drake that running away is the best option and essentially suffering a minor nervous breakdown, Drake is left speechless and realizes that this is the person he could have became if he became a treasure hunter of somesort. In essence, he's killed an innocent man (aside from all the kills Nathan Drake has really got) which causes him to drift away from Alan, keeping to himself since he believes it was Alan's fault but Drake admits that he was the one who pulled the trigger and this has had a big impact on his life. In this case, he has taken on Drake's name and begins searching for the treasures including an unfinished page about Medusa!

Yeah, I kinda killed off Nathan Drake... looks like I've already got some people after me.

What Alan didn't know was that Drake heard about all sorts of artifacts from a treasure hunting agency after trailing Nathan Drake's footsteps, including one that could grant a wish. If he was able to find this artifact, he would be able to reverse what he did and become best friends with Alan again. Basically using the agency. Thus why Alan thinks he is working for the government... which was actually the agency where he now vows revenge on both Drake and the government since believes they are trying to destroy his pirate dream. However in this sequence, Drake realizes that he is saying out numbers. This confuses Drake but he realizes that this is an equation to answering the Aztec device.

He wakes up and begins jotting down the equation in to the Aztec device. It's unknown where this device is from... but that's why this is a series. ;) Anyway, it finally activates and becomes a beam which eventually allows a ship to find him in the next few hours.

1 week later...

After running in to a pirate member he met on the island, he interrogates the pirate who tells him Alan is going to go on a craze business complex with the use of the virus to be let out off the skyscraper and ultimately destroy the Human race (in the worst case scenario of course) at midnight which begins the final mission where he's able to steal a security card from a guard and walks in to the building, ultimately using stealth and diving to avoid security guards with flashlights, open firing with bullets flying everywhere. He finds Alan at the rooftop and after a battle issues, they both fall, hitting and punching but in the end, Alan realizes that Drake will be the one to hit the floor but has a change in heart and rolls over breaking Drake's fall... with Alan, smashing on to a car.

With Drake have difficulty to move without something hurting him inside, he was ok compared to Alan who was bleeding out. Alan in his final moments begins reminding him of their childhood memories where Drake promises he never wanted to hurt his dream of being a pirate but can't tell him the truth since it's too complicated but knows he can change the world. Alan begins to know that Drake is still taking on that memory where his final words become, "I wish I was the one who fired that gun." As his eyes closed, Drake knows that despite the conflicts, they were friends til the end.

After Alan passes away, he sees the guards attempting to shoot when they are knocked out by Sari. She apologizes for his best friend's death but may have his answers for him if he goes with her to a location which corresponds to an Indonesian volcano complex known as Ijen. Answers that the agency doesn't. She knows more than just independent treasure hunters. They realize they still need to deal with the capsule so they have no choice but to destroy it in the nearby metal carving complex. He holds a ceremony for his friend and puts his body on a boat as it drifted off in to the sea. He doesn't know why Sari was there with him but he thanks her for her company. Hopefully it doesn't float up to the nearby beach. I have ice creams there! :D On to a sequel of course...

Gameplay

This is an open world game but in many ways, the whole world changes and it's up to the player whether Drake can adapt to this change in environment. At the start of the game, it seems a lot more peaceful and you climb trees, water skiing, maybe even skinidiping... then again you have to watch out for Sharks and Piranhas... so probably just a one time swimming but the real change of the game is the Pirates attitudes. At the start of the game, you can even negotiate with Pirates on guard and come up with some options like from games like RPGs where you can say all kinds of stuff but you'll have to be quick about it because it's more realistic. If you fail, they'll just laugh and annoy you but then again Drake is basically very similar to Nathan Drake where he can just joke around and since he knows these pirates, simply running past the guards will just raise up some fists rather than firearms and I don't mean firearms as in fire arms but I know fire punches seem to be a big problem at the moment. :P As the game progresses though, they'll become cut off from communications so using Drake's scavenging techniques, he can obtain the upper hand in creating spears to fend off enemies and death traps.

Drake is the main character (Not Nathan Drake!) of the game yes but he is not the only one. Sari is playable through many sections and you can swap characters at many times and usually each have their own areas to explore since Drake is more experienced with scouting and searching for clues and treasures within the soil and caves whereas Sari is a professional at parkour however throughout the game, they begin teaching each other abilities. When working together on the other hand, they may notice many areas seem to quiet and decide to cross a dangerous river rather than go down the curious flock of trees so there are many ways to get around an area during a mission which could save their lives. Alan is also playable through childhood and teenage years of Drake's life although it's more like linear missions but provide a bigger perception to the story.

Multiplayer

There are some deathmatches, plundering and coop and such throughout the island where you are given the option to play in matches exclusive to small areas for quick matches to non exclusive to play throughout the whole island. Basically all the modes you have already in the Uncharted series. However I would like to add some more modes to the series where competitive and coop is optional. What I mean is that you there will be about 5-10 players in the whole match but everyone starts off at several sections to fight off the Descendants but then you can meet up with other players where you can help them out to survive... or betray them to try to be the last remaining which means you'll be the winner but beware! Take in to account that if you kill your team mate or leave him alone, more descendants will sniff you you which could end in the character dieing... which also means you'll have some explaining to do with your friend.

On to the next mode where you're either put on a team that wants to break in to a fort... or defend but there are many ways to break through and obtain victory such as using stealth, diversions, searching for cave networks... Even using pirate ships. You know, the old kind and many ways to defend such as using cannons, machine guns and placing certain defenses around the fort such as wires. There is another mode which is more social. Basically will you have to do is... have fun! Go water skiing, find puzzles to unlock areas to find treasures you could never find before, dress up as Pirates and Sully... did I mention water skiing?

Why I came up with this

Uncharted to me is great series but I can't help but feel I've gone off the series a tad bit. A lot of the series is stand-alone so it's easier to sell so I wanted to change things up a bit. I was thinking of making a game based on Nathan Drake on the open world environment of the island from the first game but I wanted to change up and give to another character. A new story. A new journey. A new legacy. This game isn't really based on survival. It does has some themes on survival but it's more about finding the answers. If I made it more about survival, I think it would have been too close to games like Tomb Raider and TV series like Lost so I decided to create a character who would carry on Drake's legacy who is like Nathan Drake in many ways and experienced in his work but there is one major difference and that's the mysterious personality of this character. As you progress through the game, they seem to know several things that this Drake has done which don't sound like happy stories leaving it the player to question who he is.

Now the villain, you may think I'm taking a liking to pirate themes because of the upcoming game of Assassin's Creed 4: Black Flag. Well I wouldn't blame you but you would be wrong. It was actually the fact that I originally wanted to expand on the pirate group from South East Asia. Maybe even where Eddy Raja survives! However I used to read a lot about pirates and the marooning punishment intrigued me in how someone could survive an what they would go through so I wanted to go with a character and group who wish to go back to the old ways and with all the ancient artifacts out there, they could do just that. This is where I wanted another mysterious character where his questions will be answered later on and what better way than to show the rift between 2 best friends and finding out how it all came to be for a left for dead scenario on a desert island.

It is also a change for the series since it will be more based on mythology and individuals of monsters rather than objects and cities. This first game begins the events for the story and ties up the story on the island... but don't think you've seen the last of the island just yet. ;)

It would be great to see a more non-linear Uncharted but I think like many series, I think it couldn't hurt to explore more linear and non linear sides like maybe Assassin's Creed could release a linear game based in all kinds of settings. Maybe even in the future. It may seem far fetched but there are great aspects of both linear and non linear games.

With this series, there is more to the story in every game which will tie up several plot holes so stay tuned. :D

Mass Relay

I didn't know my Uncharted part would be so long. In fact I thought it would probably just be few words. Maybe I'm too much of a talker. Anyway, this next one will be the last game I'll talk about and I can tell that many of you are probably rubbing your hands in delight... unless you're in the southern hemisphere, then for warmth.

This game takes place in (you guessed it!) the Mass effect universe however this goes in a more different direction but you'll found how different it is soon enough. You can ever play a Turian male and an Asari (which is technically a female). It takes place with an expedition team of scientists, soldiers and first contact workers arriving after hearing about a new mass relay that has been discovered in the universe. A drone has been sent through and confirms that there are no inter dimensional creatures eating it up... yet but the location remains obscured from the data. So after a cautions of the risks, they decide to send the team to got through. Woop!

This goes well with all the 2 other military flight crafts around to protect the vessel and they begin to travel around the region of space it traveled to with no Solar System which may of had a star in it's past but the stellar nebula never really formed in to another star or was sweped away by gravity... or something more powerful. However when they return, they find the military crafts... well they don't find anything. They've disappeared and so has the relay they traveled to. After a few panics, they become engaged with an unknown where they win (unless you team kill of course) but they gather a piece of technology they call the device left behind which guides them on a series of paths through the nearest galaxies unknowing whether it will take them to total bliss to ultimate destruction or completely nothing.

This is where the gameplay comes in to play which I aim for it to have better choices and consequences than even Mass Effect 2 (round of applause) as everything can alter the affects of a mission but what you do seems to be something between life and death and also what will determine the fate of the mission as well as the fate of every character and whether they've made a mark on the galaxy's history.

So here it goes. Basically when in a solar system or nebula, you have a choice to go for food resources on one planet, water on another, metals to build the ship, materials to power weapons and also information and ancient technology which could give you a better perception of where they are and whether you can get home. So it's a choice between necessities which you can use the shuttle to board the planet and play as any character as you want. There is a total of 14 squad members including 2 new races. One a Lizard Humanoid species and another, Canine like species which may remind you of Ratchet and Clank. ;)

There are characters for each of the major races and all playable for missions... including the Elcor but then again, you'll need an Elcor to get through tough sandstorms which knock someone off their feet. Well, it could knock me over anyway. It could go horribly wrong and you could send the wrong person so they would take too long and you may have to leave them on the planet... forever.

However, the presence of the expedition vessel will attract the attention of mysterious alien races so going to one planet while sacrificing the other resources is probably the best option... unless you think you can take them all and all these resources account for how far you get in the game and also who survives. All the characters have a different scale of morality and opinions but it's possible to decide to stay on a planet and abandon the vessel if you believe there's no hope for the mission and no hope to get back home. This will end the game with a cutscene of whether they survive very long and even able to create their own civilization with different ideologies depending who survives. You could even end the game on a near inhabitable planet like a stormy planet or highly active tectonic planet and survive but you would need the right crew to survive. It's possible to end the game near the beginning of the game but it's very difficult to impossible since everyone believes that they will survive and can get home.

On this journey, following the many solar systems laid out for them on this path, you will be bale to visit many planets. Over 50 in fact with a wide variety of environments such as alien cultured sites to sulfur dioxide deposits and that accounts for all kinds of combinations for the endings. However there are many unknowns and if you meet up with hostile aliens and fail to fend them off due to resources issues, it could end up with something like this.

Except with many more alien species on the ship of course an no! It's not an all Elcor cast! Plus it's not a dream!

As you progress through the game and have enough information, you'll understand where the crew is. They have arrived in the Andromeda galaxy and the species they find are actually those left over from a war with a powerful monster at the galactic core which is also a gigantic Reaper who are being hunted themselves. This Reaper has a similar purpose to those of other Reapers but acts more like a command vessel to now dormant Reapers left behind on several planets since they are no needed and there is no mass relay to the Milky Way. It was only a way way trip to the galaxy.

The Reaper has a different goal however. To harvest life to use it as a form of energy to force it away from the Milky Way galaxy in 6 billion years. It's still an ongoing project but the crew has the chance to get back home by activating the device to destroy the Reaper but there's a slim chance they'll survive. Once they activate it, a climatic space battle takes place where all your choices will make sense but there are many things that could happen, the Reaper could indoctrinate the crew, you could decide not activate the device and allow the Reaper to do it's work which could be the real reason for the Reapers! You could even destroy the Reaper by destroying it's gravity shields near the super massive black hole at the center of the galaxy but without the resources, the vessel could go spiraling in with the Reaper.

^I've seen this pic so much that I couldn't resist using it. :)

So basically to make it easier, I'll show you main endings that could happen. Of course there's different varieties but this is just a taste. :)

1. Defeat the Reaper and use the black hole to focus energy on the element zero engines to get them back home... or in another galaxy.

2. Defeat the Reaper and try to rebuild civilizations that have been destroyed by this monster.

3. Defeat the Reaper but fall in with it.

4. Become indoctrinated.

5. Don't activate the device and continue traveling off in to the unknown areas of the galaxy. Similar if you don't have the enough information.

6. Famine causes civil wars on the ship

7. Stay behind on a planet and survive

8. Stay on a planet and rebuild civilization.

9. Further generations will develop technology to get back home.

10. Destroyed in alien battle.

By the way, I combined the gameplay and story together since it interconnects very well with the choices and consequences. Sorry if it's confusing...again.

Multiplayer

There is not much online per say. It's more focused on making an expansive single player of many choices but you can join a friend's single player and exchange resources and fend off alien invaders. However bare in mind, when exchanging resources, both crafts are vulnerable since 2 vessels giving off powerful readings are likely to draw the attention of other species. However if you make a mistake in single player or online which causes the game to end, you can replay the last few missions so that you can change the outcome. How nice of me. :D

How I came up with this

Actually on my previous MyIGN game blogs, some people were wondering about a Mass Effect series. Well I have many ideas in mind including many spin-offs based on squad members such as Grunt after Mass Effect 2 where he rose through the ranks and even with a story of working for and against the Geth and whether Legion survived would have a massive impact. However I used the Mass Relay as a joke but then 2 seconds later, I thought, maybe it'll be a good idea. After watching series like Stargate Universe and films like Prometheus, I wanted the the Mass Relay series to be set on a more darker side yet exploring more of the races and the universe without necessarily staying within the Milky Way. When the game's set though is a mystery. With Uncharted: Enter Abyss, you know it's set after but with the Mass Relay series, you have no idea whether it's set before during, between, after or even a reboot to the Mass Effect games. Nah, I won't reboot it. I'm not that mean. :D However there will be several Commander Shepard references so you know it's at least no in the Stone Age. ;)

It's also a way of taking a stand against Mass Effect 3 which ruined the series for me long ago and I don't believe the series is safe anymore or reach is full potential with EA and different story writers. I mean Frostbite engine? Multiplayer? Good for newcomers? It's clear that this series has change too much to a mainstream standard of shooter and it's too long to list for this blog but maybe for a later blog. ;) So with every choice, even losing hope and psychology of the characters could affect the entire outcome of the mission. There's also the fact that some races still aren't playable and it would be a joy to add in just a few more races just so the universe doesn't feel as lonely. Mass Effect 2 will always remain my GOTY of 2011.... even though it was released a year before. Ports count right? :)

So maybe I should keep on joking around for new series. I even have a Hookblade series as well as a 101 Ezios (like 101 Dalmatians... but for Assassin's Creed)

So that's it I'm afraid. What do you think of my series? Do you think it's a good direction for the series of worse?

Thanks for reading! Hope you enjoyed. :)

mikeerik's favourite game's for every console

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Hey everyone! It seems like this is my 100th blog! If you discount the blog that became malware and had to delete it and this was meant to be an introduction blog but since my blogs are all over the place but I'll wait a little later... perhaps by the time of my 200th blog. ;) So yesterday I was tagged about a community blog that seems to be going round by Starseeker98... I mean 94. ;) , Gonholio and finally EgyptianBeast24... so it seems like I'm gonna have to write a triple size blog. I won't write much detail about a game because otherwise it will be thousands of words just past the second. :D So these are of a couple of my favourite games for the consoles I have... aside from the Gameboy's and Gamecube I played at a relatives house. Can't remember the names o the games but remembering the awesome gameplay with it, isn't a good combo!

Just before I show you all the games though, here are the rules:

  • Just list what your favorite game is for each system that you've played on. If you want to include a system you haven't played, just list the game you want most for it.
  • No details necessary, but feel free to add them if you want.
  • At the end, just tag 3 MyIGNers. (make sure to notify them on their wall)

So here it goes! Get your popcorn ready and lets see some awesome pics!

PS1

BTW My brother has sold all the PS1 games we have. :( So I hope this still counts and I can only remember a few so don't expect a masterpiece of design.

Crash Bandicoot

^All of these games. Oh boy. Here comes the nostalgia effect. Better get out my apple bazookas!

Medievil

I don't have it on a game. Only a demo... so I'll count it anyway...but it's always on PS Store. Hint! Hint!

Croc: Legend of the Gobbos

The modest Crocodile who wouldn't hurt a fly... apart from a few superpowerful, crystalised, mastermind supervillains. Croc: Legend of the Furballs. ;)

Worms Armageddon

Contrary to popular belief, that shiny bit of tooth... is a spare bullet. Always comes in handy!

Hogs of War

Here's a nice intro for you to watch. I mean who doesn't like playing as killer pigs?

40 Winks

The name has nothing to do with how many people wink at you in the game... it's just a glitch.

Theme Park World

Yes! Published by EA which is probably hard to believe but there was a time before it's descent to the dark side of shooters and DLCs.

There were actually many intros to the game if you left the main menu on for a while. You know, the awesome reward you get for leaving your console on without doing anything. Although I never really understood them at the time... and I still don't!

N-Gen Racing

The music was so awesome! Although next gen for them was about... 2-3 generations ago, it always feel like 3 gens ahead!

Jurassic Park: The Lost World

A fun game... doesn't mean I was good at it though. I it just me or does that Dinosaur look a little scrawny? Must be on a low Human diet!

Monster Inc. Scare Island

Back when video game adaptations of movies were good and fun to play. Yes they did exist!

Final Fantasy IX

Back when Final Fantasy... was a turn based game to it's full potential. Plus it had a crazy cutscene that I can never resist to give a least a small giggle. :D

Spyro the Dragon

Who could possibly forget Ratchet and Clank's Spyro?!

PS2

^ Both of these series have been so awesome to me. Way better than The Last of Us! ;) Here's the full pic if you can't see the writing. http://images5.fanpop.com/image/photos/30700000/Jak-and-Daxter-HD-Collection-jak-and-daxter-30733243-2560-1506.png

Stitch: Experiment 626

This was actually a pretty dark game compared to the movie and TV series... since you had killer aliens!

Harry Potter: Quidditch World Cup

Looks like FIFA has some competition...

Tony Hawk's: Underground

First time when we could get off our skateboards... and jump of skyscrapers and drive around in taxis... awesome! :D

Driv3r

To me, this was the first game where I could still modern day cars, sail in boats and shoot em enemies who won't stop doing a beat... essentially my first GTA game... probably why I never bought a GTA game. ;)

As for the beat, I'll let you see that forselves... somewhere in the middle of the walkthrough if you're in a rush.

Lego: Star Wars

Why do you think I play Lego games? :)

007: Nightfire

The James Bond games used to be amazing with plasma guns and space fights especially since Pierce Bronson was a better Bond in my opinion... then they gave it to Activision!

Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets

The MGS and Assassin's Creed of the fifth/sixth generation. No! It's not a myth like Monsters Inc. Scare Island.

Star Wars: Battlefont

A game that was a joy to play (plays disk).

Simpsons Skateboarding and Hit and Run!

As a Simpsons fan, not having these games would feel like committing a crime.

Rayman 10th Anniversary

3 games in one for £15 seemed like once in a lifetime offer! The name doesn't mean I'm married though... I've only had the PS2 for 9 years!

Crash Bandicoot: The Wrath of Cortex

My first ever PS2 game! :) The Apple Bazookas have returned!

PS3

Assassin's Creed

This series! Duh!

Ace Combat: Assault Horizon

Mostly bought by the Japanese. Who knows? Maybe they've got a sequel over there as well as a PS5. ;)

Driver: San Francisco

Never been to San Franciso? Here's your ticket!

Split/Second Velocity

Michael Bay: The Videogame!

Infamous

Getting older is inevitable. Growing up is optional.

Mass Effect 2

Despite the disappointment of Mass Effect 3, Mass Effect 2 will always remain a must buy! Plus I got the game for £25 on release. ;)

Battlefield 3

Kinda gone off the game in a way but I can never resist being going head one head with a tank... with a rifle. This pic knows me well! :D

Ratchet and Clank: Tools of Destruction

Really, the top reason why I wanted to buy a PS3 so much.

Just Cause 2

Made by one of my favourite indie video game companies because the glitches are just so awesome! 0_0

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince

No! I'm not kidding around. Then again, I have a soft spot for open world games.

Uncharted 2: Among Thieves

Really a game that inspired more movie like games. Why else do you think every game's like a movie these days... not sure if that's a good or bad thing.

Star Wars: Force Unleashed

Who wouldn't want to take on a Star Destroyer and it beats it's sequel by a mile. The second is only based on a space station and 2 planets. Well another planet where you run up to Yoda.

Resistance 3

Truly an underrated game. Can't believe they went with Fuse and ditched the entire series.

There are plenty more games that I still need to buy games for the PS1! As well as consoles so my PS3 collection will add up soon but lets see what games I'll be walking out of the shop with once I buy a PS Vita aside from a 3DS... and a Gamecube... and an Ouya. ;)

PS Vita

Gravity Rush

Wipeout 2048

Contrast

Uncharted: Golden Abyss

Assassin's Creed: Liberation

Batman: Arkham City Origins Blackgate

Atelier Meruru Plus: The Apprentice of Arland

Killzone: Mercenary

Dragon's Crown

File:Dragons Crown.png

Yes! I was the only one not to include Kindom Hearts. My excuse? No space left. ;) Now it's time for the tags! So many people have already been tagged and I don't want to tag someone so they make double the blog. :D

Zack0723

JoeCarey

Kaswa101

^Hope that's ok guys and I will change it if it feels too hectic. :)

So after all that crazy stuff...

Do you think I should talk more about these games in future blogs? :)

Thanks for reading! Hope you enjoyed. :)

 

Why Assassin's Creed 3 is underrated compared to Mass Effect 3

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Last year was a time full of excitement for gamers. Whether it was the end of trilogies, the release of some of the most anticipated games of this generation such as Mass Effect 3 and Assassin's Creed 3 or the announcement and in many cases, surprise announcements at E3 2012 which representing a few games such as Watch Dogs where gamers, reviewers and doughnut eaters from around the world were baffled this was truly the next gen of gaming to which we now know is the border line from the seventh generation of gaming to the eighth. From this gaming world we seem so familiar to, to the next world of games and innovation.

However like many other years, it has been a time of criticism from games from all kinds of genres, gamers reading articles of the latest games and giving their opinions to whether they agree or whether a game may have been too hyped up when many others went by many reviewing sites. Where am I going with this. Well Mass Effect 3 and Assassin's Creed 3 were one of the few games last year since I was focused a lot on writing up my blogs but it has come to my attention that one game is rated more than the other despite it's issues. In this case, Mass Effect 3 was more rewarded rather Assassin's Creed 3.

Today I'm here to give you an unbiased review of this topic and break down each of the games factors piece by piece so that we can see whether I will be able to utilize these point to prove my point. So the first factor I would like to talk about is...

Character

Mass Effect 3

First, I would like to talk about Mass Effect 3's character known as Commander Shepard. No longer is he/she gathering characters of all sorts of personalities, no matter how dangerous but rather beginning the development of bringing all the species together, galaxy wide and making a final assault to take back Earth to which Shepard seems to acknowledge as being the only one to stop the terrifying species known as the Reapers. So lets look Shepard's character and for starters, I'll start with the male Shepard's performance voiced by Mark Meer who didn't seem to have the best performance in terms of using his character to provide a better connection to the character where Jennifer Hale's female version of the character seemed to win overall in that aspect and many fans agree with this however over time, Mark Meer's performance has improved and up to Mass Effect 2, both voice actors seemed to be near enough on the same level to please it's audience.

It was only until Mass Effect 3 did things begin to change since the male Shepard was able to tone his voice to certain situations of the game to provide a more emotional touch. Whereas the female version seemed to deteriorate in that aspect. It was difficult to find the emotional connection between the gamer and the character since her voice was no longer toned as it was in the previous installments of the franchise. In many ways, it seemed like she was always moody and angry, no matter if you played as a paragon or renegade and many agree with this. Many gamers have said that players are playing the game wrong choosing to play the series with a male Shepard rather than a female Shepard but whether you prefer the gender version of over one of the other depends on your opinion. I don't believe it's wrong to play as a different character over another since male and females may be able to relate to a gender they're used to but making many more save files in order to play as another one of these characters couldn't hurt. I mean it's like playing as a new character let alone with a new gender let alone choices and classes. My save files were stacked full to the roof! However I do believe there is a reason why many players decided to play as a male Shepard and reason being was the performance of the voice acing. Playing as a female Shepard sometimes seemed like playing as a robot yet players praised both versions but we must look at to what reactions Assassin's Creed 3 faced before comparing the two.

Assassin's Creed 3

This is one of the features that was heavily criticized by reviewers and gamers worldwide towards the Assassin's Creed 3 game. Rather than having a character based on a noble and ladies man of the Italian Renaissance, transformed in to an assassin by pure vengeance, we have a Native American, once again formed by a vengeance story... with a few twists. Connor Kenway or by his Native American name, Ratonhnhaké:ton however brought in to the world of British travelers, intent on forming their own nations and taking advantage of the inhabitants but Connor has his doubts on the people he's fighting for therefore shaping a slight moody character but compared to the previous assassins, he's easily the most relatable and since through many sequences, he takes to the player with an overview of the story's events, almost as if he was writing in a diary.It's a journey, not only to hunt down Charles Lee but to find his destiny... apart from hunting Charles Lee. In some cases, this Lee thing has gone too far!

Overall comparison

However when comparing the 2, many critics tend to miss out on many things. For one, they may say that this new character is moody and trusts people of the patriot faction. In my response, Connor has no idea how things work in this world. I mean he's a Native American brought in to a new language so of course he's not gonna be familiar and be slightly moody at times. I know it's a big plot hole where he learnt the language. Maybe by using the POE or something or English is more common than we realized. At any rate, we need to loo at why Ezio was different. Ezio was full of people who loved him and helped him throughout his life but with Connor, his mother was killed in a fire at an early age possibly with everyone else he was close to aside from his best friend so he wears his darkened personality like a birthmark. He doesn't fully trust the patriot faction all the way. Why do you think he pushes people's hands away when they try to act friendly to him. Yes! It does go down the route of kill the British but this is to help access the Templar line of range for assassinating and believes in freedom for his people but at the end, he realizes, this is not the case. Now at least AC3 has a reason why Connor has a different personality. In Mass Effect 3, there is no excuse and many people who have criticized Connor, saying that for the Mass Effect 3 choices, you have to look closer to the game to find out why it isn't so bad. Well why can't they see Connor's truth. Unfortunately, this criticism has gone too far and now we are going to get a game with a character very close to Ezio so that we once have an Assassin's of the Caribbean game that doesn't explore any other personalities and has thus become less unique. Great job!

Many people may say that the reason for Connor's hate could even be because he's Native American, giving a hint of racism but I only see this as a part of the reason since it will depend on where the gamer's from and their psychology. The main reason is that Connor is a new character to the series that seems unfamiliar since Ezio was popular due to the fact that the internet and online gaming was improving, therefore, it was much easier to spread the hype of ACB and ACR. I know that it might be a little worrying playing as a new character but this has been a long time going. They were bound to add a new character at some point and if we just stayed with Ezio, the series won't be able to move on.

Considering Mass Effect 3, there is also the fact where like many other games, the story connects to the character and one goes wrong, then there's the possibility it can affect the other which is what we'll find out now...

Story

Mass Effect 3

Mass Effect as we all now is an RPG game which doesn't refer to exploding grenades by a role playing game. One as which has a choices system where the choices you make,the paths you choose, shape the consequences of the game. In Mass Effect 2, this went to a great level where every mission, every character, every resource you had for ship upgrades and who you assigned for the final mission could affect the lives and deaths of everybody and even the fall of Shepard himself. Now these just talking to people gave you plenty of options to choose from giving the player free range on what to pick and give more incentive to play the game plenty of times over to see how it would be affected which I surely did many times but in Mass Effect 3, it doesn't come down to this. In fact most of the time, it's just 2 choices you're given and even though they sound very different... they aren't.

The same exact thing will happen except with just a little hint of desperation from the developers to make the choice sound very different and it's not just that! Every thing that mattered from the previous game barely had an affect and the coolest squad mates were limited to just cameo roles which was certainly a big hit for those people who represented them as the top of their character list for the series. Even the biggest consequence will become limited. Like I said about the guy saying that you need to look closer that the choices add up to points. Well yes but that's not what Bioware promised with their long list of promises. All these choices were meant to have a visual impact. Instead, every mission is practically the same! A character dies that could depend on the fate of the species. Don't sweat! We have a replacement that will act exactly the same way and in the same role.

What is the point of choosing to kill off those characters? Well there's nothing spectacular. Just points that add up to whether you can save both the Quarians and the Geth can both co-exist even though we were promised that we could gain the loyalty of species just like squad members so there would much more consequences. Regardless of the fact that you could rewrite the Geth or destroy them in ME2 , there's no real visual change, just points that will help add up to more war assets where the war assets is a good idea... if it actually stood by the series' integrity. What do the war assets add up to? Just 2 different space battles. So through playing the whole series which was actually transferred to war assets in the end, it became none other that 2 very similar space battles, except in one a few ships will be destroyed. I am so surprised many people haven't noticed this! Shouldn't a Mass Effect fan know when they've just been played for false promises and ultimately deceit? For me this is an outrage but then again, this is just one factor of many.

There were some parts I did enjoy like the most emotional scenes and space battles but for a Mass Effect game, it didn't feel like a non-linear storyline and when replaying the game, you can't help but think you're playing the same thing over and over again despite how big the consequences in Mass Effect 2 were.

Assassin's Creed 3

Now for Assassin's Creed 3's story. Personally I enjoyed the Connor storyline and it took a different direction for the series with Haytham Kenway and even though the Templar plot twist was guessable at the start, it was great to see the journey of a new type of assassin, more focused on his goal more than anything and learning from his mistakes that would once again, lead to another assassination mission. There was one issue and that was the fact that Connor seemed to have a similar vengeance origin story to Ezio but there is a change which makes it feel different and that's the fact he's searching more for a destiny of protecting his people, not knowing of the world around him rather than Ezio who had no idea of where his journey was taking him. However the modern day sections were the parts of the game that weren't so enjoyable. It provided a more clear aspect of the characters such as Shaun, Rebecca, Desmond's father, William and many of the characters throughout the franchise but much of the series seemed to be adding up to a climatic ending and tie up the loose ends of Abstergo and characters such as Daniel Cross but with this, I thought it was disappointing that they all the enemies seemed to fall just like that and many of the twists in the story were easily predictable which didn't seem like an Assassin's Creed game.

Although most gamers were mostly arguing at the fact that the story was too long. I'm afraid that I am going to have to bring The Last of Us game in to this which did have a long story in itself and even longer loading times. AC3 was criticized for both of these things yet TLoU was rated a masterpiece? 0_o Even though IGN did say that these were issues? Well AC3, even though it was a long story, not many people complain about long stories such as The Lord of the Rings and with AC3, you had no idea where the story was going which made the player move on. We had no idea about Haytham until actually playing the game which could be the reason why it was criticized since many people just wanted to play as Connor and even people who wanted to stick with big bad wolf, Haytham. However with TLoU, it seemed like a random sequence of events and what did the IGN review say about AC3? Inconsistency? Well maybe they should look at the games they gave 10/10 and wonder whether they are going to keep contradicting themselves.

Long loading times? Another contradiction! AC3 loading times were actually, as I recall somewhat sorter when traveling to many areas in the previous games. It was only when you wanted to replay a mission, it could take a little longer but no more than 30 seconds and sometimes, just about 5 seconds but even if you had to wait long, the animus 3.0 is very cool. I mean when you're running, the whole virtual world melds around you whereas in TLoU, you had to wait over 5 minutes just to access the game. It's not an uncommon issue though with Naughty Dog games since Uncharted has many long loading times. Some just to get to the main menu. Many people will defend ND and say it uses lots of power and makes up for the effort for the graphics, then again, the latest ND games are linear whereas AC is a vast open world series to load up yet the graphics are still great so it's easy also to defend AC.

Overall comparison

Between the two games, there are both positives and negatives towards the games but ultimately, the choices system was a real letdown for Mass Effect 3 which is not just me but many people around the world agree that all the choices added to minor disappointing cameo roles and small alterations in was asset points which simply added to a change in a space battle... if any with no affect on the Normandy, the crew or anything like what we saw in Mass Effect 2. There were many points in the choices system I hated since it was just a small line of dialogue and once when talking to Joker, you don't get the option to joke around with him or just leave. All you have is, be angry or be even more angry... choose wisely! Much of the story was interesting with the lore of the Reapers and the fact that they've arrived gives a more darker sense and desperation theme but many of the things that were discovered seemed to have little to no connection with the parts experienced in Mass Effect 2 like the Human Reaper which I will talk about in the ending section. For Assassin's Creed 3, the Connor story seemed like playing a part of AC2 again with a vengeance story with a few tweeks that made it seem different but it was interesting to see more exploration in the universe with focusing on other characters and not it took a while to actually become an assassin in the first place.

Gameplay 

Mass Effect 3

Like I said at the beginning of this blog, ME3 is an RPG game where you can pick one of 6 classes, each with their own unique abilities just adding more to the replayable value of the game including powers featuring biotic lunges with the vanguard class, invisibility with inifiltrator and more powerful weapons if you pick the soldier class. However there is evidence that this was able to make the game more mainstream and therefore, more gamers would by the game. How? Dumbing down the abilities of several classes since I have noticed through playing the game that many powers such as shockwaves aren't wide ranged and it seems like the game is more focused on the soldier class and shooting upgrades more than anything. Therefore making the game less unique. There were many weapons that suited all classes such as the Omniblade which could basically be a cloud of a biotic power if you chose a class like vanguard but few others which provide a more unique feel.

There is also the issue of squad members. Throughout the series, we have been introduced to many very different characters of varied personalities and abilities. Mass Effect 2 saw the high number of up to 12 members as opposed to the original game with only 6 and all of these characters could be killed off and all will have a different opinion about Shepard whether he's paragon, renegade, in a relationship or ended their relationship together. As one of Bioware's promises, Mass Effect 3 was to have less squad members but it would allow a closer connection to the characters. This doesn't actually happen as much. In ME2, you could talk to them with up to 6 times and maybe more about completely different things and I never got bored at all! ME3 on the other hand reduced the number of members which was ok but like all of their promises, it didn't add up to what we we were hoping. Many times, you can only talk to them on the Normandy about 3 times and you no longer had the option to add up the dialogue section. Just the press of a button, then they'd say the same thing over and over again. To be honest, ME2, won in that aspect because not only did it have all these cool characters but you could feel connected to them much more than you could in ME3. I know I would be asking a lot but it would have been cool if you could pick any of the squad members who survived. Obviously not over a certain number but it would have given the player more freedom throughout their playthrough. It may have been too long for development so maybe Bioware could have mixed up the ME2 characters at least. I mean we connected with those characters so why should we have to be excluded to cameo roles and a ME1 only squad with 2 new characters? One of which is an overpriced DLC character...who's already on the disk! Maybe include some new characters instead like some familiar ones like Aria and some completely new ones... like a Husk!

Another problem was the relationships since Casey Hudson explained that there would be no new characters to sleep with so that it provides more connection to the character. This would have worked if they stayed true to their word. Not only did they add more characters with romance options but also the system was pathetic. Many players complained that in previous games, the romance options were sloppy with just a few flirts then you're hoping in to bed together. Well with ME3, it's pretty straight forward since you only have 2 options to pick basically rather than in previous games when it about 6 so all these new characters meant there was less focus on improving anything and a big step back. Another promise by Bioware was that if we had previous relationships and started another, it would have dire consequences yet all that happens is... you guessed it! A few dialogue differences and no arguments. It just puts you in one relationship in some curly wurly random cycle.

All of this was just to include same sex options which is fine that they're trying to be open but I think many people miss out on what the true intention is. It's not that they care about gays or lesbians fully, otherwise they would have said they would include it in their promises. It was only to get gays to buy the game to get more money which was also around the same time of the MP announcement. I wonder why (coughs) EA (coughs) and the gay options are also the easiest yet new options hindered the system entirely. There was also the introduction of Diana Allers and of course, a character voiced and portrayed from a woman they know will obviously get gamers screaming wild in to buying the game.

A new feature was the fact that you no longer had to probe planets for resources which means that there was a wide around of cheering from gamers and replaced by a survival theme by the Reapers detecting the scanning of planets. There was a problem with this and although it was fun, it got boring easily just like the probing assignments but not only that but this also meant that many side missions like N7 never existed. In fact, all the N7 missions in ME2 especially didn't have as much of an impact even on war assets.

Assassin's Creed 3

AC3 introduced the long line of soon to be next gen engines for future consoles and the one used for the game is known as Anvil Next. A step up from the series which made things more action packed and yet, more fluid as an assassin who's become more of guerrilla warrior, using many devices from hidden blades to rope darts.

However this came with a flaw with the fact in many ways, sometimes Connor doesn't feel so stealthy. Ubisoft told players that they would be given the choice of being stealthy and can use combat techniques anytime which was true for many parts but sometimes, it felt like we were limited to just one.  The economic system became more focused on hunting which allowed the game to incorporate the bows and arrows and even the ability to climb and run across trees but this like the bombs in ACR, there weren't many missions focused on this concept and therefore, many people decided not to focus on this which is true for many side missions too since many of the assassin recruitment missions were masked by delivering letters and throwing blankets over fires which became pretty medicore for those who didn't decide to reach the recruitment missions and that's where they lost out. It no longer has missions like Brotherhood which had a whole bunch of assassin tombs and hunting all sorts of enemies even found in the multiplayer. AC3 does try to deliver as many missions as possible with the naval missions and Captain Kidd missions but Brotherhood definitely had many missions to last a whole year to play!

Many people believe that this game is way too easy. Well the AC series could do with a difficulty setting but then again, has it ever been about difficulty. In my opinion, the AC series is about making players feel as badass as possible and some enemies did require you to use many different tactics through kill chains to defeat them through combinations of moves. Many people even wished to why wasn't there a building of another brotherhood. Well Connor is possibly one of the last assassins left. He still needs to build up himself and learn about the ways of the order but also, the homestead missions allow him to go in to a different direction. Rather than rebuilding the order, he's building up his own family. Even though many may see this as boring, it did allow a more personal touch with Connor and the characters around him. In a way, it made up for the lack of side missions compared to ACB.

Overall comparison

Neither games were able to make the perfect game we were hoping for. ME3 went more in the direction of shooting mechanics and weapon upgrades that didn't really seem very appealing to many players and the fact that the next Mass Effect game will contain the Frostbite engine will only mean more shooting. Not to say that there won't be biotic powers but it's likely that it won't have much focus considering the Frostbite engine was meant to be used for ME3. AC3 did feel more combat based but then again, it was successful in being able to portray the future of gaming since I could never get enough (and still can't) of the fluid gameplay such as impaling a guard then shooting another enemy right through him. It gave us some more stunts after a few kill chains which just added to the idea that Connor is a wolf however there is less interest in the hidden blade which has become a symbol for the series and it doesn't seem like that's going to improve anytime soon with AC4 being full of guns and all. In spite of the side missions for both games, AC3 felt like it added more with the naval combat system and Captain Kidd missions.

Multiplayer and DLC

Mass Effect 3

Multiplayer in the Mass Effect universe would feel pretty strange for now but it has been done... and not to a great extent. The MP for starters was possibly the reason why ME3 was delayed to March 2012 hence why many of us missed out on getting a free gift at Christmas. However this was limited to one coop mode only with just a few maps. What Bioware did not tell us was that they were lying and we had to play through the MP to get the perfect ending. Well they may have meant synthesis as the best ending which depends upon your opinion but this erupted an outrage from gamers who now believe that EA is responsible and it is clear because of the overpriced DLC costing about £15 for one character... for a mission lasting 20 minutes and the big controversy is that Casey Hudson also said there would be no point putting DLC on the disk... it was put on the disk of course but it also seemed like they were making DLCs like Leviathan and Omega just because they knew players would buy them yet tried to make up for the ending with a DLC and a whole bunch of further free MP DLCs to which you would need to play the game for weeks just to get an upgrade or skin. It was a fun concept but seemed to get old pretty quickly.

Assassin's Creed 3

AC3's multiplayer took many of the modes away such as corrupted and alliance that many people did enjoy but used this to focus on their attempts of deathmatches. Therefore becoming mainstream to attract players who usually play mainstream games. It does contain plenty of modes to enjoy including the newest edition, Wolfpack for more gameplay but I remember when playing in many matches, there would be many glitches like people shooting through walls, lag times and when I was pressing a button repeatedly, it didn't do anything and my controller is fine. Once I was top of the leaderboard for the first 7 minutes. Then after, I'm third place because the game won't respond due to hackers and the next match the whole match lagged everywhere so it's not just me. The DLC however was underrated. Sure 3 parts costed about £6 or so but it was fun seeing the aspect of an alternate reality with a new direction with new powers rather than having an affiliation to the assassin order.

Overall comparison

Both games either didn't offer as much or had an MP that was essentially broken more than the previous games with even worse graphics for both. Clearly not the best feature for either of the games.

Glitches and advertising

Not many people believe that ME3 had many glitches but with all the new shooting mechanics, it made things out of place, even objects 2D at many times. I'm not sure if I have a faulty game but I can't get passed the Mars mission without the scene completely freezing up and I have to restart the PS3. It almost even wrecked my TV because of an audio glitch that seemed like max volume of an explosion that didn't even exist so I had to turn the volume down to 1 and even then it was eerily loud. Games shouldn't make you have to put up with these sorts of issues and it was difficult to get through the game with the character feeling like there's less freedom with so much lag. We couldn't even port our character' apperances for a whole month or so Some moves were cool however I believe that people criticize AC3 too much in terms of glitches. I haven't actually experienced many glitches. Just a laggy camera in crowded spaces which is true for almost every game and I only fell through the floor because of the latest patch somehow put that glitch on but I haven't had this since. I do have a theory though that many people complain about a few glitches because of the fact that it's next-gen hardware so it's easy to blame a system so that it improves on the slightest of things when the developers get to work analyzing it. However I don't see why because ME3 had tons of glitches yet nothing's added. ACB had many glitches with Ezio falling through the floor and have an arrow sticking  of his head. I was even able to climb at 4 times the speed than normal.

Both of these games have gone through false advertising such as with Bioware TV giving out promises which ultimately lead to false information. If they never told us any of these things that ended up never coming true, then I might have been ok with Mass Effect 3 but the fact is, if we have been mis-sold a product, then in this case, we should be able to give it back!

Assassin's Creed 3 on the other hand varied it's advertising compared on different regions like the American version provided a "Kill the British" sorta motive with a patriotic sense of saving the country...

...whilst for the UK, we got some cool music.

However, the ME3 advertising is what hurt many gamers because of deception and therefore why they'll never go back to Mass Effect ever again whereas AC3 on the other hand just amped up a theme so that Americans would buy it.

Ending (Spoilers start here)

The Mass Effect 3 ending is what confused everyone and an ultimate outrage toward Bioware began but considering the choices of the game, I could see a bad ending from a mile away and wasn't expecting anything awesome. In fact, many people like me who saw the issues of the game, couldn't even get to the end since they were so disappointed which is a true shame to end the series for them. Lets look at the purpose of the Reapers first. The purpose we got in the final game was that they were harvesting life in order to save themselves from creating synthetic life which would just destroy them. When created robots or beings rebel against their masters, it's known as a technological singularity and it made no sense since the Geth and the Quarian race were able to work together and obtain true peace. I mean the Geth are making them more powerful so it would have made sense to tell the Strachild that and ultimately shut down the Reapers. However other than that, this seemed out of nowhere and the reason for the Morning Wars was because of the Reapers own doing anyway. Although the Reapers did arrive at the right time in the original Mass Effect, there wasn't much evidence to suggest any of this would happen.

The original ending was that the Reapers would be harvesting life, both organic and synthetic to find a solution to prevent Dark energy from destroying the universe. As bizarre as this sounds, it is hinted throughout the series on Tali's recruitment mission on planet Haestrom where the star was ageing was fluctuating due to dark energy from biotics and that the Human Reaper was actually a project since Humans were the best chance at solving the puzzle due to their variation in nature. It may have got another yo dawg meme with the Mass Relays but then again, the energy of Dark energy could have been giving off too much emissions anyway and the Reapers are just using this for their own will.

This would have included 2 endings where one, you could kill the Reapers and solve it with the best mind in the galaxy or let the Reapers win and harvest the Human race. I think this would have worked with the war assets and I think it would have worked like this:

High EMS - Destroy - Come up with a solution to solve the problem.

Low EMS - Destroy - Unable to come up with a solution. The universe is doomed!

High EMS - Reapers win - Reapers harvest Humans but save the Universe.

Low EMS - Reapers win- Unable to find a solution, the Reapers create a new cycle of extinction.

This could have also applied to closure for the endings since different characters would have survived but most of the ME2 storywriters including Drew Karpyshyn went to work on... Star Wars: The Old Republic... which is MMORPG which made both games look bad and replaced ME2 storywriters with ones who didn't know the story. There is also the matter the fact that the Dark energy ending was leaked but then again not many people would knew about it and if they were never forced to move on to another project, I have no doubt they would have worked something out that would have made sense and stuck by the series' integrity.

On the other hand, AC3 also seemed to have a slight controversial ending and I was little disappointed that there wasn't much closure but I don't see it as a bad ending. Sure Desmond dies and now Juno is gonna rule the world. That doesn't mean the assassins won't forget his sacrifice! He'll live on in a legacy giving the assassins and templars a fighting chance. The reason why I also like this ending is that is stands by the series. Mass Effect usually has endings that mean all your choices mattered whereas with AC, we get a crazy ending leaving it on to yet another cliffhanger and the next game. AC3 was able to stand by this whereas ME3, turned down the gamers.

(Spoilers end here)

So overall, both series have it's triumphs and flaws but in the end, AC3 has been criticized way too much for things that we should be blaming other games for too. I mean, at least AC3 stood by it's fans even though both franchises are on the hints of becoming mainstream whereas ME3 let me and several other players down. I played Mass Effect for the interstellar setting but fell in love with the lore, the universe and the choices but since the story, gameplay and most importantly, the choices, it has headed too far. Many people who praise Mass Effect are actually starting to realize that Bioware did make these promises and therefore can understand and respect gamers that went off the series. It is also possible that Mass Effect was hyped up and well received because of the fact that it's like a space opera for this generation like Star Wars.

Ultimately if I never played the previous Mass Effect 3 games before and headed right towards ME3 without listening to any of the news and updates, I believe I would have enjoyed the game but this is where we have Mass Effect red handed! There are issues with the game that hold it back and consequently people are quick to judge it on a sloppy ending and rate it about a 9 whereas they may judge AC3 too fast.

Your opinion will depend on which of the games you have played, whether it has affected your gaming ways, etc. Therefore I fully respect your opinions and I can tell that I'm probably in need of the Citadel ending.

So I've just made a new record on my longest written blog so I'll stop there. Remember, if you have something to say, please don't hesitate to write in the comments.

Thanks for reading! Hope you enjoyed. :)

MyIGN community idea - Underrated MyIGN members

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Hey guys and gals! It seems like there are plenty of community blogs going around and I have a few myself. :) For now, I would like to spread one about underrated MyIGN members on... well MyIGN. Just like the co-op blog me and DanyAFS wrote. http://www.ign.com/blogs/mikeerik/2013/07/10/co-op-blog-awesome-spotlights/

So the next step is to spread this around and here are the rules:

You can name up to as many MyIGN members as you wish but not too much if it feels a little too hectic.

A description about anything!  What these people are like, what they play... Just at least explain why you've mentioned them and why you think they deserve to be more well known throughout the MyIGN community. Whether they eat doughnuts does count! Who doesn't like Doughnuts? :D

Doesn't have to be a long description. Just about 1 or 2 lines for each will do. :)

Preferably, it's easier to pick someone who hasn't been nominated for the community spotlight but even if they have, it still counts.

Bear in mind, not to be offended if you're mentioned. This is just to spread the word of the awesome MyIGNers out there who aren't well known but would be welcomed in to the larger community.

You can tag up to 4 people to name their own number of MyIGN members they know but any less is fine. The reason why I didn't say anything over 4 would be too much if someone sent about 200 tags... so we'd have no one else to tag.

So here's the people I'm gonna tag to write their own list. I'm not gonna tag Dany or talk about the MyIGN members I know because we already write our own coop blogs... which we will probably get round to in a year or so. ;)

Tagged:

StarSeeker94

Assassinita

Gonholio

So it looks like there's gonna be a whole barrage of blogs on the way!

Thanks for reading! What do you think of this idea? :)

 

 

 

 

MyIGN battle: Who would win in a fight?

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Hey everyone! How we all doing? It seems like it's been about a whole week since my last full written blog and I have so many new ideas for blogs which add to the fact that I've still got some blogs I've been meaning to write since last year, isn't really a good combination. So I've decided to get to work on a few blog ideas from last year to start off with and this one in particular is something I think everyone will enjoy. Well if you enjoy superhumans getting in to a skirmish, then this blog is for you! Also I'm not really sure if I'll be online that much. Google Chrome has been blocked for me for some reason as well a whole bunch of other things that have been keeping me occupied...

but of course, don't hesitate to alert me of your blogs! It's something I'll sure read. :)

What is this blog about exactly? 4 characters from around the videogame universes will pit themselves against each either despite if they tend to buy ice creams together at lunch time. However it will be up to you to decide who will win in all this chaos and survive the longest through the battle. Technically free for all. So first up is...

The Beast - Infamous

The predicted destroyer of both Humanity and Conduits (I won't spoil anything) who was able to reorganise itself from the single atoms even after being completely obliterated, it doesn't seem like it can be completely destroyed. Who knows? Maybe we'll see it in Infamous: Second Son. It could cling to the most powerful Conduits or represent the power of Conduits so it may never be destroyed. That's just my idea so no spoilers! His powers are greatly varied but there are 2 key abilities that are able to represent his destructive power and what better way to do this than utilising pyrokinetic and gyokinectic (fire and gravitational powers) which gives it a boost in physical attacks from all sorts of weapons ranging from rifles to weapons of mass destruction.

What we didn't see in Infamous 1 was that he was able to reconstruct his form in to a gigantic figure which just amplified it's powers even more with superhuman strength and the ability to create and throw enormous fireballs at it's enemies where it seems like it was even able to throw one like a baseball at The Moon since it's completely shattered. Ultimately his inner body is full of lava and no wonder it seems hot-tempered but also the gravitational powers it possesses is able to give him fundamental to give it an advantage in battle. The creation of black holes or space-time singularities if you wish to impress all the MyIGNers which allows him to wreck everything in his path with people lifted up, ripped apart and may even gain the energy from it's victims sucked in to it's vortexes. This also acts as a form of defence since anything around him will be lifted up so any why weapons it finds suspicious can just be pushed away. No nukes today!

However like I said, he possesses many other powers which just adds to his name. It wasn't because of the fact that he visited the fantasy world of Narnia but the fact that he can imitate a Human form in order to communicate which allows him to teleport added to the fact that he can use his telepathic power to communicate from long distances...

(I'm not sure if the powers next are necessary and many of you may find it as a spoiler if your waiting to find out his latest supply of ablilites so in that case Spoilers start here! If not go ahead and read on but it doesn't have any Infamous 2 spoilers associated with the story)

...but much of his power is able to imitate the Ray Sphere energy and use it to accelerate the development of the Conduit's gene to incredible amounts so that a Conduit's gene can activate and give them their powers after just a few seconds rather than a few years, if the conduit gene would alternatively activate at all. This doesn't come without cost because this absorbs the life energy within living Humans in to the conduit, thus killing many dozes and even up to hundreds of Humans, just to allow a single conduit to gain his/her powers much earlier in life. So he could raise a whole bunch of conduits to fight with it and also use the vice versa option of absorbing powers and even drain conduits completely of their energy so it won't be long until we see the Beast with electric powers anytime soon. (Spoilers end here!)

It does have some weaknesses though. When his head is blasted off, he becomes drained and needs time to regenerate and it seemed like the easiest boss fights ever! However in reality, it was only because Cole had the abilities to survive through it.

Next stop, we have...

Rogue - X-Men

An uncommon yet cool ability among much of the superhero genre which many believe is probably he greatest superpower of all. If you don't know what her main power is or if you've never even heard of her, she has the power to absorb the powers of other Mutants, simply by touch. In most cases, she may just duplicate their abilities. I mean if she pickpocketed the abilities from a best friend, there would be a lot of explaining to do. However if she decided to absorb the powers long enough, this could become permanent with a mutant left without his/her powers... for good and if long enough, it could cause severe tissue scarring, blood clots and stuff... where am I going with this? This could put the victim at risk of death.

Don't threat that she'll be taking your powers just so quickly. The amount of time she absorbs their powers is the same length as the victim or touchee is stunned. Not only can she absorb or replicate the abilities of others but also take on their level of skills in terms of fighting, intelligence, personality and sometimes even their memories.

However could she survive in a battle with the other contestants? It's very possible and this is why many fans want this ability so much since they are free to roam with their range of abilities but this does not come without cost. Many times, she is unable to control her powers which means it may mean her powers are unstable and usually, she can only use these powers for a limited amount of time so she would have to be quick around running past the other fighters and stealing their abilities for about 5 seconds or so. It will depend up to you which abilites she has at the beginning of the match... unless she decides to have a lie in and turns up to arena empty handed. The real question is who would win in a fight with The Beast of absorption wars?

Ratonhnhake:ton - AC3: Tyranny of George Washington

Also known as Connor Kenway, this different version of the character is one of many superpowers in some ways, supernatural which takes place where he never joined the Assassin order but instead remained within his tribe to learn the abilities of the Animal Spirits to guide him and manifest them to use for his abilities. These abilities include for one, my avatar where he can use the power of the Wolf to become stealthy, an Eagle to allow him to fly to nearby objects which may otherwise be too high up to reach from deadly throwing pebbles from the guards and last but not least, the power of the bear so that he can perform the most destructive wave of energy in the local neighbourhood, throwing enemies far away and shredding apart anything he has decided to (b)air assassinate.

However unlike the 2 previous fighters, he has come prepared with a  few equipment which may help him if a certain someone tries to pickpocket his powers. Actually there are 2 people who could do that. Anyways, he is equipped with a pair of Hidden Blades, Tomahawk, Bow and Arrow and some Flintlock Pistols. Maybe a few poison darts as well.

Lets not be too hasty and say he's the ultimate fighter just yet. He, himself, does have many weaknesses and these could be more problematic if they were able to take form during this siege. Every power he uses, no matter what, will decrease his health meter and so being stealthy and hiding around could backfire and put him last place on the ratings. Although he has a combination of invisiliblity, flight and superhuman strength which could be enough to win the battle, as long as his bow and arrow are able to get him through the superhuman wars, we could see a double assassination of a giant and full-time professional Mutant.

Now we have a final contestant which could tip the balance between who wins and falls. Could we have a winner on our hands? Only time will tell. This is the moment you've been waiting for. The mysterious contestant is...

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That's right! Jeff Bridges!!!

This one really takes the cake in all of this. He has worn an Iron suit becoming the Iron Monger, a member of a bowling group, the leader of a physic organisation known simply as the Jedi...

Outstanding! However the list could go on!

Somehow he seems to survive after every movie in a completely different role. Almost like he's an actual actor! 0_0

I'm not sure if this guy does a weakness and another possible strength would be that anyone with a less badass attitude could aggregate him... I don't know what could happen.

Overall

It seems like it would depend on what happens during the battle since they could go after different people or even team up to stop another powerful enemy and then finish the others left. It could all be down to mathematics. Maybe Rogue could pickpocket all the enemies' powers while they're having a brawl but maybe Ratonhnhake:ton could stealth assassinate all the characters, fly up to The Beast's shoulder and assassinate him... which probably won't don't do much other than give him a little tickle. My personal choice would be The Beast since if it opens up a vortex, they're all screwed. Maybe Jeff bridges could be saving his power in the backround for the ultimate finishing move.

However it's probably difficult to know since there's four of them so maybe next time I should just do 1 vs 1 battle. Maybe battle of the Superhuman groups or other characters across video games and film series. I'm sensing a Wengardium Leviosa spell on the way...

Maybe when the commentator says begin the games, the characters could be left standing there confused thinking, "Where's the chocolate cake?"

So who do you think will win in this free for all battle? I really hope you enjoyed this blog and if you liked this blog, there could be more on the way. ;)

Thanks for reading! :)


What could build up the next Driver game?

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The adventure-racing Driver series has come a long way over the past few years like many other series. From Playstation 1 game release in 1999 to possible end to the series in 2004 after the negatively received Driv3r, it was bought by Ubisoft from Atari in order to revamp the series with Driver: San Francisco in 2011, bringing back cop Tanner which in a way created all new gameplay mechanics but keeping to a style which would feel comfortable for both new and familiar audiences with a storyline which would conclude the the cliffhanger which we waited for about 7 years to be concluded. This didn't distract from the style due to the fact that the company Reflections Interactive basically became a part of Ubisoft so essentially Ubisoft Reflections so it contained many of it's original staff that worked on the previous Driver games with some familiar hooded figures in the process. ;)

However with Ubisoft's new game, The Crew on the way to hit stores faster than lightning in the first quarter of 2014, many people may believe that Driver is now put out of the picture since many of the gameplay is going all in to this one game including it's shift ability to teleport across fast amounts of distances which is a bit of an understatement considering it's pretty much the whole open world of the United States of America. Well in answer to that, yes it is very possible that Ubisoft may do such a thing since they have no hesitation in ending a series for another and it appears that The Crew may offer racing of all types and thus not only attract the slobbering eyes of fellow Driver fans but fans of all the genres of racing for instance, rally gamers will get their piece of the action in some off road driving, simulation gamers will love the realistic feel of the cars and action adventure gamers will still no doubt enjoy the game with fast speed boosts but regardless, this will be a game of huge expansion of a massive open world and huge amount of missions that will keep us occupied throughout the whole few years, even grabbing the attention of non-racer fans who have decided to step up their game.

However, my answer to this possible scenario that Driver will simply drift off in to nowehere is completely ludicrous. Sure, it's possible but not if Ubisoft focused on this series and in a way, we need to ask ourselves, with many of these mechanics going towards The Crew, does it limit the originality and style of the Driver series? My answer is yet again another no and I have a few ideas of how they keep the uniqueness of the series by adding more elements and also and possibly the most important thing, focusing on what makes up the Driver style and build up upon it's originality.

So first off, I'll talk about the new stuff they could add which include...

Much more vehicles... a lot more!

Driver is based on a whole bunch of cars and road vehicles from sports cars like McLaren to 80s Dodge cars, from trucks to high school buses, it gives a freedom in a more realistic light but could they not only bring back boats but planes as well? Many of you maybe shouting out "Blasphemy!" however I do thoroughly believe it can work and here's why. I've noticed that many games like Grand Theft Auto and Just Cause where going in to a speeding boat or a plane that can break the sound barrier but Driver is different. Sure every game has it's own unrealism. Even Call of Duty but Driver has it's own style but if it was to take it more to a realistic touch, say your driving in to an aircraft which can carry cars (no trucks please!) for a mission and then you're able to escape from the city in a more realistic way so it would feel like a getaway from other cars and the aircraft will have to pick up speed in order to escape from the cops, terrorists or Santa Clause. It won't be so quick to just jump in to the aircraft and drive off... or take off rather.

Many people believed the Driv3r lost it's touch as becoming a GTA clone whereas to many it was a great game including to me since it was one of my first open world games (I did use some cheats though) however if it was to include maybe other characters too who are experienced with flying to make it more like a simulator, I can see it as adding more depth to the story especially if it's something like a stealth bomber where you have to stay within a certain area. They could do the same with a boat, even going as far sailing cruises. Where am I going with this? Well maybe it would make the series more unique if you had your own garage set or hanger...or both and maybe even trade with people like a good cop, bad cop motive although I'm not sure if an RPG perspective. I'm not talking about exploding grenades anytime soon but... I will talk about it later in the blog. :)

Many playable characters

If there's one thing we learnt from Driver: San Francisco, we knew that Ubisoft wasn't afraid to take to all new different stories around the vast city of San Francisco or shortened to San Fran with the use of the shift ability allowing Tanner to take over the driver's body in another car or vehicle from cops to racer drivers who just can't stop competing for the highest pay check. Yep, the shift ability was really a marvel in it's own right and a great way to show that we didn't need to get out of the car but know that Tanner's out of his coma, could it still be used? Why of course and to a new fundamental level. A lot of the time while playing Driver: SF, there was much humour in the fact that the passengers were getting confused at the fact that Tanner was gonna burn some rubber... in another person's body but I don't think Tanner needs to be the only main character for the series and that there could be about 5 different characters from rally racers to getaway drivers in order to interconnect the stories. However I think the shift ability could be used for any other vehicle so we can listen to some humour about the characters babbling on about which way is the fastest route to the ice cream store. Just without Tanner using superhuman powers but it could also be allowed as a teleportation system like it already is in a way but not just to access missions in the speed of the snapping of fingers but also to transport anyway you like. No that's something they don't tell you with with a Nightcrawler degree. :P

Just to give you a taste of the humour if you don't know, hear you go!

Role Playing Game style

This is something that is very possible and hasn't been done many times in the racing genre but it would be interesting to see since it could take inspiration from an unexpected old neighbour, Test Drive Unlimited 2 which was also published by Atari games back when Driver was still an infant. Personally I have played the game before and it was very enjoyable at the fact that you could customise your own avatar for talking to people and buying cars, earn money from test driving challenges and even buy your house but one thing that I can point out which smells fishy (and it's not my socks) but it also featured the fact that you could create your own teams and even invite them to your house for partying. An intriguing concept... if the game was popular. Unfortunately like many games these days, it had much creativity, had a few glitches but ultimately wasn't really paid much attention by fellow gamers. In fact this goes for many Atari games these days and if Ubisoft never bought the series, it would possibly be trouble financially and may even suffer a similar fate as Test Drive Unlimited with the developers becoming broke basically so it looks like Reflections dodged a bullet.

Back to the creating your own teams method, it seems like The Crew is heavily based on this. Hence it's name so it seems like The Crew has used this for a more socialising especially for the next gen line of consoles. Yes I do believe they copied this but many games have been copied and it's good to see that they may improve upon these concepts with a much more popular game and this has been done many times before... although an honourable mention of Eden Games would be helpful. :)

What can Driver do to improve upon this? For starters it's difficult to know since we don't have all the info and most is to be revealed at Gamecom so maybe it's probably a wrong time for me to be writing this blog. Although I do know that there are plenty of other ideas could be used to create a more RPG perspective. Say you can colour in your own patterns for your cars and even add cool stuff to it like this for example. :)

The next idea would be perhaps to have an in game forums and to create your own maps and cars which you may think is more like a simulation based game but you could add new additions to your car to make it standout from the crowd such as 4X4 to monster truck wheels. However I have a feeling that it may not have the same Driver feel so maybe it's best for a spin-off of some sort. Maybe uploading pictures as posters for your house. :D My Wall's gonna be full of these...

Now lets look at the many things they could bring back. First up is (drums roll)...

Ability to get out of your car

Many of you may think this is bad option and Driv3r went towards this and has never used this concept since as well as the fact that Driver: SF never really felt like you had to get out of the car. However I could imagine something fast paced by playing as Tanner during quick sequences. Maybe if he was chasing someone trying to get to a car and he has to locate around the area to find something faster or ambush the car from a roof. Maybe have much of the game like Uncharted 2 where he sees the past through memories but has to get out of a car wreckage.

To be honest, I don't expect to see any gunfights and possibly the use of would be more likely fists. Possibly just for entering his own house but I feel like in many ways,it could add to the story. I mean it does have a wacky story at times and it will allow you to make decisions to catch up to enemies run along the beach. :)

More cities

If there's one thing we've known about the settings in Driver, is that they appeal to gamers from all around the globe,whether it be gorgeous swimming pool home of Miami in Florida or the Croissant neighbourhood of Nice, France. Yes, it does take players to some dramatic areas full of a huge open world. Driver: SF took a different route and went with just using one city. Maybe some sort of experimental way of utilising one single area as a playground similar to other games like Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood. In some ways, I do think that San Francisco as on area to explore was the right call. Ultimately, it was where the story of Tanner and Jericho concluded and wrapped up the events like a present at Christmas but I could see the developers going beyond this and bringing back a few cities so it feels familiar but maybe some other ones to try like say my home city Cardiff. ;)

I would love to see this because it could act like a driver (I don't mean the series) for the story and yet still add a whole bunch of missions to do in a massive open world. I wouldn't say make the sandbox game as huge as The Crew. Maybe have a state like Florida to explore as well as a part of England although then again, The Crew does't put as much focus on a single area and thus only includes the most well known roads so even if it was to take place in area, we'd have a whole bunch of ways to drive around. :D

^Just look at those Uncharted like graphics!

Stuntman assignments

Many people may think that Uncharted was the first movie like game ever made. That would be true to some extent since many action-adventure games after Uncharted 2 pretty much adopted the cinematic experience and in many ways improved upon it (coughs) Assassin's Creed 3 (coughs) but they would be wrong. There have been many games that have a cinematic experience and the Driver series even allows you do that anytime. Even with Driver: SF, you are able to view the last few minutes of gameplay up until you pressed the button to look back in this theatre mode where you are able to slow down the scenes for dramatic effect (like I did) and even upload it to the Driver website. Now, it's time to bring that back with a more free camera and even create a set of cameras as if in a movie studio of some sort to capture every angle. Who knows? Maybe you could invoke a barrage of cops to chase after you and go in to a helicopter style way to make it look like you're really creating your own movie!

That is not the only thing though. There were many small assignments you could do in the previous games but now, why not create your own like jump through all the hoopes or test out some of your cars endurance through skiddy snow and of course, why not let your friends have a go and send some videos and missions to them. Plus create your stunt grounds like where skateboarding games feature, create your own skate park. With the next gen consoles on the way, that could very well happen. We are of course, able to send videos of the past 15 minutes of gameplay to all your friends. :)

In a way, Driver is very similar to gams by Atari such as Stuntman. Maybe Stuntman is meant to be some sort of Driver spin-off in a way.

However before I close of this blog, there is another category that I haven't told you about and that's where the next game could take place and with this, it could use these methods to apply to the games. So here a few on my list...

Driver: Miami

Tanner's home city with his luxurious beach house and swimming pool, there always seems to be something going around for a great thriller chase in this amazing high lit skyscraper city. However I also think they can touch upon the theme of Driv3r, a more darker tone to the series. Driver: SF could have suffered from criticism for the fact that not only were the making Tanner look like Nathan Drake like Infamous 2 was going to with their character in order to appeal to more gamers for familiarality (if that's a word) but also it was a very light story and none of the characters seemed like their Driv3r counterparts especially Jericho who was a mysterious cold blooded killer but now he's big buffy guy (not saying he's a fan of the vampire series) and looks like he's put on a little bit of weight since Tanner's last encounter. Fortunately for Ubisoft, Driv3r was the first step of making the characters more detailed in terms of graphics an voice acting and since it wasn't well received, it didn't end badly.

I actually enjoyed the new style of the series but I think that it could go down a more serious path. Not saying that the characters should be changed back completely but keep the humour except with a powerful villain or even a gang trying to nuke the city. Plus there are many things they could learn from the series already and that could benefit for the game such as the stealth in Assassin's Creed could easily be implemented when tailing someone undetected where Tanner could just check his sun glasses and perhaps even make it an option to go chasing recklessly. This would also add in the plane and boat gameplay... unless we just wait for the Sailor series. ;) However is doesn't have to be stuck in the city for long since many missions could take place in cities all over the world to engage the players with the story.

However they could learn from Driv3r by using the criminal theme as part of side missions and maybe add in some intense music to go with it. :)

Historical

Now I don't mean go back to the first ever cars going about 20 miles per hour but it would be interesting to see a prequel to the first game to bring a more classy 90s feel or even 80s style of driving. However Driver:SF got me really thinking when it showed many scenes set in what appears to be an old 50s to 60s style of escaping and capturing cars.

In a way this would be pretty sweet and I know that Tanner wouldn't even exist or be like a toddler at the wheel so how about set it based on his father. An old legend who may have even got himself in to a few scrapes as being a getaway driver trying to rob a bank and travelling all across the world so he he might not have even started out as a cop like Tanner. He may not have even have been American. I do have a feeling that we could see Jones or his father in the game too like in every generation, there's always a Tanner and always a Jones.

Plus wouldn't it be nice to drive some old cars that are a rarity now that used to be your parents or even grandparents but it's now in the bin? :D

Future

You're probably gonna throw cans and food at me now but hear me out! Many games like Castlevania are taking a big step and going towards more modern areas or even the future when their previous games were set way back a few centuries. I'm not saying go to a time filled with a barrage of hovercars, although that would be cool but maybe in around the 2050s where there's a new bunch of characters and they may not even be detectives or even related to Tanner at all but just a new team of drivers in a majestic world where you can see the new developments of cities all across the world from amazing scenery to quadruple flavoured ice cream! :D

Maybe even take the adventure off road for a while and add to the larger perspective of an RPG style game where you have to escape a remote area of cities in the dessert or forest using the tools that you are given.

So there we have it! Do you think that Driver will still continue to become unique compared to games like The Crew... or do you think the The Crew is actually Driver in disguise? ;)

Thanks for reading! Hope you enjoyed. :)

 

 

 

Guess the country 2

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Hey everyone! It's been a while since my previous "Guess the county" blog and coincidently, my very first however if you are new to this blog then the simple rule is that all these pics and photos add up to one country but that's where you have to figure out what the country is. Just to let you know that all ten add up to one country, just to make sure that there's no different answer to every pic. They're all the same. :) Also feel free to use them as wallpapers and remember I take no credit for the photos.

One last thing, the answer to the last blog was Finland! :D The safety ring with the Helsinki writing was kind of a tip-off...I uh put that on purpose. ;)

So now's the time to use your brains and figure out what country these pics apply to. No telepathy allowed... I give away the answer all the time. :D

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So what do you think's the answer?

Thanks for reading! Hope you enjoyed. :)

Infamous: Second Son thoughts

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Hey guys and gals! Once again it seems like a while since my latest blog and I apologise. Mostly at the fact that I couldn't really access IGN since I got a notice saying that Mario has been in the wrong direction... which could start up a new line of sequels! However, at any case, today I would like to talk about an upcoming game which many of you have already heard of which has taken the PS4 announcement and E3 event by storm, giving it an essential boost in the Playstation franchise expectations especially at the fact that many of the Playstation exclusives haven't even been announced yet such as (coughs) Uncharted 4 (coughs).

So what is this mysterious game called? It is a superhero(villain) game known as Infamous: Second Son and is part of the (you guessed it!) the Infamous series which began it's debut back in 2009 where the PS3 was really beginning to build with up with a whole bunch of exclusives enough to make ladders to reach the skies and also the fact that the console got a reduction in it's price. Personally it was also a very nice year for me since it was the time when I got a PS3. :)

Within this series you play as character, Cole Macgrath who gains his electrical superpowers from a strange blast killing everyone after delivering a package where everyone in the surrounding area was obliterated yet at the very centre, he lay at the very centre which poses so many questions for this character. Why did he survive? Why are conduits, superhumans popping up around Empire City (very similar to New York except they have they own deep fries!) but the mos important question of all is, what will you, the player decide to do with these powers. Will you use them to help the struggling in this enclosed city from the rest of the world or become the city's destroyer which will have consequences on the surroundings, how people will react when they see you and even what powers will become more available with the good karma powers usually being more precise to avoid damage to nearby areas and people whereas evil karma will envoke more destructive and explosive abilities which represent Cole's personality.

I really can't say anymore otherwise I could start blurting out some spoilers and nobody wants that so first of all I will talk about what we've seen so far from the trailers, what the developers have said... so like a preview basically however after about half the blog, I will talk about a few of my opinions on whether this is the correct direction for the Infamous series as a long time fan. Well it was my first open world game set in the real world. You know, that's rated 16+... and I didn't have the game taken off me. Of course also, feel free to use the following wallpapers if you wish. :)

Preview

Heading down the path of Infamous 2's good ending after 7 years, it seems that the Conduits are back n action which has been taken down in a more serious direction where Conduits are well known nationwide and maybe internationally. Well at least the MIB now AKA the DUP (Department of Unified Protection) with a new character with a complete new origin story and personality despite what path he may go down. This new character is known as Delsin Rowe. A 24 year old who mostly tends to graffiti all around the city which is pretty much his whole life until he realises he has a new profound ability which many believe that this is fire and smoke powers. Well this is just one of many. What am I getting at? He has the power to absorb other conduits powers starting off by absorbing the powers of a conduit after a bus accident. We may get some pickpocketing missions like Assassin's Creed but for now, this already seems like the series has unlimited possibilities from absorbing destructive powers from lava to ice cream manipulation. Also Explosive Sugar powers would be nice. It gets my vote of course. :D

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This is in fact the first game based in a real life place, Seattle which I believe has a tall tower saucer shaped... tower? Anyways, a better way to preview this and represent this to yuor readers is to post a video. So lets see what we've got...

From this video, it appears that we may see a Sucker Punch reference. I mean if I was making a game, I would have no hesitation to make a mikeerik reference in spunky colours. However we do a see a more personal side to the Infamous set of characters with a Conduit who seems to be a polar opposite to his brother in some aspects. For one, Delsin is basically what he does. Graffiti his way through life with no direction, no purpose for life, most likely something to do with his early backround whereas his older brother is a cop who repeatedly arrests him and both seem to be going in separate directions but there is one thing at least that they do have in common and that seems to be the fact that they both believe that Delsin resents the path he's taking in many ways. However with these new set of powers he can absorb, will the player use this to change the character's life or enhance his path of crime superseding to destruction. Of course many of these questions how they ended with these paths will likely be answered sometime in the game, possibly via references or even flashbacks. It's even possible it makes up for his own name since Delsin is the second son if you will which may mean we could play as the Conduit's parents. Maybe part of the First Sons or even as far back as the Medieval ages because it would be nice to play a game set in the past without wearing a hood with a fancy blade... but they could always make a crossover. It's also possible that he name could be referring to the First Sons organisation's successor, Second Son which could be a plot device for the game. Just thinking out loud here.

Ultimately, it's really too soon to tell whether it will have a story connected with the previous Infamous games. Most likely it will be a standalone story for the next gen so it's a lot easier for newcomers to jump in to the series. So in a way, it may not feature Zeke and his sunglasses that just never come off but rather a brother story which may have it's links to the previous games, it may talk about Cole Macgrath and so forth but in my opinion, it needs to answer several questions which still need to be answered from the very first Infamous.

Now there's not much else that we know about the story and we can only really speculate but the powers seem to just pop out especially in this video...

Powers

From this vid, we can first of all see that it's set in Seattle. That's pretty much settled. Unless anyone has any other suggestions like Mars but there is also the fact that the smoke powers seem a lot more fluid above anything that we saw from sharp shooter Cole. In this way, it's a way of representing of using smoke simply flows in to this character which was also true for Cole but with the PS4 tech, it can run smoother and if he was also given lightning, it would have to be super quick powers too which would ruin this concept. For example, we see that he can glide just like but it's almost like the power's become a part of him and very true for the fact that he can teleport which will be fun to try out but teleportation isn't really something new for the series. In fact one of the most used since we see many of the villains and allies who use it on a daily basis. This was most wanted for Infamous 2 as well which at the time wasn't even announced but it couldn't stop it's fanbase from speculating including me! It was even going to be used for Infamous 2 originally but Sucker Punch scraped it. Maybe it was too much for the system or would just create more glitches but we do know is that they replaced it with a surprising power known as the Lightning Tether to become basically, Spider-Man with some cool effects to sling across the horizon.

There has also been a major change in the gameplay mechanics because not only has it become more based on third person which makes it easier to shoot up enemies with a single dot in the middle of the screen which made it really easy to snipe enemies in Uncharted 3. Shh don't tell anybody. All this firing of fireballs, teleportation and swinging around enemies and simply punching the daylights out of them just makes a beautiful display of what superhumans could look like in the near future of games featuring all sorts of manipulations and lets not forget the Explosive Sugar powers of course.

In this way, it feels like the world is always getting smaller in the world of Infamous. The open world environment will most likely be larger than those in previous games but with every game, the character seems to travel even faster around the city with just a whole bunch of ways to get around whether it's teleporting or gliding on to the high speed train that left without you. Although Delsin has smoke powers, that doesn't limit him from some super travelling. Far from it! It seems like you can use vents and maybe even wind currents could be used to travel along and up in to the sky which may be just one of the many things which you could do throughout the game.

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What we do see after though is something that's being going around in many games such as Battlefield with the Frostbite engine and even before with Infamous 2 with destructible buildings where the sound effects are able to heighten Delsin's power intensity and ultimately destroy buildings to which the PS4's capability can reveal areas to which just the minor things make the whole world feel like a real life X-Men scene with papers flying everywhere and the sunlight's effects on his lifeline. Fire and smoke. In a way this interaction with smoke and fire can be recharged similar to Cole's power since fire can end up anywhere especially in an area where there's a huge amount of explosions. Hint! Hint! Unfortunately, Sucker Punch hid away the the Heads Up Display (HUD) so we don't know whether basic powers will affect the energy meter like it did with Infamous 2.

Like I said though, this is not his core power. He can absorb powers of all Conduits so when he's near  people with superpowers, he can pick them up and it's been announced that there's a whole bunch on the way but some if not all could be temporary so he may only be able to use powers such as leaping when he's in vicinity of the Conduit or for a limited time by absorbing the powers from their face. Sucker Punch have once again refused to reveal anything major about other powers so far but I think for now, it's possible that they could bring back previous powers such as ice and possibly add in a few more powers.Maybe some Adamantium Claws but I think lightning is unlikely. Why? Lightning requires quick movements and sharp effects which may be good for a few people's eyes and give people headaches which would mean they would possibly limit themselves from the audience and with warnings before playing the game and just for all this trouble for one small power? I would think it could be a small option but nothing more.

The game is not without its personal melee attacks. Apart from teleporting right through them and throwing enemies to the ground, it also features a chain as a replacement of the Amp yet more close up and personal yet can be combined with the powers for some cool stunts (sends vids on PS4). Maybe we could even get chain manipulation!

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This trailer all finished with a huge explosion, equivalent to the most powerful abilities of the series, it's also a send off for speculation for a major component of the series. The karma meter. Many people have no idea how this is going to work out since red represents evil whereas blue represents good where Cole's would change more darker or lighter in aspect to that colour for the choices they make and many suggest that this will be the same for Infamous: Second Son and so the flame will become blue. To much as this sounds kinda cool, I think SP have something else up their sleeve. I think that there may be other powers which you could absorb, sacrificing other powers and may represent a karma just like in Infamous 2 but does a power make you more or good or evil? No, it's the one behind the powers and what you do with it so Deslin's face and maybe attitude may be the thing that tips players off of what karma he represents.

Added to this, there's also the fact that there could even be a neutral karma. SP have tried to add this in the first game. It failed. They tried again with the next game and yet again, it was scraped. Maybe because of the fact it would feel too much like other Role Playing Games (RPGs) with 3 choices and would seem kind of silly with just bland choices of doing nothing. In a way I think it could work especially with the yellow colour proposed but it would be more about finding information and protecting himself so that he could use powers of invisibility and stunning. Then again, many people just want to play the game as a full on hero or villain but they could add in many choices like Mass Effect so that you could become exclusive to something like a Thug by graffiting areas and maybe using the spray as a flammable source and destroy the city, becoming truly Infamous. Many fans don't even wish for a choice system at all, therefore no karma but it's a core mechanic for the series. It's why it's called Infamous!

So this game is looking to be a masterpiece in many ways, thrilling fans and newcomers at E3 with impressive graphics and using the potential of the next en which is why it's one of the few games announced for only next gen rather than for current gen too. However considering the path they took to go with this game will mean it will need a cool story to link everything together and the powers is what seems to be the things that will draw gamers the most. However even though it will have a standalone personal story, it doesn't seem so bad and this may also bring many games with new characters so it's possible this could be the only time we see Delsin unless it starts a new series but there are many ways where I believe Sucker Punch could have gone down different paths, not just for Infamous: Second Son but the whole series so now for those who just came here for the preview, I bid you far well and if you wish to comment, skip all the following writing because what's next is based on a few of my ideas which contain heavy spoilers for the series so if you've played both Infamous and Infamous 2 or just don't mind spoilers, feel free to read on. :)

Is it the right direction? (Spoilers!)

Recap

Lets recap what happened previously in the series. The Beast was destroying everything but after finding out the truth, it seems to confuse Cole whether or not he is making the right choice in developing his powers to power up the RFI to stop the Beast. The Beast was in fact formed out of the idea to activate Conduit genes in order so that Conduits become immune to the plague which seems impossible to cure. It's neither bacterial nor viral but like radiation created from the effects of the Ray Sphere's blast. This is where Cole is given the choice to choose the good karma motive to use the RFI which would destroy all the Conduits but hopefully stop the Plague for good. However he could also go with the evil karma choice and side with The Beast, the very thing, he and his future self yearned to destroy in order to protect the 1 in 1000 people. In a way, it's more about your opinion since the practice of The Beast's methods has been seen and we don't know anything about the creator Sebastian Wolf AKA Morgan Freeman. The RFI was originally created to defeat The Beast but also stop the Plague but then again, it's still a prototype in it's own right, the ability to stop The Plague could be secondary so may not be so focused on eliminating the disease and we don't know whether Wolf secretly ha something against the Conduits. Either way, this is what happens in each ending...

Good ending

Evil ending

Is this good?

You may be asking why am I bringing this up? Well Infamous: Second Son is heading down the good ending but I can't help but think that this is a bad decision. In many ways, it feels a lot like a cliche and too much like superhero fiction we couldn't see coming from a few miles away. Sure it could be involved abut a Conduit recessive gene but I think the only way that the good ending choice would become something more is that The Beast is something different than a normal individual. I believe that is it's more like an entity. An entity that clings on to the most powerful Conduit, enveloping them with incredible power but then after they have fallen but detects a Conduit with much more powerful potential, it'll transfer on to that Conduit, continuing the cycle. All the characters have a name, nothing like Superman or Wonder Woman but their own original name... apart from the The Beast and this name could apply to many other Conduits. Ultimately becoming a curse to the Conduits should they ever become too powerful.

This is just an idea of mine but also when I was seeing Infamous: Second Son after missing the 20th February announcement, I rushed back to see the reveal of one of my favourite series and found that the next Infamous game shown at from the E3 trailer supported my theory since Delsin seemed like he feels powerful and doesn't care who he hurts similar to Evil Cole. Although it was too quick to judge the character, he may turn in to this shape of personality later on in Infamous: Second Son and the player will decide whether he will control this Beast taking over. His powers first of all raised my eyebrow and I'm sure it did with many other fans too since the powers are so similar to that of The Beast's. Heck, before even seeing the description for this game, I thought it was The Beast in Kessler's timeline or a completely new one. I did believe that The Beast was John White since someone who's usually consumed by a high energy explosion in a sci-fi is likely to return from but in a different form. Sometimes beloved or more sinister... or just like their normal selves. He even said he had to pull himself together from his very atoms. Atoms are smaller than genes so we must be dealing with a being that is beyond what we understand. However I was always and still am sceptical about The Beast in the previous timeline since an entire set of events would have occurred and Kessler wouldn't have seemed to kindly at the fact there was a being more powerful than himself when John infiltrated the First Sons.

In fact John wasn't even meant to be in the original game at least with an appearance. It was only because the developers thought of the idea where Moya was lying and John became more than just a few Dead Drop message pick ups which was some good news for Phil LaMarr to get back in the game. So personally, I think The Beast was made to answer the existence of the mysterious Kessler which might explain why Alden survived since he may have been the new runner up for The Beast. Well originally.

However it wouldn't be mean that Cole's sacrifice would be in vain. Now, they would know how to control The Beast and maybe even co-exist with this entity but in a way Infamous: Second Son does look like it could be more detached from the original Infamous storyline and I think it's unfair that everyone's against the Conduits even though word would have spread from New Marais.

Evil ending?

I heard about Infamous: Second Son being set after the evil ending which I know that's not true now and I was against the idea since the good karma is usually the canon option but now I'm starting to doubt myself about it. To be honest, I think that both choices should be canon and maintain a unique perspective where the good karma choice could end the series has ended. Cole made the sacrifice of the Conduits and thus himself but allowing the Human race to survive and live on without fear of The Beast. However with the evil ending, the story will never end. It will continue with many characters both connected and disconnected from The Beast AKA Cole's storyline creating all kinds of storylines, characters and a whole range of possibilities. Now that I think about it, it could become something like the Star Wars Expanded Universe. Therefore overall, it would respect the player's choice for both endings so one that ends the story whereas one that continues the story on forever after one ultimate choice. This way, they could still involve Delsin in the game and I could see a sense of dread and foreshadowing as The Beast is approaching as it's new version, Cole who won't give up without destroying a city or something and maybe before he reaches the city, he uses holographic powers to communicate with Delsin, guiding him with new powers, maybe in like a hood so he's representing his Kessler side of "The ends justify the means" which would make a lot of sense.

The developers even said that were originally going down the evil ending and that's probably why many of us were mistaken that was the path it was going down and they changed it at the last minute. They explained that they wished to go with ending that respected Cole's death the most but it's complicated and can go both ways. First of all, it would mean that Cole's death is canon by heading down the good route and changed the world but in many ways, it seems in vain unless they have a great story which I think may be up the developers sleeve but then again if it went down the evil ending, it would seem cool that Cole's death is final so it's best to carry on with the other ending but then again, it would mean Cole's still alive.

The previous games? 

This makes me wonder whether the developers have missed out on many other possibilities too. Say if I was making Infamous 2, I would have made the series a trilogy. At the time when I was thinking about my idea, Infamous 2 hadn't even have been announced yet and I was obsessed with duologies for some reason but for Infamous, I thought it would be great to make it a trilogy at least with Cole since Infamous 2 could be about developing powers and answering many things about the First Sons and so many of the mysteries of the Infamous series still in another city. Even bring Richard Tate. A powerful telekinesis user wouldn't give up without a fight and maybe Trish could be a Conduit too yet her power formed much slower and she can become her dream to heal people and even bring herself back to life but she could also go down a dark path and would effect Cole dearly. Then in Infamous 3, Cole ends up in a destroyed Empire City where he sees flashbacks of preparing to fight The Beast similar to something in Uncharted 2. In my opinion, The Beast was pretty disappointing in Infamous 2 and it was even one of the easiest bosses I've ever fought against. I loved the gravitational powers but having a character of normal size would have made it more personal and if we could see everything in the vision from the first Infamous like the generation of volcanoes, I think that would have been awesome but maybe something for a PS4 game.

The fact that the Moon is shattered could have an affect on the ending too since if the Moon was destroyed even in the Infamous 2 we got, Earth's systems wouldn't be used without the Moon's gravity so the Earth will be going all over the place making it difficult for life especially with Cole when tsunamis would appear out of nowhere. Not a good time to have electricity powers. However it turns out The Beast is the only thing keeping the world together so for a good choice, Cole could kill The Beast and find a way to survive or absorb his powers to make the world gravitational stable.

Also, I think Cole's appearance should have changed in some way. Not like the Infamous 2 complete design. I don't mind characters changing appearance and I was even for the choice 2 years ago but since this was a direct sequel without any reason, it would have distanced players from the series and I wouldn't have seen him as Cole. I mean tattoos and larger muscles in less than a month? 0_o Unless he's just regenerated from David Tennant (the secret 11th doctor), I do believe like many that he was made to look like Nathan Drake since at the time, Uncharted was on fire and with a character with a familiar face would attract a bunch of PS3ers but I think it should have gone more to Cole's art design rather than the trailer so that he has more hair since he's been through a lot to to the barbers yet looks slightly similar to his original self. Wait! Plot hole! Shouldn't lightning make his hair stick up?

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In some ways I think that the Cole story after the original Infamous should have been left alone. You may think I'm crazy (dodges bullets) but with Infamous, we're left with the city's saviour or destroyer. In fact the good karma is canon since the comics can't take place with an evil Cole working with Warden Harms and the police and Evil Cole will most likely zap any outsiders entering the city but you can still continue with evil karma in Infamous 2 because otherwise fans would go crazy so I think it should have been left alone so there could be other games on other characters, maybe even trilogies where each game will affect the next one and add more lore and hints to who The Beast could be and whether Cole will be able to defeat him/her/it depending on his karma and so forth. Plus it would be left to the player's imagination what happens to the outside world with Empire City adding to the mystery but nonetheless, I'm glad the way the series has gone. Why do you think I'm the No.1 fan? ;)

So that's it I'm afraid. This blog seemed a little longer than I hoped.

So before I leave the stage, what do you think of Infamous: Second Son and do you think it's been the right direction for the series?

Thanks for reading! Hope you enjoyed. :)

Infamous: Second Son Gamescom

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Hey everyone! Yet another Infamous: Second Son blog but before you decide to get some food, it won't be a large blog, well as not large as my latest ones so you won't have to worry about reaching for some snacks... hopefully. I would just like to say first that I don't really write many reviews or previews for that matter but this game will be an exception. I have already written my preview and you can be sure that I will write a review about it once I get my hands to play on this lucky game! However until then, I will write a few blogs about the news and trailers we have about the game. Maybe something I should have done with Assassin's Creed 3 instead of me sending lots updates to people (AKA spam) but who resit? :)

Anyways, as many of us know, Gamescom was yesterday and for those who didn't know, it's probably a wake up call to watch some cool trailers. They were many surprises and for many people, disappointment. A common theme throughout every year and every event where we hope that our wonder games will be revealed next time. Infamous: Second Son was one of the lucky ones to get another trailer and considering it'll be released in February 2014 exclusive to PS4, we're still a bit of a way from playing the next instalment of the Superhero... or villain series (you decide) and so it's understandable that we won't get many information for now compared to some of the biggest games to be released this year like Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag and Battlefield 4 but don't threat! We'll still get plenty of trailers at the VGAs and around Christmas. :)

I'm getting ahead of myself here so I'll start this blog off with the trailer that was released yesterday where I'll make an analysis from it as well as a few of my thought and what could be in the game. Plus I will separate the paragraphs with some screenshots that have been released so you don't fall asleep. Enjoy!

So we have a character known as Abigail Walker and one of the few characters in the series to have an alter ego name which in her case is known as Fetch, aside from the fact that the camera has full battery, it seems like many of the Conduits in the series who is prepared to kill without mercy and even has revealed her own set of ideals which we will mostly see more varied Conduits with many personalities and their goals in the series.

^ Free hugs!

Next, it turns over Delsin Rowe who is able to gain access in to DUP gates and will be like the previous games and slightly unique to many open world games where you start off secluded on one island or one district controlled by a certain individual and once you defeat a boss or manage to break out, you're able to see the rest of the city where powers have broadened up and can see the whole world in a different way with many unique environments. So from the console Delsin failed to activate, it seems that you can use an assortment of tricks from the PS4 controller with the new touch pad. I think it's possible that it could allow you to play puzzles or allow a chance for the game to test the player's ability of reaction time but if you fail, you'll have to turn Deslin in to a scene from an action movie. Ultimately dividing action and puzzles for the easy way to get around. Then again, it could just be a cutscene. :P

^ My avatar for now. :)

A lot of the powers of smoke and fire, we've already seen many of the abilites this young character can perform but some new ones have emerged from the trailer like power to destroy everything in your path by leaping in to the air and punching the living daylights out of the ground at 0:32 which is common upon much of the series already but another seems pretty new at 0:36 where the fire rocket seems to flow in to a spiral. Possibly a new upgrade for the previous powers in the E3 gameplay trailers hinting we'll be able to use a system like that of Infamous 2 where it's optional to choose different versions of your powers whether it's firing 3 shots from Cole Macgrath's lightning arm or using it like a machine gun with rapid fire.

^ It appears like we're gonna be using both a melee weapon and fists. My dream Infamous is coming true!

Delsin arrives at what appears to be Abigail's... Fetch's... residence and a energy source for her powers if not a catalyst unless Delsin was chasing her in an Uncharted inspired scene. Maybe a boss fight scene takes place but this is what became one of the highlight's of the trailer. First of all we see his brother supporting him so he will probably act like Zeke in a way so as a non-conduit but supporting anyway he can... unless he is Zeke who lost a little bit of weight. However what was truly remarkable is that we finally got to see Delsin's main power. To absorb other powers which has seemed to take a whole 6 months, half a year to see in action. Although it seems like Delsin doesn't agree with his brother to leave her there or kill her and decides to absorb her powers from himself.It's very possible this could be a Karma moment. Maybe good karma could represent his brother's choice and may even spare enemy Conduits to join him whereas evil would simply steal away their powers, maybe even their whole body. I also think that they could even go with a neutral Karma gameplay mechanic. They have tried it in the very first Infamous and Infamous 2 but scraped it. If so, they could just leave the Conduit where they are and run away.

^ Smile for the weapons! :D

Before I talk about the power he pickpockets, there is one more thing I would like to talk about and that would be and that would be the way the main character talks. Unless they've taken away the Karma choice and it's all linear which I don't think they would do, it looks like an evil karma choice has more emphasis around the scene. In the first Infamous, the good and evil choices wasn't exactly the most developed formula for the series and even though Infamous 2 improved it, sometimes the story seemed linear and not a realistic as it could be. However, it looks like the Infamous: Second Son scene could provide more tone to the character and makes you connect where he is going in his life and in a way, a much darker character unless this is like a tutorial for the game for Karma choices and maybe we'll sacrifice powers for other powers so stealing Fetch's will gain you negative karma since she might not be a bad person but for positive karma, a DUP member looks like another victim for the superpower pickpocketer. Overall, his brother marks as a story element Delsin may convince him that he needs the powers to fight off more powerful enemies where his brother could try to stop him especially if he truly Infamous and ultimately the choices and consequences may have an impact on their relationship as brothers and their fate in the endings.

^ I just wanted a handshake!

After this questioning scene, it's possible Fetch tries to defend herself but her powers are underpowered by Delsin's magnet of powers abilities as shown in the pic above. This is where we see fragments of her life and thus maybe can absorb everything of her including her memories, not just her abilities and intelligence of the DUP which could use the comic book scenes to make Infamous and superhero fans feel right at home with the new direction and style of the Infamous series. It kinda reminds me of Prototype and who knows? Maybe we'll get a few side missions of stealing powers and also an Alex Mercer skin... or hood. ;)

^ Please get me some sunglasses!

So what power does Mr.Rowe absorb from Madame Walker? Well... it's a mystery unless I've missed something but I don't think it's electric powers. I know what you're thinking. Shocking! Although it could be something slightly close. It could still be energy but just pure energy absorbing energetic substances and use it for his own will but it could also be Neon. This is why I'm so exited. Not only is it a lesser known superpower, if it's ever been used at all before but it's one of my favourite elements. Yes, I do have my own list of elements and Neon is one of my favourites, mostly at the fact that is allowed me to win a test but also, it would fit right at home in the Infamous series since it's used in lights for signs all around large cities and it has even been used for the name of a district in the original game. However it also flows very well and like we see from the Anvil Next engine in Assassin's Creed 3, it would be great to walk past and absorbing energy without having to stop and make a static recharge but instead walk past and let it flow just like how you can slice up enemies on the go in AC3 when on the run.

Many people don't think there was much revealed than was hoped for Gamescom which is true to a certain extent but with this trailer, you have to read more between the lines. The release is still a little far away so Sucker Punch are gonna keep a lot of things a secret but it revealed at the kind of characters we'll meet, both allies and enemies and also Delsin's true power. Power absorption. However what I mean by read between the lines is that this could be a recurring theme and poses many questions. We'll see the comic scenes to add a more superhero feel to the game as always but is this scene part of a karma choice? Will the powers change the fell of the game significantly? Does it have a karma choice at all?

So that's it and remember to stay tuned to many more updates. I would just like to say that the last scene where it transfers from Delsin's energy at the end over to the PS4 logo reminds me of the PS Move. Does anyone else think that?

Thanks for reading! Hope you enjoyed. :)

Guess the country 3

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So we're back for another epic episode of "Guess the Country." A game based on 10 pics which apply all to one country so not one each. By that I mean there is only one country for an answer. Just so there's not a whole bunch of 10 answers and if you wish, feel free to use the pics as wallpapers but remember, I take no credit for these photos. Just to make sure I don't be rung by the photo police.

For long time fans of this series, the answer to the previous blog was The Netherlands! However this time round, it's much more challenging since the answer is an island sovereign state or country in other words... and there's like a few thousand islands, well including those stepping stones, it's a few million. I better start counting...

So here we go and have fun working out the answer! You'll need it! :)

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So there you have it! Good luck. :D

Thanks for reading! Hope you enjoyed. :)

New MyIGN games!

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It seems like a whole month or even more since I last wrote a few of my ideas for a theoretical MyIGN console which means it's only fair to write a few more of my ideas for a set of MyIGN exclusives right now for the MyIGN console... if that makes sense. Writing this now, I'm not sure how long this blog will be so I will only write a few ideas for now since there's too many to write out but could please you MyIGNers if it actually became a reality since I aim to explore all sorts of potential within several genres and I'm sure other video game developers. Wait! Scratch that other word. I'm not a video game designer yet! :D So if you're new or a fan of my blogs, you know the drill! Prepare your snacks, sit back and relax to enjoy the show! :)

Deathtination

This game is set around a couple named Elise who works for a secret military organization and Andrew who have arranged to go on to their honeymoon to a lodge in Norway which Andrew built himself so he wouldn't really have to pay for any mortgage or whatever. They seem happy and like everything will only become better for their lives... but this ultimately turns in to the polar opposite where they are abducted taken to a lab and fitted with cybernetic wings attached to their exoskeleton giving them both dreams of flight. Many vivid but many difficult to understand and extremely painful both physically and mentally. Elise is able to break out of her liquid container. It's a cold and darks place filled with uncertainty and right beside her is Andrew's tank. She tries to comprehend what she has on her back and attempts to break it off but is somehow able to activate the locking system for his tank. Andrew is flushed out and believed to be dead, she goes in to frightful rage where unconscious actions from herself and the wings help her to escape.

Over time, she is able adapt to what she calls a contraption over each non linear mission and instead is able to unlock some secrets as well as memories of those she doesn't even know AKA those focused on the wing project. A lot of this takes place in Scandinavia which is mostly the countries in Northern Europe such as Volcanic Iceland, Gamerland Finland and Awesome Norway. You get the idea. Anyways this however means that it can explore many locations not seen in many games such as violent coasts battered by the forces of nature, oil rigs in the stormy North Sea and beautiful landscapes of Fjords.

Taking place over a whole year, Elise adapts to the environment and becomes like a Hawk figure, able to hunt in non-linear areas both vertical and to the horizon and as she gains more armour and technology, she can use abilities from using lasers to break apart castles secretly containing labs to a rock proof suit which means she can dive from hundreds of feet in the air to her target, usually ripping apart everything in a crater form when she hits the ground, breaking up rocks and flesh. No matter if it's Human or building. Things will get messy. Although this also tests her abilities when cybernetic Humans with several abilities of their own from jumping high distances giving them a good kick to the face and electric robots are ordered to take her down but then again, she can always defend herself with the wings.

After many times of travelling past cities, gathering data, fleeing from brutal enemies and being mistaken for Superman, she is able to control these abilities and can retract her wings at will in order to access ferry lines to place transmitters and hide away while listening to her enemies spill the beans of what she's searching for.

This leads to many boss fights where the commander of these cyborgs and robots becomes fed up personally engages in a fight with her leaving them both scarred yet Elise is able to use some sort of telepathic connection with her, obtaining her memories and gaining the truth that her husband is still alive but barely in another facility in Svalbard, an island north of Norway. The commander knocks her out yet when Elise wakes up, she's still alive hinting that they won't her to die and Andrew is important to them. Using a few assets, she is able to make arrangements for a boat ride and after sailing in to some rough storms, it comes under attack by some more flying robots she's never met before which turn out to be cyborgs close to herself. She knows she's getting close to the center of the twisted experiments. She finds a lab using her powers to locate it which is encased in snow underground and within mountains. Massive in scale, but she's able to find some ways around all the complex defences and booby traps (no pun intended).

There she finds the commander and engages in one final fight. Learning from the commander's moves, she's able to get the upper hand this time round. However through painful screaming from the commander as Elise's vengeance to take the commander's helmet off takes a hold which brings a revelation. The commander is a friend or was a friend at the military but is told that the members all signed a contract about doing anything necessary for experimental weapons. Elise thinks back and realises she did sign the contract but didn't know it would lead sickening experiments. She just thought she was gonna design high tech weapons. If she never broke out of her tank, she may have been forced to join and in a way, is still  running away. She notices her friend's wings had been cut off from the intense fight which she realises is a death wish to even try removing the devices. In her final words, she explains, the technology provides cyborgs to communicate with each other but Elise's is not perfected so she still needs time to develop her powers but she's not sorry and triggers an emergency detonation within Andrew's tank.

She finds Andrew aware of her presence but there's a problem. Since she broke him out so easily, he has been attached to a mechanism behind his back so the only way to break him out would mean she would have to rip in to his chest and and break the mechanism which she does in indecision with only a few seconds to decide. Not knowing whether she can mentally break the connection. She breaks him out just in time but is already on the brink of death. Elise begins reflecting on the past times they had together via flashbacks. Both in a state of shock and shacking. Elise from the fear of losing her best friend and Andrew from the intense pain shrouding his mind. With this, she decides to have a thought and looks at the wing from the commander. The wing is still in perfect condition and understands how surgery works via her powers which hints that in a desperate attempt to save him, she may proceed with replacing his body with a set of wings therefore making a new life support system and have the receive the same fate she has but it's left unknown...

Rising Wolf

The war of World War 2 rages in this open world game and even though it seems like the Nazis are going to lose the war, a 32 year old British spy trained to hunt down the generals no matter what is tasked with eliminating a powerful general who is going to use secret technology to escape who is located in a remote region in Germany. After parachuting in to Germany and using stealth to get past enemies driving away from the area, he reaches a mansion to which he is told, houses a superweapon capable of winning the war and who knows what else. It's deserted with many scientists dead with only the trace of drawings for their blueprinted designs. He finally fins the general escaping in to a secret passage and after a gun shooting chase which was what the spy was trained for, they reach a secluded room where the general disappears and transforms in to a Wolf crawling in to a crack in the wall, to small for a Human to fit through. Only where another Wolf remains to sit, the only part of life existing within the entire building aside from the spy himself and thoughts that maybe the device nearby could do the same thing because it was the only way to stop the general by any means necessary. He grabs the device and ultimately he sees the world through the eyes of the Wolf where he sees his Human body fall right in front of him.

This however creates many questions Did the Wolf transfer in to his body? Will he ever be able to return back to his body? Where is the General's body? Either way, he found it difficult to move but in a way he felt supported by a force he didn't understand yet it helped and he began using his new found animal senses to sniff out the general. After finding a scent, his journey leads him though several countries and forests and in a way comprehending the reality around him with the beginning of the Cold War. In a way, it's a game where you can see the historical world through the eyes of an animal.

^There's a little snow on my nose... where's my handkerchief?

However unlike many Wolves which kill cattle and can wound and even kill Humans, he is able to communicate with both Wolves and Humans using several actions like rolling over which will be seen differently by different people. To some, it may bring happiness to viewers, others may try to hunt him and many could just walk by. He can affect the world around though such as when he a family is put at risk by a pack of Wolves, he is able to step in and stop that, ultimately creating alliances of 2 fronts which helps in the open world environment stretching from Germany and France, all the way to Great Britain and the USSR. With this, he can sniff out or answer to a call for help that only he can hear in order to create new friends and enemies and also create puzzles and crime scenes for the gamer to sit, wonder and wag their tail. :D Throughout the game, it makes the character wonder who is in control of the body but through dreams, the spy appears in his own body with the wolf he is in the body of. Both active and alive and in a way propels the character to find answers.

After losing what seemed to be an eternal scent of the enemy, a few years later, he discovers his luck has changed where he finds a scene full of gore but his senses tell them it's fresh and runs after in the direction to the enemy. This however turns in to difficult situation where he is shot by a bunch of hunters and finds the general in completely different clothing than when he last saw him in a Nazi uniform who tells him that he will destroy the United States as a beacon that World War 2 has not finished.This confuses the spy because why is he not a Wolf too? The general gives permission to skin the animal to the hunters just before they are ambushed by a few of the spy's friends and runs after the general. He leaps on to the boat making it's way to the next world but suddenly he hits his head while sliding down the boats ramp but ultimately undetected.

By the time he makes his way out of his sleep and yet another meeting with Mr. Wolf in his dream, he wakes up, looking around the vessel and finds that they have reached New York. An entire sea away from his home but he couldn't give up. This was the last time to stop his enemy so after a chase through an alleyway. The General shows off his true power. He is a shapeshifter and tells the spy, the transference for him was a one way trip in which he laughs at the spy and they both make a growling (get it?) fight as Wolves. Stopping the Nazi threat but left in an entirely new world but realises that the Wolf never left it's body. They both reside within the body where the Wolf has been guiding him and giving him strength in order to empower his enemies but if the Wolf does take over is a mystery. In the ending, the wolf opens his mouth and says "Adventure" as a Human would meaning that it could be more than just a body transference but affecting the voice box.

Centauri

Taking place in 2180 as a linear game, Earth has changed vastly in terms of technology where Humans have been able to cross past many planets, create colonies and have already begun the terraforming (making a planet, Earth like) process of Mars. However Humans attitudes and desires haven't changed one bit. If anything, it's become darker and companies pretty much run the whole Solar System where mining for minerals is essential for many which could also promote the country they stand for and it doesn't seem like they're having second thoughts about wasting it. In this case, the Japanese company has even developed faster than light travel. The use of singularities and mini black holes which can propel the spacecraft much faster but in this world, it's a dangerous method in a dangerous world so they keep it to themselves and begin to create a team to become the first Humans to reach the closest Star system to our very own. Yet another amazing achievement for mankind and also the fact that Proxima Centauri holds a potential habitable planet (not in real life but it's always possible) The leader of this team is a 42 year old woman named Akiko which is the Japanese word for sparkle. This makes her professional in her work but in this world, the oldest person to live was about 206 so anti-ageing cream does seem have a literal meaning. They blast off in to the stars on a journey which would usually take a few dozen years with the Human tech currently but only a few months with the upper hand they have. If they put more research in to this faster than light method, they could reach the system in just a few days but this seemed just to good to be true. Plus testing on Earth would be very risky.

However before I go any further, I'll just explain a few things about the Centauri system if you get confused about the science mumble jumble.

Alpha Centauri is a triple star system with 2 stars known as G2 stars. Stars which are very much close to our own where Alpha Centauri A is the largest and 10% larger than our own Sun whereas Alpha Centauri B is slightly smaller than the Sun yet they both orbit a center mass. They have similar but unequal mass so their orbits can vary from the orbit equivalent to the distance of the Sun to Pluto to the Sun to Saturn. I hope that makes sense. :)

In Space news, there is even a planet orbiting Apha Centauri B and possibly the closest extrasolar planet (planets outside of the Solar System) to our own but don't get your hopes up. It orbits the star in 3 days, 5 hours... you get the idea. So not an ideal place to visit unless you want to flame up some burgers. Proxima Centauri on the other hand orbits the whole array of the orbit means. It is much smaller since it is a Red Dwarf and so it produces less heat but it can live on for many millions of years, perhaps billions of years more than our own Sun.

Anyways... when the team reaches Proxima Centauri, they land on it's only orbiting planet which is pretty barren but it contains something vital for life... well most life. Clean liquid water. There doesn't seem to be any virus or bacteria that could threaten them if they drank it. They have found a new Earth. Suddenly, they realise they were followed. A rival organisation who is in no means friendly. I mean, this far in Space, no one will hear you scream! So they are forced to travel past the star, thinking that their forcefields can hold out  against the heat and turbulence but it seems that the rival ship is tougher than they fought. They make the unthinkable thing and decide to delve further in the star which rips apart their engine and then there is darkness.

They wake up escaping from the star, unknowing what just happened but it seems like the enemy ship has disappeared. Yay! However it seems like the planet is different. It has water covered all over it! They don't understand what happened and so they make their way to the planet's surface finding that the scenery is stunning. Amazing coastlines, clear, pure landscapes of the snow and finally the beautiful display of the 2 Alpha Centauri stars. I lived always liked fiction exploring all kinds of planets which have unique environments and creatures so in this game, it truly feels alien. After drinking and gathering several litres of water, Akiko leads the team across many terrains in search for answers. One of the scientists come up with the idea that the engine exploded causing them to go back in time via a wormhole. They were using high gravity devices afterall. Many disbelieve this thinking that they've travelled to another location but in this universe, disbelieving could lead to (IGN)orance.

After crossing many unique environments such as seas full of sea monsters, metallic quicksand pits and crystalline ice caps. With this game, you can use the feature of a camera to use the visual scenery or a badass stance of the characters so people can use them as wallpapers and add cool affects. Truly a game for the artistic and what better way than to show them off to your friends. ;)

Over the course of the game, one of the characters seems to becoming more violent to which they believe he is suffering from a type of paranoia but what's strange is that he's exhibiting signs of extreme high intelligence by writing down random calculations that no one can understand... and he doesn't even like maths! To their surprise they find an abandoned city with highly advanced technology. However they are able to work some of the technology no matter how alien they were and find a Human holographic programme talking about a warning to leave the planet due to a virus within the water they gathered. This confuses the team but then the programme informs them, the virus was too small to see and thus infected the whole population it seems where people became more violent yet unusually smart in areas which they didn't even know about with a final depiction of a Human with red eyes known as the Centauri virus which takes a few years to manifest with Earth's timeline dated, 2406. The scientist was right, well partly. They had gone to the future. Way too much to the future to do a thing about it and using the gravitational technology to travel back would be risky and may even travel further to the future. They don't even have the resources.

They know the symptoms is happening to one of the characters but they discover a database station orbiting the star which could even contain a cure as well as plenty of ships to take. So they travel quickly to the base which appears to be a simple dome with a landing bay. They find huge amounts of megalithic chambers full of data and it looks like a place full of marvel yet mystery. Who knows what they could find. Afterall, they all drank the water.They all have the Centauri virus. However it seemed like the one infected may of had a different immune system or the virus could even be more powerful. There was no time to wait but... it was too late. The victim's eyes turned pure red and began ripping out wires and setting a collision course with the star. The team is able to hold him back where Akiko tells them all to evacuate while she finds the data. She frantically searches through the data where the victim tells her the virus was never cured and begins to show signs he is trying to fight off the virus's effects. She believes him and tells her to evacuate. She refuses but he pushes her away telling her to go. She is forced to leave him making a sacrifice while looking through her spaceship's window but gives them a chance to find the answers and maybe inform Earth of what has happened. unless they have already been infected. The new found spaceships can travel incredibly fast now than their old tin bucket. It's so 22nd century! So they travel the great distances in to the unknown.

Rainfall

This is the only FPS of the games I've mentioned on this list although it won't fell so much like a shooter... well it will. You'll find out soon. ;)

Taking place when a group of soldiers in armoured suits start a war against Humanity just out of the blue, recruiting random people being referred as the "chosen ones" and killing others, Detective Simpson (yes it is a reference to the TV show) is caught in the middle of this violence in New York and only just surviving out of this brutal faction's uprising and becomes one of the many refugees yet the faction just keeps on expanding and when Simpson arrives to many areas in the world, he finds very bizarre things happening in the world.

So what are these places? Well they include real life locations but added with their own unique twist and boss battles. These locations include...

Miami half engulfed by a Giant Squid

Los Angeles consumed by a snowstorm creating stories of snow with monsters that made of snow and can create themselves in to snow whirlpools in open areas

St. Lucia turned in to a crisp volcanic floor full of lava pits and giant flying Dinosaurs

London being ripped apart by continuous tornadoes that appear out of nowhere

Tokyo patrolled by Lions

Moscow ripped up from the ground and put in to an anti gravity state miles above the surface of what it should be and so the faction with gas masks can thrive

Many of you may have laughed but I think mixing up some random things would actually turn out really cool, especially for a shooter since in the different environments you will need to use different techniques to survive in these massive environments such as in Los Angeles, you will need to keep within range of buildings or at least shelter in this ever changing environment and in Moscow, ziplines is the best way to travel and you can find advantages of cutting of air supplies in order to defeat large amounts of enemies without lifting a gun.

However that's not necessarily the gameplay. The focus of the gameplay is about making your own unique weapon and combinations. From shooting out your tornadoes with lasers shooting out to creating liquid nitrogen all across the family. With this, you will get your very own virtual warehouse which allows you to test out your creations such as what methods to shoot your guns. For example, when using lava, would you like to make your elements and weapons of destruction of fire in a catapult form shoot fireballs every second, a spray, breaking the ground to rip out lava? You decide! Want fill up your gun? Just go right ahead to the volcanic pit and fill up your ultimate weapon. Want to make multiple lasers and elements to your gun such as mixed water and electricity for some extra damage to certain enemies.? Well why not even make more with the MyIGN console capabilities and MyIGN controller which can flip open a light attachment on either side which features some extra buttons. :)

Of course though, this will depend on what location you are. You can return to back to these open world environments but Simpson will need to adapt in order to survive in each zone and throughout the game can even gain the support of enemies by turning in to them such as becoming a Lion in Tokyo to see a new aspect to the world. That's right! You can make your own suits as well to add some more melee with added spikes and even surrounding the suit with an element so it might frighten off enemies or damage them if they get too close.

So back to the story, throughout travelling to these locations, the story also shifts on to 3 siblings 20 years ago. A sister and 2 younger brothers who are on the run in linear missions but adding more to the story. The older brother begins arguing splitting up him and his sister but over time he begins developing ideas that the world will always be in conflict unless it becomes an inter connected society that lives on forever. These pass down to the faction terrorising the globe meaning that he could possibly be the one who begun or is even controlling the faction right now since the faction uses extreme anti-natalist policies which prevent the existence of fertility rates in order to prevent generations of Humans from rebelling against them. After the older brother abandons the sister, he takes his younger brother with him and try to get within a military base. It begins to rain where he calls the rainfall amazing. Hence the game's name. After much shooting and blood, the older brother is badly injured but tells his younger brother to carry on his work. His younger brother is able to escape death but it makes the gamer realise that over the course of the game, the younger brother was caught in the middle of his older brother's rants about the world, thus making him the leader of the faction in which he names, Rainfall.

In the modern day, the sister begins working with Simpson which helps him to progress further within missions but when they reach what appears a teleportation device, she is transported to which she's in a room over looking the galaxy and sees her youngest brother as he would look now but there's something different. He's inter grated within some sort of system. He tells her that to find the truth about everything and how to alter time, he became one with it, ultimately fulfilling time's promises. She has no idea what he's talking about but she becomes upset at the fact that he's become a murderer. Further more, he used highly advanced technology to create portals to alternate universes of the Earth thus the explanation for all the creatures but is allowed to cut them off. Everything then fades in to darkness. and she's brought back to the world and realises, it was a communication device but this raises many questions. What is the Time her younger brother is communicating with? Now that the portals are cut of, what creatures and secrets still live within the world? Why did her brother even allow her to cut of the portals?

Thrill Riders

The first full on racing game I have announced. This game tests the player in many situations. Well most commonly in some of the most dangerous weather and places in the world. From raging tornadoes to fiery volcanoes and many things to stop your way to the finish line from alien spacecraft to dragons. However with this danger comes a lot of comedy. Why? Many rival racing groups decide to pit themselves against each other who all act differently. As an example of what they're like and where the comedy is, well it's a crazy game like Saints Row and Just Cause where you can jump up in the air with the high speed cars you have. Talk about off the seat action and the group and rivals are always communicating to each other via headsets and when going past a character, they'll say funny remarks. This means that you can see the characters more than most racing games so customisation of characters is yours for the taking.So who wouldn't want to pit themselves against some wacky racers from professionals to talking Crocodiles.

Burning Stones

After reading one of my books which has a whole bunch of dust since I last read it, I decided to try out my good old Horrible Histories and with that, I couldn't help but make an open world game set around the old Incan Empire. After a British traveller, Charles ends up in South America, he falls in love with a woman within the Incan empire who find each other strange at first but ultimately, he decides to stay in the new world. This leads to many children being born. Not the 50 children to get the highest medal but instead 4 children. One of which is named as Amaru referring to a large type of Snake which is different from many family names since many refer to the microlocation they originate from yet he lives up to his name by being stealthy yet cunning in finding easy routes for killing prey. Anyways, before he reaches his teenage years, he is ordered to be sacrificed and the fact that Charles doesn't believe in the Incan traditions means that someone from the empire watches over him during the ceremony. As they walk up the mountain, he tries to think of ways out of the problem but on this long journey, he fins an odd looking stone. In a way, a blue sapphire that seems fascinate him but shows no one and keeps it for himself. He places his son on the floor and and thinks of an idea to throw the knife to the watcher but pauses and hesitates from killing his own son but for some reason the watcher believes he has been killed and walks away when his son is fine. Something happened and he believes it has something to do with the stone he collected.

Over the course of the game, it becomes something different from games such as Assassin's Creed since it is mostly based on real life events since in side missions you can take the journey of the early expansion of the Incan Empire as soldiers in war as well growing Amaru up with Incan traditions where there are many places to go. Many side missions which contain their own stories and search for adventure such as if Amaru takes up a messaging job, he may cross some perilous shortcuts and sleep in the freezing snow without much to support for heat yet surviving mountain climbing during earthquakes and if he is to become more devoted to his religion, he would have to pass many tombs and complete puzzles to represent his intelligence and strength to the Incas. His father tells him of many stories from Great Britain and of the continent across the vast ocean which allows Amaru to view more to the world at the time more than many others and frequently is able to speak with his father in 1500s English.

The player is also able to control Charles in an open world setting of Tudor England before leaving for his voyage in early 1500 in finding a route which would help the Tudors to attack the Spanish and expand Great Britain's power as well as a Spanish character named Maria intent on assassinating Francisco Pizarro. A man that would find and lead to the destruction of the Incan Empire. This allows more promotion and inform people of the past.

However Charles begins to suffer from many hallucinations from the stone, seeing a path of burning stones all around him but remembers he still has a duty towards his country and will need to report back after the 30 years of bringing up children and becoming an Inca. When Pizarro arrives in 1532, this is like a blessing for Charles to steal the ship which forces a battle between father and son. Amaru accidently kills his father out of rage, letting his angry get away with him while trying only to prevent him from leaving home. Charles gives Amaru the Burning Stone but warns him that the Spanish will take over. After he dies, his death is not in vain. When the Spanish arrive, the disease spreads but not as much when Amaru begins creating tactics to kill all outsiders. Maria comes close to killing Pizarro but is thwarted by someone else. The actual person who kills him in real life which leaves her stranded but sees the Incan Empire expand. In the end, Amaru is made the new emperor since he was able to prevent the destruction of the Incan Empire. Gaining an immunity to the plague as well as many survivors, he throws the Burning Stone in to the sea wishing his father well in the afterlife and saying that he belonged to the Incas, not the British. With that, the player realises what's happening. Amaru begins creating an army to destroy those that would destroy them, the Spanish and bring the truth of their religion to Great Britain. An alternate timeline has taken place. War has begun in 1541.

Okay so that's yet another long blog for me. I hope you enjoyed! The reason why this blog is pretty long is because it will be my last long written blog until I go offline for a week since I'll be on holiday. I'll explain more in my next blog soon and of course I'll make a comeback sometime soon! So if you have any blogs you would like me to read, please feel free to write whatever on my wall. :)

Thanks for reading! Hope you enjoyed. :)

Goodbye MyIGN!

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Hey guys and gals! After writing many long written blogs for a while, it's time I have a holiday (vacation) and I will be leaving tomorrow to board the plane to sunny paradise... with no wi-fi which means I won't be online for over a week. I'll make my return on Thursday but I have no idea whether I'll be online by then so most likely I'll be online next Friday, unless I'm abducted by Aliens, then by next Saturday. If I have free time, I'll write a whole bunch of blogs including a photo blog from my holiday.

However if you want to post things on my wall while I'm away like links to your blogs, go ahead and I'll check them out when I return. So in the meantime, here's a few funny vids to top-tier entertainment and cool wallpapers if you wish to use them but remember I take no credit for these wallpapers but maybe I'll make a few of my own wallpapers in the future. ;) Let the party... I mean blog begin!

Funny Vids

Tv Fails

Burn After Reading: Pitt and Malkovich go head to head! Look at those squinting eyes! :D

Hell's Kitchen: Season 2 the uncut version. Features strong language and a volcano ready to explode. My favourite part is 0:25 for some reason. ;)

Just Cause 2 glitches

GeneralMinus

Cool Wallpapers

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I'll miss you all and it'll be the first in many years... dating back to the Stoneage since I've been without wi-fi but I'll be ok. :) I'll signal the beacons of my survival and return!

So see you around in the world of IGN and happy assassinating! :D

The Animus 3.0 seems like it needs some updating though...

The Animus Seems Broken

 

 


Video game Expendables

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Hey everyone! I have returned from my needed holiday (vacation) after a 3 year silence of going abroad and many of you are probably expecting a photo blog of some sort like I said. Well that's true but not today but that doesn't discount next time (no pun intended). There are about... 70 pics on my stoneage 424HD camera. With more pics about my DVD collection (AKA door to Narnia), it's a tad more so in the meantime, this is a blog while you wait for my upcoming library of photos. :) Anyways, it's great to be back and I can see my wall is already stacked full of links! 0_0

So what is this blog about? Many of you may have seen many pics based on a video game version of the movie hit, The Expendables.

To me, I've only watched a little bit of the Expendables films and it doesn't look like something that interests me. Although I'm sure everyone's exited for the third film with Nicholas Cage! Anyways, the thought about video game characters teaming up themselves just like characters in the movies and comic books would be amazing and has also made me think about my own cast of characters to team up... and it wasn't easy, This time round in my selection of blogs, I will ask you what would your video game characters be in an Expendables, Avengers or Justice League (whatever you fancy) where the characters don't actually have to originate from video games themselves. As long as they're in a video game, they count. Even if it's just a mention of a comic book character, they still get all their powers and abilities. If they're from movies and books but the characters have appeared in games, they count. How nice of me but there is a catch... it can only be up to 10 characters on your list. If you want, you could include 10 characters from just one series... but then you would have no room for anymore characters but there's one thing that might be music to your ears. They can consist of both heroes and villains and don't necessarily have to be the most powerful team. Just the selection of characters that you think would make for an awesome movie or video game.

If you still don't get it, here is my list before I start changing it.

Altair - Assassin's Creed

Somebody that wasn't really unexpected to appear in my line of superhuman team. Altair is truly a different mark on Human history and left a stain against the Templar order. After much fighting for his order, in many ways, he is the one and true assassin. Whether it's because the fact that he's never spotted and pretty much runs away in some awesome, classic music or the fact that he's immortal. Well you may not believe it so but unlike Ezio and Connor, Altair has a synchronisation meter rather than a health bar meaning if he gets hit, it was just the player messing it up (look down in shame) and Altair never actually got attacked. This makes a lot of sense for a more realistic game by Ubisoft compared to previous games of flying hands and hair that can give the ability of flight. However this adds to the mysterious side of what really happened to him with the codex and really is a representation of stealth. I mean sitting on a bench with the guards staring at him and saying, "I will find you"... maybe we should class that under dumb AI... nah. I think it's just Altair so we recruited him. :)

Zorn and Thorn - Final Fantasy IX

There have been plenty of games lately which have featured crazy clowns covered in war paint or something straight out of a toothpaste tube such as the Joker, the Harlequin and the Payday Heist characters to name a few and like Zombie games, they have been few that have been able make the game feel much more intense but that is probably due to 2 little villains which seemed to have become one of my greatest villains of all time at an early age while playing my favourite and coincidently, my only Final Fantasy game... it's actually my brother's but at any rate, seeing these villains at an early age seemed strange to me and they seemed to appear at random moments during the game, yet whenever I looked closer, they did look kinda creepy and I wouldn't be surprised if they created a whole swarm of phobias within people like me towards clowns especially at the fact that my brother found it tough to defeat them when I didn't know the controls... I'm not afraid of clowns (Looks around nervously) but what I loved these 2 villains due to the fact that they were like a right hand men representing determination yet they appeared as part of the back story. Not the sort of people you'd like to meet in a dark alley.

They talk in a bunch of riddles like, "Are you sure of this?" While the other will say, "Sure of this, are you?" Well at the time it seemed awesome when I was a lot younger. At least now, we have a chance to irritate the enemies. Put on your headphones everyone! :D

Magma - X-Men: Legends

This is an example of what you characters you can use in for your expendables. She is in a video game and even the main character of X- Men: Legends... so it still counts. :) Although I'm not much of a reader of superhero fiction... in fact the only comics I ever read were The Simpsons and Futurama but nonetheless, I have always loved the superhero genre, hence my Infamous collection. Although, I'm still behind on DC and Marvel comics and games... by a few decades, I know a bit about the heroes and villains and in Magma's case, she is one of the X-Men after discovering her powers after being pushed in to a pool of lava but what I found interesting about this character is that her ability is able to control to geothermal elements or in other words, magma (hence her name) which many people would love to possess and with the use of her geokinesis powers to be able to control entire tectonic plates to create earthquakes out of nowhere.

Getting a little too nippy? She can just jump in some lava or pool of fire and become one with it where her form basically becomes a hot sluge of lava so be careful to wear the usual handmuffs when playing pranks. So added to this, she can control fire, one of the most destructive elements on the planet. However the reason why I like this character is because yes, my admirations to be a geologist means that having geothermo-kinesis (I know it's a bit of a chore to say that) would be pretty sweet in showing off all the cool lava powers but also since she's one of the characters where her emotions can affect the intensity of her powers like Storm so if she's angry, she can create violent eruptions of volcanoes more than she can if she was calm... so lets just keep playing those pranks. ;)

Aku Aku - Crash Bandicoot 

In the Playstation mythology, a mutated Bandicoot existed and with the helps of jumping on or spinning like an insane Curly Wurly at Tesco's, he was able to destroy the crates awakening a once Human but now a flying spirit in a mask (with coloured feathers!) by the name of Aku Aku  with an evil twin brother, Uka Uka... but we'll get to that another time. Aku Aku is in a way, a father figrue to the Crash Bandicoot in my opinion. You may think he just uses their house to crash (hence the video game's name) but he gives some sound advice and messages especially when he gives warning's about the end of the world AKA The sign that Crash Bandicoot's vacation is over. However he gives Crash (no pun intended) some extra endurance when smashing open these fabled crates that no one thought to stumble upon and once we reach 3 masks in a row, the Bandicoot is out for speedy invincibility where this time round, we're the ones who can shoot enemies away in to nothingness.

 

Of course being a spirit, he is able to perform the supernatural like shooting beams at his evil twin brother and teleporting out of thin air but at the end of the day, it seems like falling down with Crash isn't enough to help them both survive a bottomless pit. Imagine all of this in an Expendables instalment... when he's not at his stand up comedy of course.

Experiment 621 - Stitch: Experiment 626

Lilo and Stitch has been and always will be my favourite Disney series. en if I watched the episodes before, I would watch them again, each over a 100 times probably... a new record! Maybe because of the fact that I liked the superpowers yet I knew nothing about the Justice League and superhero comics at the time. Not many people liked the series as far as I knew of but even my brother who didn't like the series bought the Stitch game. Acting as a prequel to the original film yet slightly darker but with a slight tone of humour from the little furball but what became of a fellow jealous 621, turned in to what many called pretty frightening.

^That is not the picture of course but it would be cool to see the normal and mutated versions... here is the mutated version if you dare to see...

Ok well I suppose it was scary for a few at the time but at the time, I was stumpped, I had no idea how to play the game so this one would be a little trick for me but if he was to become part of the team, he would have his jetpack and when he becomes his mutated self, he becomes invincible except to the device that created him... with some more claws. Lets just hope he doesn't become mistaken for a pet.

Ayumi - Blades of Time

Time travel. An ability to turn back the clock and prevent something from the world exploding to a little cut on your arm. Ayumi has many powers and can reverse time  in order to finish off several enemies, enter certain areas and she also learns of many abilities such as shockwaves freezing many enemies in time. With all these awesome powers and skills in quick and handy sword fighting, it makes you wonder, why doesn't she just ditch that rifle she has? Maybe she's setting up to destroy it at some point in the game or just give it to someone as a present... as you can see, I've only played the demo but I do know that the gun was not needed. Maybe just to look silly to make the rest of the game look cool!

Contrast - Dawn

My most anticipated game of 2013, Contrast. The story of how I found this game is a little short. It involves me following a whole bunch of games to see what happens to my newsfeed yet one caught my eye. Even though I haven't been interested in theatre Victorian settings, it seems like my mood is changing especially since this game is different with a more lighter story... I should probably talk about the game later before I start writing a whole novel about a game. One of the character's is known as Dawn, a woman who is known as the most seen character in the game, yet the most unknown, is able to manipulate the shadows around her and basically, divulge within it to reach many areas. Whether it be simple ledges or ferris wheels, it seems like this character could easily get past enemies in a team up steathily without resorting to violence but rather just hiding in the shadows and poking faces at the enemies. That is... if those bullets can penetrate through shadows... didn't think that through.

Gordon Ramsay - Hell's Kitchen

Yes! There is a video game based on the series right for the Nintendo DS. That said, we are now able to have a besrker. One that will be able to frighten enemies and insult them in the most unthinkable ways... like calling them a Donkey for instance or even worse... a Donkey! Not to mention that he could just burst in to a gunfight shouting, "It's Raw!"

One of the cooks for the my list of Expendables but it's never easy although he can be entertaining in his attempts for his staff to cook a single meal that he isn't pretty proud of. This is an example of his handy work. Viewer discretion is advised!

I don't know why but Ramsay's face at 0:14 reminds me of Rayman. Could we be seeing flying Ramsay's sometime soon?

Kessler - Infamous

One of my favourite villains of all time. Ever since 2009, we've had a whole bunch of characters that have stood by the phrase, "The end justifies the means" which shapes the characters and for me, Kessler seems like the most original to me if not the most awesome and mysterious considering the amount of destruction he can cause. His power wise, he's able to use highly powerful electrokinetic energies, teleportation, versions of himself that chase people and give them visions and whatnot, creating drones out of thin air... you get the rest. Truly a character who I think could lead my Expendables team to glory. I just hope he doesn't go too far and you know... sacrifices the whole team.

^I can see he just dropped my Strawberry Ice Cream Sundae!

So now you've seen my list, please know it wasn't easy. Many of the characters I just had to pick at random out of so many awesome ones but here's the surprise. It's the start of a blog series so stay tuned to your MyIGN radios! Now it's on to you. What would your list be...?

Thanks for reading! Have a good day. :)

Ubisoft and EA new IPs

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It seems like the next gen is just over the tipping point to becoming a true reality with all the talk of new systems, games and even new companies joining the world of video gaming full of all kinds of creative ideas to offer as well as a return for many of the latest series which many would have no hesitation in calling blockbusters. However, even before we've hit the release of the PS4 or Xbox One, a few new number of games and series have been announced from well known developers, Ubisoft and EA (or rather in Ubisoft's case, leaked) who have brought many games like Assassin's Creed and Rayman to Battlefield and FIFA which is just likely to sprout much more enthusiasm from the many gamers awaiting what these could possibly be.

Although in Ubisoft's case, it's no secret or rather no hide and seek to people who have leaked the latest number of IPs which have yet to be verified. After all, these could just be the dream games of an avid fan. One that is very interested in Assassin's of the Caribbean but if they are true, it wouldn't hurt to analyse the games we've just been shown. So let's see what we've got!

Ubisoft

What do you think? Stunned? Confused? Wondering what all these games are? Well many of these games may not be as new as you might think. In fact games like Child of Light was only announced less than a month ago  and I've decided that's a good place to start on the list.

Child of Light

We haven't got much insight in to the game or the series whether it be pics, trailers... or a huge amount of info about the whole game aside from a few things that it will be an Japanese Role-Playing (JRPG will save you a lot of spaces) inspired game built on the same type of engine yet by a different Ubisoft team which developed Far Cry 3. Not Rayman.

What is the the purpose of this? Many games over the years have been very much based on shooting, being the strongest, listening to fellow screaming whilst not watching a Michael Bay movie, etc. This game is being developed to become one of the opposite since despite being the same developer of being mauled by sharks or shooting a whole bunch of bullets, it will be a more peaceful game, a more artistic version to bring to life a fairy-tale adventure you might not be able to find in  your local library.  Considering this, it reminds me of some indie games like Journey. It won't be advertised like crazy like Assassin's Creed 3 yet it does excite me as I'm sure it would with many other gamers since even though I'm the artistic type (spilling paint was a bit of a problem), I still enjoy the calm and peaceful settings of a game, moving far away from the realistic kind so in a way, a bit like a holiday. ;)

Now, the next game:

Valiant Hearts and Autodance

Aside from a hyme from the First World War, I really don't know what this could be. Most likely a brand new series that we haven't heard of or some sort of reboot of series that didn't go so well or maybe just wasn't very noticed. In that case, I can tell someone at Ubisoft's nostalgia must have kicked in. Maybe it could be some sort of Kindgom Hearts spin-off or something based on a series like Dragon's Moon or Dragon's Quest although don't get your hopes up. I'm just thinking out loud here!

However for Autodance, many people may believe it has something to do with some more dancing games which wouldn't be surprising considering the whole bunch of Just Dance games that have been released like wild fire but I think it could be more driving based. Not that we're gonna see dancers on top of racing cars (although there's always the possibility), games like The Crew and Driver are well in Ubisoft's hands and I could see them making more games, especially from Ubisoft Reflections team. Maybe a new direction with a simulation game although I have my doubts since The Crew has been in development for a while, well over 2 years in fact. There wouldn't be much point in releasing another racing game right during another's release although it could bring a crowd of old traditional Need For Speed fans who have waited for more city inspired environments and customization... then again, that's pretty much The Crew. If it is yet another Dancing game, I think it could possibly be more retro based like those you find in parties with lights flying everywhere which would work well with Microsoft's Illumiroom.

Unless we party in garages or something. Yet another mysterious game we don't have a great deal to say about although considering this paragraph, I've written quite a bit and as I write more, I just keep on making this paragraph bigger so I'll move on now...

Rayman Fiesta Run and Rabbids Big Bang

No doubt will this Rayman game be gameplay-inspired by Temple Run. If it wasn't, what's with the name? Rayman is one huge franchise for all the gamers that can remember it exists and nowadays, it's gone back to it's routes with a 2D game where Ubisoft, despite believing in the Wii U console, may think it's too risky for now to release games exclusive to that platform unless the handheld picks up some more sales which was why Rayman: Legends went from an exclusive game... to available for every game on the market! So it's likely it'll be available for many Ubisoft fans unless of course they make the Ubisoft console of course, however it sounds like it could potentially be a digitally game only which would make sense if it becomes a much smaller game. Maybe even jump to the mobile and tablet gaming.

Although Rabbids has become a symbol and a series in it's own right starting from 2006, it has gradually slowed down from a huge hype of fans to games for practically every console in sigh which not many people to buying them. Essentially it's almost been milked to death to death and it would make sense to release the game for mobile since like video game adaptations which were mostly developed a few months before the release of the game, they have reached a big low with practically no one buying them anymore. Those who did, I feel very sorry for them but it these have now become games for mobile where they continue to thrive. A nice home for Rabbids. ;) Unless it's a complete reboot with nuclear weapons and bazookas of how these Bunnies have impacted Human history...

Assassin's Creed: Pirates and Liberation HD

It has been no surprise that we've got a whole wave of talk about future Assassin's Creed games. For what was once a series that seemed to head all over the history now has a bunch of sequels to a major character so we have to wait a few years until we get a completely new setting which isn't necessarily a bad thing... well if you like the characters of course. With talk of a new AC: Pirates, we were pretty much guaranteed yet another game in the Edward Kenway series although I think it potentially be a new character or a whole bunch of Assassins, Templars or even Bunnies. Why? Edward Kenway is part of the Kenway trilogy and it would make sense to open up the possibilities of many Pirate stories outside of this realm similar to the Mass Effect comics. I have a feeling this may also be a mobile, tablet or even a Vita game! Ubisoft wouldn't announce a new main AC game right now. Already having an annualized release is enough and it's been a while since we've had many handheld games. Aside from Liberation, they go far back as Altair's eras. A time when the handhelds ruled over the mobile gaming AKA The Good Times.

There is also the possibility it could be an MMO. It was thought of by Ubisoft sometime back and always remained to deliver some new potential if it was ever released. Not only would it be a new direction for the AC series but also for the whole company. They have never gone down this path before... I don't think and would work well as it would for many other series like Mass Effect to immerse players in more backround depth of their favourite video game universe and what better way than to explore with other players around all sorts of timelines.

About Liberation, it's very likely to be something for PS3 of course which actually surprises me. It will make a lot of money from fellow AC fans of course but Ubisoft already released their anthrology collection. If I was Ubisoft, I would have added it within a HD collection of AC4 and the latest other games in this Assassin's of the Caribbean era. This means that it could be just a digital game which will give my 74GB PS3 a headache especially after playing AC3 for a few dozen hours. It seems however that Aveline will be the star of many missions that come free with the PS3 and PS4 along with the stealthy blow darts. Most likely this is giving her a few extra stuff to redeem the negative views she got in Liberation or raising speculation of yet another standalone adventure or make her part of the story but where is Connor? Maybe it's possible he could be part of AC4 or the game could even be seen through the eyes of Connor looking back in the past. It would make sense. I mean, how else would he know that his grandfather in the AC3 DLC was related to Jack Sparrow?

Overall however, I really think the pirate era could have just become a new franchise. We have heard the reports that Ubisoft have been developing AC4 for 2 years now and I believe them on this since they were making a game set about a full naval game. Maybe this was gonna be a console, tablet or PC series but I think after Den Defence in ACR, they put it on hold and just made it appear as a new mode in AC3 which would explain why the developers were confused from the fans reactions.

The others...

The rest seem like an unknown once again. Aside from Watch_Dogs which we've known plenty about for over a year now but there is one that stands out for me and that is Endwar Online. I've been looking back lately at the game Endwar which I have all the way at the bottom of my PS3 pile being crushed like that of a Greek God or Goddess and some intriguing yet foreshadowing news about Ubisoft's plans for the future. It was on the lines of something like, they won't make a new game if it doesn't have potential to become a series, concluding that Watch_Dogs will continue for at least 10 years unless some Rabbids get in the way. You know how they're like with their bungee jump weapons and all. Even though Endwar was praised, strategy games don't really sell that well on PS3 just like horror games which is why it's a goldmine for fans off these genres so the idea of an Endwar surprised me hugely. I thought they had forgotten about it completely... but it sounds very much like an MMO. Something that would be sold for PC only which means I'll be unable to buy it. :( Well considering that my computer isn't really for gaming and that it would just vomit the mention of a word of a game, it's probably not the best idea. I'm sure many of you would agree. :D

Now... the rest! Much of the writing I can't really see but I have a feeling the other one will be an MMO or free-to-play game or both the PC and Trials Frontier makes me think of a game based in a woodland, maybe a 2D game is on the way? As well as Poptropica sounds like one of those games I used to play on the PS1. Actually demos and I'll give you an example of what they were like. A character that can jump around in the non-stealthy fashion, fun environment with a funky flute tune but by the sound of the title, it sounds like something for a tropical paradise. These are just my predictions so it's only a question when I'll be told wrong. :D The Mighty Quest For Epic Loot sounds like a mouthful but once again sounds like something related near a JRPG like game and by the sound of it's name, there will be plundering of treasures and riches involved... which will be mighty epic!

EA!

So it looks like I've written a few couple of lines about Ubisoft. If you're beginning to get a little sleepy from reading this blog, the EA part will probably be like in the park for many of you so don't worry... but feel free to take a break. :D

So EA, a big company like Ubisoft but have suffered way too much criticism. I mean many companies have had their good and bad times but this giant really takes the cake... as in not literally. They have brought us games like FIFA and Battlefield which have been easy pickings to include a whole wildfire of DLCs. Yet way before online became a huge popularity, they were slightly more friendlier and in a way, cared more for it's consumer which seems like a story from mythology but it's true. I ask many people what they think of EA and they'll immediately say they're a horrible company who must be punished for their crimes! Well something along those lines and with the continued hate forming the award for worst company in the world in a row for 2 years running, it's possible that they could be the next runners up... but could this change?

Spliting away from the latest dire news of the being we call EA, it seems like this company is keen on making many more IPs to add more creativity and thus potential in what is a rising yet still uncertain video game industry. However at the moment, none of these new IPs have been announced. All we have is the news of 6 and 8 new franchises in the works. So lets analyse this sentence. Most likely it will be something for next gen or at least the current gen and next gen borderline of consoles which would make sense seeing as they're not interested in making games in markets where they would perhaps, not much make so much money. However what does this 6 and 8 mean. Shouldn't they say 6 or 8? Well I think that this 8 could mean reboots or at least redesigns of current series that already exist which include the Star Wars: Battlefront game and Mirror's Edge. Thus if you don't count these new games as new franchises, then stick with the fact that there are 6 games in development.

Although don't think that these games will hit stores so quickly. I think many could be announced around 2014 and then released in 2015 which would become a year for EA. Then again, they could go as far as 2017 and may just be in planning stages. However we have to wonder whether they could be referring to sub series like a series like the Old Republic or Bounty Hunter since Battlefront is certainly not the only thing that we'll hear from Star Wars and with the next movie's release in 2015, who could complain with a few more games too? It's also possible that they may look back and buy the rights for games such as 007 games which at the moment are in a time of hiatus but they were known for being great games by EA during a time when video game adaptations of films were awesome. In fact, they weren't even based on the movies. Just completely new adventures with unique futuristic weapons, gadgets and villains which is the top priority. Added to a multiplayer which would make a lot of sense to incorporate in the next gen with skis to power pants!

Like Ubisoft though, I have my doubts that they will continue for one off games like Warp and Fuse while despite being creative in some respects, I think the company may have forgotten about them, already and will just make something completely new since they weren't well known or just players refused to buy them like Fuse due to the transference which was originally Overstrike.

Overall

To me, Ubisoft and EA both present the future of what companies may or may not look like in the future. Lets see... they are both well known, have their select number of games and franchises and also the fact that they've annualized many of their games. In my personal opinion though, I think Ubisoft is more reliable. Sure, I have my issues at the fact that withe series like Assassin's Creed, they will not go with a few settings even though they could work and even though they are working in a franchise with limitless possibilities  and it was a few years ago since I heard about people saying Ubisoft cared more than other developers but Ubisoft is made up of different companies around the world, all working on different projects and types like Ubisoft reflections focuses on delivering racing and driving games whereas Ubisoft Montpellier develops cartoonish games like Rayman and Beyond Good and Evil so they can still focus on their areas of expertise and creative ideas so i don't have much of an issue with games every year since I think that AC's story could have already of been written and they it's a combination of many Ubisoft teams working all on one game. It will be very similar to previous games in terms of movement but then again, no one criticizes Battlefield's engine. Anvil Next is still new and they've been adding a whole bunch of stuff that will make us forget whether it's similar to the previous games... hopefully. So in a way, they're trying to solve things with consumers and where they're going.

EA on the other hand, I don't think as much. You may find this as very bias but I have played many of EA's games in the previous gens and you can tell they were devoted to games even if they got an average score and would not hesitate in developing a sequel. Now with online as an advantage for many other companies, games they can get their hands on are ultimately doomed in some way. Many will deny it but I do think EA had an involvement in altering Insomniac Games' game Overstrike to Fuse even though they're just publishers. Overstrike had a feel like an Insomniac Game. Something many games don't have where it had cool unique weapon upgrades and humour throughout. Fuse is nothing like that and I know Insomniac wouldn't risk pushing away their customers and true fans so in a way, I think they're like  anew victim of EA. Just take a look a Syndicate. It looked cool but they changed the genre completely to FPS. Yet another cursed franchise. I'm still going... what about Battlefield? We only really got any new modes in the DLC and likely we'll see the same thing for BF4 which is why I'm considering in buying COD: Ghosts. This is also down to many reasons but take away the Frostbite Michael Bay engine and you're not left with a big deal.

With COD, you won't get a whole new feel but at least new modes will make sense... then again, I will never pay for their DLC equivalent to a game I can buy from Amazon.

I'm not finished... since EA has been humiliated with the worst company of the year awards, it only makes sense to make them look good. Take for instance FIFA 14. They will make it the last game to sell the PS2 console to make a milestone in history when there's no one on the PS2! They could easily make it for the WIi U but they don't get care about EA. There is a thing called discrimination even in the market place and they'd make a lot more money with a Wii U multiplatform for many other games like Wii U. They didn't think it through that the Japanese are making their own last PS2 game too. ;)

They made a donation towards AIDS research which isn't a bad thing but what it's easy to see that they're trying to make themselves look good and keep so much money is the fact that it's $18,000? From a big company, I was hoping more like $2,000,000 maybe. I won't talk about Mass Effect. We'll be hear all day...

So in the end, I won't be going on a shopping spree for many of these new IPs. I'll buy what I can of course but with EA, they've lost me on all their games. I have a feeling I'm making a bad choice but if I realize that the games were awesome after 10 years, then they'll be pretty cheap by then. ;)

Companies are going to expand, use DLC, scam people or may even make a full game without DLC at all or at least with free DLC. Then again, they make more divisions in order to specialize in their skills of ideas for their own genres of games.

I was coming near to the end of this blog yesterday when all of a sudden, today, a whole bunch of Ubisoft information popped up just to let you know so this blog probably isn't up to date... but I'll post it anyway and you can listen to that EA rant. ;)

So what do you think of these new IPs and companies so far?

Thanks for reading! Hope you enjoyed. :)

Guess the country 4

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Hey everyone and welcome back to another episode of the popular hit blog series of "Guess the Country" A blog where you, the audience are shown a few pics and photos, 10 in fact of many locations of one particular country. Problem is, what country is shown in the photos? That is where you will need to use our active, intelligent minds to work out the answer and for people who were waiting about a whole month for the previous country's answer, it was... St. Lucia! Yes it is a country and therefore a sovereign state while still being an island. This blog's country however isn't an island so that should help you a little but I have a feeling it might be a bit tricky this time so good luck and feel free to use the pics as wallpapers but I take no credit for them. :)

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So best of luck! You'll need it!

Update blog

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Hey folks! I arrived back from my holidays almost 2 weeks ago and I'm happy to be right back writing at IGN and I'm glad to see that there hasn't been a Zombie Apocalypse or Alien Invasion in my absense. However, It's come to my attention that I should probably talk to about a few of the blogs I will strive to write in the upcoming weeks until Christmas which is an amazing time for giving presents and very important for gamers and bloggers, it means we get more games to review and write! Of course I will talk about many of the things I might write at New Years and beyond. Before you say...

a few of my blogs might interest you so I hope you don't fall asleep so quickly while reading. It could become another blog epic!

It's seems kind of odd that the last update blog I wrote, informing people about my latest blogs was... about half a year ago so a usual update blog every 6 months should do the trick! Many which I was able to write pretty quickly in terms of which blogs people IGNers wanted to see first and I did start many of these new blog series but looking back, I still have a huge amount of blogs I still need to write from... over a year ago and many of these blog series I have only written out as a pilot or test blog. In other words, I have only just scratched the surface of the potential of how many of these blogs I could write and how diverse they will be... it's a lot!

So with that in mind, you may see some of these blogs I will try to write coming up to the holiday season as well as continuing some series like the popular hit, "Which would you prefer" and so on as well as many blogs series on the way. Many may be tied or have no connections with gaming in any way but I can tell you that like February seemed like a whole bunch of blogs about consoles (including the fabled MyIGN console). I can tell you there will be something like that this month and next and it's something I said in one of my previous update blogs and what many of you have been waiting for. It involves conspiracies... with video games! ;)  As well as more philosophical blogs but I will most of the time tie it in with some video gaming topics so don't worry that you have to watch a documentary to understand what I'm talking about.

MyIGN Console

With the MyIGN console in mind however, this might be some sad news to many of you but I won't be writing many blogs about it anymore...

Just before you shoot those arrows, please let me explain. I still believe in the console and I will still write blogs about it but since I'm thinking of becoming a novelist one day, some of the ideas I've written out I think could be great as a series of books. Well basically all the games are meant to be series but if I wrote out all the sequels and all on IGN, then everyone would know what happens and just leak all the spoilers. That doesn't mean I won't talk about it in the future. There are many things I haven't talked to you about the MyIGN console like what kinds of games will be available, how could it change not only gaming but many factors such as informing people about the world they live in and learning new things like languages (Assassin's Creed 2 wasn't enough!) as well and what could make it the best game console ever! I really don't know what I want to be when I grow up but I could always go down the routes of video game designing or just a writer of some sort. In the event that I do become a novelist, you will finally know my true name! If I don't, then I could always go back to IGN where I left off writing about a dream console. :)

It also doesn't mean I will stop writing out my ideas! I will still talk about how series can be continued, spin-off games and a whole bunch of other things and I might finally get round to finishing (well continuing at least) of series such as Templar's Greed and Uncharted: Enter Abyss. Also I have still yet to talk about games with the combination of what MyIGNers want such as creating your own characters for a MyIGN beat em up or MMORPG and the MyIGN movie!

Introduction blog? (Could this become a reality?) 

As I mentioned about my name, you may be wondering why I haven't written an introduction blog about myself yet. Well truth is I was gonna write it about a year ago but it got pushed back. I was considering writing one at the time I reached my 100th blog... but then my wall was hit with a tag blog and the fact that I deleted one of my blogs once because of malware (IGNorant viruses) meant that technically my 100th blog is confusing but it has also made me think whether I should write a full blog about myself. In a way I think it would probably be too much and I will just use many factors about me like what food I eat and which consoles that have exploded upon my arrival so like where they were gonna make full movie about Magneto but then they shelved it and used many of those ideas for X-Men: First Class and possibly future X-Men movies. I'm not saying I'll gain superpowers anytime soon but maybe I could make a bunch of blogs and link it to a full introduction blog maybe? This isn't the stuff of science fiction!

Why am I saying this?

Well I haven't actually written much about what new blogs I will write. It's a secret but I just wanted to let you know what you'll see in the my blogs in the next few months. Overall, you'll see many new blogs and familiar blog series as well as many blogs that will make you think, especially after New Years for sure. Not the usual blogs you see about real life events and when I do talk about real life events (yes it's a certainty), it will be different from most of the discussions you see on IGN... probably.

There is also the fact to consider that since I have gone back to school and even with not much homework with many hours to spare, I still have less hours to write. Considering that we have new computer that doesn't have a virus but thinks going to sleep means an hour update, it limits me to write many blogs so you'll probably have to say goodbye to about 3 huge blogs a week to about... 1 or 2 but there will be another blog arriving after this one soon. :)

Also about my photo blog after my holiday... I'm not allowed to use their laptop very long and I have about 70 photos and I need a cable to link my parents' cameras to the supercomputer too. It might take a few months...

I'm sorry if this blog made you fall asleep and I know a lot of this has been a lot about...

but in a way I still want to make many new blogs to intrigue you, the readers. So what do you think of my new plans? Do you think I'm making a few mistakes with MyIGN console? Do you want more fun blogs? Would you like to see a full blog of funny vids again? It ended at funny vids 9. Why not return with a big 10. :D

Thanks for reading and I'll appreciate any feedback! Hope you enjoyed. :)

What new survival horror themes could there be?

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Throughout video gaming, there have been a fair share of genres. Rising from the 1990s came a spread of horror games such as Doom but ultimately went in to a form of decline due to the fact that many of the games were too creepy and banned in many countries and the increasing sales of first person shooters have pushed it in to a sort of PC realm for many companies and the audiences who are willing to finally find their horror game. The only horror series surviving were the well known brand names. However with the huge support for these type of games at these current times and the many possibilities ahead, it seems like it's inevitable that we may see a surge of these games right on to the home console rather than just within the computing system medium due to the funding and support for indie companies lately.

However what I would like to talk to you about today is what themes within these genres, particularly in the horror universe and one that has seemed to have taken the world by storm is the Zombie entity based in forms of media from TV series like The Walking Dead or video games such as Call of Duty's Zombie mode and Resident Evil. Over time, this seems to have been a hit in terms of sales and will likely carry on in a form of a multiplier effect. Now I don't mean anything complicated or to make your brains overload explode or fall even drowsy after a Maths class but a multiplier effect in which it will keep on producing more and more sales of Zombie games and even with many people saying that it is a dead genre and has been run to the ground from the Zombies we see, these games are still making more cash and thus companies keep on making more games.

It's possible that the Doom name fit the name which meant that the Zombie genre would eventually be doomed by this. I have seen many new things being done by developers by exploring new paths within their series or designing brand new IPs and starting anew. Starting fresh. For example, games like Dying Light are using more features not seen in other games and platforming elements but is this really enough for horror games? In my opinion, absolutely not! There are many things that would be a horror fans dream and would see great potential if it was made right... lets just hope they don't make a about a hundred games a year about that one too.

So here's just a few of which I think could replace a Zombie game and become an amazing horror survival series (especially if it's for the MyIGN console) with a few of my ideas added in the process. :)

The lucky first up is...

Aliens!

Now before I proceed, I must tell you, this isn't me on a Saturday morning. This pic is slightly more odd. Just a bit. Just so we're clear.

The Alien genre has had an explosion especially during the height of the Cold War where people feared the worst of a World War 3 attack between the United States of America and the Soviet Union or to put in to less of a mouthful, the USA vs the USSR. Although during that time and even after this fragment in Human history, it has survived in the form of it's own mythology and folklore with numerous abductions by people who certainly don't want to show their teeth, strange disappearances, injuries and even deaths by bizarre events which can only refer to lights in the sky at many times. We also have the Alien Autopsy movie...

In the video game genre, this has been attempted. Lets see... the game known only as Destroy all Humans seemed at the time like a UFO Grand Theft Auto as it seemed like you could do anything you want as an Alien. I was never allowed to play it but that didn't stop the hype of the school playground at the time whereas it has still survived even until now with XCOM games which has maintained some popularity but... would many of these games fit for a survival game? Probably not. The UFO and extraterrestrial belief has become prevalent in society but if we base the game on aliens that we have seen and heard about in UFO claims and reports, should there really be guns and various types of enemies? Very likely it would seem absurd. From watching many documentaries, it would seem that what we call Greys are much more different. They are more mysterious and we never really understand their motive and even though with one punch, they'll fall on the floor with their brains popping like Explosive Sugar but for a video game, they would probably use telepathy or anti-gravity powers. To them, using guns is way too 1200s.

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There's no reason it would tie in with other factors as well like the Men in Black. I'm not saying that Will Smith will yet again, become the star of another movie but many topics that fit in with Aliens or rather the Grey theme has seemed to have been just to... cheesy and just make everyone laugh rather than feel anything else. In a way it's had an early grave with not much sight of it becoming a Zombie but this is why I made the Isonlery game idea. To represent many topics in a darker light than you would see them in other media and most importantly, it's effects on the characters. The way I see it, Aliens aren't the necessarily the main form of horror of the series but what it creates. Wherever the characters may go, they will be found. Whether they try to protect themselves by any means, they will caught by the aliens or even tortured by the government and this would create a somewhat driving force of conflicting emotions which would in turn, affect the player. We have no idea what happens if the player fails, Maybe just keep it a secret, maybe the characters suffer a fate worse than death. Just stop with all the phaser guns, we haven't reached the use of Lightsabers yet. No more LOLs at the screen. It's time the Alien abduction theme is turned around for what it truly deserves.

Paranormal

After probably just writing half a blog about Aliens, it's time to see what other forms of the paranormal are out there and I would like to start of with are... Vampires and Werewolves. Okay, many people may be shouting out Twilight and there are plenty of other things that have seemed to have become novels and dramas portraying these beings as a result which isn't necessarily a bad thing but how could it be played out? Like Aliens, it's difficult when you have an audience that believes it is a genre that is just doomed to fail. (No Doom pun intended) However there are many ways to get around this. In affect, I can't really say I know any Vampire dramas these days that would directly link to something of Transylvania or any dark castles. When I was small (as in smaller than my height now), I always thought that castles with only candles for light were pretty creepy. No one would really knows what's around the corner and what if the Vampire had the power to just blow out the candles with just the snap of their fingers. Then the player would have to adapt to the situation or face the consequences. Something that involves teeth to the neck that is. Maybe set it as an open world game in some way. It's not very new in the horror genre but this could take a turn around with strange rooms transporting the player to gain a new perspective of the horror character to a more personal side before he/she were turned in that blood sucking being. Then again... we could always change it to easy difficulty with a necklace of Onions.

The Part That History Forgot

Now on to Werewolves. Now this is a little different. There have been many incarnations of this particular being. Some will look exactly like a Wolf when transformed. Many will look slightly like a Human but I could imagine a game like this would take place in many dark forests, lakes and of course, a night with some moonlight... the waiter hasn't arrived with the dinner yet so we're gonna have to put up with a Werewolf chasing us to certain death but then again, in the bright of day, it could be anyone. Someone on the street. Maybe someone even close to the character by these light sequences could allow you to buy equipment to help you out but then again you may suffer other problems. No money!!! In that case, you might have to steal and if you're caught, people will be chasing the character down the road with shotguns and all. Then it turns back to night time and we're back to running from that furry creature but then again, the Werewolf could pretend to be harmless and even look like it's moving away from the characters but if you see it, it should be a time for run. You have no idea if they'll return back in a few seconds for a little nibble.

There is one more I would like to talk about an this one might be a little surprising but... Zombies. Ever heard of them? Although what do we think of a Zombie now that is so different from so many years, even centuries ago? Well there is a very simple thing. The old meaning of the Zombies... were in fact the real undead. So many games these days just show a virus of some sort of Humans turning in to a cannibalistic killing machine that is similar to a Zombie that the developers just call it that so it can sell. In reality, they're just people altered in many ways by the virus which begins to frustrate me on how the true Zombie has just disappeared. I could imagine a game going to the Zombie roots set in all out black and white where the dead will rise yet you don't know anyone you can turn to. The character doesn't know whether his/her family or friend have been killed or corrupted and thus the character will need to avoid large swarms of enemies and try to lead them off somehow. A bit like an Assassin's Creed chase scene that just goes on for minutes on end... if not hours! I won't talk anymore of how long I had to escape without going down the quick and easy route of just jumping in to a haystack and mysteriously, all the guards assume the character has somehow disappeared from existence.

Monsters

If horror games have shown us, it's one of the few genres that actually has monsters aside from the metaphorical meaning of course. Games have delivered many varied Robots, Aliens, etc. Yet it's difficult to find monsters outside of many forms of gaming and what I like about many horror monster villains, is that they're almost never the same and it's what has been unnoticed by many gamers. One will have their eyes on their hands with a creepy smile yet another will simply claw out everything in a room while the character awaits for it to leave in order to run from their hiding place.

However there is one that seems to have existed for many centuries before a time of video gaming (yes there was a time before video games) and Television (yes, there was also a time before TV... I think) that has intrigued yet frightened Humanity. It's known as mythology. A time when we started hearing about all these Gods, supernatural powers and most importantly, Monsters and many mythologies are riddled with them. Lets use Greek mythology for an example. A being like Medusa would be amazing for a game because you would have to utilize the power of the mirror to see where she is but in doing so, she may see your presence. Turn around the wrong way and you could be the next victim to turn to stone... and no one can eat Ice Cream while in stone form. Lets just hear out for those hissing Snakes.

Howe about a game with many mythological monsters, not just in Greek but also in many others too. Who knows? Maybe it could promote lesser known mythologies out there like the Philippine or the Celtic. We just have to make the mythologies look interesting and not something they'll go screaming at the sight of. How about other forms of folklore that have frightened the wolrd like the Blemmyes?

This brings us on to one of the final themes of my list. There are so many other themes out there so maybe I should turn this in to a blog series... but for now we'll see what the last one is. :)

Real life

There are so many horrific monsters out there in the entire survival horror genre that we sometimes forget that sometimes even real life is full of horrors and dangers. Lets start off with nature itself. Say a game or a series takes place in the underwater world. A vessel has plummeted miles under the point of sea level and all of this will set in a whole chain of problems which seem impossible to find a solution but the character will just have to cope the best he/she can. So what would the character have to cope with. For one, the pressure. Even in a pressurized suit or vessel, it might not be enough to help you survive and if it's neck breaking pressure, the glass and systems are gonna go haywire. By the way, if you don't know what pressure is, it is simply the amount of force on you so as you go further underwater, the pressure builds and blood must be maintained at a certain pressure. Even if you rose quickly to the surface after miles of underwater, your blood can't cope with a heavy to a lower pressure and your blood will make clots in muscle tissues and eventually your brain which is why it's always the safe option to rush over to your nearest pressure chamber. :)

So after a little science lesson, there is also the possibility of running in to an unfriendly creature along the way, depending how far below the character is from the normal sea level. What if Sharks or Jellyfish rise out of nowhere and especially in those conditions, if the light goes out, there's nothing. No one would probably know if they're upside down or not and use creature's light to get by but even if they're no incredibly deadly, the character's suit probably won't be teeth proof so if a fish with big gnashers or just a big mouth, never mind a small scratch to your body. If the suit punctures, it could be game over.

Now lets look at an example of a Human survival in the real world. A conspiracy of somesort of the government, mafia or even back to the MIB, it would seem for the character like there's no means of escape unless they became a farmer somewhere in Europe but they'll probably still be caught. You know. Telepathy and all but what if a game was set around that the he/she would be free as long as they got to a certain point or bit of evidence that proves their innocence. This could just delve in to a driven story yet with the character ever watching and having to listen in to government radios they might pick up along the way.

There are many others that I could list like a haunted house or a single character after the other. I do thoroughly believe that the survival horror genre is becoming way too involved on Zombies and needs a break for about a century or 2. I can't even list any alien survival games or horror games based on mythological monsters. I haven't actually played many survival horror games but I have been very interested in the concept of how the creatures would urge the player to move the character forward in terms of both freaky gameplay and it's story but I hope with the use of my ideas, that it seems like other themes would be pretty neat to explore and who knows? Maybe I will buy a survival horror game for once (sees audience cheer).

Well I hope you enjoyed this blog. Thanks for your time to read and if you have something to say, please don't hesitate to write in the comments below. :D

Hope you enjoyed! :)

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