The Computer/Console Gaming Thread

[i_amtrunks]

BTW - having just got a Wii, what games should I get for it? I have no XBox or PS3.

All depends on your gaming preferences. I'll second Gutsmans Mario Galaxy and Metroid Prime selections, have not played the other two so no comment.

I also advise getting some older games:
Excite Truck and Warioware smooth moves, boom blox 2 (try second hand)
The lego games (Harry Potter, batman etc) are also worth a purchase for some fun i you like the licenses.
MarioKart and Smash brothers Brawl are must own party games.

Donkey Kong country returns is freaking hard but awesome, the two most recent Kirby games (epic yarn and adventure) are also fun but far too easy.

Lots of other games worth getting as well like NBA Jam and Tatsunoko vs Capcom or Okami or red Steel 2, but the Galaxy games, Kart and Brawl are where I would start.

[Hursticon]

Sweet! :D

I've managed to track down both a:

Creative Labs: Sounblaster 16bit (PCI) sound card :cool:
Nvidia: GeForce MX4400 (PCI) graphics card :eek:


My DOS Gaming Rig should be able to handle everything with little to no issues now... Hopefully... :o:p

[Tetsuwan Convoy]

BTW - having just got a Wii, what games should I get for it? I have no XBox or PS3.

Definitely Donkey Kong Country returns, especially if you likey your 2d platforming. I would say Mario Galaxy 2 instead of both, since 2 is just 1.5 really. Tatsunoko Vs Capcom definitely and Okami too (as it's just like Zelda, although I hated the motion controls). Sonic Colours is the best Sonic game on wii, Goldeneye and Mariokart.

House of the Dead Overkill, you know you want to play the game with probably the most excessive use of the f-Word I have EVER come across.

[shokwave2]

The Wii has so many underrated games. And it all depends what genre you play, if you love time wasters, party games or the hardcore type:

- No More Heroes - extremely weird and funny Japanese slice-em-up
- Xenoblade Chronicles - massive JRPG
- Muramasa: The Demons Blade - colourful side-scrolling beat-em-up with rpg elements
- Zelda: SKyward Sword: probably best game on Wii
- Resident Evil 4: best RE title with the best controls on Wii
- Warioware: Smooth Moves: great party game
- Animal Crossing: cutesy time waster

I have 80+ games and love them all.

[The_Damned]

anyone here playing bf3 on the pc here?

[jena]

Has anyone here actually finished Skyrim? I'm not sure how many hours of gameplay I'm up to but I'm still playing! Not a clue how close to the end I am yet. What an epic game.

[Gutsman Heavy]

Fool! One cannot simply "finish" an elder scrolls game! :p

[shokwave2]

Has anyone here actually finished Skyrim? I'm not sure how many hours of gameplay I'm up to but I'm still playing! Not a clue how close to the end I am yet. What an epic game.

I clocked up 80+ hours on Skyrim, then transfered my save files to my new xbox i got for xmas. For some reason a few of the games did not transfer and i lost that game save! Nevermind, i started again, this time choosing to steal, pick locks and be evil to everyone.

[Tetsuwan Convoy]

Nevermind, i started again, this time choosing to steal, pick locks and be evil to everyone.
That's my modus operati in games.

Bad guys ALWAYS have more fun!:D


Er, what? No devil smiley??

[Paulbot]

In Vic Myer stores (at least) they are clearing out video games and today have 60% off the clearance prices. At the store I went to that meant games were only either $8 or $12. Came away with a few DS games (including Mario Kart and a Professor Layton title) and DK Returns for Wii at $12 each.

So if you're near a Myer worth checking it out.

Edit: I visited a few other stores hoping to stock up on the Wii games I wanted but every other Myer had so little stock, and most of it rubbish. Looks like I picked the best store in my first try.

And now I own a Wii game I'll have to get the Wii I've been thinking about for a while now.

[i_amtrunks]

Nicely done Paulbot.

I ducked into Myer before the Muppet Movie and nabbed a PS3 and Wii game for $12 and a half dozen DS/3DS games for $8 a pop.

Didnt hve any top grade choice games, think the best I got was an old Buzz game and Zelda spirit tracks!

[Tetsuwan Convoy]

Yeh, after reading that I ran to my local myer and all they had that was worthwhile was Rythm tengoku, erm Ryhthm heaven gold.

Maybe later. they had HEAPS

[kurdt_the_goat]

I nabbed Rhythm Heaven for DS a few months back at target, clearance for $6.88! My wife enjoyed it quite a bit, but my rhythm must be pretty bad, i sucked hard at it!

In the Myer clearance i nabbed Pilotwings Resort and Dragon Quest VI for $15 each! Have such a huge backlog as it is but what's a few more :P

Recently though, i have been entirely consumed by PULLBLOX on 3DS from the eShop.
Only had it for a week and it's already my most played title according to Activity Log.
It's just utterly brilliant and everyone with a 3DS should pick it up - it'll be remembered as one of the defining 3DS games - and for $9 you simply can't go wrong!

[5FDP]

Finally got my copy of Skyrim yesterday (which also happened to be the last day of my holidays). Loving it so far :cool:

[Tetsuwan Convoy]

I traded in some old games and bought up Sonic Generations for my 3DS. It's interesting. The levels are different, in design and choice (3DS has Mushroom Hill as a level for example), but not all are good. Each stage has a classic and a modern act as well as a chaos emerald stage.

It ends up ebing very short. The first level is a nice 3d remake of Green Hill Zone Act1 from the megadrive. It's very pretty and cool to see it redone, but it feels lazy, since previously we had 3 short acts. Now you get 1 short act. They have done this on a few levels as well, although they are not as short, but it mean I am playing levels that i have already played before I have even come across them in Generations....

Off the top of my head, Green Hill zone, Casino night Zone, Mushroom hill (minus the Knuckles interuption), I think the Water Palace zone is exactly the same as well. The boss fights go on for too long, the last boss you have to do the same motions, he just attacks more often with more things about 8 times.

My opinion of it is lazy production. The 3d looks nice. That's about it really. It's OK, but I am relatively unimpressed. Much like most of the recent Sonic games...

[Gutsman Heavy]

Generations 3DS is shit, I really regret buying it.

It's console big brother though? Wow. Best 3D Sonic ever!

[i_amtrunks]

Got a 3DS yesterday evening.

Yet to start an actual 3DS game, been too busy downloading games, playing face hunters and taking photos. Cannot believe how good the 3D is, and the inbuilt software (have yet to play AR games) are incredible in their finish.

Just hoping that the 3DS does not end up like the wii, where the nintendo games are more or less the only titles worth getting...

[Gutsman Heavy]

If it ends up half as good as the ds, you'll be laughing.

[kurdt_the_goat]

Got a 3DS yesterday evening.

Yet to start an actual 3DS game, been too busy downloading games, playing face hunters and taking photos. Cannot believe how good the 3D is, and the inbuilt software (have yet to play AR games) are incredible in their finish.

Just hoping that the 3DS does not end up like the wii, where the nintendo games are more or less the only titles worth getting...

If you haven't downloaded it already, get Pullblox. It's all about the Pullblox. Instant and eternal 3DS purchase justification i assure you!

On another note, who's getting PlayStation Vita? I am despite full awareness of the total rapage Australian retailers are doing, plus knowing full well that a price drop is bound to happen within 6 months. Bu-bu-bu dat Wipeout 2048!

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7175/6734091603_b5c1bded78_b.jpg

Saved a bit getting a memory card sent over by my inlaws in Japan.. and trading a bunch of old games..... ah who cares right, this is why i work 2 jobs; i shouldn't feel bad! :D

[Tetsuwan Convoy]

you and your Pullblox. I think I will get the VITA, but I am happy to wait for the ievitable price drop. Plus I wanna see what it can do first.

I finsihed the main campaign of 3DS sonic and have been messing aroud with some of the speed runs fo the levels. Busting out the time attack and stuff. Gotta get my money's worth out of it some how and ended up making a respectable run IMO...

Managed to clumsiily capture it on video as well. WooT.

Then I saw the leaderboards online. Top 5 is a good ten seconds ahead of me. I don't know how they'd shave 10 seconds off!

http://tetstoys.blogspot.com/2012/01/super-sonic-speed-run.html

[jena]

I have a DSi XL and I love it but I want to be able to play all the new games that are only coming out on 3DS. Is the 3DS worth it? Will I love it as much as my XL? I've googled and watched YouTube vids but I'm still not sure.

[Gutsman Heavy]

I'd wait for the inevitable redesign if I was on the fence.

[snaketales]

Man, I had forgotten how much fun Hulk: Ultimate Destruction is... and how insane the second last stage (when the Abomination is heading from the military base to the dam) is.

Not my game play but this will give you an idea: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=propp0E9iRU&feature=related

[snaketales]

BTW - having just got a Wii, what games should I get for it? I have no XBox or PS3.

Don't overlook Gamecube games - Wii consoles can run them, but you need a Gamecube controller and a memory card.

You should be able to find good cheap ones around the place.

I have Hulk Ultimate Destruction, Minority Report (IMO vastly under-rated), Star Wars Rebel Strike and Squadron, an XMen one that looks like the precursor to Ultimate Alliance, Turok and Enter the Matrix.

[i_amtrunks]

I'd wait for the inevitable redesign if I was on the fence.

I was waiting for the battery upgrade, but the sub $200 price was the breaking point.

There hasnt yet been any announcement regarding a bigger/longer battery life version as yet, I think Nintendo might have realised selling a tweaked/cosmetic difference every year floods the market. The original DS and DSLite sold well, but the DS XL and whatever else is out still clog up shelves (why you'd pay $250+ for a large DS over a 3DS I have no idea).

The inbuilt games and functionality on the 3DS alone nearly make it worthwhile for under $200. If there isnt a title you are dead set on playing right now (like the mario games or resident evil) I'd hold out and see if there is an upgrade/tweak announced around E3 that makes it more worthwhile to you.

[jena]

I put one on layby today for $199 so I can think about it. I'm still torn. I really want to play Zelda and the new Mario titles.

[Cat]

Personally I'd hold out for the redesign.

I reckon it'll be more than worth the wait.

[i_amtrunks]

Personally I'd hold out for the redesign.

I reckon it'll be more than worth the wait.

If it comes soon, but the original DS took 2 years before they announced their first rejig of the system, and it was another couple of months before release.

But then again I thought I'd wait for the redesign, but I am weak! :D

[jena]

Part of me wants to wait but a bigger, stronger part wants it now! Lol. I want it before I go to Adelaide for Oz Comic Con for some in car entertainment for the 4 hour journey. I did some googling and a lot of people seem skeptical of the redesign. Wouldn't Nintendo focus on the new wii for 2012?

[Tetsuwan Convoy]

Man, I had forgotten how much fun Hulk: Ultimate Destruction is... and how insane the second last stage (when the Abomination is heading from the military base to the dam) is.

Not my game play but this will give you an idea: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=propp0E9iRU&feature=related

I had that on my PS2, it's an awesoem game! I cranked so many hours on it!:D So much fun, so many moves, so much destruction! I wish there was a nicer looking version for my PS3, but had to settle with the movie game, which is ok and along the same lines as UD, but not as well refined. I just loved the being in the midst of a battle with a bunch of Hulk Buster 'bots and as you're smakcing dudes about, a building next to you would start to crumble and fall! BRILLIANT!

Exactly what a Hulk game should be. Oh and the ripping of cars in half to make boxing gloves.:D

One of my fave things to do was to avoid missions, annoy the populace just enough to get the cops out, grab one and go jumping around the city listening to the man scream his head off as I jumped from roof top to roof top. Aaaaa, good times, good times...

[1AZRAEL1]

Don't overlook Gamecube games - Wii consoles can run them, but you need a Gamecube controller and a memory card.

You should be able to find good cheap ones around the place.

I bought Rouge Leader:Rouge Squadron 2 the other day from Gametraders for $15, also bought the memory card and controller, all up I think it cost me $80, but worth it lol


I have a DSi XL and I love it but I want to be able to play all the new games that are only coming out on 3DS. Is the 3DS worth it? Will I love it as much as my XL? I've googled and watched YouTube vids but I'm still not sure.

I am lucky, I got a DSi XL for xmas, and I got my missus a 3DS for xmas. Best of both worlds lol. But I haven't even played her 3DS anyway, been to busy with mine :p

On that note, I downloaded a few games for my DS, like the ever old school Space Ace, and I forgot how damn hard that game is, gotta be quick to play that game. Made by same guys who did Dragons Lair. Still fun though.

Bought a few games for my Wii too, a game called No More Heroes i picked up for $20 at EB. Quite fun, kinda like GTA but you're an assassin. Little things about it make it cool, like parts where you get called on your mobile phone, so you put the remote up to your ear to listen to it while still walking around. So fun that I bought the sequel for just as much :p

[SkyWarp91]

Using Snipers in Modern Warfare 3 is perhaps the the most useless thing you can do in Multiplayer when most maps are designed for close-quarters and every other player is running around with akimbo machine-pistols and rapid-fire rifles/sub machineguns!!

[Accel]

all my consoles are in storage right now so I've been playing SW: The Old republic!

its good to have a good star wars story after all these years ;D

[snaketales]

Exactly what a Hulk game should be. Oh and the ripping of cars in half to make boxing gloves.:D

My kids loved it when that happened in the second Hulk movie.

[Doubledealer]

Anyone else looking forward to Bioshock Infinite? So glad the genius that is Ken Levine (of System Shock 2 & Bioshock fame) is back to work on this latest game in the series. Need something new to play!

[Tetsuwan Convoy]

Lemme guess, is it due out in Nov this year? All the games I want to play are due in novemeber... WTF is up with that? Last year there were heaps and this year it's looking the same, I realise that it's before christmas sales and all, but crieky! They should rrealise that people will buy games at any time of year...</cynic>

[Doubledealer]

Haha, that's quite a wait! I don't think it's got a solid release date yet, although I would like someone to prove me wrong. :D

[kup]

Recently I have been playing Assassin's Creed 1 in an attempt to get into the franchise.

Why does this game get so much praise? It's so boring! I can't believe how repetitive they made it, every freaking city has the same identical missions!! Not even variations, IDENTICAL! And it's not as if there is a nice amount of them, there is only like 3-4 then it's rinse and repeat!

I am half way through and after doing the same missions over and over I am throwing in the towel. I can't play this game anymore.

If it wasn't for the first striking visuals and vivid world, I would have thought that I was back in Atari days were every level was the same only with upped difficulty. What a waste of such a detailed world and visuals.

I saw a Gamespot review and the dude never mentioned the repetitive nature of the game and he kinda looked off while talking so my guess is that he got paid the mullah to do a good review of this otherwise mediocre game.

[Gutsman Heavy]

The Zero Punctuation review was spot on for AC

[kup]

The Zero Punctuation review was spot on for AC

Yeah, I just saw it. He was critical but seems to have enjoyed it more than I did. I just wanted to shoot it out of a canon! ;)

The thing is that when I started the game, I was enjoying it until after the second city as I realized that there are only like 4 identical boring missions that are repeated over and over again! What kind of game design is this for the 21st century?

I can't see how anyone can play this game to the end and say it's good. I was falling asleep and by the half way mark, I had enough when the missions 'reset' for the next city and I was back to doing the same identical crap all over again.

This game again shows that the masses aren't always right in what's good and what isn't. I don't think I will pick up the next game since I wan't able to have enough will to finish the first which has also left me rather sour.

[Gutsman Heavy]

I'm having the same problem with the new Zelda, so much unnecessary padding!

NEW OBJECTIVE! Find secret song place thing!
Use new item to rotate windmills, first done, second is broke! Gotta find part! Run around talk etc, backtrack to desert and scavenger hunt! then back to windmill, get song dodad. Ok! lets go to new dungeon! Oh wait!

NEW OBJECTIVE! Do ancient test!
Backtrack to Forest on scavenger hunt! Urgh. Get new item! FINALLY OFF TO DUNGEON! Go to new area, promptly led back to old...

NEW OBJECTIVE! Find symbol!
Run around that same effing forest, get symbol. FINALLY OF TO DUNGEON! Go through new area, oh boy, new dungeon any second!

NEW OBJECTIVE! Find magic water!
FUUUUUUU, Backtrack to forest to an OLD DUNGEON!? Run through, get water! Run back to drop water off!

NEW OBJECTIVE! NEW DUNGEON BITCHES!
Finally!
S**t. Outta time. Gotta go to work.

NEW OBJECTIVE! Kill self!

[Tetsuwan Convoy]

One of my mates loves AC and played them all to bits. I never understood why myself as I too found it boring.

Gutsman, you referring to Skyward sword? If so, I agree, although I gave up after finsihing the first dungeon.

Laggy controls pissing me off, why does my shield break after a few hits? Oh great, I can't kill thos damn deku scrubs anymore...

Use the devinig sword to find zelda? Why? I now she will be in the volcano and there is only one way to go. Look, the path heads that way.

Explore the sky? Why, it only has a few rocks and a bunch of chests I can't open yet.

Bah! Sellling!

[Gutsman Heavy]

Yep, Skyward Sword. Can't understand all the love. The first 3 dungeons and their lead up are pretty good, if you can cope with the controls, but it goes bat shit with the back tracking after then. Some are calling it the best Zelda, seems set to be the worst imo.

[Tetsuwan Convoy]

yeh, ditto. Takes soooooo long to get going. I tried so hard to like it, but it jut blows.

[SharkyMcShark]

Yeah, I just saw it. He was critical but seems to have enjoyed it more than I did. I just wanted to shoot it out of a canon! ;)

The thing is that when I started the game, I was enjoying it until after the second city as I realized that there are only like 4 identical boring missions that are repeated over and over again! What kind of game design is this for the 21st century?

I can't see how anyone can play this game to the end and say it's good. I was falling asleep and by the half way mark, I had enough when the missions 'reset' for the next city and I was back to doing the same identical crap all over again.

This game again shows that the masses aren't always right in what's good and what isn't. I don't think I will pick up the next game since I wan't able to have enough will to finish the first which has also left me rather sour.

To be fair that basically describes all of the assassins creed games

[shokwave2]

Using Snipers in Modern Warfare 3 is perhaps the the most useless thing you can do in Multiplayer when most maps are designed for close-quarters and every other player is running around with akimbo machine-pistols and rapid-fire rifles/sub machineguns!!

Yeah MW3 lasted about 1 week in my console until i realised that all the maps were designed for close combat only and there were no sniping maps. And the fact that it was the same crap as the last 2 MW's. MW1 still has the best maps, both for close combat and sniping.

[i_amtrunks]

MarioKart 7 is addictive. New courses are almost all good or better, plenty of alt routes and many turbo spots to use during time trials that are mostly unusable at other times, so it's always a bad bet to try out perceived "shortcuts" during races!
All of the old tracks have not only had visual upgrades but tweaks have also been made to each to add in safe water portions, glider ramps etc that make them more interesting and something different to learn.

As always the only big negative is the cheating of the computer in the 150cc cups where you can get blue shelled, red shelled and bombed multiple times mere metres from the finish after opening a huge lead and end up coming 4th or worse. But I guess you have to learn to accpet tht when playing Mariokart.

[SkyWarp91]

Yeah MW3 lasted about 1 week in my console until i realised that all the maps were designed for close combat only and there were no sniping maps. And the fact that it was the same crap as the last 2 MW's. MW1 still has the best maps, both for close combat and sniping.

Yeah I gotta agree with that. I'm on Level 76. Almost gold-plated one of the weaker Sub-Machine guns. Still getting my ass kicked by those using the same cheap guns. Just want to get to Level 80 and then stop playing the game and go back to CS:S.

[Accel]

Picked up FFXIII-2 for ps3 today. and preordered some of the Vita release titles. Blazblue, Uncharted, Katamari and Dynasty warriors

[SkyWarp91]

Picked up FFXIII-2 for ps3 today. and preordered some of the Vita release titles. Blazblue, Uncharted, Katamari and Dynasty warriors

How is DW these days? Heard the later ones circa-PS2 era aren't as good, haven't played any of the new ones yet.

[Accel]

its still the same stuff over and over no matter the Generation

I just like using them to relieve stress :D

[Doubledealer]

Anyone played Dear Esther (http://www.pcgamer.com/review/dear-esther-review/) yet? I've been reading the reviews and it sounds really interesting. Looking forward to experiencing this one. :)

Edit: Just logged into Steam and it says it won't be available for another 9 hours.

[Bartrim]

It's my birthday tomorrow. My bro told me he got me UFC undisputed3 :) Bad news is that it's not actually released until 2 days after my birthday:(

[SkyWarp91]

OH MY GOD OH MY GOD I'M SO HAPPY! I JUST FINISHED DEMONS' SOULS ON THE PS3!!! AND THE LAST BATTLE I HAD WAS JUST SO DAMN EPIC, ONE THAT SHOULD BE RETOLD IN MUCH CALMER LOWER CASE TEXT BELOW!

So in this incredibly hard medieval-RPG game I was on the very last level where you would have to confront the false, evil King Allant. But in my way was the reanimated dead true prince Ostravia who had also turned evil. But even prior to him was a massive Blue Dragon that had scorched allied computer Knight Biorr to death. I avenged Biorr by slaying the dragon with literally hundreds of light arrows. Through the Dragon's death, I had hundreds of thousands of souls (the game currency).

This isn't the exciting part though.

You think that the obvious thing to do next after slaying this dragon would be to go fight Ostravia, right? But no, another player on the Playstation network had invaded my world in the form of a Black Phantom (basically a renimated version of a human being but all black with a super evil red-glow). This clever enemy by the name of 'tomjedi' had plotted to steal all of the souls I had just earned through avenging a dear friend of mine (Not very Jedi-ish of you, eh?). As I read the text announcing an invader, my first invader in this game, my heart skipped a beat. I took off my armor, placed on Biorr's and waited and thought to myself -
Who is this invader? Were they skilled? Or were they just some weak troll?

Then, in the far distance I see this lightly armored invader run across the fields welding a HUMONGOUS MEAT CLEAVER (Apparently the game's STRONGEST WEAPON). My heart started to panic as I realized I hadn't even equipped any healing items in my inventory yet as this invader ran towards me. He made a thundering slash at me, but I quickly dodged. However, my dodges were much slower as I had not gotten used to Biorr's heavy yet powerful armor. This invader kept slashing at me, but he was too slow and when the opportunity came, I stabbed him one. But the worst of horrors came, he HEALED himself. AGAIN. AND AGAIN. Basically, for the next hour or so, we went back and forth. He'd slash, I'd dodge and attack, he'd heal. Every now and then he'd lay down a hit, and I was slowly losing health.

Eventually, I knew that if we kept this up, I would not have enough time to heal and would soon die. So I had to think of a new tactic, and so I did. I decided to run up the stairs that we thought on and try and fight this tomjedi on a narrow pathway where certain death would be assured if one fell off the side. The corrupted-Ostravia was also waiting on the other end. My intentions were to eventually dodge all of this invader's attack and somehow push him off the edges. And if this plan failed, then perhaps involve Ostravia into the fight as a distraction so that I could heal myself. But no, I was unfortunate. No matter how hard I fought, I could not push off the invader off the edge, or trick him into rolling off. And as for Ostravia, it turns out that when you invade another player's world as a Black Phantom, you actually ALLY WITH OTHER EVIL COMPUTER PLAYERS. I realized this as I saw the invader run all the way up to Ostravia, yet the corrupted did not attack nor anything but simply turned over towards me and started walking. As both started walking towards me I thought holy crap, this is my end. I was going to lose all my hard-earned souls and was so so close to fighting the final boss of the game.

I quickly started running away from them, but damn Biorr's armor was too heavy. Tomjedi came up and quickly slashed me with his then-revealed small sword, I was losing small bits of health and quickly. But where was Ostravia? Well thanks to game programming the fella got stuck behind a pillar and decided to walk away from the fight. But the battle between me and Tomjedi roared on. I was certain that I was going to die as my speed could not out-dodge Tomjedi's swift small-sword attacks. But then I thought to myself - I CANNOT GIVE UP. NOT NOW. So I stood my ground, and used Biorr's shield to block Tomjedi's attacks and poked back at him with my sharp spear. Tomjedi was getting cocky, he was growing impatient with his attacks and they became more predictable. The tides of the battle had turned as I started winning, on 4 occasions I reduced Tomjedi's health to a mere 5%, but the lucky devil had a never-ending supply of healing goods and would keep replenishing himself to full health. Eventually he knew that he could not keep this up anymore, so he ran back to go get Ostravia. I knew that if I stayed, I would be doomed. And so I ran, ran all the way to the start of the level, hoping that I could use the game's archstone (a sword buried in stone) to teleport back to my safe-haven, the Nexus. I had lost Tomjedi but knew that he would catch up soon.

But as I got within view of the level's starting point, I noticed something. THERE WAS A WALL OF THICK FOG BLOCKING MY ACCESS TO THE ARCHSTONE. I could not escape and had to fight Tomjedi. If I fought him, I would lose all the souls needed to level up to fight the last boss. And in fighting Tomjedi, I would have used many of the health items needed to fight the last boss. But then I saw something in the corner of this battleground, it was a glowing-blue marking in the floor - A BLUE PHANTOM SPAWN POINT. (A blue phantom is an ally online player) I used the spawn point, hoping to invite a random online ally into battle... ....but no-one came. And in the corner of my eye I could see Tomjedi approaching by himself. Seems like he could not get Ostravia to follow him but I could not last that much longer in battle against him. But then, out of no-where (actually perhaps good ol' Lag), a savior by the name of 'thorpbe' came. NOW TWO CAN PLAY AT THAT GAME, TOMJEDI. I looked to my side to see a character that very-much resembled a normal version of Ostravia. As soon as he stepped besides me, Tomjedi had quit.

My panic was over.

Together, we cheered (you can actually do that using in-game gestures) and decided to go fight Ostravia and the last-boss together. We easily sliced down Ostravia and patiently took down the evil King Allant once and for all.

And when it was all over, I thanked Thorpbe dearly for saving my ass from being robbed by Tomjedi. He was modest about his involvement, but if it wasn't for him - I would have been SCREWED.

And that my friends, is an epic adventure worthy of spending an hour writing! :cool:

[Gutsman Heavy]

Epic!

[Doubledealer]

That's brilliant SkyWarp91, thanks for helping us re-live some of the final moments in one of my all time favourite games. :) I remember feeling incredibly sad when the game ended as I didn't think any other game would be able to top it...Then they made a sequel. :D As the Soul Calibur announcer would say: The Soul(s) still burns!

[doveduff]

I was playing Kingdoms-Of-Amalur.I ended up playing about two hours of this last night and had a pretty good time. The demo was hard to get into knowing that my character was not going to stick with me, but now that I'm actually playing the full game I'm definitely into it.

[SkyWarp91]

Dear gamers, especially those that are fans of Doom,

Does anyone know why this novel (http://www.amazon.com/Infernal-Sky-Doom-No-3/dp/0671525638/ref=pd_sim_b_5), the 3rd installment in a 4-part series of Doom novels costs $55 compared to the other novels which only cost like $6!?!?!?!??!

[Hursticon]

Dear gamers, especially those that are fans of Doom,

Does anyone know why this novel (http://www.amazon.com/Infernal-Sky-Doom-No-3/dp/0671525638/ref=pd_sim_b_5), the 3rd installment in a 4-part series of Doom novels costs $55 compared to the other novels which only cost like $6!?!?!?!??!

Because they're severely overcharging! :eek:

Have a geeze at BookDepository, I'm dead sure you'll find both the 3rd and 4th books there at a way reduced cost; I own the 1st 2 as they're based on Doom: Ultimate & Doom 2: Hell on Earth respectively, the 3rd and 4th aren't bound to any game and go off on their own tangent or so I've read. ;):cool:

Pleases me greatly that someone else is willing to pick these up, I'm pretty lonely in my Original Doom Fanboy status. :o:p

[Doubledealer]

Only Doom related book I've read is 'Masters of Doom' by David Kushner and it was epic. :D

[Hursticon]

Only Doom related book I've read is 'Masters of Doom' by David Kushner and it was epic. :D

And one I'm still yet to add to my collection, along with the Doom 3 novelizations. :D

[SkyWarp91]

Because they're severely overcharging! :eek:

Have a geeze at BookDepository, I'm dead sure you'll find both the 3rd and 4th books there at a way reduced cost; I own the 1st 2 as they're based on Doom: Ultimate & Doom 2: Hell on Earth respectively, the 3rd and 4th aren't bound to any game and go off on their own tangent or so I've read. ;):cool:

Pleases me greatly that someone else is willing to pick these up, I'm pretty lonely in my Original Doom Fanboy status. :o:p

Oh man I love Doom too but recently my friend showed me Skulltag Doom and we played on the Brutal Servers. Check out what it looks like here : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QLKZhu_dgxA So damn cool!!!

[Doubledealer]

And one I'm still yet to add to my collection, along with the Doom 3 novelizations. :D

Oh man, I think you'll love it Hursti. Such a fascinating read!


Oh man I love Doom too but recently my friend showed me Skulltag Doom and we played on the Brutal Servers. Check out what it looks like here : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QLKZhu_dgxA So damn cool!!!

Haha that's pretty full on! Man, makes me realise how much I miss the Quake III LAN's when I lived in Canberra...Good times! :D

[Zippo]

*Needs to get back into gaming*

[Doubledealer]

Resident Evil 6 Official Trailer (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JlUJemu7bf4&feature=player_embedded#!)

Absolutely mind blowing. :eek: I still prefer the slower paced survival horror style of RE1-3 but man, this looks like a damn good apology for RE5!!

[5FDP]

Resident Evil 6 Official Trailer (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JlUJemu7bf4&feature=player_embedded#!)

Absolutely mind blowing. :eek: I still prefer the slower paced survival horror style of RE1-3 but man, this looks like a damn good apology for RE5!!

How good is it! Chris Redfield and Leon Kennedy join forces :cool: :cool:

[Doubledealer]

How good is it! Chris Redfield and Leon Kennedy join forces :cool: :cool:

Well, it's another nail in the coffin of traditional survival horror games, and certainly isn't what I'd call a Resident Evil game, but it will hopefully be as good an action game as RE4. As fantastic as the trailer looks, I have to ask the question: Do we really need more Gears of War style action games?

With Resident Evil taking its all-action approach, and the Silent Hill franchise constantly being farmed out to companies who have absolutely no clue what Silent Hill is about, I can't help but feel a bit deflated about the once fantastic slow-paced survival horror genre. Dead Space you say? They're action games!

Ah well, that's enough ranting from Grandpa. Time to load up epsxe and replay the original Silent Hill in preparation for the Silent Hill 2 & 3 HD Collection (out next month!). Vulnerability, atmosphere, lack of weapons and ammo, involving story, suspense, spooky camera angles! This is what it's about. :)

[Slag]

Yep . I'll be getting that one.:D
I did like the RE1 re-make on gamecube. few extra maps and side stories. I'll have to try and find me a copy of 2 and 3, haven't played em for years.

[Doubledealer]

Yep . I'll be getting that one.:D
I did like the RE1 re-make on gamecube. few extra maps and side stories. I'll have to try and find me a copy of 2 and 3, haven't played em for years.

Damn straight, the RE-make was bloody fantastic! That is the kind of Resident Evil I wish Capcom would stick to, tank controls, claustrophobic camera angles and all. Imagine if they did a similar remake for RE2. :eek:

[kup]

Yep, Skyward Sword. Can't understand all the love. The first 3 dungeons and their lead up are pretty good, if you can cope with the controls, but it goes bat shit with the back tracking after then. Some are calling it the best Zelda, seems set to be the worst imo.

That's disappointing. I was looking forward to buying Skyward Sword and even 'built' myself a Wii to play it...Oh well.

Any good game recommendations for the Wii?

[Doubledealer]

Any good game recommendations for the Wii?

I don't own a Wii but I've always wanted to play Epic Mickey. :p

[Tetsuwan Convoy]

That's disappointing. I was looking forward to buying Skyward Sword and even 'built' myself a Wii to play it...Oh well.

Any good game recommendations for the Wii?

Depends on your likes, but I reckon Super Mario Galaxy 2, Tatsunoko Vs Capcom, Sonic Colours, Kirby's Epic Yarn (so cute but easy), Goldeneye, Donkey Kong Country returns, House of the Dead Overkill (So much swearing!!):D. And oh, thats my game collection for the wii!:p

[jena]

That's disappointing. I was looking forward to buying Skyward Sword and even 'built' myself a Wii to play it...Oh well.

Any good game recommendations for the Wii?

There's also The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess. I'm still going to give Skyward Sword a chance once I have the $$ to buy it. I second Super Mario Galaxy also.

[SharkyMcShark]

Get down to an EB or a GAME or whatever, get yourself some GameCube controllers, and get Smash Bros Brawl.

Oh and also grab some friends. Probably not from EB.

[jena]

If anyone knows of someone who wants to buy a DSi XL, I'm selling mine on eBay. (http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/Nintendo-DSi-XL-Yellow-Handheld-Video-Game-Console-/290673497653?pt=AU_Consoles&hash=item43ad7d9635#ht_500wt_1106) :)

[Doubledealer]

I've ignored the Assassins Creed series thus far but have just read that one of the levels (?) takes place in King Solomon's Temple of Jerusalem. I find King Solomon to be a fascinating ruler and love the legend surrounding the temple and how it was built by demons under Solomon's rule. :cool:

For those who have played the game, is it worth it for this level? Any demonic references? :D

[kup]

There's also The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess. I'm still going to give Skyward Sword a chance once I have the $$ to buy it. I second Super Mario Galaxy also.

A friend told me that Twilight Princess was horrible. I take that you have a difference of opinion so do you mind telling me why you like it?

[KillinSpoon]

TP was horrible. Luckily the twilight hack was availabl at the time so it gave me a gateway to hack my wii.

[Tetsuwan Convoy]

I quite enjoyed Twilight Princess. The controls were ok, I wish they had allowed for normal controller use, but aside from that it was a decent Zelda romp.

Much better than Skyward Sword. Abomination that it is! Too much wrong in that game for me to like.

[KillinSpoon]

Whereas I liked SS, each to their own haha.

[Doubledealer]

I've only played two Zelda games - Wind Waker and Twilight Princess. I wouldn't say the latter was a terrible game, but it wasn't a classic in the way that Wind Waker was (and is). That game really resonated with me in a way that few games do these days. And how can you not like those Korok fellas. Adorable!

EDIT: My Silent Hill replay is going well, I'm up to the Alchemelia Hospital now and am documenting the story in MS Word and taking screen captures as I go. Obsessive? Maybe, but it's fun all the same. :p

[SkyWarp91]

Started playing Dark Souls, time to kick some ass and chew some undead bones. And I'm all outta bones.

[Slag]

I quite enjoyed Twilight Princess. The controls were ok, I wish they had allowed for normal controller use, but aside from that it was a decent Zelda romp.

Much better than Skyward Sword. Abomination that it is! Too much wrong in that game for me to like.

We have Twilight Princess on Gamecube , i thought was really good. Same as Ocarina pretty much. My friend had it on wii and i couldn't really get into it.

[Slag]

I've only played two Zelda games - Wind Waker and Twilight Princess. I wouldn't say the latter was a terrible game, but it wasn't a classic in the way that Wind Waker was (and is). That game really resonated with me in a way that few games do these days. And how can you not like those Korok fellas. Adorable!

I remember the old gold/silver plated, 8 bit cartridge days.:rolleyes: spent way too much time with young Link.
But still, I've enjoyed every one
You should play Ocarina of Time and see what you think. One of the classics.
Always a similar formula
Wake up.
find sword and green clothes.
kill s#%!.
learn songs,
kill s#%!,
solve puzzles,
kill s#%!
run errands
kill s#%!.....
find bigger sword.......
do and kill a shitload more........
fight Ganon/dorf

[VGMStudios]

you know that sums up Zelda quite nicely. I think Im going to use that as a signature.

[Tetsuwan Convoy]

Whereas I liked SS, each to their own haha.

Yeh, it is much like that hey? I really enjoyed Windwaker and before I got it I read that heaps of people hated it. Most seemed to complain about A)Graphics and B) the sailing.

Me, I always though:Graphics maketh not a game. If I whinged about graphics, I would never have touched my commodore 64!

I found the sailing fun and kind of relaxing. Long Story Short, Windwaker is one of the more enjoyable Zeldas in my opinion!

[jena]

I thought a lot of people didn't like the really cartoon-ish style of wind waker. I personally prefer the style of TP but the graphics style wouldn't turn me off a game altogether.

[kup]

Thanks for your feedback guys..but now I am more confused than ever on which Zelda to buy for Wii! :p

I have been playing and are nearing the end of Phantom Hourglass. Aside from going back to the incredibly annoying and 'unfun' Ocean King temple over and over, I am enjoying it.

I know that the graphical style is like Wind Waker and although at first it was a bit of an 'abrupt' change of style from other games, I grew to eventually like it as the gameplay was good.

As it has been said, graphics don't make the game - Gameplay and story does.

[Slag]

Thanks for your feedback guys..but now I am more confused than ever on which Zelda to buy for Wii! :p

I have been playing and are nearing the end of Phantom Hourglass. Aside from going back to the incredibly annoying and 'unfun' Ocean King temple over and over, I am enjoying it.

I know that the graphical style is like Wind Waker and although at first it was a bit of an 'abrupt' change of style from other games, I grew to eventually like it as the gameplay was good.

As it has been said, graphics don't make the game - Gameplay and story does.

Depends on what your after. There's some darker elements in TP where as wind waker is a bit cutesy (I'd go both, TP on gamecube if you've got one)
Isn't there some new Zelda out now that i see Robin Williams and his daughter plugging on t.v.?...
Now thats one Zelda I'd like to play..:)

[Gutsman Heavy]

Wind Waker is awesome, and unlike TP it's stylistic graphics hasn't aged horribly.

[Doubledealer]

Wonder if Nintendo will release an HD version of Wind Waker on the Wii U. Now that is something I would get excite about. :D

[Accel]

picked up my Vita today with BlazBlu, MvC, Katamari and uncharted

[Doubledealer]

picked up my Vita today with BlazBlu, MvC, Katamari and uncharted

Thoughts?

[Accel]

at work so cant play it yet O: will post something when i get home

[Doubledealer]

at work so cant play it yet O: will post something when i get home

Cool cool. Would love to hear how the Uncharted experience differs to that on the PS3, especially in terms of how Drake controls. Congrats on the purchases btw!

[Tetsuwan Convoy]

Cool cool. Would love to hear how the Uncharted experience differs to that on the PS3, especially in terms of how Drake controls. Congrats on the purchases btw!

Ha ha! Yeh, juts think, you probably could have bought an Overlord for that money ;)

[Hursticon]

Oh hell yes, scored a Diablo III Beta Key from AusGamers!!! :D:cool:

[jena]

I got to play with a Vita today, wasn't terribly impressed. The game selection for it is pretty average. I'll stick with my 3DS.

Also, my best frind bought Skyward Sword today and we spent the day playing it and it is really amazing. I need to buy it for myself at some point now.

[Doubledealer]

Yeah I'd love to play the new Zelda, damn lack of Wii...

Hursti that's awesome! Would be great to hear your thoughts on D3 when you get the chance. :)

[Hursticon]

Hursti that's awesome! Would be great to hear your thoughts on D3 when you get the chance. :)

I'll let you know once I've signed up for a Battle.net account and have downloaded the 15Gb install. :p
I'll definitely let you know though dude, I've really been looking forward to it. :D

[Accel]

so the Vita basically craps all over the 3DS as a launch system.

it actually has games! (shock horror)

Load times (apart from the initial loading of a game) are all tiny and quick, the remote play feature is really neat. can play my old ps1 games from my ps3 on my vita while in bed so that's cool.

I have only played BlazBlue and Dynasty warriors so far but both look great and feel really good with the way the system is set up. screen is nice and big much better than the 3DS one.

so yeah I like it O: will play uncharted and more tonight

[Tetsuwan Convoy]

Hows the lag on the remote play? You could do that with your PSP but I found that anything involving action wasn't good, so stuck with RPG bouts only on the remote play side of things.

[Accel]

I didn't have much lag only at the initial start up but that's about it

[Doubledealer]

so the Vita basically craps all over the 3DS as a launch system.

it actually has games! (shock horror)

Yeah. It has games I can already play superior versions of on a 46" HDTV in 5.1 surround sound. :p Don't get me wrong, I love the Playstation brand but ever since the PS3 Sony has lost me a bit. My question is: For PS3 owners, what incentive is there to spend $300 on a handheld system which essentially offers the same experiences they're already experiencing? Or am I missing the point and this is aimed at geologists who love Playstation games but are home only a couple of times a year? The price would certainly support this theory.

And why are people forced to buy a proprietary memory card in this day and age? For what I can only assume is meant to be a competent media device, Why is there no HDMI cable? Wipeout has 1 minute + load times before each race, is this going to be the norm with many games released on the system?

At this early stage, it's a lot of money to fork out for games we're pretty much already playing. New video game IPs unique to the PS Vita, that is what I want to see and that's what will make me consider buying this potentially awesome device!

[jena]

Wipeout has 1 minute + load times before each race.

I couldn't even play that on the Vita I played with at EB Games yesterday because it was set up as a display and it would go to sleep after 5 minutes. I had to play some Michael Jackson rubbish instead.

[Slag]

you know that sums up Zelda quite nicely. I think Im going to use that as a signature.

Go for it!!. It probably doesn't fit Majora's Mask . That one's a bit of a Headf&^%. Did like the end though. (A bit studio Ghibli)

[Tetsuwan Convoy]

At this early stage, it's a lot of money to fork out for games we're pretty much already playing. New video game IPs unique to the PS Vita, that is what I want to see and that's what will make me consider buying this potentially awesome device!
Yeh, that is my thinking too, I was impressed that it has Marvel Vs Capcom, but I already have that for my Ps3.

Until I see something that is a must have, which I am not sure what I would decide that would be yet, I am not going to bother.

[Doubledealer]

Yeh, that is my thinking too, I was impressed that it has Marvel Vs Capcom, but I already have that for my Ps3.

Until I see something that is a must have, which I am not sure what I would decide that would be yet, I am not going to bother.

Very sensible. :) I would have been pissed about it but they probably should have made The Last Guardian for the PS Vita, it needs something mega rad like that to convince people that it's worth owning.

[kup]

I got to play with a Vita today, wasn't terribly impressed. The game selection for it is pretty average. I'll stick with my 3DS.

Also, my best frind bought Skyward Sword today and we spent the day playing it and it is really amazing. I need to buy it for myself at some point now.

Interesting..I may just bite the bullet and buy it so that I can try it out and see for myself.

[kurdt_the_goat]

I got my Vita and love it too. Talking hardware specifically, it just feels complete and absolutely worth the money. I'd go so far as to say that by comparison, it makes even the post-price drop 3DS seem like a rip off. The load times are a bit long but no worse than PSP was originally, so nothing i can't deal with. When you take into consideration the graphics on display and the size of the unit, i think it's understandable. It'll no doubt improve over time as well. And, people are forced to buy proprietary memory cards cause of piracy, we only bought it on ourselves :P

I got Wipeout 2048, Super Stardust Delta and Motorstorm RC. I don't have a PS3 so i can't really speak from that angle, but i do know all 3 of those games are must-haves! The general quality of all the launch titles seems very high - although a lot are ports, they are pretty definitive versions (except Ridge Racer!)

I also managed to hop on the JP store and get the demo for Gravity Daze which seems very awesome, in a very cool japanese style and is also a unique IP. Last Guardian wouldn't have done anything for Vita launch unless Vita was delayed until 2014 or something :P

Plus i tried out Virtua Tennis 4; my god you've never seen a tennis game look so good, it's so sharp, even troublesome bits like the net are flawless with no aliasing.

I think for those owning PS3 there might be some overlap now, but as time goes on there will be more exclusives. I personally have started preferring handhelds cause it means i don't have to hog the TV when my wife wants to hang about together... it's just easier to turn on a portable.

[snaketales]

Was playing Dead Space 2 online last night and noticed one of the opposing humans did not seem to be taking damage at all. I performed an execution attack on him and his health didn't change. I was about to give up on the game when my son who was watching told me I had received an extra 100,000 points (normally you get an extra 100 points for an execution attack). So guess who I continually attacked for the next three games? :D

I don't know why he bothered using a cheat. He won the Human rounds but always lost the Necromorph rounds, and thanks to his cheat boosting my points there was no way he was going to lead the points table.

Proof that cheating doesn't pay!

[Defcon]

I have been playing Binary Domain published by Sega, for a few days now. Its a really solid shooter. I really liked the story and the universe they have created. Shooting robots to pieces is so satisfying. It is so worthy of a sequel, but wonder how many will support this game. The bosses are numerous, and there is a huge roster of enemies. No regrets with my purchase.

[Tetsuwan Convoy]

I have been busting my hump on uncharted 3 over the past couple of nights. Now up to the "Just one shot' chapter and man its bloody hard! You start sneaking around stealth killing the guards, but no matter how good I go, I manage to mess up just one and then the shooting goes and baddies stream in from everywhere. Man! I am beginning to wonder if it is even possible to stealth our way through...

[SkyWarp91]

Spent a good 60 hours over the last 2 weeks playing Dark Souls and now have finally finished it. A VERY satisfying game to play and I'm proud to have finished it, though the good NPCs you meet all suffer such depressing fates :/

As for the ending, I got the good one but it means letting the Gods rule the world. But if I had chosen the bad one, I would have let humans rule the world but eventually plunge it into darkness. Confused as !

[kaiden]

anyone getting mass effect 3?

[Doubledealer]

Spent a good 60 hours over the last 2 weeks playing Dark Souls and now have finally finished it. A VERY satisfying game to play and I'm proud to have finished it, though the good NPCs you meet all suffer such depressing fates :/

As for the ending, I got the good one but it means letting the Gods rule the world. But if I had chosen the bad one, I would have let humans rule the world but eventually plunge it into darkness. Confused as !

I still haven't finished it! I got to the very last boss but still have sooo much to do in terms of weapons and leveling. That and I really don't want it to end. :( Do you think Demon's Souls or Dark Souls is the better game?

I really need to get a Wii...The Last Story, Xenoblade, Zelda SS...I simply must play these games at some point! :eek:

[SkyWarp91]

I still haven't finished it! I got to the very last boss but still have sooo much to do in terms of weapons and leveling. That and I really don't want it to end. :( Do you think Demon's Souls or Dark Souls is the better game?

I really need to get a Wii...The Last Story, Xenoblade, Zelda SS...I simply must play these games at some point! :eek:

That's a hard one to answer, whether Demon's Souls or Dark Souls was better. I think I enjoyed Demon's Souls better because of my personal preference of the storyline. Both games though undeniably were very rewarding and I would have just wanted to keep playing Dark Souls too but had to finish it because I have a whole bunch of other games to play. It was saddening though when it finished because I remember all those epic bosses I fought and that it's all gone now, unless I play again through New Game+ mode :)

[Quickstrike]

I'm still slogging my way through Dark Souls, trying to beat the Four Kings at the moment. Then I've still got 2/3rds of the Metal Gear Solid Collection to play through, I haven't touched Final Fantasy XIII-2 yet and Mass Effect 3 and Street Fighter X Tekken come out next week. Ahhhhhhhh.

[i_amtrunks]

Spent most of the flights to and from India playing Orcarina of time on the 3DS, didnt even put in Mario Bros or Kart!

Great game that s only enhanced from being moved to handheld, hopefully some other 64/Cube games get this treatment!

[Tetsuwan Convoy]

Woohoo! I was having trouble stealthily getting my way the "Only one Shot" chapter on Uncharted 3, but today I managed it! HACHAA! Stealth nabbed all the guards, but the last two guarding the door were proving to be tricky, no matter what I tried, I couldn't take them out without the other sounding the alarm. So as a last resort, I lobbed a grenade in between them when they weren't looking:D

BLAM!

Two dead guards, not terribly stealthy, but it got the trick done and no-one else to raise the alarm. ZING! So chuffed!

[Doubledealer]

That's a hard one to answer, whether Demon's Souls or Dark Souls was better. I think I enjoyed Demon's Souls better because of my personal preference of the storyline. Both games though undeniably were very rewarding and I would have just wanted to keep playing Dark Souls too but had to finish it because I have a whole bunch of other games to play. It was saddening though when it finished because I remember all those epic bosses I fought and that it's all gone now, unless I play again through New Game+ mode :)

It's a hard question to answer isn't it? They're both stellar games! I like the fact that Dark Souls ditched the hub based game world (something I'm really not looking forward to in Zelda SS, I loved the exploration in WW :(), but other than that I think Demons Souls had the edge. I felt the level design was tighter and more consistent, and I would say it was a much more frightening game overall (I'd end up cautiously walking around more whereas in Dark Souls I'd be running around a lot). But then Dark Souls had areas like Sen's Fortress which were totally brilliant (I wish that area in particular was double or three times the size. It was so Sinbad the sailor!!).


I'm still slogging my way through Dark Souls, trying to beat the Four Kings at the moment. Then I've still got 2/3rds of the Metal Gear Solid Collection to play through, I haven't touched Final Fantasy XIII-2 yet and Mass Effect 3 and Street Fighter X Tekken come out next week. Ahhhhhhhh.

That's a pretty trippy fight hey! If you get stuck I highly recommend using a lightning enhanced great scythe for total annihilation. :D


Woohoo! I was having trouble stealthily getting my way the "Only one Shot" chapter on Uncharted 3, but today I managed it! HACHAA! Stealth nabbed all the guards, but the last two guarding the door were proving to be tricky, no matter what I tried, I couldn't take them out without the other sounding the alarm. So as a last resort, I lobbed a grenade in between them when they weren't looking:D

BLAM!

Two dead guards, not terribly stealthy, but it got the trick done and no-one else to raise the alarm. ZING! So chuffed!

Nice one Tets! So is there a special achievement for using stealth in Uncharted 3? If so I might have to give it a crack! :p

Well, I already know my gf rocks but today I was reminded of that fact. :D

http://i661.photobucket.com/albums/uu332/Doubledealer_83/re.jpg


Spent most of the flights to and from India playing Orcarina of time on the 3DS, didnt even put in Mario Bros or Kart!

Great game that s only enhanced from being moved to handheld, hopefully some other 64/Cube games get this treatment!

As someone who's just acquired a 3DS and never played OoT, this is music to my ears! Glad to hear it's so good, someone at work explained to me that the graphics were built from scratch for the 3DS release. Definitely going to pick this one up next!

And now...It's old school Resident Evil time!! :D

[Tetsuwan Convoy]

Nice one Tets! So is there a special achievement for using stealth in Uncharted 3? If so I might have to give it a crack! :p

If personal satisfaction is an achievement then yes.

Otherwise no. :p

[kurdt_the_goat]

Highly recommend PS3/Vita owners pick up Motorstorm RC, i've been having a blast with it. It's not your typical Motorstorm, instead it's an overhead racer in the style of Micro Machines.

The controls are awesome, using both analog sticks - one to control direction and the other accelleration/braking, similar to some real Radio controlled car controllers. If you don't like that though you can change it to buttons.

There's heaps of tracks, heaps of car types that all have different handling (and they're ALL fun to use), heaps of challenge types (win the race, fast lap, overtaking challenge, drifting contest).

The best feature though is the leaderboards, the game constantly tells you when someone has beaten one of your times and with the press of a button, you can re-enter the event and kick their ass back! It's insanely addictive.

Only missing online multiplayer, which is a shame but the ghost-racing pretty much makes up for it - plus there's no lag or connection crap to deal with.

It even has just a simple playground area full of ramps, bowls and even basketball rings to try and sling your RC car into!

Actually, the best part is it's only 10 bucks!

[i_amtrunks]

As someone who's just acquired a 3DS and never played OoT, this is music to my ears! Glad to hear it's so good, someone at work explained to me that the graphics were built from scratch for the 3DS release. Definitely going to pick this one up next!

And now...It's old school Resident Evil time!! :D

My only gripe is how short the battery life is when on full 3D, means more often than not I am plugged to the wall, not an issue most of the time as I play in the evenings.

It's still cheaper to buy 3DS Games online (via ozgameshop and others that sell our region games) but be careful, as the 3DS is not region free like the DS!

[Doubledealer]

My only gripe is how short the battery life is when on full 3D, means more often than not I am plugged to the wall, not an issue most of the time as I play in the evenings.

It's still cheaper to buy 3DS Games online (via ozgameshop and others that sell our region games) but be careful, as the 3DS is not region free like the DS!

Thanks for the tips trunks, wise words indeed! So am I right in saying that we Aussies can play any game as long as it's PAL (meaning I could import from the UK and their games would work)?

Resident Evil Revelations is INSANE. I couldn't be happier with the game right now, it's everything I had hoped for. :D And having not played a 3DS before can I just saw WOW at what this little device achieves. With 3D maxed out in RE it looks absolutely amazing, probably the best looking Resident Evil game to date. And even the freakin' CG cutscenes are 3D for even more jaw dropping viewing! In gaming heaven right now, haha.

[Doubledealer]

Has/is anyone else playing Revelations? Trying to figure out a good way to stagger the Ooze's but I can't seem to manage it without firing less than 4 shots (2 in each arm seems to do the trick). The subsequent charging melee attack Jill unleashes is so satisfying. :D

Switched to the 3DS' gyro controls too and it's much easier (and more entertaining) to aim now, don't think I'll worry about the Circle Pad Pro for now. :) Only side effect I've found from using the gyro is the 3D starts to become reaaally trippy as you move the 3DS around. Easier just to turn it off and enjoy pin-point accuracy. :cool:

[jena]

I mostly play my 3DS in 2D and just watch cut scenes in 3D. Although the only game I have so far is Zelda. But it has the same controls with aiming the bow etc so I find it easier to play in 2D and I personally think it still looks incredible.

[Doubledealer]

I mostly play my 3DS in 2D and just watch cut scenes in 3D.

For sure, that's what I'm doing at the moment too. The 3D is amazing but I'm finding (with RER at least) that you have to hold the 3DS incredibly still and look at the screen at just the right angle or it starts tripping out. This is fine during cutscenes but is quite tricky to manage during gameplay.

On another note, More Resident Evil on 3DS very possible (http://www.relyonhorror.com/latest-news/resident-evil-news/more-resident-evil-on-3ds-very-possible/). :D

[Hursticon]

Just want to say one thing about the Diablo III Beta at the moment; It's incredibly fun and like slipping on an old glove with new bells and whistles but the fact you have to be connected to the Net in order to play it (At least for the Beta it seems) is a bit of a pain in the ass because anyone else sharing your connection causes you to spike badly with lag and should the connection drop out - It just crashes the game... :rolleyes:

It's a little annoying honestly, but, nothing that shouldn't be expected when it's less than a Demo really. ;)

[Doubledealer]

Just want to say one thing about the Diablo III Beta at the moment; It's incredibly fun and like slipping on an old glove with new bells and whistles but the fact you have to be connected to the Net in order to play it (At least for the Beta it seems) is a bit of a pain in the ass because anyone else sharing your connection causes you to spike badly with lag and should the connection drop out - It just crashes the game... :rolleyes:

It's a little annoying honestly, but, nothing that shouldn't be expected when it's less than a Demo really. ;)

Cheers for the info Hursti! How is the colour palette in the game? I'm a bit out of the loop but I recall hearing it's more colourful this time around. Reckon this true and does it detract from the atmosphere at all?

I just defeated the first boss in RER after having my organs blended by it twice in a row. :o Pretty epic fight I must say and the pay off for defeating it had me chuckling to myself (I swear this game has some of the silliest, and at the same time, some of the most humorous writing in the series). I wouldn't be surprised if Dogs Bowser from Blue Stinger came in to help for the next boss fight. Actually, that would be the most epic thing ever!

People on Neogaf (http://www.neogaf.com/forum/) are playing this game in excess of 90 hours so for RE fans on the fence about buying the 3DS solely for this title, it truly is well worth it!

[Hursticon]

Cheers for the info Hursti! How is the colour palette in the game? I'm a bit out of the loop but I recall hearing it's more colourful this time around. Reckon this true and does it detract from the atmosphere at all?

Though I'm not terribly far through it, I would say that it does have a more diverse colour palette but that is certainly to it's credit as it's definitely not like everything is in Rainbow-Technicolour or a Neon-Rave. :rolleyes::p

It's a Blizzard game, so you can expect their usual manifestation of perfection but I think what trips people is the fact that the last Diablo came out in 2000; nearly 12 years ago and a great many strides have been made in the industry since that beast was 1st unleashed. ;)

Atmosphere-wise, I think Diablo III achieves a superior sense of it as it's able to utilise technologies that D2 couldn't have hoped to employ; things like proper shadows and lighting, shaders, rolling fog, destructible environments, wind & rain, etc. :eek:
Baring in mind, the Beta only covers the 1st Chapter of the 1st Act and hence what you're presented with is but a fine sample leaving you wanting the main course feverishly. :D

Rest assured, if anyone has ever played the previous games and enjoyed them; You're definitely going to want to own Diablo III. :)

[Doubledealer]

Though I'm not terribly far through it, I would say that it does have a more diverse colour palette but that is certainly to it's credit as it's definitely not like everything is in Rainbow-Technicolour or a Neon-Rave. :rolleyes::p

It's a Blizzard game, so you can expect their usual manifestation of perfection but I think what trips people is the fact that the last Diablo came out in 2000; nearly 12 years ago and a great many strides have been made in the industry since that beast was 1st unleashed. ;)

Atmosphere-wise, I think Diablo III achieves a superior sense of it as it's able to utilise technologies that D2 couldn't have hoped to employ; things like proper shadows and lighting, shaders, rolling fog, destructible environments, wind & rain, etc. :eek:
Baring in mind, the Beta only covers the 1st Chapter of the 1st Act and hence what you're presented with is but a fine sample leaving you wanting the main course feverishly. :D

Rest assured, if anyone has ever played the previous games and enjoyed them; You're definitely going to want to own Diablo III. :)

Sounds pretty darn good mate! Looking forward to seeing the environmental effects - night time rain would look most magnificent I imagine. :D

Well, so much for not buying the Nintendo Circle Pad Pro...I didn't realise the thing was so damn cheap ($23 from JB Hi-Fi) so I plonked it in the basket at lunch time. :p Now that I've used it, I'd go so far as to say that it's essential particularly for people with large hands as it allows the 3DS to 'fill' your hands as opposed to you holding the device in a claw-like fashion. It also makes the controls in RER much more intuitive. 10/10 I say!

[King Atlas]

I have been unable to download Serious Sam HD: TSE on Xbox 360. It's been on marketplace for months now. It's says unrated on the info screen. Is this the problem? Because I can't find any answers to my specific question(s).

Please no buy it on Steam replies. Thanks.

[Doubledealer]

Please no buy it on Steam replies. Thanks.

I wouldn't dare! :D

[i_amtrunks]

So Kmart and Big W are advertising the new Mario Party 9 for Wii for $49 (as well as some other new titles). This is about the price we can buy theses games online for, compared to the usual $80-$100.

Makes me wonder if they are doing it in direct response to the online sales push, and they have started to realise we are not idiots, and wont pay the hideously over the top prices the retailers want us to.

[kurdt_the_goat]

I have been unable to download Serious Sam HD: TSE on Xbox 360. It's been on marketplace for months now. It's says unrated on the info screen. Is this the problem? Because I can't find any answers to my specific question(s).

Please no buy it on Steam replies. Thanks.

Have you tried adding it to your download queue using your PC/marketplace website?
It seems to have a rating there.

[SharkyMcShark]

So my BF3 clan is now top of the GameArena ladder, although I'm not sure how, we're all rubbish.

[jena]

Does anyone have any experience with ordering stuff from gametraders? How long does it normally take?

[kaiden]

hey guys,

if you have Origin add me LamDX
i'm playing Mass Effect 3 and the multiplayer is decently fun :D

[Bartrim]

So my BF3 clan is now top of the GameArena ladder, although I'm not sure how, we're all rubbish.

Champion team not a team of champions:)

[SharkyMcShark]

My Steam game of the week is AI Wars: Fleet Command. Interesting premise, and a fresher take on the 4X game than usual (as it turns out in this game trying to take over the whole galaxy actually loses you the game because it annoys the AI so much)

[jazzcomp]

Where can I get a cheap Nintendo 3DS?

Anyone interested in a DS? I want to offload it.

[jena]

Where can I get a cheap Nintendo 3DS?

Anyone interested in a DS? I want to offload it.

The cheapest I've ever seen them in retail stores is $199, I got mine at Kmart for that price. I sold my DSi XL on eBay for $150 to pay for most of the cost of the 3DS. I listed it buy it now at $150 and it sold in less than 24 hours. Perhaps I was just lucky.

[i_amtrunks]

Got mine during a sale for $199 at JB, but usually they are around $220-$230.

I kept my DSLite in order to play Advance games, but if you dont have any, no need, but be warned unless it was a newer model (XL etc) you'll get very little for it, why would people pay $100+ for a used 2-3 year old DS/DSlite rather than $220 ish for a brand new 3DS? :D

[Doubledealer]

Where can I get a cheap Nintendo 3DS?

Anyone interested in a DS? I want to offload it.

$198 from EB Games. (https://www.ebgames.com.au/3ds-152911-Nintendo-3DS-Cosmos-Black-Nintendo-3DS)

Prob won't get much for it but I'd trade in the DS at the same time to bring it down a bit more. :)

[jazzcomp]

$198 from EB Games. (https://www.ebgames.com.au/3ds-152911-Nintendo-3DS-Cosmos-Black-Nintendo-3DS)

Prob won't get much for it but I'd trade in the DS at the same time to bring it down a bit more. :)
EB games would only give me $30 bucks for the old thing.

Any source for cheap 3DS games?

[jena]

EB games would only give me $30 bucks for the old thing.

Any source for cheap 3DS games?

http://www.ozgameshop.com/ds

[jazzcomp]

http://www.ozgameshop.com/ds
Anyone got any experience with Harvey Norman direct import website?

Thanks! I hope this went ok. I registered and had an error during the processing of my order. But went thru successfully it seems.

I hope my card details haven't been jacked.

[i_amtrunks]

Anyone got any experience with Harvey Norman direct import website?

Thanks! I hope this went ok. I registered and had an error during the processing of my order. But went thru successfully it seems.

I hope my card details haven't been jacked.

I wont use the HN site, as their prices are slightly higher than ozgameshop, then there is the postage ontop.

For what is meant to be his replacement to ahving games in his stores, it is a very hard site to find unless you know it's exact name...

[jena]

This is off topic, but since we're discussing online stores, I figure someone here might know.

We have ozgameshop for games
There's book depository for books

What's the cheapest online store for DVDs?

[Gutsman Heavy]

Probably zavvi

[Doubledealer]

Probably zavvi

And by the time it arrives, you probably won't even care about it anymore. :p

[shokwave2]

This is off topic, but since we're discussing online stores, I figure someone here might know.

We have ozgameshop for games
There's book depository for books

What's the cheapest online store for DVDs?

Amazon UK - same region dvds and doesn't take too long to ship here.

[jena]

I just checked my gameplay hours on Skyrim for the very first time. I've had the game since before Christmas but I am still shocked. 276 hours. I can't believe it. I'm stunned.

[SkyWarp91]

I just checked my gameplay hours on Skyrim for the very first time. I've had the game since before Christmas but I am still shocked. 276 hours. I can't believe it. I'm stunned.

900 hours on Counter Strike : Source.

[Hursticon]

I just checked my gameplay hours on Skyrim for the very first time. I've had the game since before Christmas but I am still shocked. 276 hours. I can't believe it. I'm stunned.


900 hours on Counter Strike : Source.

Both games to my understanding are quite easy to sink a lot of time in, the fact that they have the ability to incur that suggests to me that they're qualitatively superior games. ;):)

[Gutsman Heavy]

I've sunk over 400 hours on Sonic Adventure, I doubt that's something to be proud of :/

[Hursticon]

I've sunk over 400 hours on Sonic Adventure, I doubt that's something to be proud of :/

It is if you're a Sonic Fan and you enjoy the game. :cool:

[SkyWarp91]

Just realised that all retails stores stopped stocking Brand New PS2 Consoles, anyone a good site or small business that sells them?

I looked on eBay and there's one going for $200 and another for $1000 (yes I don't know why the hell it is that price).

[Tetsuwan Convoy]

I've sunk over 400 hours on Sonic Adventure, I doubt that's something to be proud of :/

I'm Impressed. Is that trying to get all S ranks?

[Gutsman Heavy]

I'm Impressed. Is that trying to get all S ranks?

Nope, I was just a Sonic/Dreamcast tragic. I basically looped my favourite levels non-stop, did similar for SA2 but only hit about 250 hours.

I was waiting for a real 3d Sonic since Mario 64, I had to make up for lost time :P

[i_amtrunks]

So while FFXII-2 is not my cup of tea I played a few hours today and it is freaking beautiful.

Gameplay is the same as the first FF13 and the story is garbage, but it's so pretty!

Also played the Asuras Wrath demo.... its crazy, just qte button mashing but also like an over the top playable anime.

[Doubledealer]

I believe the old (read: good) Final Fantasy writer did the story for the Wii's The Last Story. Would never have thought the Wii would turn into the console for J-RPG fans.

[Tetsuwan Convoy]

Wow, totally going to ahve to get SF X Tekken.

Why?

Coz of this (http://www.fightersgeneration.com/characters4/badboxart-megaman.html). Major LOLZ!!

Now, I just need to wait for the price to drop.

[Quickstrike]

He's not in the X-Box version. :( Well, all of the data for him is on the disc but you can't select him for some reason.

Meanwhile, my copy of Mass Effect 3 arrived today! Hell yes.

[jazzcomp]

I wont use the HN site, as their prices are slightly higher than ozgameshop, then there is the postage ontop.

For what is meant to be his replacement to ahving games in his stores, it is a very hard site to find unless you know it's exact name...
how long is normal delivery from ozgameshop? am getting a bit impatient :)

[Gutsman Heavy]

About 2 weeks

[shokwave2]

how long is normal delivery from ozgameshop? am getting a bit impatient :)

My first order was placed on a Sunday night, it arrived on the Friday (5 days). My next order took just over 2 weeks. I guess it depends on the game or number of games.

[kristofferrer]

hey all, calling a shout to any Super Street Fighter IV players out there? I play on PC and PS3. I need some schooling so if you're willing to teach me things (seriously trying to up my game) over a few matches hit me up :p

[Tetsuwan Convoy]

Hmm, I'd be up for some of that, but I might be rusty, SSFIV I havent played that much, after mashing the hell out of SFIV, so we're probably evenly matched. Tconvoy for ps3, send me a shout if we coincide ;)

[kristofferrer]

Hmm, I'd be up for some of that, but I might be rusty, SSFIV I havent played that much, after mashing the hell out of SFIV, so we're probably evenly matched. Tconvoy for ps3, send me a shout if we coincide ;)

Sweet ill add you cheers

[Doubledealer]

So I downloaded the trial of Sine Mora the other night.

Bit of background, I'm a huuuge shoot 'em up (shmup) fan, particularly horizontal (horzi) shmups like Sine Mora. In terms of horzi shmups, I consider Einhander to be the absolute pinnacle of the genre, with R-Type Delta and Gradius V following closely behind.

So as I was saying, I booted up the Sine Mora trial for the first time the other night. :D First things first, the visual are MINDBLOWING. Not since Gradius V have we seen a shmup with such incredible attention to detail, it really is impressive and in this regard, you won't be disappointed! The trial music sees Akira Yamaoka doing his minimalist thing and it suits the visuals quite nicely.

What I'm not liking, and what's stopping me from purchasing this downloadable title, is the d-pad sensitivity. :( It's way too over-sensitive and I'm finding it very difficult to accurately control the plane while dodging bullets. I've heard the joystick is the way to play but I could never get used to this method of control in shmups, it just doesn't feel right to me! So at this stage I'm really not sure whether I should purchase this one. It looks to be such a brilliant addition to the genre but if I'm fighting against the controls I don't think I'll get much enjoyment out of it. :/

[Doubledealer]

It's been a while since I played an indie title, I think Flower was the last one...Anyway, I just watched the websites trailer for Lone Survivor (http://www.lonesurvivor.co.uk/) and damn, this one looks good. :cool:

[Stompy]

Ditch the d-pad and play Sine Mora using the analogue stick DD. Incremental movement control at the speed and direction you choose. The game is gorgeous and while it doesn't reach the heady heights of some of the best shmups from the past, it has it's own high points and lowers the high entry level for beginners.

[blackoptimus]

Hey guys, in Zelda Ocrina of Time 3D on the 3DS, when you enter the Sheikah Stone, in the bonus section can someone please tell me how to get the word clear appearing on farore's wind, I have the green tick but not the word clear. I have clear and tick on everything else. Also does anybody know where to check percentage of completion in the game? Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks

[Tetsuwan Convoy]

I think you need to use Farores wind to get the clear check.

I loaded up UMVC3 the other day, to prove that Ghost Rider isn't as crap as the movie. And lo! An update awaited me. Accidentally I pressed the OK. Luckily it was onlt 20mb. A short while later, I was in the game. I was impressed by the update, it had added the Heroes and Heralds option, so i busting out some of that. I really like the Capcom Card fighters feel they have going on there! very cool!:D

Anyway, play play play, 45 min later I stop and go for a walk. Then having time after I got back, I crank up the PS3 and load up UMVC3 to continue.

WAITAMINUTE!

Another friggin' update? Seriously? I just updated not so long ago. Oh, this one is 1.03. The previous one (yes, less than 2 hours ago) was 1.02.

Surely, it should have updated me to 1.03 straight away... I mean come on! Now wonder I get shitty when I try and play some of these damn games, updates, then rankings, then checking the shop for DLC I am not going to buy, then saving, it takes about 5 minutes before I get to the blasted game. I think I preferred waiting for the floppy disk to load on the C64, at least when it eventually loaded, I knew there was some game waiting for me.

[Doubledealer]

So probably about half way through Silent Hill Downpour at the moment. I'm trying very hard to care at this point, it's just so incredibly joyless. :( *struggles on*


Ditch the d-pad and play Sine Mora using the analogue stick DD. Incremental movement control at the speed and direction you choose. The game is gorgeous and while it doesn't reach the heady heights of some of the best shmups from the past, it has it's own high points and lowers the high entry level for beginners.

I'll give it another go with my Razer 360 pad tomorrow (which allows you to tighten the analogue sticks for more precise control). Will report back with how I went. ;)

[shokwave2]

I own a XBOX360 and have bought every Nintendo console at launch, from the SNES to current, except the 3DS. After watching video reviews i suddenly have the urge to play Super Mario 3D Land and Zelda. Convince me to splash out and buy a 3DS or tell me they're not worth it.

[Gutsman Heavy]

Super Mario 3D Land is a system seller no doubt, it feels like the game that should have come out between Super Mario World & Mario 64, sticking closer to it 2D roots but not being limited by them, worth checking out.

Zelda is Zelda, nothing new there but still one of the best games ever.

The Lylat Wars remake is worth looking into as well :)

[Golden Phoenix]

MarioKart

Nuff said.

[Doubledealer]

I own a XBOX360 and have bought every Nintendo console at launch, from the SNES to current, except the 3DS. After watching video reviews i suddenly have the urge to play Super Mario 3D Land and Zelda. Convince me to splash out and buy a 3DS or tell me they're not worth it.

I'm not a Nintendo fanboy by any means, but I do enjoy the odd games the company throws out (namely Wind Waker and Galaxy). My gf bought me a 3DS recently and yeah, the system is pretty darn awesome. SM3DL is okay, although the levels are extremely condensed and you're up against a time limit to finish them. It's very much designed to be "Mario on the go" which I guess is fair enough. Kid Icarus has apparently been in development since the dawn of time and is meant to be pretty good, having said that I haven't played it yet despite owning it. :o If you're a Resident Evil fan you'll have a ball with Revelations, it's a damn solid entry into the series and does a lot of things right. What sorta games you into?


MarioKart

Nuff said.

Does not compute. :p

[kurdt_the_goat]

If you get a 3DS, simply get Pullblox off the e-shop and you won't regret the entire system purchase. Better than anything else on the system and 1/5 of the price to boot.

[shokwave2]

If you get a 3DS, simply get Pullblox off the e-shop and you won't regret the entire system purchase. Better than anything else on the system and 1/5 of the price to boot.

Ah Pullblox, also known as Pushmo. Yeah i read the review of that the other day. Looks interesting. I guess i'll have to wait til Monday to buy the 3DS, damn Easter ruined my plans:mad:

[Doubledealer]

Time to write a novel guys...Apologies in advance. :p

Finished Silent Hill Downpour the other night. I wouldn't mind going back to complete the side-quests but seeing as the game never lets you save, and the load game screen only let's you pick from the last 5 auto-saves, that would mean starting the game from scratch to do so (and no, there's no new game +). Considering just how bad the first few hours of gameplay are, this is gonna take a whole heap of motivation just to even get back into Silent Hill (you start off on SH's outskirts in a place called The Devils Pit - or as I like to call it The Pits).

I have to say, I really enjoyed the story in Downpour. You won't be thinking about it for days after like other games in the series, but it's solid nonetheless. It's so rare for a game to present a mature storyline like this these days, so it certainly gets props in this department. The protagonist, Murphy Pendleton, is quite simply the best character we've had to play as (Walter Sullivan is the best SH character ever ;)) since James in Silent Hill 2. It's a shame then that almost everyone else you encounter throughout Silent Hill is completely superfluous. The black mailman...What was the point in him? The guy at The Devils Pit? What the point in him? etc. They add nothing! Why not throw in some characters that are there for their own reasons like SH2?? SH2 would be half the game it is today if not for Eddy, Angela and Laura!

A big problem I have with this game is that it doesn't feel like a horror game (let alone a Silent Hill game!). It feels more like an adventure game with some supernatural elements thrown in to make it "Silent Hill-y". In terms of vibe, it actually feels a lot more like Bioshock to me which is quite bizarre. Gone is the David Lynch style weirdness, the demonic imagery, the symbolism, the suspense, the dread. They've stripped everything right back and this is largely what makes Downpour such a letdown (and so boring to play).

A key part of the Silent Hill experience is the Nightmare world. This is another aspect that Downpour handles extremely poorly. It basically boils down to you running through some at times physics challenged (I refuse to compare it MC Escher as so many Silent Hill fans have as this implies it's actually good) areas while being chased by....Wait for it, a red mirror ball. Yes, you heard that right. What should have been the most interesting and most terrifying part of the game has been reduced to a chase scene reminiscent of those in Shattered Memories (not quite as bad as those mind you but that's not the point! :p). **** this makes me mad, of all the things to screw up...Speaking of Shattered Memories, Downpour steals a number ideas from this game for eg. the slow opening of doors. Why they actually did this I don't know because, like in SH:SM, they never use it to great effect! Very, very odd.

The monsters are something that a lot of people are upset about, and rightly so. There are no metaphors behind their pathetic designs, their animations are atrocious, the AI is hilarious and they're about as scary as a Goomba from Mario. Utter, utter fail. The only good thing I can say about actually fighting these things is that you don't feel like you always have the upper hand in battle (although this is more to do with how broken the gameplay is than an intentional act on the developers part).

Rather than making a great Silent Hill experience, I believe the developer Vatra has spread themselves thin by adding side-quests at the detriment of everything else. I applaud the fact that they've made Silent Hill a place that can be properly explored for once, however, I think this has come at the cost of everything else. This could have worked if the game were in development for a hell of a lot longer, or perhaps done by a more experienced team, who knows. Being only Vatra's second game I think they've bitten off more than they could chew, and would have been much better off keeping the game more linear and focusing on what makes a Silent Hill game a Silent Hill game.

I can only recommend this to the most loyal, die-hard Silent Hill fans. If you can make it through the abysmal gameplay there are a few highlights (namely some of the puzzles and St Maria's Monastery) and a great story hiding behind all the garbage.

[shokwave2]

Did you enjoy Shattered Memories? I haven't played any other SH games but i found Shattered Memories had a great atmosphere, comparable to the old and scarier Resident Evil games. Especially if played at night with the lights off and with Surround Sound pumped up.

[Doubledealer]

Did you enjoy Shattered Memories? I haven't played any other SH games but i found Shattered Memories had a great atmosphere, comparable to the old and scarier Resident Evil games. Especially if played at night with the lights off and with Surround Sound pumped up.

Oh absolutely, despite its faults SH:SM remained enjoyable throughout and that twist ending...Amazing! I loved the psychological profiling too, and how you used the Wii-mote to answer calls! Very cool. There was a lot to like in SH:SM, a case of the pro's outweighing the cons I think.

I'm by no means someone who instantly hates on anything outside of the Team Silent games (SH1-4). I'll always be a Silent Hill fan and will always give the latest game a go, hoping for the best. Up until now, I've found all post SH4 Silent Hill games to be respectable, if not spectacular, additions to my favourite psychological horror game series. I understand that the Silent Hill formula is incredibly hard to recreate, and its brand of horror is something the Japanese are particularly good at.

Homecoming nailed the SH formula with its incredible boss battles (and one scene in particular), but other than those fleeting moments I feel we haven't quite reached the original lofty heights of the initial 4 games. If only they'd hand the series back to the Japanese...And get Takashi Miike to direct it. :D Maybe SH10 will see the re-uniting of Team Silent? >_>*

[Stompy]

It's a real pity that Team Silent have pretty much vanished, slowly fracturing since SH2. Until the handover to western developers hands and with only Yamaoka to keep some sort of spirit remaining. Downpour didn't even have Yamaoka. I've barely played anything after 4 and with only Shattered Memories offering an interesting take on the formula.

The biggest pity is that the technology now can produce such potentially great atmospherics, but all that can be ruined if directed poorly (see the poor direction in the awful Resident Evil 5 compared to the masterpiece Resident Evil 4).

Survival Horror is long gone with a very shooter/action majority of players out there, that slow plodding psychological experience is just not an option for developers.I'm trying to hold on for some hope but I doubt it will come.

Downpour will be a buy at sub $30 bargain bins.

[Doubledealer]

It's a real pity that Team Silent have pretty much vanished, slowly fracturing since SH2. Until the handover to western developers hands and with only Yamaoka to keep some sort of spirit remaining. Downpour didn't even have Yamaoka. I've barely played anything after 4 and with only Shattered Memories offering an interesting take on the formula.

The biggest pity is that the technology now can produce such potentially great atmospherics, but all that can be ruined if directed poorly (see the poor direction in the awful Resident Evil 5 compared to the masterpiece Resident Evil 4).

Survival Horror is long gone with a very shooter/action majority of players out there, that slow plodding psychological experience is just not an option for developers.I'm trying to hold on for some hope but I doubt it will come.

Downpour will be a buy at sub $30 bargain bins.

Did you play Homecoming all the way through Stomp? Sure, it nonsensically borrows some monster designs from the movie and the Hostel inspired moments leading up to the end are out of place....But overall I felt it was well worth playing through and looking back, I think it's quite underrated. And who can forget that soundtrack either? Here's (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V7p246TVaZk) my favourite Homecoming track :D

Kinda scares me as to what Konami are going to do next with this series though. Letting a totally noob developer whose only game is a Frogger title handle (and completely stuff up) an HD transfer of Silent Hill 2 and 3 is madness in its truest form. Book of Memories seems to be an evolution of this madness...

[SkyWarp91]

Speaking of Silent Hill I just bought the HD collection online for PS3 the other day and then found out the game has really bad framerate issues....

And the first game can be purchased on the PSN now.

Also, for Dark Souls fans it seems like the game is also coming out on PC with extra bosses.

Looks like it's time to venture back into the epic darkness this August...

[Doubledealer]

Speaking of Silent Hill I just bought the HD collection online for PS3 the other day and then found out the game has really bad framerate issues....

Hate to say it mate but that's only a fraction of its problems (http://www.siliconera.com/2012/03/23/what-does-silent-hills-art-director-think-of-silent-hill-hd-collection/). If you want to experience the games the way they were meant to be played, and in HD, I'd go for the PC versions (which blow away this new release which came 10 years later...).

[shokwave2]

Finally picked up a 3DS. I told the wife it was a present from her, as i bought her an iPad for our wedding anniversary last Sunday.

I'm really impressed with the system. Nintendo have sorted out alot of connection and interface problems since the original DS debuted years ago (i bought an original DS on launch and have been playing a DS lite for years).

The 3D effect is better than i expected. I seen it in store last year but it didn't impress me. But once you get it in your hands and get comfortable it really starts to shine. The menu is clean and there's plenty to do on the console even before inserting a game cartridge.

I paid $198 from JB Hi-Fi as i got them to price match the EB Games deal. I also bought Super Mario 3D Land and Pullblox from the N-store, both great games and i can't wait to buy Zelda next pay. Looks like the X360 will be gathering dust for a while now.

[The_Damned]

anyone got tribes ascend?

[kurdt_the_goat]

Woo, New Super Mario Bros. 2 coming out in August for 3DS!! Proper flying tanooki tail is back!
First pics here (http://blog.esuteru.com/archives/6132912.html)

[Tetsuwan Convoy]

Got my Saturn up and running today and played some Salamander from the deluxe pack. Oh god it was so awesome! Looking at the design of the game now, the way you are guided through the levels is rather clever.

Oh and the shooting. My god the shooting, so much on screen, at times I had trouble keeping check of where my ship was, and which bullets were the enemies and which were mine.

Bliss was achieved for that hour!:D

[Doubledealer]

Got my Saturn up and running today and played some Salamander from the deluxe pack. Oh god it was so awesome! Looking at the design of the game now, the way you are guided through the levels is rather clever.

Oh and the shooting. My god the shooting, so much on screen, at times I had trouble keeping check of where my ship was, and which bullets were the enemies and which were mine.

Bliss was achieved for that hour!:D

That's sweet Tets! The closest I've come to playing Salamander is stage 4 in Gradius V, quite the tricky level if you run out of Options!

[Paulbot]

Woo, New Super Mario Bros. 2 coming out in August for 3DS!! Proper flying tanooki tail is back!
First pics here (http://blog.esuteru.com/archives/6132912.html)

Do you think there's any chance that it will be DS compatible? It doesn't look all that 3D in those screenshots. I don't really want to upgrade my DS, but that game could do it.

[Gutsman Heavy]

No chance

[Paulbot]

No chance

Oh :(

On brighter news. The city in the new SimCity (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kztNWdhRdnw) looks wonderful, but can it live up to the gameplay of SimCity 2000?

[Gutsman Heavy]

Nintendo won't do nsmb 2 on ds because it is a system seller, and they want to sell a lot of 3ds systems, and another mario exclusive will do just that.

[kurdt_the_goat]

You're right of course but that's not always their reasoning, see Pokemon Black & White 2 on DS! Tho i put that down to the Pokemon guys being lazy and slow beyond belief. At least, they're putting out some 3DS apps to cross-support it, so it may as well be a 3DS release i guess.

[Trent]

Ahh good old sim city 2000. The sole reason I rocked up to computer studies in high school.

Oh, that and Diablo. If only our grades incorporated your diablo character level...

[Tetsuwan Convoy]

Oh, that and Diablo. If only our grades incorporated your diablo character level...

Sorta kinda related.

I did a video game studies unit at uni. It was awesome! In the media school though (I did a BA so it was flexible enough to move around). I had a great time and ended up with an HD!! Funny thing though, was all the assignments were essays, the longest being 2000 words, which I thought was ace (having done a lot of history units and the like).

All the media studies guys were horrified. No multiple choice?? We have to write whole sentences??? Aaa, it was a shock to my system. I thought that perhaps I should have gone into a media course instead of busting out massive referenced essays and the like for my BA.

[Autocon]

Portal 2. Im stuck and cant pass the damn level:mad:

[Tetsuwan Convoy]

Portal 2. Im stuck and cant pass the damn level:mad:

What level? I am playing through too!

[Gutsman Heavy]

my Saturn arrived, yay! Finally got to play the 3D part of Sonic Jam, life goal achieved. Now to actually get some games that I didn't already own/played to death :p

[Autocon]

I ended up in a big room with the blue bot saying just five more levels. Stuck on the 1st one of five lol. Was due back.

[KalEl]

pre ordered Diablo 3 :D

[Doubledealer]

Shinji Mikami announces new survival horror project Zwei (http://www.relyonhorror.com/latest-news/latest-famitsu-reveals-resident-evil-creators-new-survival-horror-project-zwei/). There is a god after all. :D

Concept art (http://www.relyonhorror.com/latest-news/shinji-mikamis-zwei-concept-art-released/).

Best of all:

Mikami says he wants the game to be a pure survival-horror experience that should be frightening and thrilling, to be released on ‘HD’ Consoles.

[Tetsuwan Convoy]

MAJOR PANTS EXPLOSION! (http://tetstoys.blogspot.com.au/2012/05/my-two-loves-combined.html)

More Here as well, (http://www.sonicstadium.org/2012/04/sonic-amp-all-stars-racing-transformedannounced/)where I stole the stuff from

[KillinSpoon]

You're right of course but that's not always their reasoning, see Pokemon Black & White 2 on DS! Tho i put that down to the Pokemon guys being lazy and slow beyond belief. At least, they're putting out some 3DS apps to cross-support it, so it may as well be a 3DS release i guess.

I disagree with this.
Pokemon BW2 is on DS because BW was. The entire competitive metagame is DS based, I'm not so sure if a 3DS game would have backwards compatibility with a DS.

Although I think that the real reason is that this is the third game of the generation (there has always been 3 games per generation outside of Japan) and that having it on a different console would be a stupid move.

[Gutsman Heavy]

MAJOR PANTS EXPLOSION! (http://tetstoys.blogspot.com.au/2012/05/my-two-loves-combined.html)

More Here as well, (http://www.sonicstadium.org/2012/04/sonic-amp-all-stars-racing-transformedannounced/)where I stole the stuff from

I'm chuffed, I hope they make the weapons sega themed this time, and some more variety in the levels (i really didn't need 4 seaside hill tracks, more classics pls)

[Tetsuwan Convoy]

I'm chuffed, I hope they make the weapons sega themed this time, and some more variety in the levels (i really didn't need 4 seaside hill tracks, more classics pls)

Yerp! I was thinking today, it would be cool to have an 8 bit looking level or something in there!

I would really like to see Wonderboy make an appearance though!:D AS long as they Keep Opaopa!

[Doubledealer]

Australian government to question game publishers over high download prices (http://www.gamasutra.com/view/news/169390/Australian_government_to_question_game_publishers_ over_high_prices.php)

[Hursticon]

Australian government to question game publishers over high download prices (http://www.gamasutra.com/view/news/169390/Australian_government_to_question_game_publishers_ over_high_prices.php)

This is great news... It's a pity that the Australian Government though has absolutely nothing it can do to try and force any sort of equality, especially when Aussie retail exploits this situation to horrendous degrees. :o

[Doubledealer]

This is great news... It's a pity that the Australian Government though has absolutely nothing it can do to try and force any sort of equality, especially when Aussie retail exploits this situation to horrendous degrees. :o

Sad but true. At least it'll be entertaining hearing how the publishers justify their higher prices. :p

[Hursticon]

Sad but true. At least it'll be entertaining hearing how the publishers justify their higher prices. :p

Well, at least some good will come from it. :D

[Doubledealer]

Mmm, Sin & Punishment 2 running in 1080P at 60fps. Don't need to buy a Wii after all. :p

http://i661.photobucket.com/albums/uu332/Doubledealer_83/sandp2.jpg

[Gutsman Heavy]

Man I need to get around to using that emulator!

[Doubledealer]

Man I need to get around to using that emulator!

It's pretty amazing huh? Here's a game that up until a few hours ago I thought I'd never get the chance to play (Fatal Frame 4 is a Japanese Wii exclusive for those who don't know). And yet, here I am playing it tonight in 1080P with English freakin' subtitles. The glory...

http://i661.photobucket.com/albums/uu332/Doubledealer_83/ff4-1.jpg

http://i661.photobucket.com/albums/uu332/Doubledealer_83/ff4-2.jpg

[kup]

Man I need to get around to using that emulator!

Dolphin is awesome. It almost replaces your Wii as it allows for 1080HD and higher anti-aliasing making your games look a whole lot better (provided you have the hardware to support it).

I said 'almost' a Wii replacement as there are some quirks that need to be addressed like poor cut-scene video/audio sync and lack of support for Wiimote speaker. However these are reasonably minor given the benefits gained and it wouldn't surprise me if they are addressed by the next release.

[Doubledealer]

Dolphin is awesome. It almost replaces your Wii as it allows for 1080HD and higher anti-aliasing making your games look a whole lot better (provided you have the hardware to support it).

I said 'almost' a Wii replacement as there are some quirks that need to be addressed like poor cut-scene video/audio sync and lack of support for Wiimote speaker. However these are reasonably minor given the benefits gained and it wouldn't surprise me if they are addressed by the next release.

Try lowering your FPS limit. I was experiencing this until I locked the FPS at 30. Depends on the game though, I'd rather have 60fps and slightly dodgy cutscene audio if it's an action game. :D

[kurdt_the_goat]

So sick of my massive backlog, decided to sell off a few rather than drag myself through them.
If anyone's on the lookout for Zelda OOT 3D, Dragon Quest 6 & 9, check out my sales thread (http://otca.com.au/boards/showthread.php?p=189154#post189154) for a deal :)

[kup]

Try lowering your FPS limit. I was experiencing this until I locked the FPS at 30. Depends on the game though, I'd rather have 60fps and slightly dodgy cutscene audio if it's an action game. :D

Thanks but sadly it didn't work (at least in Mario Kart pre-rendered intro).

From 60 it went down to 30 and stayed there but the sound was just as choppy.

[Doubledealer]

Thanks but sadly it didn't work (at least in Mario Kart pre-rendered intro).

From 60 it went down to 30 and stayed there but the sound was just as choppy.

Hmm, curiouser and curiouser. Tried changing the DSP audio backend to XAudio2?

[Accel]

GAME Australia has gone into administration so get ready for closing down sales D:

[Gutsman Heavy]

That was inevitable, they can't even stock new releases properly.

[5FDP]

GAME Australia has gone into administration so get ready for closing down sales D:

Considering you can buy brand new games from the UK for half the price I'm not surprised.

[i_amtrunks]

Game has been terrible ever since they were bought out by the UK parent company. When they were first getting started they were excellent, and their prices were competitive. I'm not surprised to see them go into administration, they had terrible prices, low stock, overpriced second hand games and pushy and desperate staff that obviously worked on comission.

I can't see their leaving the amrket as anything but positive, more markwet share for gametraders (and sadly, EB).

[Accel]

well every gametraders but 1 or 2 has gone bankrupt in WA @_@ so we are running out of options here :P

[gamblor916]

So is anyone picking up Diablo 3? JB has it for $69 which I believe is reasonable.

[The_Damned]

So is anyone picking up Diablo 3? JB has it for $69 which I believe is reasonable.

Just got it from dse for $59 ftw

[Accel]

got it for free since I have a WoW Annual pass >.>

[gamblor916]

Nice! Dick does it again.

[SkyWarp91]

That was inevitable, they can't even stock new releases properly.


Considering you can buy brand new games from the UK for half the price I'm not surprised.


Game has been terrible ever since they were bought out by the UK parent company. When they were first getting started they were excellent, and their prices were competitive. I'm not surprised to see them go into administration, they had terrible prices, low stock, overpriced second hand games and pushy and desperate staff that obviously worked on comission.

I can't see their leaving the amrket as anything but positive, more markwet share for gametraders (and sadly, EB).

Not surprising as I never saw a customer buy anything at GAME in my lifetime.

[The_Damned]

Not surprising as I never saw a customer buy anything at GAME in my lifetime.

did game use to be called game wizards?

[Doubledealer]

GAME have often given me the best trade-in credit, always price matched other stores and have occasionally had good pre-order deals/bonuses. I for one am sad to see them go.

[shokwave2]

I used to get good trade-in credit from GAME but then oneday they offered me like $20 for a game that was released a week before. EB Games doubled that amount and ever since GAME have been downhill with everything: prices, credit, stock. EB have gotten better exept they're still too dear with new game prices.

[snaketales]

Bought a Gamecube console yesterday. Ever since we got our Wii fixed it refuses to play Gamecube discs, so it was good to finally get to re-play Rebel Strike/Rogue Leader, Hulk and Turok.... can't wait to play Minority Report again (I can't understand why it got such bad reviews)

[shokwave2]

Bought a Gamecube console yesterday. Ever since we got our Wii fixed it refuses to play Gamecube discs, so it was good to finally get to re-play Rebel Strike/Rogue Leader, Hulk and Turok.... can't wait to play Minority Report again (I can't understand why it got such bad reviews)

Maybe they upgraded your Wii when they fixed it to the newer model, which had the Gamecube playback removed. I still own my GameCube console from the day 1 purchase. I go it chipped so it can play backups, DVDs and built-in action replay cheats. Rogue Leader is in my top 5 games of all time. I hope someone releases a HD remake on the Wii-U.

[shokwave2]

Anyone playing Max Payne 3? I never played the first 2, only picked this up because of the positive reviews and because Rockstar make kick-arse games. Enjoying it so far, even though it's nothing special. Yet to try multiplayer.

[Tetsuwan Convoy]

Maybe they upgraded your Wii when they fixed it to the newer model, which had the Gamecube playback removed. I still own my GameCube console from the day 1 purchase. I go it chipped so it can play backups, DVDs and built-in action replay cheats. Rogue Leader is in my top 5 games of all time. I hope someone releases a HD remake on the Wii-U.

WHat? They took out backwards compatibility on newer Wiis? I hope mine doesn't break then! When I got my wii, the first thing I did was hunt down the GCgames I wanted to play but never did (having avoided the GC) :p

[Gutsman Heavy]

Anyone playing Max Payne 3?

Waiting on the PC version, my shiny new gtx670 purrs in anticipation!

[SharkyMcShark]

Anyone playing Max Payne 3? I never played the first 2, only picked this up because of the positive reviews and because Rockstar make kick-arse games. Enjoying it so far, even though it's nothing special. Yet to try multiplayer.

I have the PC Special Edition on preorder but I cracked and got the Xbox version early (intending to trade it away after getting my PC copy).

As a big fan of both the first two Max Payne games and of the works of John Woo (especially Hardboiled) I'm reasonably disappointed with it to be honest.

The presentation is amazing, graphics, animation and voice acting is all of the finest quality but the gameplay is boring. It didn't need a cover system and it leans far too heavily on it - the firefights lack the kinetic intensity of the previous titles. What that means in normal person talk is the only thing that really works most of the time is huddling behind walls/desks and shootdodging between cover occasionally - you don't clear rooms by like jumping onto a desk and leaping through the air in slow motion with dual uzis anymore because if there are ANY enemies left when you land you're dead because Max takes just enough time to stand up for the enemies to riddle you with bullets.

As I said though, in terms of storytelling it's very good. I understand the move away from the comic book panel storytelling and it is done quite well (I don't want this to come across as basically criticising it for not being the exact same as Max Payne 2, because that's not what it is).

Considering canning off my PC preorder and waiting until it's cheap on catch of the day or something (Steam sale etc).

[Accel]

I would be playing Diablo 3 if the servers weren't always down :(

[Hursticon]

I would be playing Diablo 3 if the servers weren't always down :(

I'd be playing it too if I didn't have Portal 2 to now finish and had actually installed the game. :p:D
That being said, the Server issues really surprise me as Blizzard should (By now) have more experience with Internationally encompassing WANs than any other company; well, at least as much as Cisco & Microsoft anyway. :o

[Hursticon]

Hey guys, I'd like to put out a call to everyone to aid in whatever way you can in this particular Kickstarter - Carmageddon: Reincarnation (http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/stainlessgames/carmageddon-reincarnation), by Stainless Games. :eek::cool:

I loved Carmageddon (http://youtu.be/waoLJE843L0?t=42s), The Splat-Pack (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bvp3aPTANIQ) & Carmageddon 2: Carpocalypse Now! (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tj0oGYci9pw) (TDR2000 being made by a completely different developer) growing up and I'm certain others did too, Stainless have finally been able to reacquire this IP which has been juggled through many hands over the past decade but they need help in getting this puppy on the streets. ;):)

If you're interested, offer what you can as it'll definitely be appreciated by many parties - Let's give Carmageddon the "Cunning Stunt" bonus (http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/stainlessgames/carmageddon-reincarnation) that it deserves! :D:cool:

[Tetsuwan Convoy]

Hey there SF fans. What do you think of this?
25th anniversary special SF pack (http://www.capcom-unity.com/brelston/blog/2012/05/23/announcing_street_fighter_25th_anniversary_collect ors_set,_plus_details_on_international_tournament)

Tempted for the extra stuff, aside from the games. Man I knew I shouldn't have bothered getting the SF x Tekken yet....

[Doubledealer]

Hey guys, I'd like to put out a call to everyone to aid in whatever way you can in this particular Kickstarter - Carmageddon: Reincarnation (http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/stainlessgames/carmageddon-reincarnation), by Stainless Games. :eek::cool:

I loved Carmageddon (http://youtu.be/waoLJE843L0?t=42s), The Splat-Pack (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bvp3aPTANIQ) & Carmageddon 2: Carpocalypse Now! (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tj0oGYci9pw) (TDR2000 being made by a completely different developer) growing up and I'm certain others did too, Stainless have finally been able to reacquire this IP which has been juggled through many hands over the past decade but they need help in getting this puppy on the streets. ;):)

If you're interested, offer what you can as it'll definitely be appreciated by many parties - Let's give Carmageddon the "Cunning Stunt" bonus (http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/stainlessgames/carmageddon-reincarnation) that it deserves! :D:cool:

Haha, that would be a fun place to work methinks. :D Ima throw some clams at this for sure, like you I enjoyed the earlier games and in a sea of FPS' and unoriginality this would be a welcome change. :)

[The_Damned]

I would be playing Diablo 3 if the servers weren't always down :(

i haven't had any touble playing when i want, saying that i havent had a chance to play and am not even through act 1 and i bought the game on release day:(

[Spiritprime]

You know, it's funny really. I have the whole Uncharted Trilogy and have gone back to play it from the start. I've already finished Drake's Fortune and Among Thieves, and have gotten around to playing Drake's Deception. I've almost finished it, but boy, oh boy, are the games so much fun to play with!

I have Mass Effect 3, but I still haven't even started it yet. Um... what? My excuse? Um... still trying to finish ME2 and getting the storyline that I want. Oops. XD