sprites & bites

Gaming, iPads and a few biscuits on the side…

Category Archives: ps3

Splinter Cell Conviction

A lot has been said on forums and blogs when the Splinter Cell Conviction demo was released, about how Ubisoft have ruined the series by taking the character Sam Fisher away from his comfortable spy role and having him as a civilian.

My personal opinion is that whilst I enjoyed every Splinter Cell game in the series, I felt that as each one passed, they were getting a little stale.  I think something had to change and the changes in this game I think are for the better.  Okay Sam is no longer a spy but a civilian but really in the sense of the game this is only a matter of how he looks.  The main element of the game is still stealth based but with a few added extras like upgrading weapons and the execute system.  I think the execute system is quite good actually, by performing hand to hand kills you get the ability with a single press to mark an enemy and with another press execute them from a distance in slow motion James Bond style bullet to the head. This can be very useful in situations where you feel there a too many enemies to handle or you cannot get to the stealthily. Some may not like it, but here is the news, you don’t have to use it!  Apart from one section in the game later you can totally ignore the fact you have the execute ability and play the game like the old games.

The graphics in this game are excellent, not quite on a par with Call of Duty MW 1&2, but it is almost there. There is high detail in the environments and aside from a little tearing of the screen occasionally, it looks fantastic.

I think fans of the series who do not play this game because it has moved from it’s roots are doing themselves a disservice because this is every bit a Splinter Cell game with a few changes and Ubisoft fully deserve the No.1 spot it has claimed in its first weekend of sales in the UK.  Well done to Ubisoft for having the balls to try something different on a tired old series and making a success of it.

Splinter Cell Conviction Demo

There is one thing in life guaranteed apart from death and taxes and that is that you can never please everybody.  Splinter Cell Conviction demo was released today with a few new changes to the series and from reading the forums there are generally two camps – those who love the changes and those who feel it is too far away from the other games and do not like it at all.

The real problem as far as I can see was that the series was getting old.  It was stale and none of the previous games really improved that much on the previous before that. In a nutshell it was the same gameplay, different location each time and very similar storyline.  Splinter Cell Conviction throws away the old rigid rule book and starts afresh with a new set of rules.  He is no longer an operative in a silly black outfit and donning night vision goggles but is working alone in civvies to his own agenda.

Gameplay wise, Ubisoft have now implemented an quick execute option so you can tag and kill multiple enemies with a couple of button presses.  I like this option. I have problem with some games sometimes in that my reactions are a bit slow so creating a set piece for multiple kills I think is excellent. It is not a given right either, so not to make it too easy, the execute option has to be earned by close up kills.  If anyone complains this makes the game too simple then the easy answer is do not use it. You are not forced to use the tag-then-execute option, it is merely there for those who do want to use it.

Personally I love the new gameplay. It is very fresh and I love the fact that they have moved away from the dry old black-clad-super-spy theme to give us something new.  This may be the recipe they need to bring back gamers who abandoned the series before because it was getting stale.

Roll on April, I will now submit my pre-order.

My friend Cat hates the changes  and you can read her well thought out rant on here

http://carocat.co.uk/2010/03/21/splinter-cell-conviction-demo/

Cat gives more information about the changes although I do not think they are all negative things. Two very polarised opinions :)

Heavy Rain

A few months ago I talked about a new game coming called Heavy Rain on the Playstation 3. If you recall, the game is about a serial killer called the Origami Killer and you play a number of different characters in the game in the pursuit of the killer and to find a missing boy who has been abducted. I spoke about how the game was controlled mostly by quick time events – pressing particular buttons on the screen at the correct time to interact and make decisions on how the story progresses. It also forces you to make some moral decisions and promotes emotions within the player.

Well the game is out now and has gone straight to Number 1 in the all formats chart. I purchased this game on release day and I have to say it is one of the best games I have ever played. Actually it is not really a game it is more like an interactive movie with many different endings depending on your choices in the game.

I was so immersed into the story of the game I was actually upset that I made a single wrong button press ending in the death of a minor character that I had to restart that chapter again and do it properly because what I did felt so wrong and this is how the moral decisions within the game play on the players emotions.

Like all games, Heavy Rain is not perfect and sometimes suffers from confusing controls especially during moments of intensity like a car chase or a fight and confusing scenes are made more confusing because the more stressed the character gets, the faster the commands display on the screen. Fortunately if you are struggling with this aspect you can turn the difficulty down and play it a little slower.

Despite the niggles, I will now whip out my thesaurus and list some words which describe it – amazing, brilliant, unique, gorgeous, memorable and breathtaking. Yes the game and the ending was so brilliantly executed that when the credits rolled at the end it left me breathless and truly lost for words.  EXCELLENT/10

Out now on Playstation 3 only. Rated 18 years

Heavy Rain

I have been playing video games in some form or another for about 20 years or so now.  I have played a zillion and one games in all sorts of genres from action to sports and platforming to horrors.

Every once in a while a game comes along which is attempting to redefine video games and their genres and maybe even create a new genre.  Heavy Rain on the Playstation 3 is one such game and expectations are high that this game is going to have a positive impact in the way future games are constructed.

Heavy Rain is not just a game, it is also an interactive thriller based around 5 main characters who you get to play. These characters are actually real people alive today and they all centre around a fictional story of a serial killer – The Origami Killer. Your actions and reactions to events in this game will determine how the game plays out, in fact your actions are so important to the gameplay that a wrong decision may lead to the death of that character and once dead they are dead for the rest of the game and you continue with the remaining characters so you may have to think hard about your actions before committing to them.

The developer, “Quantic Dream” wants to play with our emotions. They want the gamer to feel real emotion when playing the game and to feel what the characters are feeling. If they succeed with this then maybe it may change some games forever. If they fail, then it will only be remembered as just a game in gaming history.

Heavy Rain is an adult game and not suitable for children. It has mature content and is designed solely for a mature audience. Kids need not apply on this one. Think Patricia Cornwall or James Patterson.

Heavy Rain will only be available on the Playstation 3 and is due for release at the end of February. Check out www.youtube.com for lots of trailers and preview videos.

Rated 18 years and over.

Christmas Gifts for under 50 Quid

Christmas is coming, the goose is getting fat but your wallet is getting smaller and Christmas might be crap. Of course you do not need to spend hundreds of £££’s to make someone happy this year or even choose a small pressie for yourself.  Here are my top 5 gaming gifts to please someone this year.  Young or old, male or female, there should be something here to please.

In at number 5 is Professor Layton & Pandoras Box. The successor to Professor Layton & the Curious Village, this game brings you more mind bending puzzles than you can flick a baked bean at and is recommended for all ages although may be quite hard for younger gamers.

RRP £34.99

professor

At 4 is Singstar Volume 2 on PS3. Old and young there are songs to sing for everyone.  The bundle comes complete with two microphones so you can further deafen your deaf great grandma.

RRP £49.99

singstar2

In at 3 is the Xbox 360 Messenger Kit. An unusual gift maybe, this pack is a mini keyboard and headset which attaches to an Xbox 360 controller. Today Microsoft released an update which allows for Twitter and Facebook on the 360 so this mini keyboard can be a thumb-saver for typing messages over Xbox live.

RRP £24.99

messenger

Number 2 is Grand Theft Auto: Episodes From Liberty City. This standalone disc contains the two downloadable add-on packs which were released for the original game on Xbox marketplace – The Ballad of Gay Tony and The Lost and the Damned.. The great thing about this is if your boyfriend/wife/husband has sold/traded/lost their original disc, they do not need the original to play this game. Available on Xbox 360.

RRP £34.99

libertycity


At Number 1 slot I do recommend an Xbox 360 4200 points card for the marketplace.  On the face of it, it looks like a boring pressie but believe me this will give hours of fun to the internet connected Xbox 360 gamer.  For those not in the know and are shopping for others, a points card is like a voucher which a person can spend online via their xbox 360 to buy games, movies and additional content for games.  Games range typically between 800-1200 points each so they can choose for themselves what games they wish to download. This is very useful when buying for someone when you know they have an Xbox 360 but you have no idea what to buy them.  Ultimately they get a valuable gift for them but they can choose the real prize :)

RRP £34.99

4200

If you decide any of these products might be a good gift or even want to browse for other products, www.vouchercodes.co.uk can offer you some money saving vouchers to try and help ease the Christmas spending burden, every penny saved is an extra tot of brandy or nibble of a mince pie (with cream)! Go directly to the link above or below are some handy links direct to a few video game retailers discounts.

Game – www.vouchercodes.co.uk/game.co.uk

Play.com – www.vouchercodes.co.uk/play.com

Amazon – www.vouchercodes.co.uk/amazon.co.uk

These are just a few of the stores who offer discount vouchers from free delivery to money off, bogoffs and so on.

Merry Christmas!

Borderlands Xbox 360

Borderlands just released last week has to be one of the best games I have played this year.  It is an RPG shooter along similar lines of Fallout 3 but with a unique cel-shaded cartoony look and a more comical side to it.  From the moment I started playing Borderlands I just knew it had something special about it.  It’s whole feel is very sarcastic and tongue in cheek and is a joy to play amongst the more serious games out there.

It started out as a game with more realistic graphics but over time the developer decided to scrap the realistic look and go for a cel-shaded cartoon look.  This does actually fit in very well with the games humour and sometimes it feels akin to a comic book.

The weapons system is quite unique and the developer wrote a program which randomised weapons and gives you a theoretical hundreds of thousands of guns, although when playing through the game it did actually feel like only 100 guns, this is because even though there may be a sniper rifle made lovingly of plywood, it has a number of them with different tweaks to make it seem like there are lots when really it is just the same gun.  There are still many guns you just only get to see a few types with lots of combinations.

The missions are quite repetitive but when playing them the game does not give that air of repetitiveness at all, each mission feels unique with it’s own personality but really deep down it is like 10 tins of beans made by the same company but with different labels, it does not feel that though and that is good game design.

I actually got hooked on this game and played it from start to finish in almost every available moment and I finished it at around level 34 in 36 hours.  I had so much fun it was such a shame when the game ended and I knew there were no missions left to play.

This game definitely gives great value for money.  It has a large world, tons of missions and has a funny storyline.  If you love RPG games and shooters then this is an excellent mix and I doubt anybody would regret buying it.  Lots of games being released this time of the year so if you cannot afford it now, do rent it or wait for it to drop in price because it is an excellent game.

It is rare, but I give it an EXCELLENT/10

A Gaggle of Platformers

First up is Mini Ninjas.  Mini Ninjas is aimed at young children to promote exploration in a large world. The world is not that big and the game is very linear but it does promote exploration by way of collectable items. You can collect many new magical powers throughout the game and of course you have your ninja skills. You can also choose up to 8 playable characters all with their own unique skills.  To also promote a friendly way of fighting without nastiness for the younger audience, whenever you kill an enemy they do not die but turn into an animal. You can also turn into any animal yourself to use their skills.

Mini Ninjas is a fun game and has some replayability when you want to go back and repeat a level to find the items you missed.  Lots to collect and great fun.  GOOD/10

“UP” is a new game from Disney Pixar which follows in the adventures of Russell and Carl – an elderly gentleman and a young boy – from the upcoming film UP due soon. Russell and Carl are tied by a very long piece of ribbon to a floating house.  You have to navigate through the levels and you can choose to play either of them at any time.  They follow each other so you can easily switch between them to do different tasks.  Some tasks require a certain character to play so you can switch when necessary.  It all seems an okay platforming game at first but you soon realise that the game is very broken and not very well programmed. Voice acting can be out of sync with what is happening and also voices get repeated a lot. The other problem is that when the computer controls your other character it is doing a terrible job and may miss jumps and die.  The game is very slow, cumbersome and and glitchy.  I do not recommend anybody buy this game full price.  Accept it gracefully as a gift or wait until it is in the bargain bin.  TERRIBLE/10

Ice Age 3 is another movie which has been transformed into a game. Ice Age 3 was actually released a few months ago but I have only just got around to playing it.  This game is incredibly fun and is the best of the 3 in this issue. In fact it is the best platformer released  this year.  You play as various characters from the film in various locations from the snow of the Ice Age to the jungles riddled with dinosaurs.  The game starts off feeling a little bit generic but soon it blows open and the levels become insanely fun.  To go with a fun game, the script is also quite funny. There are fruits to collect to spend in the Ice Age store on upgrades and you can collect weapons as you go, including a rocket launcher made of a giant bamboo cane!

Ice Age 3 has everything you can want from a platformer including typical platforming styles taken from the likes of Crash Bandicoot. The only downside is that it is quite short and I completed it in around the 5 hour mark.  So it is a short game but well worth playing.  It is probably not worth the full high street asking price at the moment, but try and get it second hand or wait until the price drops, it is definitely not one to be missed. GREAT/10