Blueberry Garden quick review

Winner of the Seamus McNally indie gaming prize has been out for quite some time, and has all sorts of mixed opinions. The one thing I think everyone can say that has played it is that it's not really much of a game in the traditional sense. While there is an objective, it's not exactly...clear at the beginning of the game, or even once you start doing things. Honestly, Blueberry Garden is more of an experience than anything else. People thinking of picking this up based on the awards or the praise it had been getting pre-release might want to check out the demo first to see if they enjoy it, but even then, it IS only 5$ so whatever opinion you walk away with, at least you won't be broke. Some people have called it a garden simulator with an abstract ending, others have mentioned how some of the things laying around in the world almost offer a perspective on environmentalism, but if there is one positive thing I can say, it's that the piano score is incredibly well done. The controls get the job done, even if you don't know exactly what the job is. On the other hand, due to poor computer optimization and no post-release updates, it's even harder to recommend since there's no way to make the game run better and its not clear whether or not your system will be able to play it smoothly. I'm playing on a 2.5gb RAM + Radeon 4670 HD pc and it runs the game at about 10-15 frames per second while all of the laptops in the house which have 256mb integrated graphics cards seem to run it flawlessly and I can't figure out why. So...what does all of this mean? There's probably 2-3 people out there that might ever read this and decide that Blueberry Garden is their ideal game, and while it IS a unique concept, it's definitely not for everyone. It's honestly not even recommendable to fans of abstract or indie games in general because of how terribly it runs. For people waiting for a score, here it goes:


OVERALL - 4/10

It's almost unplayable and even though you might completely go beyond the requirements, there's no guarantee that it will run smoothly. Maybe if there's ever some sort of fix, this will do better, but I've got to say you'd be fine watching a youtube video of this instead of playing it yourself. On the plus side, it's got a great soundtrack and a pretty cool looking art style.

Darkest of Days demo impressions

Darkest of Days is one of those games that I know is going to be overlooked by tons of people that probably would have enjoyed, yet won't experience due to negative feedback or the outlandish premise. Keep in mind that all of the following statements are based on the demo, so it's possible there's some even more crazy plot twist that ruins the game/gameplay later in, but if you're trying to play through this for the story, you're probably missing the point. From what I gathered from the demo, you start off as a soldier during Custer’s Last Stand, tasked with simply surviving against increasingly more and more Native Americans. Unfortunately, you get shot and end up firing into the masses on a CoD4 last stand mode, and when everyone around you finally dies, a time bubble pops open and out pops some futuristic looking soldier, telling you that they need you to come back with them. Enter Darkest of Days; Once you're teleported to the future, you're given a brief explanation of why you're going back through different periods in time, which is usually something along the lines of "THIS GUY IS IN THE WRONG SPOT! GO BACK AND FIND AND PROTECT THEM WHILE SHOOTING REVOLUTIONARY WAR SOLDIERS WITH A ROCKET LAUNCHER LOL" It's not in exactly those words, but I think you get the point. After a brief training session, you're warped back in time again, with more control over the outcome.



The gameplay itself is really reminiscent of things like Serious Sam or Painkiller, or possibly even Left 4 Dead since it's mostly you moving to an area, holding it, then moving on to another. To keep things a bit more fresh from just saving one guy while killing everyone else, there are random enemies that have a blue aura surrounding them, which means that you're supposed to score a non-lethal take down on them, which is easily done by shooting them a few times in the legs or arms. It's not much of a change from the formula, but it is a welcome addition. While everyone you're fighting is using weapons from the respective time period, it doesn't mean that you're necessarily going to be blowing through them. Judging from the demo, when you enter an area, you're given 2 weapons from that time, which in this case meant an old school rifle that you had to reload by packing gunpowder and dropping in ammunition and a faster semi-automatic rifle that's a bit weaker in terms of pure firepower, but later you‘re handed a weapon to turn the tides in your favor. While it's not exactly complicated, the well done engine, mechanics, and controls do provide a lot of mindless fun. It's nice to play newer games that don't try to have elaborate cover systems or RPG elements from time to time.

Graphically speaking, I'm a bit torn. On one hand, the game really does a great job of modeling the chaotic feeling of organized battles during that moment since firing a manual reload rifle leads to tons of smoke filling up the air, which clouds your field of vision, but those same effects are largely what cause the frame rate to drop down from 30-40 to somewhere in the teens for a few seconds. The character designs are pretty well done, and while their talking animations aren't that great, it still looks good enough to not break you out of the battle while getting shot at. The only real downside I've noticed is that the color palate seems to reflect what you have a mental image of what a battle would have looked like at that time period, and not an actual realistic environment.



The sound effects are ...not the greatest strength of the game, but they aren't really terrible either. Considering the game is coming from a smaller studio, it's not that bad, but I almost get the feeling that the voice actors in particular are trying to feed on stereotypes to help you identify where they're coming from. I would like to point out how bizarre it is that no one at all ever mentions how you're using an incredibly overpowered weapons, but hey, what can you do?

Overall, I'm really impressed with the simple fun that's here, but I’d have a hard time recommending it to anyone that’s not a fan of more arcade style shooters. While there isn't a point mechanic or anything that I'm aware of, it's not exactly the deepest game out there. Then again, you've got tons of those coming out between Halo: ODST, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 and several other shooters coming out from this year or in early 2010. Why not give this one at least a chance as a demo or if you see it for a lower price. Unfortunately, I've heard some bad things about the console version, so if possible, go for the PC one (29.99 on Steam), provided you can run it. While I have your attention, I've got to say that this feels like the perfect engine to mod on since you've got all these weapons already demonstrated in game.

S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Shadow of Chernobyl review

Are you ready for an in-your-face, skateboard-shreddin', rollercoaster of a ride through a post nuclear wasteland?! Well, you've probably picked up the wrong game. What STALKER represents is an excellent blend of first person shooting mixed with light rpg elements, all set in the desolate environment surrounding the infamous Chernobyl Power Plant post nuclear meltdown. As a result, the wildlife has become horribly mutated and hostile, and the terrain has become controlled by three rival factions, all constantly battling for territory while collecting artifacts that are worth thousands for their own profit. Where does the player fit in through all of this? You're given control of The Marked One, an amnesiac (I've never seen THAT in a game before!) protagonist (or antagonist, depending on how you play the game) that's only got one memory left, which is the primary motivation for completing the game. Does it hold up over time? Is it worth going back to a game that was originally supposed to be released in 2004, and then got delayed 3 years for more than just gameplay?

Gameplay - 8/10

For those of you who are looking for something a bit different in your first person shooters, this might be exactly what you've spent so much time searching for. One of the many aspects that separate S.T.A.L.K.E.R. from the competition is the freedom you have in the world. While the storyline might not be the most compelling thing ever, once you get a quest from a citizen such as retrieving an item, fighting back an offensive move from a rival faction, to just exploring new locations, you're quickly thrown into the world to handle it however you want to. Then again, maybe you just don't like the way a certain city looks. If that's you, you can easily just kill everyone in a town: the choice is completely up to you. For those of you who do decide to follow the narrative, much of the major points in the story are told through cutscenes in the middle of a mission, each one giving you somewhat of an insight as to what might have caused you to lose your memory in the first place. All of this is fine and dandy, but the way its developer has created the world is simply amazing. While many games are content to settle with a few weird creatures here or there, then constantly coming across bombed out cities for creating a ghastly atmosphere, Shadow of Chernobyl takes it one step further by occasionally allowing you to stumble across various anomalies in the world, from some that give you a nasty dose of radiation which is fatal if not treated quickly, to others that summon some sort of a radioactive tornado, you'll quickly start to learn that the environment might just be a bigger foe than any enemy you'll find in game, or it could be your best friend once you master setting traps so your enemies walk through them. While there are tons of enemies wandering around, you'll find yourself entering settlements, all populated with fellow mercenaries that have a different perspective on you based on your actions in the world. Weapons, armor, and certain anomalies all have various attributes on them, with the most unfortunate being their actual status, which deteriorates with use. Fortunately, the further you get in the game, the more powerful the weapons you find. Don't plan on taking everything you see with you though, since you're ultimately restricted by having a weight limit. Once you pass that weight, you're unable to run and jump, and if you continue to pick up items beyond that point, you'll find yourself over encumbered and unable to move. All of this is good and well, but there's one major downfall in this title. STALKER doesn't exactly have the most compelling story, so many people find themselves drawn more into the world than the events and characters taking place inside of it. It's worth pointing out that the game does feature several endings, but the biggest complaint I have with the title arises with the last section of gameplay. Without giving away any spoilers, it almost feels like STALKER's developers were worried about players zooming through a large portion of the game, and as a result, when you're progressing through the very last few areas, you've basically got to worry about a very strict time clock that if it runs out, you die, while being pushed through environments that are full of enemies that don't feel difficult, they just feel incredibly cheap. If you make yourself stop playing before you reach this point, once you're sucked in to this digital version of an alternate world Chernobyl, you'll probably be wondering why this only got an 8, but for those who actually press on to the very end, you're going to find yourself constantly in situations where you're wanting to eat your monitor.


Sound - 6/10

Unfortunately, especially compared to games that were released around the same time, such as Doom 3, Half Life 2, and even Far Cry, the sound in S.T.A.L.K.E.R. isn’t all that impressive. Most of this can be directly attributed to the fact that you’re wandering around a desolate environment, meaning you’re mostly just going to be listening to the wind or your footsteps, but its minimalism is also sort of a downfall. The weapon sound effects don’t seem to really vary much between the different guns you can pick up in each class, but you are able to distinguish the sound between a rifle and a sniper rifle. In the games defense, using surround sound or a decent set of headphones allows you to pinpoint exactly where your enemy is, which is useful for when you’re aiming at someone and hear a mob of rabid dogs approaching behind you, or locating some of the harder to see enemies in the run down factories. The voice acting is pretty well done and never feels out of place, but I don’t really understand Russian, so I’ve got absolutely no clue what most NPC’s are really saying. Speaking in a language relative to the location does help to provide extra immersion and really give you that feel of wandering around the ruins of Chernobyl, and the guns don’t necessarily sound weak, but I really feel like they could have possibly done more somehow.

Graphics - 7/10

When the game was first announced back in 2002 or 2003, I definitely remember flipping through magazines and looking at various gaming websites and being completely blown away by the fidelity of visuals, especially considering the games 2004 release. But then… that didn’t actually happen. Shadow of Chernobyl kind of just disappeared and was rumored to have become vaporware, which made it seem like gamers everywhere would just have to dream of what the title would have been like. Had it met it’s 2004/2005 release date, it’s direct competition would have just been Half Life 2, but due to the halt in development and the fact that it wasn’t released until 2007 without really any graphical upgrades aside from lighting effects definitely makes this title look a bit dated, even beside other games from the time period this was supposed to come out. On the plus side, they really did manage to capture the actual look of Chernobyl, even including landmarks from the actual location. The enemy design is pretty unique for the various mutated creatures you encounter, but the generic mercenaries are just that: generic. Many of the special effects you’ll see look pretty nice, and even though the visuals aren’t all that great, they do run at a steady framerate and it still looks decent, just not up to the standards set for the time which is almost inexcusable because of the extra few years they had to work on enhancing the tech.


Overall - 7/10

One of the biggest problems everyone has with STALKER is the first hour or so of playing. It’s hard in the beginning to accept that your weapons, while governed largely by the players on skill, are still statistic based, meaning that while you might be aiming right at someone, you’re likely to not hit them with the first few shots until you come across better weapons. The game looks similar to every other first person shooter, but it’s a lot more of a slow paced, tactical experience requiring the player to use cover wisely while constantly keep an eye on their flanks. Once you’re finally adjusted, you’ll quickly finding yourself losing track of time as you start exploring the amazing environments and taking on countless quests. While the storyline suffers from AHS, or amnesiac hero syndrome, the gameplay makes up for it and the atmosphere of certain areas is incredible. Unfortunately, the experience is almost completely ruined because of the very last hour of gameplay, but with all the quests to embark on and places to visit, it kind of balances out. The graphics and audio suffice, but could have been improved if they used the extra development time a bit better. For the price it’s at now, it’s a great deal if you’re looking for a slightly different experience and if it does actually click with you, you’ll love it and find yourself wishing there were more games that captured that same atmosphere from this game, but there’s also a pretty big chance that you might be completely turned off by the RPG elements.

Forumwarz, Article by LoC

ForumWarz 

Platform: Computer/Browser

Genre: RPG

Developer: Crotch Zombie

Article by LoC

Way back in early November of 2008, Wiki(a friend of mine) told me about how he discovered a game called ForumWarz, and how fun it was. Although I had known of the game since early in the year, I had never bothered to try it out, until Wiki encouraged me to. Almost immediately I became hooked, and I especially loved the concept of a browser based RPG that was a parody of various forums, and internet culture in general. Even more than a game though, ForumWarz is also a community in and of itself, and it is this community that has kept me playing this long, probably more than anything.The game itself is simple enough to play, and most of the gameplay revolves around visiting various fictional forums and Pwning them, often for a reward of Flezz(ForumWarz version of money), and for the opportunity of picking up rare items that will boost your characters statistics. What makes ForumWarz work so well is just how community centered the game is, and how easy they have made it for players to contribute their own content, such as new forums, or the enemies encountered at said forum. Besides this, there are other numerous ways to keep yourself busy on ForumWarz. One of the most entertaining is a ladder system called Domination, where whoever has the most scoops on your current team will be awarded a medal, or possibly even 2 or 3 of them, depending on which conditions are met. Another fun minigame, although not as rewarding, is called Incit, and it involves writing a caption for a randomly chosen picture, with the winners decided by voting. Part of what makes ForumWarz so consistantly entertaining is the fact that new content and features are always being worked on, and few games are as rewarding, or get the community involved quite like ForumWarz does. Although the first episode of the game is free, and still lets you use most features of the game, you do need to pay $10 dollars to gain access to the second episode, or $5 if you want to make a second character on your account.  

The game can be found at http://www.forumwarz.com

but be warned, the game is not for those whom are easily offended, as it is a parody of internet culture, and also quite far from being politically correct, so play at your own risk.

Should you decide to play however, be sure to check out and join our guild: Fallen Knights Honor Guard