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EGM Review: NHL 14

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September 23, 2013

An all-time great

After living in SoCal now for a couple of years, I miss that first cool October breeze to signify that summer’s come and gone, and that it’s time to look forward to a deep, wintery chill. Mind you, it’s not the shoveling snow, changing of tires, or layers of clothes that I reminisce about—I miss that it actually starts to feel like hockey season.

The closest harbingers of hockey I get these days? Blasting my AC, complaining about the fair-weather L.A. Kings fans who constantly seem to crawl out of the woodwork, and playing the NHL franchise. Fortunately, NHL 14 does the best job yet of making me forget that longing for North Jersey winters and drowning out the know-nothing Kings fans.

As always, I started off by selecting and using my favorite team, the New York Rangers. Yes, I’m from New Jersey, but I root for the Rangers. The reason? Fans of the New Jersey Devils are as mythical as the Jersey Devil itself. They don’t exist, and if they do, there’s only about 30 of them huddled in a cave down in the Pine Barrens somewhere. South Jersey roots for the Flyers. North Jersey roots for the Rangers. End of story.

The Rangers are actually ideal for a review like this, though, since they’ve got a balanced team: Some guys can shoot, some guys can hit, and some guys can skate. Sure, NHL 14 sees plenty of major additions this year—and I’ll get to them—but when I want to test the nuances of the game, I’m covered with the Broadway Blueshirts.

Take winger Carl Hagelin and his blinding speed, for example. In NHL 14, I could really see how much faster he was than everyone else as he pulled away from the defenders who chased him through the neutral zone. Similarly, it makes sense to use a guy like 6’7” forward Brian Boyle to bowl over a sniper on the penalty kill, whereas 5’7” right wing Mats Zuccarello will just bounce right off. Having every player feel unique when you take control of them is a huge plus in a sports game, and that shines through in NHL 14.

But it’s not just about the physics of a monster like Boyle running over a hapless player on the PK. In previous NHL entries, you’d have to flick the right analog stick—almost like the truck feature in Madden—to deliver a punishing hit. While that option’s still there for fans who can’t break old habits, you can also simply skate as fast as you can, and the new momentum feature will automatically see Boyle stick his hip out and send that sniper spinning to the ice—or maybe rough him up a little harder if some bad blood’s been brewing between the two rivals over the course of the game.

And that leads into the next big feature—and probably the one that’ll be a favorite for casual hockey fans: The fighting system is completely overhauled. Borrowing mechanics from EA’s Fight Night franchise, NHL 14 offers nuances to each throwdown. You can try to push or pull a guy off his skates, bob and weave to avoid incoming haymakers, or drop some bombs of your own—it feels more like a hockey fight should instead of the Rock ‘Em Sock ‘Em Robots–style fights of years past.

Of course, similarly to how everyone’s helmets started to fly off or they got checked into the bench more often in NHL 12, the fighting’s definitely tuned to happen a bit more often now. If it’s not your thing—and I’ll admit that it can be a bit jarring, since everything else around you stops pretty abruptly—you can at least turn the frequency down in penalty options. If you leave it as is, though, you’ll go from having no fights or one fight per game, like in previous years, to potentially two or three each game. And if it’s a rivalry matchup—say, the Rangers versus the Devils—you’re likely to see it even more than that. I got into five fights the first time I played the Devils!

The fighting’s so detailed now, in fact, that players will walk away with black eyes and face bruising that’ll last for a couple of games. Of course, even before the fights, these are some of the ugliest character models I’ve ever seen. EA Canada can’t even get something as simple as a player’s hair color right. I look at Rangers center Derek Stepan when he scores a goal, and I see a real-life picture of him with dark brown hair—and then I see his character model with albino-white hair. It’s a little thing, but at this point, I’d like to think that the developers have figured out the differences between brown and blond.

I’ll take little snafus like that, though, when NHL 14 sees significant additions—such as the ability to change the opposing general managers’ AI in Be a GM mode. For years, opposing teams were either so stupid that you could easily fleece them and put together a virtual team of all-stars, or they were so smart that you’d have to sell the farm to even get a mid-tier prospect. While Be a GM’s default AI seems pretty good in this incarnation, it’s nice to be able to make adjustments if you don’t think it’s acting as realistically as it should. And adding money options—such as taking on part of a player’s contract instead of the whole thing—makes the negotiating room even more heated if you like wheelin’ and dealin’ like myself.

But if stylin’ and profilin’ on the ice is more your bag, the new Live the Life mode—a revamped version of Be a Pro—is the way to go. I don’t normally create players, but I tried this option out and worked my way up through the CHL to get drafted 7th overall by the Edmonton Oilers (I’m still working on getting traded to the Rangers!). Pre- and post-game press conferences with your player, interactions off the ice with teammates, and talking to your agent about what endorsements you should sign gets you closer to living the dream of being a pro hockey player than the franchise has ever offered. And for me, personally, it was even more special. See, every NHL player has a soundbite associated with his surname, and thanks to Chicago Blackhawks left wing Daniel Carcillo, it always sounded like Gary Thorne was saying my name during play-by-play—it freaked my girlfriend out when she heard it the first time!

Part of why I was drafted so high? The new, simplified deking system. I’ll freely admit that this aspect of NHL was way too difficult for me in the past. Some people swear by it—and more power to ’em—but I’d rather just make crisp passes that work the goalie out of position instead of worrying about spin-o-ramas and the like. This year, instead of working both analog sticks while holding a bunch of buttons, you simply need to tap a shoulder button—if your player’s skilled enough, of course. I’d never done so many dekes in a single version of an NHL game before, but it’s so simple here that I couldn’t stop.

One new feature, however, hasn’t been simplified. If anything, it’s gotten more complicated, and it comes when you skate into the face-off circle. Now, I’ve never been good at face-offs. I’m lucky to average a 30-to-40-percent success rate. Face-offs require a lot more finesse this year, and you’ll need to use both analog sticks to really work for the puck. This may feel more realistic, but it’s also a lot more frustrating—I only won around 5 percent of my face-offs against the computer. I could hold my own against human opponents, but it’s damn near impossible to win against the computer—especially when the friendly AI, for all the strides it’s made, still isn’t smart enough to skate over and take the puck if I tie up the opposing center.

Let’s be honest: I could probably be here all day talking about hockey. My love for the Rangers. My hatred of the Islanders. And the Devils. And the Flyers. And the Penguins. My love and hatred aside, this is easily the best hockey experience EA Canada has delivered yet. They’ve listened to just about everything the fans have said over the years, and they’ve done their best to incorporate it here.

They’ve even heard the fans in a particularly special way: NHL 14 features a full-blown NHL ’94 mode that not only celebrates 20 years of what many consider one of the greatest hockey games of all time, but that also expertly blends the arcade style of the past with the simulation style of today. That shows true dedication and passion from the development team, and NHL 14 is as close to that hallowed Super NES/Genesis classic as any entry we’ve seen since then.

Developer: EA Canada • Publisher: EA Sports • ESRB: E10+ – Everyone 10 and up • Release Date: 09.10.13
9.5
One of the best hockey sims to date. A couple of minor adjustments are always needed, but this is as close as its going to get for you short of lacing up skates and donning pads yourself.
The Good New fighting mechanics, better physics, and Online Seasons for Hockey Ultimate Team.
The Bad It’s impossible to win a face-off sometimes.
The Ugly The character models get worse-looking every year.
NHL 14 is available on Xbox 360 and PS3. Primary version reviewed was for Xbox 360.
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Hands-On: EA Sports UFC

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September 5, 2013

One rear-naked chokehold I welcome

I need to preface everything I say here by pointing out that these hands-on impressions are based off a build meant more as a demonstration of the Ignite engine at work in EA Sports UFC than actual gameplay. What I saw had none of the bells and whistles the final product will feature—no life bars, no stamina meters, no character-select screen. It was as pre-alpha as it gets. What I played was but a brief introduction to the groundwork of a potentially revolutionary new fighter that’s due out in nine months.

Part of what makes a game like EA Sports UFC possible, according to creative director Brian Hayes, are the advances made via next-gen technology. The look and feel, after all, is a critical component to an authentic MMA videogame. The veins bulging out of the neck of a fighter trying to lock in an armbar. The subtle bruising that peppers bodies over the course of a fight. An eye swelling shut after a few too many blows to the head. The changes in face color as a fighter succumbs to a rear-naked chokehold. These are just a few examples of the minute details that developer EA Canada is smoothly pulling off with next-gen tech and their new engine.

In my brief hands-on time at Gamescom, I got a feel for how fighters moved around the octagon. There’s a weightiness there now, with each movement tying right into the next. The fighters didn’t float around their opponent. Instead, they confidently planted their feet and moved with precision with each push of the control stick. And though the ground, grapple, and submission maneuvers were disabled during the demo, the attacks I could pull off felt substantial: Each punch I threw felt like it had power behind it and did real damage. Superman punches off the cage, flying knees, and spinning heel kicks were all available to me, and each one made me feel like I was watching a close-up of a fighter during a legitimate UFC PPV.

Now, normally, I’ll take something so early in its iteration process with a grain of salt. Show a little skepticism. But, honestly, after what I saw, I can’t help but feel hopeful that this is the game UFC fans have been clamoring for over the past decade. If the care seen in the in-ring segments transfers to the gameplay options—ideally, create-a-fighter or career modes—then this is primed to be a surefire hit. If not, there’s still a solid foundation here for what could ultimately become one of EA Sports’ more popular franchises.

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EGM Review: Plants vs. Zombies 2: It’s About Time

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Gotta get back in time

When you consider the phenomenon that the first Plants vs. Zombies became—being ported countless times to every system available and inspiring every piece of merchandise imaginable—it’s no wonder that the folks at PopCap would, at some point, get around to making a sequel. Instead of resting on their laurels and riding the massive wave of success generated by the first game to an easy payday, however, Plants vs. Zombies 2 erects a wondrous monument on the foundation of its predecessor that has the potential to consume every free second you have—if you let it.

Building a bit on the story of the first game, PvZ 2 sees your neighbor, good ol’ Crazy Dave, construct a talking time machine out of his car. After eating the most delicious taco ever assembled, Dave gets the idea of using his time machine to travel several minutes back in time to consume this hallowed taco once more. Being in the vicinity of the car, you’re pulled back with Dave, but instead of several minutes, you’re sent back several thousand years. Now, you must battle zombie hordes with the help of Dave and his sentient automobile, traveling through time as you try to get back home.

The biggest change that most players will notice is that, unlike its predecessor, Plants vs. Zombies 2 is free-to-play (not to mention starting out as an exclusive on iOS devices). Fans needn’t worry about free-to-play becoming pay-to-win, or about any story content being gated, though. The entire game can be played without you having to pay a dime, and only one of the new plant types is locked by a purchase. Plus, the extra good news is that PopCap has promised continual content updates to the game through this system.

Despite the switch to a free-to-play model, both the core tower-defense gameplay and cheesy humor that made Plants vs. Zombies so great return here in droves. The obvious additions are dozens of new plants, like the fire-breathing Snapdragon or kung-fu-proficient Bop Choy, and new zombies, like the sun-stealing Ra Zombie. Along with these new characters comes a bevy of powers that you can utilize at any time.

Some of these powers come from supercharged plant food that you acquire by defeating special green-tinted zombies. By utilizing it at the right time, you can turn the tide of any battle, and each plant has its own appropriate special attacks. Old standbys like Pea Pods will shoot a continuous stream of pellets, perfect for wearing down shielded zombies, while Bop Choy will deliver furious roundhouse kicks and swinging haymakers that allow it to attack not only directly in front of it, but in adjacent lanes as well.

Utilizing the touchscreen feature of the iOS devices, PvZ 2 can also give the player special powers that you can purchase either with in-game currency earned by playing well, or by dropping some real-world cash via the in-game store. These powers can serve as a Hail Mary for some more troublesome maps. For a few seconds, one power grants you the ability to electrocute any zombie onscreen and turn them to ash. Another allows you to pinch zombie heads off their bodies, instantly killing them. And the final power allows you to flick zombies off the screen and into an unknown abyss from whence they will never return. When you combine the new plant food feature with these powers, you have countless new strategies that can potentially open up.

Outside of the action on each main level, there are plenty of side activities as well, providing some much-appreciated gameplay variety in the form of minigames and challenge maps. Whether it’s using only a certain number of total plants in the match or starting with plants already on the field that you can’t let die, the challenge maps add a ton of replayability.

There is, however, a fine line between replayability and grinding. The one negative in PvZ 2 is that in order to advance from ancient Egypt to the pirate world and finally to the Wild West, you need to collect a certain number of stars—and these stars usually will require you to do the same story levels over and over again, collecting them one at a time. Although it’s enjoyable at first, after a while, it feels needless to constantly backtrack and retread ground, like some infuriating JRPG.

Putting that aside, though, there’s no way I can’t recommend Plants vs Zombies 2: It’s About Time if you have an iOS device. It doesn’t cost you a single cent to play, it maintains the same addictive strategy elements of the first game, and it adds a ton of new gameplay variety. If the first Plants vs. Zombies was a sensation, Plants vs. Zombies 2 may turn the franchise into a way of life.

Developer: PopCap Games • Publisher: Electronic Arts • ESRB: N/A • Release Date: 08.15.2013
9.0

PopCap maintains the addictive tower-defense gameplay and cheesy humor that made the first Plants vs. Zombies such a phenomenon, while adding a plethora of new features that ensure this game will consume every free second you have—if you let it.
The Good A near-unbelievable amount of enjoyable additions.
The Bad Can become a bit of a grind when forced to replay a lot of levels before advancing to the next world.
The Ugly Fire-breathing flowers and highly combustible zombie flesh.
Plants vs. Zombies 2: It’s About Time is currently an iOS exclusive. 
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EGM First Look: Battlefield 4

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April 7, 2013

Same old song and dance

It was one of the worst-kept secrets in the industry. As soon as the invites hit our inboxes, the word was out on the street that we’d finally get to see Battlefield 4 for the first time at GDC. Renting out a massive theater at the Metreon in San Francisco, EA shuffled in some of the biggest names in videogame development. And, somehow, I snuck in, too.

With the ever-present cloud of next-gen systems looming on the horizon, I admit that I didn’t know what to expect. But I do know that I definitely wasn’t expecting what we did get. After waiting on line for close to an hour—and another 30 minutes shuffling through the door—I witnessed EA and DICE show, quite simply, one of the most disappointing 15-minute game reveals I’ve ever had to uncomfortably sit through.

Things didn’t start off horribly, though. In fact, those first few visuals from the brand-new Frostbite 3 engine had me doing a double-take, since they were so lifelike. Of course, these visuals were also displayed on the highest-end PC money could buy, so 90 percent of the Battlefield-loving audience won’t experience what I did—nor will I when it comes time to review the game later this year.

This also clearly shows just where DICE’s focus is when it comes to developing Battlefield 4, because their claims of looking to make the game more “human, dramatic, and believable” just were straight up not true once events actually began to unfold. If anything, this reveal did nothing but point to lowest-common denominator game development, where developers hope that impressive visuals will hide the fact their game probably fails to provide the depth of content most gamers crave.

In regards to making the game more “human, dramatic, and believable,” the first thing you’d look for is character development. Being able to immerse yourself in the characters is critical to enjoying most media of any sort. Yet Battlefield 4 looks to deliver a group of cold, distant characters once again that will likely be forgotten by the time the end credits roll—and this came across in many instances. 

The demo began with the four soldiers in your group—the player character included—sinking in a submerged vehicle. Your commanding officer is trapped against the dented frame of the car and his seat. He orders you to shoot the window out, leave him behind, and get the rest of the group to safety. With reluctance, you do this before a flashback explains how these soldiers got to this position in the first place.

During the entire transition, all I could think of was this: “Why would I leave this guy to drown if he meant something to me?” It’s a fact that, as subjective as it is, many people consider drowning one of the worst ways to die. Wouldn’t it make sense that if you really cared about this person—or had any shred of humanity—after working with this man for who knows how long, that you’d put him out of his misery and not let him suffer before escaping? This was just the beginning of the awful storytelling I saw.

About halfway through the flashback sequence, you’re racing up the shell of an abandoned factory, hoping to be rescued with the vital intel you’ve collected. Before you can reach the top of the building, however, an enemy helicopter comes in for the kill. Your allied chopper is at the top of the building already waiting for you, but the enemy helicopter decides that it needs to shoot you—the tiniest, most difficult target to hit—instead of the chopper you’re headed toward. If America’s real enemies were this stupid, we wouldn’t be so hated much the world over.

But this could also just have been to help amp up the “drama” aspect that Battlefield 4 looks to focus on. That’s fine. Videogames need a little disbelief in them, although that goes against that entire “believable” thing they were going for as well. So, either way, they screwed up here.

OK, so the enemy helicopter finally figures out the proper target to aim for and blows your friendly copter out of the sky. Along with all the shooting it directed toward you, this causes the rest of the factory to collapse on itself. Somehow, because this is all so believable, you fall several stories and get buried under a ton of rubble. But you walk away unharmed. In fact, three of your four squadmates are perfectly fine. 

Now we go back to this “dramatic” aspect. Your commanding officer (it’s clearly not this guy’s day) has his leg pinned. With a little bit of realism here (finally), he talks about how his leg’s been completely crushed by the concrete. He hands you a combat knife and tells you that you need to cut the leg off. This is also not unheard of. What is unheard of is that, like a samurai sword through wet paper, you easily cut through his leg with this teeny-tiny knife. Combat armor, skin, muscle, tissue, and tendons are all cut through in an instant. Ignoring that we never see or hear anyone cauterize or clot up the new wound that would cause most men to bleed out, I think it would take a bit longer than a split-second to do this maneuver. 

At the very least, DICE had the good taste to have our character look away so as to not show players what could easily have been a gruesome scene. But you talk about building humanity into your characters? This was another failed opportunity. Have the player look at the commanding officer’s face. Tell him how sorry you are this is happening. Put some dialogue in there to help convey the power of the emotion that comes from a guy having to cut off his buddy’s limb!

Instead, we quickly flow right into our next dunderheaded story beat, where a random security guard comes to explore the giant explosion and collapsed building. In this part of the world, the last thing that most people would do when they see American soldiers is to want to help them out. We’re not really welcomed with beds of rose petals whenever we go to certain parts of the world—this coming across as one of them. Then, you steal his car, which leads to a stereotypical driving sequence that brings you back to doing your best Ariel impersonation under the sea.

And let’s not forget: Aside from the story, the action we saw was nothing special. It’s the same stuff we get in every other military shooter. Some cool group mechanics, some slow-mo moments that try and fail to build tension, a little bit of gameplay variety with a driving sequence, and I’m bored just writing that damn sentence—never mind playing it.

But you must be asking yourselves: “Why hasn’t he mentioned multiplayer?” Because they didn’t show us any of the multiplayer! The best we got was a brief mention of how the gap between multiplayer and single-player would be bridged. The only thing I saw that hinted at this was beating up some guy and stealing his dog tags. For a brief instant, there were a few murmurs of delight in the crowd. But that raised the question in my mind: “Why the heck would I care about a single-player NPCs dog tags?!”

The graphics are next level, for sure—but the story’s still wallowing in the muck. It seems that after Bad Company 1 and 2, DICE forgot what it meant to actually provide an entertaining single-player campaign. The action is run-of-the-mill, and the thing most folks really care about, the multiplayer, was noticeably absent. Of course, with all this being said, this was a 15-minute demo of what looked like the first level of the single-player campaign. Things can certainly change once we get longer demonstrations, hands-on previews, and the final review code.

But since this is all EA and DICE decided to show us, that’s all I can comment on—and what I saw had me shaking my head as I walked out of the theater.

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EGM Review: Dead Space 3: Awakened

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Rise and shine

WARNING: This review contains spoilers in regards to Dead Space 3. If you haven’t finished Dead Space 3, you shouldn’t read this DLC review.

After destroying the Marker signal at the end of Dead Space 3, Isaac Clarke and Sgt. John Carver’s fates were unknown. All we knew was that, somehow, they’d survived after Isaac’s voice came across the radio calling out for Ellie conveniently after she rocketed off into slip space. Dead Space 3: Awakened is downloadable content intended to explain just what happened after the Necromoon fell from the sky and crashed back into Tau Volantis—and how Isaac’s still kicking around on that iceball.

The primary problem with Awakened is that it fails to explain anything, is full of loopholes, and asks players to suspend belief far too many times. The story begins with Isaac waking up in an ice cavern on Tau Volantis. When he and Carver realize they’re not dead, they try to figure out how they survived riding a moon into a planet like a cowboy straddling a bull at the rodeo. Isaac’s answer? Aliens. Something on Tau Volantis didn’t want them to die. Even Carver recoils at the idea and calls Isaac crazy, speaking for everyone who’ll play this mess of a tale.

Once our heroes come to their senses a bit, they realize that many of Danik’s men who were stationed on the planet at the end of Dead Space 3 are still around. So, Isaac and John decide if they can steal one of Danik’s ships, they can get back to Earth, and if they need spare parts, they can grab some from the ghost flotilla still orbiting Tau Volantis. Of course, at this point, I’m still trying to figure out how anything survived on the planet so perfectly AFTER A MOON DROPPED FROM ORBIT ONTO EVERYTHING. The ship graveyard, the men still stationed on the planet, all the ships—they should all have been wiped out. Maybe because the moon was made of flesh, it cushioned the blow? Maybe because Isaac is crazy, he’s still just floating in space on life support, and it’s all a dream? I don’t know the answer, because Awakened asks you to just take everything at face value with no explanation whatsoever.

The technical reason why nothing was destroyed is a lot more depressing than poor storytelling—it’s just plain laziness. Instead of creating new levels, the three chapters of Awakened simply reuse sites that Isaac and John have already visited, culminating back on the Terra Nova. At least the locations look a little different at certain points, especially the Terra Nova itself. Danik’s men who survived (but shouldn’t have) have a rift form in their ranks, which leads to some forming their own cultlike church aboard the Terra Nova and deforming their bodies to look like Necromorphs, even though they’re not quite dead—and causing Clarke and Carver all kinds of trouble.

Beyond the story, Awakened‘s other major flaw is that it’s short, even for DLC. If it takes you more than 90 minutes to beat this, hang up your headset because you have to admit you’re just not that good at games. Heck, the end credits are nearly as long as Awakened itself. For $10 (800 Microsoft Points), there’s just not enough value here for that inflated price tag.

Now, my review has been resoundingly negative thus far, but I’d be remiss if I failed to mention some aspects of Awakened that I thoroughly enjoyed once I ignored the flawed logic the story beat me over the head with. Unlike in Dead Space 3, there’s actually a lot of tension here. The hallucinations that plagued Isaac in the first two games return in full force; you’ll be walking along, when suddenly, the screen will flash red and enemies will appear out of nowhere, making the action far less predictable than in the main game.

The red tint may signify that the enemies are only hallucinations—but to Isaac, they’re all too real, so you have to fight them as you would actual enemies, consuming ammo and losing health along the way. Of course, if they’re not real in the physical plane, they shouldn’t drop ammo, health, and items! But the idea that Isaac’s mind is being torn through like wet toilet paper is a theme that the main game sorely lacked, and it’s a welcome addition.

For its faults, Dead Space 3 was certainly a polished experience, and that’s also the case with Awakened. The non-story-related banter between Clarke and Carver is witty and entertaining, and the idea of a crazed space cult onboard a dead ship gives the game an old-school Dead Space feel that most fans of the series have missed—and will appreciate seeing again. I loved the boss battles, new enemies, and the general feeling of not knowing what was around every corner. If Visceral could’ve somehow combined the gameplay found here with the story of Dead Space 3, I think a vast majority of fans would’ve been a lot more satisfied with the final product.

Developer: Visceral Games • Publisher: Electronic Arts • ESRB: M – Mature • Release Date: 03.12.2013
6.5 Dead Space 3 would have been well served to include some of the thrilling gameplay featured here, but Awakened‘s convoluted narrative has far too many absurd plot holes—and is far too short—to be worth anything to anyone but the most die-hard Dead Space fans.
The Good Provides the kind of psychological horror we expected from the main game.
The Bad Very short; backtracking through old levels; too many plot holes.
The Ugly Trying to play with a solid grip on science and logic.
Dead Space 3: Awakened is available on PS3 (PSN), Xbox 360 (XBLA), and PC. Primary version reviewed was for XBLA.
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EGM Review: Dead Space 3

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February 6, 2013

Chills but no thrills

When the original Dead Space broke onto the scene, it was one of the most horrifying new IPs to come out in a long time. Its isolation of protagonist Isaac Clarke aboard the lifeless, planet-cracking spacecraft that was the Ishimura left a lasting impression on gamers as much as the Marker left aboard Clarke’s broken psyche. Not to mention the hallucinations that Clarke experienced blurred the lines of what you were experiencing to the point that you were questioning yourself as you turned every corner.

This terror was quickly ingrained in the DNA of the franchise as it provided some of the most legitimately fear-inducing moments we’ve had in games in quite some time. Then we moved onto Dead Space 2, and although Isaac’s isolation had been diminished and the action aspects ramped up, his hallucinations were stronger than ever and some of the most haunting instances of the series, surpassing even the best of the first game, were had in the nursery and during the sequence where Isaac returned to the Ishimura’s husk.

Now we have Dead Space 3. When this game had been announced, many were thrilled at the idea of what new depths Isaac might fall to. But, then we were informed that the versus multiplayer had been scrapped and in its place was a co-op campaign. The removal of versus multiplayer was not a huge loss, but gamers everywhere were filled with a new and very palpable fear by this news as the terror aspects of Dead Space could be a thing of the past due to the inclusion of a friend serving as a ground to reality in co-op.

Well, the good news is that the co-op was worked in seamlessly to the campaign so that John Carver fits right in with Isaac and the two have the making of a classic duo as they played off each other magnificently. His own unique story only helps flesh out the Dead Space universe and having a buddy there does not ruin any of the game’s major moments. Visceral could not have incorporated the co-op into the main experience any better and kudos to them for not making it a separate mode. The only real problem he may pose is for completionists with no friends out there as you need to play the game through co-op at least once to get one hundred percent. And no, he does not destroy the terror potential of the game as he has his own demons to deal with.

The bad news, however, is that Carver couldn’t destroy the horror of Dead Space 3 because there is no horror there for him to destroy. Yes, it seems that fans of the series’ worst nightmare has come true and they didn’t need to come into contact with an alien artifact for it to happen. Dead Space 3 completely abandons the idea of survival horror and immerses itself in action sci-fi. Only a few cheap scare tactics remain, like Necromorphs randomly popping out of the snow, and a continuing obsession with the thought that a bunch of tentacles makes something terrifying (only scary if you’re a girl in an anime).

Part of the diluted fear factor I felt came from the human cult enemies you sometimes must fight against. Not only do your tactics change as you are now going after more traditional headshots, but you are forced into trying to use cover with one of the most busted cover systems I’ve ever seen because cover functions are added to buttons that already have very specific purposes and it’s hard to tell if you’re close enough to a box to take cover or if you’re going to recharge your stasis by accident. This frustration during these moments took away from any of the frantic feel the game may have been going for. The only good that comes from the human enemies is their leader who gives off a classic Gary Oldman villain vibe that I was really able to get behind the more I saw him.

Contrary to how it may sound, however, Dead Space 3 isn’t a bad game. Not by any means. My desire to be scared half to death and to shoot only undead masses aside; Dead Space 3 is actually probably the most impressive game of the series from a technical standpoint. From the look of the characters and environments to the smoothness of the previously mentioned co-op, Dead Space 3 is an accomplishment in terms of what this game puts on your TV screen. And there is a lot to put on your screen.

One of several major additions to the game this go around is side missions. This removes a lot of the linearity of the first two Dead Space games by allowing Isaac and John to freely explore several of the facilities on Tau Volantis and other places you’ll end up, and easily add another five or six hours to the game should you choose to do them all. Unfortunately, after the first couple, you’ll start to realize that the side missions, unlike the rest of the game, were very cookie-cutter in their design. You enter a new offshoot of a facility, fend off a few waves of Necromorphs, and get a loot chest full of ammo, medicine, stasis refills, and new items to put together at the Bench (more on that in a bit).

So, the action during the side missions may be somewhat one dimensional but at least one other reward you get besides loot is the side missions help expand on the story. More so than the previous two games combined, Dead Space 3 explains so much more about not only the areas you’ll explore in the game, as each main and side mission have their own special story behind them, but also of the universe that Isaac and John occupy. In fact, you learn so much that Dead Space 3 actually could serve as a fine entry point for newcomers to the series, should they be so inclined.

Another great wrinkle in the story and game play this go around is how there is a clear focus on Isaac’s engineering background. It is still lost during most action sequences when he is mowing down Necromorphs, but at least now with the larger array of puzzles and obstacles put before him, Isaac puts his engineering skills to use to come up with solutions that make sense for his character.

We also see the engineer in Isaac come out with probably my favorite new addition to the game, the Bench. Whenever Isaac comes across a workbench, he can take tools and parts he finds scattered about the world to make new or improve existing weapons. Like some mad scientist, you can create hundreds of different combinations that range from just your standard plasma cutter to a flamethrower with an acid tipped rocket launcher attached. You can also craft medicine, stasis refills, and other consumable items at Benches should you have enough raw materials that can also be found throughout the game.

Of course, you can also buy the materials you need for certain weapons through a micro-transaction system if you really need more or are too lazy to scavenge. Although I personally don’t enjoy the precedent that sets considering you’re already dropping $60 on the game to begin with, that becomes an issue of personal preference of how a player plays and I’m not going to knock the game for it being there because I’m sure someone out there will take that shortcut, no matter the costs.

As much as I love the Bench, though, it also created some problems in regards to your inventory system and how much you hold onto at one time. To solve this, Isaac can no longer carry as many weapons as he wants. He is constantly limited to two on his person at any given moment. Weapon specific ammo has also been replaced with universal ammo clips for all your weapons in the game. This is a double-edged sword as it makes sense since you will more than likely create such a hodgepodge of weaponry that it might be harder to find and carry specific ammo for each one. On the other hand, part of the fun of the first two games I felt was managing your inventory and keeping track of everything so you didn’t end up with nothing but a handful of bullets left while surrounded by Necromorphs. It feels like a cheap solution to something that might not have been thought all the way through when created.

When all is said and done, Dead Space 3 is a very highly polished game and there are many great things here to applaud. The storytelling, character development, co-op, graphics, and game play variety are top notch. Several new features like the side missions and the Bench all add unique nuances to the game play not seen in the series before, but also create their own set of problems that don’t seem to have been fully thought through. Dead Space 3’s biggest flaw though is that if you were looking for a good scare, this game will not provide it for you. Whether or not this is a trend the series will follow, we will have to wait and see. But for this particular title for sure, you won’t even have to turn the lights on.

SUMMARY: An enjoyable, highly polished experience that will fill in a lot of the story gaps for returning fans, but if you’re looking to be scared, Dead Space 3 is anything but survival horror.

  • THE GOOD: Expands on the lore of the Dead Space universe more than the previous two games combined
  • THE BAD: Doesn’t even try to be scary anymore
  • THE UGLY: Micro-transactions introduced via the new Bench feature

SCORE: 7.5

Dead Space 3 is available on Xbox 360, PS3, and PC. Primary version reviewed was for the Xbox 360.

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Hands-On: Army of Two: The Devil’s Cartel

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November 20, 2012

Just the two of us

The first time we had seen Army of Two: The Devil’s Cartel, we had played an over the top sequence ending with a helicopter crash that would put many action movies to shame. It was also the first time many of us met Alpha and Bravo and saw the Overkill ability in action where, when triggered, it granted our heroes the ability to turn their surroundings to Swiss cheese with gunfire, courtesy of the power of the Frostbite 2 engine of course.

Recently, we got to go hands-on again with Army of Two: The Devil’s Cartel, and although this slice of game play was promised to be more in line with most of the game’s tone and pacing and not the adrenaline fueled sequence we had played earlier, it still provided us with an interesting look at Alpha and Bravo and how they don’t always have to work together to be effective.

When we started, Alpha and Bravo were making their way through a Mexican cartel stronghold, but events transpired that had separated the two. Bravo was then trapped, downed and bleeding out inside an open courtyard and was fending off enemies left and right. I was playing as Alpha, and had to work my through the stronghold as quickly as possible, for not only was I facing off against other gun wielding maniacs, but was racing the clock to get to Bravo as quickly as possible before he bled out completely. And yes, Bravo can die at this moment forcing you to restart the checkpoint so you had better have your running shoes on.

This sequence was interesting because it showed some role variety for each character, while the Overkill meter also reminded us that these two guys are inexorably linked as each kill either one of us did helped fill the meter for our partners. And a full Overkill meter is always useful when taking on hordes of guys out to kill you. Once I actually got to Bravo and revived him, we then took cover in a fountain and had to clear out the remaining gaggle of hired guns before moving on to a container yard.

In the container yard, a flood of cartel members had us in their sights so we triggered the Overkill ability to turn the crates and other cover many of the bad guys were using into confetti and mow them down with the greatest of ease. We quickly wished we hadn’t been so quick to trigger the Overkill however as after clearing the yard, another helicopter soon appeared over the horizon to makes things difficult for our duo.

The game didn’t penalize us too badly here though as they gave us some cannon fodder enemies with the chopper to rebuild our Overkill. After a few dozen clips into the metal hull of the whirly-bird and she crashed down, again in epic action movie fashion, bringing down a clock tower and a ton of brick red rubble with it.

This wrapped up our time with this new sequence with Army of Two: The Devil’s Cartel and in terms of action the game definitely looks to deliver on all levels if this sequence was what most of the game is meant to be like. The game, again powered by Frostbite 2, also looked fantastic, especially when you start using Overkill to destroy objects in the environment. If you’re a fan of co-op and a fan of third-person shooters, then Army of Two: The Devil’s Cartel looks like it might a game you’d want to keep an eye out for when it releases at the end of March 2013.

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Hands-On: Dead Space 3 Co-op Mode

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Double Trouble

As frightening as the new Dead Space 3 may hope to be, the thing that most gamers feared from it was the new drop-in/drop-out co-op feature. Many were worried about what having a second person next to them would do for the survival horror aspects of the title. We had a chance to test out this new feature recently, however, and I can attest to the fact that if you thought Isaac Clarke was messed up in the head, just wait until you meet EarthGov Sergeant John Carver.

I was allowed to play as John while another journalist grabbed the reigns of Isaac and we went off trudging through the snow in an unspecified section of the game. The first, and most obvious, major advantage of having a partner popped up almost immediately as we were swarmed by some necromorphs and with two weapons unloading at the same time, we made short work of the twisted creatures. Once we moved inside and out of the cold though, the differences in our experiences started to come forward.

It seems that John Carver has some demons haunting him, much like Isaac, since as we entered the base the walls were adorned with Nutcracker inspired toy soldiers. At this time we were told to look at our partner’s screens and both myself and the person I was playing with were shocked that only my screen had the toy soldiers. A shared play experience with singular hallucinations was definitely an interesting twist as players who communicate well with one another could actually freak the other person out depending on what other surprises the Visceral team had in store for us. And indeed the toy soldiers were not the end of our different game play experiences.

After dispatching maybe a dozen more necromorphs who had crawled out of the vents, we approached a door that only Carver could open. As I laid my hands on the door though, Carver was transported to a world within his mind with children taunting him and shadows clawing at him from all directions, doing monumental amounts of damage. Meanwhile, my partner simply saw my character suddenly spasm and start freaking out as the Carver on his screen was screaming in agony with his hands over his temples. And necromophs love nothing more than screams of torture and torment as a swarm of them came out of the walls.

While I was fighting (mostly running) from John’s demons, Isaac had to make sure neither of our actual bodies got torn to shreds. If I escaped from my moment of insanity, I could help Isaac clear out the necromorphs, but should I have succumbed to my demons, the game would be over and we’d have to start a checkpoint just before my craziness started. I know this, because I did succumb several times before realizing it’s better to run from the demons than fight them.

After finishing our short hands-on time, I can say that the personalized hallucinations and detailed back-story that John begins to exhibit have definitely renewed my faith in the co-op mode for Dead Space 3. The fact that Visceral took the time to fully develop and craft a story for this character lets us know that there is a lot more going on with John Carver than what we’ve seen and what kind of a survival horror game would it be without a few surprises? Knowing that you can play a role possibly in scaring the other player just as much as the environment or enemies around you is a great idea and one that will make me want to play the game through a second time for sure. I only wonder now what special moments may be in store for Isaac that leave John wondering just what is going on inside his partner’s head.

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Hands-On: SimCity

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Hello City

I admit to never being much of a PC gamer growing up. However, there were always a few titles that crept their way onto my harddrives, and possibly because of rarely using my PC for gaming purposes as a child, those few games hold extra special memories. One of those games was SimCity 2000, where I would actually stay after school in middle school and head down to the computer lab to try to build more and more fantastical cities. As subsequent SimCity titles were then released, it remained one of my favorite game franchises. So, when it was then officially announced at GDC this year that the first new entry into the series in six years would be coming in 2013, I admit a huge smile crossed my face.

Flash forward to a very recent EA event where I was able to get several hours of hands-on time with this title that intends to re-launch this classic franchise and really pick it apart. Mind you, the version I saw still had a lot of work to be done, but if you’re as much of a fan of SimCity as I am, then I think a lot more people are going to be smiling as well comes early March.

You start by obviously selecting a swath of land and building roads outward from the main highway to where you would like to lay the foundation for your, hopefully, soon-to-be megalopolis. And as soon as you wish to start developing this new city, you realize that more so than ever before, every decision you make is a major one and it affects the world around you in ways that you’ll need to see to truly start understanding.

After cutting out a square of roads and designating land for houses, factories, and retail centers, I knew I would need a few basic necessities for my starting population to survive and the first necessity I wished to tackle was power. I had to choose between coal or wind. Now, not only would coal pollute the city I had just founded, but if my initial land choice wasn’t rich in minerals, I might be forced into wind. The same problem could arise if my burgeoning city was at a low altitude and didn’t get very many gusts, I might be forced into coal, showing how even where you start to set up your city is important.

But if neither of these were an option, the new kink in the game is the social aspects where if I had some friends who had a surplus of power in a nearby city, I could trade them resources for access to their electrical grid, at least until I could afford nuclear power or some other option. This option was demoed for us, but wasn’t as clear to me in my game, but it also could have been because we are on a closed server and there really wasn’t anyone for me to trade with to really test it out.

All this then continues as you expand ever outward in the hopes of bringing in more people to your city to bring in more cash. In turn, more people then need more necessities ranging from very basic things like water and power, to trash collection, sewage disposal, police and fire departments, and much, much more as you tackle the problems your populous encounters. And there were a lot more problems than you might think as there were also new side missions that featured some more vocal members of your community. These civic-minded folks could bring dilemmas to your attention and as mayor, should your choose to intercede as all choices have consequences, could earn extra cash for your budget.

With all this serious stuff going on like managing power grids via the amazing layered graphics provided by the GlassBox engine or watching your people dynamically cause new problems for you to solve, it wouldn’t be a SimCity game if there wasn’t some zany fun stuff either. Beyond being able to transform your city in various ways from that of a potential gambling den to the ideal slice of American suburbia and more, there is also the power to destroy that which you create. Yes, you don’t have to just bulldoze what you’ve built to start over if you so choose, you can do it in glorious fashion via divine acts. Earthquakes, tornadoes, meteor showers, UFO invasions, and more can have you wreck all that you have created in the hopes of re-building it better, or just having some fun with wonton destruction.

After carving out a small, but sustainable little paradise for myself in the mountains, my time with the new SimCity ran out. It wasn’t nearly as long as I would’ve hoped, and the build was somewhat early so it still had a few bugs, but overall a lot of great memories were getting ready to possibly be supplanted by some new ones as this game is shaping up to be special for a whole new generation of gamers and I can’t wait to get my hands on the final product come March.

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Hands-On: Fuse

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October 20, 2012

Lighting the Fuse

It’s hard to believe that the holidays are already upon us and that the calendar year is coming to an end. Usually, this is a great time for people to reflect on the events of the past year that have transpired. This is also a good time, however, to look ahead. And in that vein, EA held their ‘Naughty or Nice’ event in New York and allowed us to play some games slated for the next few months depending on if we’ve been good boys or girls (hence the name of the event). Some lucky few of us have been particularly naughty this year though and were able to go hands-on with Fuse, the upcoming third-person shooter from Insomniac Games.

In Fuse, you play as one of four misfit soldiers in the near future as part of a group called Overstrike 9 who work for the government after they start developing experimental weapons with an alien substance dubbed Fuse (hence the name of the game). Your objective is to then take down a corrupt organization known as ‘Raven’ with your new alien-powered weapons while also working as a cohesive unit.

What looks to separate Fuse from every other third-person shooter out there is not only the Fuse powered weaponry you acquire, but the ability to hop between all four members of the team should you be playing solo. This is critical as each member of the team has a distinct style and special abilities that will allow you to overcome the obstacles in your path. Of course, the game will also feature and encourage co-op, but gives you this option incase you’re like me and prefer to play games by yourself in a dank hole in the ground and the game can still therefore convey that feeling of being in an organized group.

The first character I tried was the fiery redhead Izzy. Her Fuse weapon’s special ability is to fire matter at enemies that freezes them in place, allowing you to focus on other targets or shatter them into tiny pieces with a melee maneuver and conserve your ammo.

Next, was Dalton and his ability was a special energy shield that not only prevents you and your teammates from being hit, but increases your ammo’s strength should you fire back through the shield yourselves.

Then came Jacob and he was one of my favorites. He has a special crossbow that not only allows you to impale enemies into the wall (think the Javelin Gun from Dead Space 2), but if multiple bolts are in the environment, you can link them together via an electric tether and then incinerate anything caught in-between the field. A perfect example of this was at one point in our demo a group of riot shield wielding thugs tried to storm the facility we just captured. In order to get them to drop their guard, I fired a bolt in front of the group, and two behind. I then activated the link and created a giant triangle of fire that killed many of the guards and the few who survived were so panicked that they were easy pickings for the rest of the squad.

Finally came Naya and she was another favorite of mine. Not only does she have an awesome gun that opens up miniature black holes from within enemies and consumes anyone close to it, which in and of itself is amazingly badass, but she also has a cloak that allows you to flank or sneak up on unsuspecting enemies and create havoc from behind enemy lines. I used this to get by many a turret in the demo and it saved me often as it’s easy to lose the invisible person in the midst of a firefight.

Aside from the brilliant gunplay, the game also features a cover system that worked well enough when compared to what is out on the market currently, and a simple free-running mechanic as the various characters could do things any normal soldier would do like hop over chain link fences to get to alternate pathways or to a breachable wall or door.

After infiltrating and wreaking havoc on the Raven facility, the group was met by a bi-pedal mechanized monstrosity reminiscent of something out of early Metal Gear. After taking trash to the group, the robot began pummeling us with lasers, missiles, and melee attacks as it hopped around the enclosed area we were fighting in. But with four people to attack it at once, it had difficulty targeting multiple foes and by literally running circles around it, we were able to turn the robot into scrap.

Although our time with Fuse was short, the game felt immensely satisfying as I played both by myself and with other people. The Insomniac staple of insane weaponry is evident clearly right from the get go and the unique abilities these weapons afford you looks like they’ll hopefully keep the game play fresh throughout. The only question now is if the story can live up to the off-the-wall fun the weapons provided and give us a wholly entertaining experience when the game is released in March 2013.

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