Tag Archive: online


A Football Blitzkrieg!

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May 11, 2010

Originally Published: December 14, 2009, on 1050ESPN.com (now ESPNNewYork.com) and Lundberg.me

Ever since the Madden franchise acquired rights exclusivity to the NFL, there have been several alternatives to try and put a dent in the near impenetrable armor that surrounds the football powerhouse that is Madden. Another new contender is stepping into the ring though and it isn’t necessarily emphasizing the truck stick.

QuickHit.com is a website that offers a free flash based football game that will rack the brains of Fantasy Football heroes and test the mettle of Madden die-hards alike by combining RPG elements with the pure strategy that you would find out on the gridiron.

RPG elements? Flash based? FREE?! That’s right. It doesn’t get more revolutionary than this. No downloads required and no credit card either. In fact, before writing this article, I got a quick game in at work even though I signed up on my home PC if you’re questioning the download part.

Aside from the pure strategy involved with calling all the plays since you’re your custom team’s head coach (and if you’re a rookie in that department, NFL Legend Bill Cowher lends a few suggestions along the way), you can also decide what players to train (level up) between games and what new abilities they can learn (offensive linemen can learn moves to help them get a pancake block, running backs can break more tackles, etc., etc.).

Now, of course, a team with a higher level will have a clear advantage, but the best part will be when two evenly matched teams duke it out as it is a true test of your football acumen that you just can’t find in the often glitch riddled gameplay of Madden (there are ALWAYS at least five plays that will ALWAYS work).

A downside for many people though will be that the game isn’t the best looking, but anyone who is a true football fan should be able to look past the simple flash-based graphics and appreciate the great football gameplay that is played out before you, as you get the instant gratification or instant frustration as you see how the play you called turns out.

There is only so much I can tell you about QuickHit.com, so I had an opportunity to talk with the Director of Design on QuickHit.com, Brandon Justice, and I think he can tell you much better than I could just how awesome QuickHit.com is so be sure to check out the video over here!

QuickHit.com Football Preview with Director of Design Brandon Justice and Ray Carsillo
Video by Jared Bodden

So, if you are looking for an alternative to Madden or Madden Head Coach and don’t want to keep dropping the $60 every year for updated rosters and tweaked graphics, QuickHit.com might be the answer for you. It’s as simple as going there right now and signing up for FREE (Of course, with it being free there are a couple of short ads you might have to sit through between quarters, but they take about as long as the ridiculous load times Madden 10 had this year)!

Ratings are based on a scale of 1 to 10 with 10 being the best.

Graphics: 7.5: It is hard to judge graphics on a flash game because you know right off the bat it could never compare to the power of a console game, and QuickHit.com admits that it would be impossible for them to try (at this point in time, anyway), so in comparison to other flash and free online games, the looks for this game are solid, especially in all the menus.

Audio: 5.0: Generic pads clashing, whistles, and other football related SFX mixed with generic music gives this a middle of the road score.

Plot/Plot Development: N/A: It’s a sports sim (with RPG elements)…

Gameplay: 9.0: This is one of the key elements that QuickHit.com shines in. A plethora of plays that are easily selectable with drop down menus that whittle down your options to the specific play you are looking for, no glitches that I was able to notice, and the fantasy football RPG elements between games to level up your players will appeal to every guy who has ever played Fantasy Football and loves tweaking his roster from week to week.

Replay Value: 10.0: RPG and sports games are possibly the most addicting games due to the obsession you develop over time when it comes to leveling up and tweaking your roster as you make another run to a championship. Combining those elements will keep football fans coming back for more. Millions will be lost in workplaces across the country as people keep playing football at QuickHit.com!

Overall (not an average): 8.5: For a work in progress, this is a very addictive and fun (and cheap!) way to pass the time. It can only get better as new features get added to it and it already has a rock solid base to work from.

-Ray Carsillo

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The Call for a Hero

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April 20, 2010

Originally Published: September 1, 2009, on 1050ESPN.com (now ESPNNewYork.com) and Comicvine.com

Five years ago, Cryptic Studios released a game, which many of you might remember, called City of Heroes that intended to give the player the ultimate personal experience of becoming one’s own super hero. Once released though, Cryptic realized that no amount of patches would allow them to create the ULTIMATE online superhero experience in that format.

So they returned to the drawing board. Technology advanced, graphics improved, online games became faster, and superheroes evolved. Now, influenced heavily by the popular pencil and paper RPG Champions, Cryptic has released their MMORPG masterpiece.

Champions Online gives you the opportunity to immerse yourself in a superhero world on a scale unheard of in MMORPGs. Not only is the game itself massive, but the options are nearly endless when creating your superhero.

This might actually be the best part of the game, especially as you unlock more costume pieces. I spent close to two hours creating the look of my superhero and my hero is far and away one of the more simple characters you’ll see in the fictional world of Champions Online. Mixing color schemes, utility belts, capes, cowls, boots, gloves, hundreds of emblems, and every other possible combination you could think of to make your hero. Not to mention several species choices, as well.

Before choosing your hero’s look, the most important aspect of the game is choosing your power set. From martial arts to archery to elements like fire and ice, you can customize your heroes’ powers like never before, including mixing and matching! You could have an archer that breathes fire or a martial artist that also carries a shotgun for good measure. The possibilities are near endless!

After creating your hero and his back story (optional), you’re then immersed in a series of basic tutorial missions that will probably take you close to an hour alone to completely blow through before you start traveling to different locales across the globe as you try to quell a larger, worldwide threat.

Now, I admit that I’m only up to about a Level 13, and I have only gotten through the first two locales, but I realize I have only just to begun to scratch the surface of this game’s story. In order to help get a more in-depth analysis of the parts that I probably won’t be able to reach before my 90-day press kit runs out, I spoke with Executive Producer for Champions Online and MMORPG legend for his work on World of Warcraft and the Diablo series, Bill Roper.

Champions Online Preview w/ Ray Carsillo
Video by Jared Bodden

Ratings are based on a scale of 1 to 10 with 10 being the best.

Graphics: 7.5: For a MMORPG, considering how many players are involved at once and since it does have a comic book theme, the cel-shading was a perfect choice for the graphics, but it is still a drain on your PC unless you have a top of the line gaming PC.

Audio: 8.0: The music can get a little repetitive after a while, especially considering how easily you can become addicted to MMORPGs, this included, is really the only draw back.

Plot/Plot Development: 10.0: A complex plot that encompasses several different locales in a massive sandbox world will keep you engrossed as you attempt to find every secret, perk, and bonus mission as you try to save the world and become the ultimate hero.

Gameplay: 7.0: Simple gameplay that is easy to just pick up and play gives this a solid score. A good amount of lag on servers that aren’t being stressed by the true masses yet though knocks this score down considerably.

Replay Value: 10.0: The true value of an MMORPG is how much it offers you to keep coming back. The reason why I let a lot of my subscriptions run out on MMORPGs is because most of the time I get so addicted that my already abysmal social life is put even further on hold. This game does the same. My entire weekend flew by in the blink of eye as I devoted great portions of my Saturday and Sunday to the computer screen. Add-in an arena system that you gain access to at level 10 to battle other heroes and test your mettle and this game will easily occupy your time for a long while.

Overall (not an average): 8.5: This game is easily the most pure super hero fix you can find out there and will make you forget everything in the real world as you will get pulled in with believable characters, awesome powers, and an original, compelling storyline. If you are a fan of superheroes or MMORPGs, then this game is a must have on September 1st via ChampionsOnline.com.

Also, a very special thanks to my editor Joseph Layton for letting me use his gaming computer, otherwise this review would not be possible.

Review computer specs (incase you’re curious):
OS: Windows XP SP3
CPU: Intel Pentium D 3.2 Ghz
Memory: 2GB RAM
Graphics: NVidia GeForce 9800GT
Sound: Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Extreme

-Ray Carsillo

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