The Gamescom 2014 Closing Ceremony - Best Game of the Show, Surprise of the Show, Disappointment of the Show, And More!

Written By: Tyler

Gamescom is over for another year, and like any respectable gaming website (ha), I need to give out a few awards. Let's get right to it.



Game of the Show
Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor

I gave Evolve the award at E3 this year because it does look like a special game, and I don't know if it's just because I'm starting to get burnt out on it or what, but I'm not giving it to Evolve this time around.

I think I have to give it to Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor because while I am well aware of the game and what it is promising, getting to see it in action more just left me more excited. I don't feel like I'm getting burnt out on it. Both Middle-earth and Evolve are revolutionary to some extent, but I dig Mordor more.



Surprise of the Show
Silent Hills/PT

It's really hard to beat a new Silent Hill announcement, especially when it's done suddenly and in the form of a seemingly unrelated teaser trailer.

Aside from that, I was really intrigued by Wild and I'm curious by what it's going to offer.



Press Conference of the Show
Sony

Even though the Microsoft press conference felt bigger with the emphasis on bigger titles, Sony had two of the biggest surprises of the show for me -- as mentioned above -- and it was just a solid collection of lesser-known games. There is a time for AAA titles and a time for indies, so I'm not really putting more importance on either, so it is literally just Wild and the announcement of the Silent Hills teaser that put it over the edge for me.



Disappointment of the Show
Dead Island 2 Has No Story, Assassin's Creed Unity Has Microtransactions


I was wondering why we had Dying Light and Dead Island 2 coming out fairly close to one another, but Gamescom has shown that they are a lot different. Though they have some similar elements, Dying Light has more parkour and more story, so it'll be more like the first Dead Island but better.

Dead Island 2, on the other hand, seems to be endless with no real narrative to drive it forward. Even though the first Dead Island, and Riptide, didn't have amazing stories it was still something. So unless I'm completely misunderstanding, I think Dead Island 2 will get boring because doing missions is not what it's all about. Give us something else.

I'm also disappointed with Ubisoft because there is no fucking reason for a AAA title to have Microtransactions. I always thought Ubisoft was a company we could love, but they seem to be going down an EA route in some ways. They aren't nearly as bad, but Ubi... don't mess this up. There is no justification for this, even if they claim it won't affect gameplay and you can acquire all the stuff without spending money. How do we trust that progression hasn't been tweaked to accommodate the cash grab?


Unrealistic Desire For Gamescom
An Announcement of a New Perfect Dark

Before Gamescom, there was talk of a new Rare game that wasn't focused on Kinect. I'm all for that. While other people said a new Conkers (which would be awesome, don't get me wrong), Banzo-Kazooie or even a Diddy Kong Racing, I wanted a new Perfect Dark because I loved the first one and Perfect Dark Zero, even if Zero was a bit of a step down. Alas, no such luck. I knew this though, because PD doesn't seem to be the series that people want to see Rare revive. I don't get it though, because Rare became truly legendary with Goldeneye for the N64 and Perfect Dark is actually a better game.


The Trend of Gamescom
4 vs 1 Multiplayer, Player Invasion In Single-Player

There is no doubt that this year, the trend of Gamescom was a focus on 4 vs 1 multiplayer. When Evolve was first shown, everyone thought it was really cool. It still is, but games like Shadow Realms, Dying Light and I think a couple others are now jumping on the bandwagon. I'm not criticizing it, I'm just simply saying that it seems to be the newest trend in gaming.

There is also a focus on having multiplayer that blends seemlessly into the single-player experience. We've seen a few games in Gamescom like this, such as the new Metal Gear, Dying Light, etc. I'm iffy on this because when I'm playing a single-player game I want to enjoy the single-player without fearing that I'm going to miss out on stuff in my campaign because I'm not playing multiplayer. It's still a very cool idea, however.

Gamescom 2014, Day 4: Project Cars Bought IGN! Mario Maker Is Mario, Super Smash Bros Looks Awesome And This Just In: Evolve Still Looks Awesome. Plus More Stuff!

Written By: Tyler

Hello peoples, and welcome to another day of Gamescom 2014 and my coverage... which consists of me watching IGN streams. I'm truly a hero.

This post consists entirely on my impressions of the streams I watched for various games, and it seemed to be pretty Nintendo focused today. Unfortunately, Gamescom is coming to an end, but never fear because tomorrow I will be putting up my Gamescom Awards post where I give meaningless -- in the grand scheme of things but dammit they're important to me -- awards to developers and games that will probably never see it anyway. Let's get into this.




Project Cars -- Project Cars is a sandbox motorsports racing game coming this fall.

The demo showcased the driving, obviously, and it looked pretty. Unless I played it I couldn't really comment on how it feels, and that's pretty important in something like racing. I'm probably one of the worst people to cover racing games though because unless it's Kart racing or something like Blur that has Kart elements, I probably won't play it.

The IGN stream restarted so I didn't get to see a lot of it. Then I watched the beginning of it a second time and it restarted... again. And again. And once more for good measure. Oh wait we aren't done yet, let's repeat again. What just happened? That's right, another repeat. Oh hai Project Cars... another repeat. I'm just going to stop writing something every time it repeats because this is ridiculous. I feel like I'm in Groundhog Day. Way to go IGN.

The worst part is, Daemon Hatfield has to keep reliving his screw-up on pronouncing Germany at the beginning, over and over again, so nobody will ever forget.


Then after they finally realized that we were onto them, they took down the stream and this was the last thing we ever saw:

IGN: Brought to you by Project Cars.

IGN decided to finally show the stream, so while it wasn't live anymore, I could still watch the games in action.



Evolve -- A lot has already been said about Evolve. It's got incredible looking and exciting multiplayer, and I think it's a game that will do very well for itself. The 4 vs 1, hunter vs hunted, multiplayer where the environment is also dangerous, will be a lot of fun.

I just wonder how much replay value it will actually have. I thought that the game was going to have a single-player campaign to beef it up, but it turns out that you can do the same thing offline but with AI. I don't see myself playing this mode over and over again for hours upon hours, so unless I'm missing something I think it'll be a lot of fun for a short period of time.



Ori And The Blind Forest -- In the demo for Ori, they showed off one of the abilities: bash. Basically it allows you to slingshot yourself in any direction you want and it seems to be an important mechanic in the game. Because the person playing helped design the game, he's really good at it so it's interesting to see what a pro can do once they've mastered bash.

And my Lord, Ori is a beautiful game. The environments are detailed and colourful, though the level in this particular demo has a darker atmosphere. However, that doesn't stop it from having purples, greens and blues in certain areas to lighten it up. I love the visual style in this.

It also has light RPG elements in the sense that it has a skill tree. You are able to get all the abilities in the game in one playthrough if you explore and collect all the ability points.

The end of the demo is Ori escaping from the dungeon as water gushes up. This is something used a lot in games but it was pretty terrifying to watch.

Ori should be a special game.



Splatoon -- I pre-ordered this because I generally support Wii U exclusives, and I thought the multiplayer looked interesting. My fear going in is the same as Evolve, where I don't know if there will be a lot of replay value... because if you're just playing the same one or two modes over and over it'll get boring. Apparently there will be some sort of single-player mode but they didn't really talk about it.

If you are unaware, it's a third-person multiplayer game where you have to spray the ground with your ink. It sounds silly but looks prett fun and original.

The game uses the Gamepad as a map and a way to "super jump" to your team mates. You can tap on their image and you will instantly go to them.


I really like the concept so I hope it grows into something great that offers hours of value, because as far as I know it is a full-priced game.



Bayonetta -- Next we got to see Bayonetta. No, not the second one... the version of the first that ships with Bayonetta 2.

It has Nintendo elements to it, such as a hand cannon and the Master Sword. This demo has her dressed up like Samus, Link and Peach for a while.

I dig Bayonetta and I have since it originally came out. I love its brand of third-person, insane action.  Bayonetta 2 is a no-brainer purchase for me, especially since you got two games for the price of one.



Mario Maker -- Here is a game that I'm really excited for, and I'm sure a lot of other people are too. The idea of being able to create a Mario level is an awesome one that should have been done before.

The creation tool is very inspired by Mario Paint, which just adds to it because Mario Paint was the shit. It makes me wonder why we haven't gotten a new Mario Paint, since the last one was on SNES.

In the demo we got to see some of the ways that the interface works, and it's very easy to do stuff so you won't get bogged down in useless crap. It's as easy as simply selecting things with the stylus and placing them, or shaking it to make Mario become Super Mario. Thelook of the game can change. The demo has two graphic styles; the classic style and the New Super Mario Bros. style. That's a nice touch I reckon.

My main concern is level sharing and it infuriates me that they still refuse to comment on it. This is an extremely important aspect of the game and it should be announced. It will literally be the difference between cancelling my pre-order (though now they aren't sure if its retail or digital only) or keeping it, because if you can't share it online with people and download the levels made by strangers across the world then it's not worth buying. And yes, I go on record saying that, because it doesn't matter how great the creation tool is, if you can only play it yourself or with your friends then it defeats the purpose.



Kirby And The Rainbow Curse -- Geez, more Nintendo, not that I'm complaining. Here we have a new Kirby for Wii U.

You use a temporary rainbow line to traverse the levels while collecting the stars. What this means is that you will spend a lot of time using the gamepad and drawing lines, which is great in a way because it's going to give the gamepad more of a purpose... but I don't think I'm terribly interested in a game build almost entirely around doing that.



Mario Party 10 -- I haven't played a Mario Party in years. I can't even remember the last one I played, so it's interesting for me to see where it's at now.

The demo started with a battle with Bowser, and the player was controlling Bowser and shooting fireballs at the other players. Then it showed a mini-game where the player controlling Bowser had to tilt the gamepad to move the world and hit the other players with the rows of fireballs. We got to see a bunch of mini-games where one person controlled Bowser. It's an interesting mechanic, and it plays into the recent trend of new games in development that do this "4 vs 1" multiplayer.



Super Smash Bros Wii U -- When you play a Smash Bros you basically know what you're going to get. They can tweak and change things, but the core gameplay is fundamentally the same. That's fine because they don't milk the series at all.

I actually don't bother watching Smash Bros videos most of the time because I know what I'm going to get, so outside of learning what characters are in it... it doesn't really matter. They got my money and I know I'm going to love the game.

They talked a little bit about Mega Man, showed off a new stage that's more open than other ones, and showcased the insanity that is Smash Bros.

You can also unlock different sets of special attacks in a variety of different ways.

Gamescom 2014, Day 3 -- Hellraid, Dead Island 2 Has No Story, Shadow Realms Is Less Nerdy Than D&D And Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel Has A Badass Claptrap

Written By: Tyler

Hello again people, and I hope you're enjoying Gamescom. I was occupied with a bunch of stuff today so I didn't get to stream every demo shown on IGN like I did yesterday, but I have a little bit before bed so I wanted to take a moment to give my impressions on a few of the demos shown today. I only picked the ones I was interested in, or games I never heard of. Tomorrow I will have a more complete article.



Hellraid -- Hellraid is a first-person hack n' slash game. First-person melee combat has a habit of not being that fluid, so I hope Hellraid can get it right. It'll have light RPG elements and is "somewhere in between RPG and action." It was described as Dead Island meets Elder Scrolls and I think that seems like a decent comparison.

It has three gameplay modes; mission mode, story mode and arena. Story mode is obvious, and with mission mode you basically just do missions and get points. Arena mode is just basically survival. You can play all three modes in single-player or co-op.

I don't really think Hellraid will be much, but it'll probably be okay. Since there apparently isn't a lot of RPG in this and exploration is there but not on the scale of an Elder Scrolls game, it's pretty dependent on the combat and I don't think, from this demo (and yes I know it's early), that Hellraid will deliver an exciting experience.



Dead Island 2 -- Dead Island 2 takes place in California and promises 8 player co-op gameplay. I'm going to be honest: as long as it gives me a similar experience to the first Dead Island, minus the bugs and glitches, I'm in. I am all for playing an open-world zombie game with someone.

It doesn't appear to change the formula much, but it is evolving it a little bit. Now you can do things like light the grass on fire, Far Cry style, or dual wield weapons.

Oh wait, supposedly you can't really beat the game, because it keeps going and you keep getting missions. So... there isn't a story? I don't know about this. Even though Dead Island had a stupid story, it was still something driving the game forward and this worries me. I think Dying Light will shit all over this.



Shadow Realms -- I was a little confused about this RPG. It's a more modern Fantasy Bioware game but they seem to be doing something a little different this time around.

The core gameplay is 4 vs 1 where the other players where one player is basically a Dungeon Master (Shadowlord in this game) and can take control of everything while you and your friends team-up and try to beat the missions.

It has elements of Bioware with the conversations and whatnot, but they're putting a spin on their own formula. It could be good but I don't know. I have faith in Bioware, but I'll have to wait and see when it comes to this game.



Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel -- In this demo we got to see Claptrap. I love that little bastard, so I'm down.

It starts with them putting points into his skill tree. I enjoy that he has a highfive skill where if you return it  you'll get buffs but if you don't only he does.

Aside from that, this is Borderlands and I'm okay with that. I would have preferred Borderlands 3 on more powerful hardware rather than this spin-off on last-gen (and PC), but they are doing a few new things with it so I'm up for another Borderlands adventure. They're fun with a friend.

Gamescom 2014, Day 2, Part 1: Far Cry 4, Dying Light Encourages Competition, Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare Is Call of Duty With SCIENCE, Two Assassin's Creeds, Alien: Isolation Scare Your Pants Off, Shadow of Mordor Is Awesome And More!

Written By: Tyler

I'm back for another day of Gamescom, and this one will have more gameplay impressions since IGN will now have a livestream for games. Since I have the day off I will be doing two parts, with the first part being more focused on gameplay impressions of the demos I watch, and the second part will be later today and will focus more on the news of the day. Let's start off with some news, and the opinions on the games will come right after.



News 

Sony Is Going To Announce New PS4 Games At TGS 2014
http://ca.ign.com/articles/2014/08/14/sony-to-unveil-new-ps4-games-at-tgs-2014-says-boss

Sony didn't have enough time during their Gamescom press conference to unveil all the games that they wanted, so they teased more games for the Tokyo Game Show that takes place in September.

The highlight of the article for me was actually in the comments, where one guy posted a gif of The Last Guardian and another said, "Stop. Its like watching a funeral." Well played ConsoleHighElf, well played.


The Last Guardian Isn't Cancelled
http://www.gamespot.com/articles/the-last-guardian-making-great-progress-but-we-pro/1100-6421717/



 Sony once again told us that The Last Guardian isn't cancelled, but we won't be seeing it at TGS. This is hardly news at this point, but I guess it helps ease the fears of fans who think that the game may not be in development anymore.


Really, Ubisoft? Microtransactions In A Full-Priced, AAA Title? Assassin's Creed Unity Has 'Em
http://www.gamespot.com/articles/assassins-creed-unity-has-microtransactions-but-ub/1100-6421724/

In frustrating news that secretly makes a person want to rage quit games, Ubisoft announced that there are microtransactions in Assassin's Creed Unity, though they stress that you can unlock everything in-game. It's still ridiculously stupid to have this kind of thing in a game that is going to retail at full-price. This is okay in a free-to-play, but this is terrible. 



Video Game Impressions

The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt -- I have never played a Witcher game but I'm still really excited to get into the series with this one. Months ago I said on a Podcast that a great RPG is more exciting and better than any genre. You can throw your best shooters, platformers, etc at me and the best RPGs will almost always win... unless you're Metal Gear. Metal Gear always wins. Anyway, because The Witcher 3 is a huge RPG, I'm genuinely excited to get lost in the world. I've only heard great things.

This demo mostly shows the main character walking through the woods, but you can already tell the care that was put into crafting this Fantasy world. It looks wonderfully realized. The combat looks fluid and exciting even though we didn't see a whole lot of it.

There's a feature called The Witcher Sense and it will allow you to track enemies and it "opens up a new layer to explore the open-world." It's important with quests and monster hunting. You will be able to ask around the cities for information on it, such as asking if there has been any weird disappearances lately. There's also a day-and-night cycle which basically amounts to day = easier and bad = holy crap the monsters are tougher! You can also fast-forward through the days or nights.

There is also sea combat, but they couldn't talk about it now.


Assassin's Creed Rogue -- I don't care about Assassin's Creed. I only care about Unity because of the co-op mechanics. I don't know why I've never been able to get into the series because there are things about it that I dig.

In this demo we get naval gameplay. Not to be confused with natal. Okay, that was cheesy. Wait, come back!

We got to see combat on the sea, which included ramming other ships, shooting cannon balls and then inevitably boarding a rival ship. After you conquer the ship you can use it for a few different things, such as adding it to your fleet or using it to repair your ship.

More importantly, we saw a polar bear as our character was traversing the landscape after he left his ship.

Then we saw him walking around a village in a second demo, and the gameplay here should be familiar to any fan of the series. Jumping around, platforming like a boss, taking people out with a combination of stealth and melee combat using all your little gadgets. Nothing out of the ordinary as far as I can tell, but again, I'm not an expert when it comes to this series.

I mean, the game looks alright. Hell, it looks good, but I don't really have any desire to play it.



Assassin's Creed Unity -- We get to see the first assassination mission. Paris as a 1:1 scale and you can go in one building for every four. Climbing has been improved and it's quicker to get down to ground level.

In this demo they are focusing on stealth, and we see him killing people and walking off. Why not just leave a dead body laying there after you've slit his throat? Good work assassin!

You can do murder mystery jobs. You investigate, find clues, follow characters, interrogate said characters, and once you have suspects you can accuse people. Whoever you accuse gets put in jail which is very democratic.

The gameplay looks very Assassin's Creed, and that won't be a bad things for the fan. Seeing it jump to the current-gen will allow them to do much more, such as co-op. I wanted to see a co-op demo, and while they discussed it a little, they didn't show it.

Basically it's about character progression. You get skill points and whatnot to advance your character while you're playing with your friends. I really hope the co-op is killer because I admittedly got pretty excited when I first saw it.



Alien: Isolation -- You can take my gamer card away but until today I hadn't actually ever seen footage of the game. It sounded really cool, but I never watched anything.

We got to see Ridley's daughter walk through the dark on a ship while avoiding Alien. The gameplay doesn't appear complex, as it's mostly a cat-and-mouse type of experience but that's what the first movie basically was, and that's why this game should be great. We've seen a bunch of horror games like this in the last few years. In the demo we got to see a few different ways to get away from Alien.

We also saw human enemies, and in the demo they used Alien as a way to get rid of them. It was actually really cool. The player used something to bring Alien into the room and Alien then dismantled some of the humans... but in this game something like that is risky because now Alien is in the room.

The idea of blurring the rest of the screen when you're using the motion sensor is such a simple but effective one. You also can't use the same strategies over and over in order to survive because Alien will learn and adapt to that.

Use your senses and the limited technology that you have to survive when Alien: Isolation drops in the coming months.



Far Cry 4 -- In this demo we're in the Himalayas, watching the main character kill people with knives, crossbows, shotguns, etc. We also saw him shoot at some animals and use a wind suit and fly through the air. It is a gorgeous game.

After the short Himalays demo, we get to see their interpretation of Shangri-La. We got to see a lot of the area and a little bit of gameplay as it's explained that Shangri-La is more linear than the rest of the game. As to be expected, it is also beautiful. They mentioned how the environment is the main character when you really get down to it, and I think it's very true. I also think it'll be fun to have this different feel to the game, even if it only lasts a little while.

They mentioned Hexen briefly, and why not have a new Hexen? I'd buy a new Hexen. Hexen Hexen  Hexen.

Far Cry 4 looks like it's going to be a few interesting things narratively that the third did not, but from what I've seen it doesn't really redefine the experience. On the same note, does it have to? People like Far Cry for what it is (myself included).



Super Time Force Ultra -- And now time for a true AAA experience; Super Time Force Ultra. Super Time Force was a game I didn't have the option of playing until recently and I have yet to pick it up. This version (STFU) is coming to PC so I may as well just wait and get it on there.

They added fifty new levels called the Hellideck (I think that's the spelling) that is basically a set of challenges that you have to use your abilities to manipulate time to solve.

I still want to play this. Pick Ultra up on PC on August 25th.


Somehow I'm still not sick of the Dead Island 2 commercial even though it plays before every demo. I think that's a testament to how good the song -- The Bomb by Pigeon John -- is.




Below -- The demo is the beginning of the game. You sail up to an island and you instantly feel very, very tiny. The world is a massive, scary place, and you are only a miniscule fraction of it.

Since it's a Roguelike, death is permanent, but you can loot your own body and get stuff back. You will die, of course, and in death you are expected to learn what everything is, such as traps and whatnot.

I missed a bunch of the rest of the demo, unfortunately so that's all I got.



Toy Soldiers -- This is the first new game I've seen today, but I've never invested any time in the first two Toy Soldiers games. The demo starts with a guy on a turret laying waste to hordes of enemies in a mixture of Tower Defense and action, where you can take control of any part of the battlefield.

It also has destructible environments so you can change the path of the enemies.We saw that in action when the player shot a bridge and it collapsed, forcing the enemies to go a different route.

For some lighthearted, action packed Tower Defense, make sure to check out Toy Soldier when it launches in 2015 on multiple platforms.



Steamworld Digg Wii U -- The acclaimed "platform mining adventure" is coming to Wii U, and I ignored it when it came out for 3DS.

You dig for minerals, upgrade your equipment by talking to people on the surface. Eventually, in this randomly generated world, you will find upgrades underground, such as speed boost or "really funky" upgrades. Of course, there are enemies underground as well. The game has elements of Metroidvanias.

In the Wii U version we will have better graphics, new animations, an expanded soundtrack and secret areas that are going to remain a secret for now... but they're apparently a tribute to Nintendo. My whole existence is a tribute to Nintendo so I'm okay with that.



Dying Light -- We get to see co-op and PvP for the first time in this zombie game that I'm really excited for. The demo starts with a couple people smashing zombies and then going down an elevator.

There appear to be challenges that pop on the screen that make you abandon your teamwork briefly, such as being the first person to escape a place or putting a bounty on a zombie head. The challenges hare split into different branches like strength and agility so if you win the agility challenge then you will get bonsues in agility.

Then we see, for the first time, a player comes into the game as a zombie. Whenever night time comes, it's possible for a player to invade your game. In the demo the player played as a night time zombie and he was sensitive to light. You have to destroy hives in combat, and if you do that, you win the match. When you win, you get extra experience and access to different crafting materials. The zombie player has his or her own skill tree for unlocking stuff.

I think that the PvP is interesting but I'm not sure if this is the type of game that I want people invading. And I don't like not being able to create certain things if I don't get involved in it. Regardless, I'm still excited for Dying Light because I'm a fan of the Dead Island games -- despite the flaws -- and love just playing co-op in a big zombie open-world.



Star Wars: The Old Republic -- This demo is about the new expansion that is coming next Tuesday where players can have individual strongholds and conquer the galaxy in their flagships. You can conquer a planet and own it for a while, getting bonuses while you rule with an iron fist. Or nicely, I don't know what kind of person you are.

I like the idea of adding houses and galactic combat to the MMO. Players can spend hours Simsing their Star Wars game. I mean, I don't play it so I don't know what it looks like these days but I did play it a little bit back when it first went free-to-play and I don't think I gave it a fair shake. 



Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare -- They showed off some Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare multiplayer. It was one match and was meant to showcase the most important part of the CoD experience.

I like that they're trying something a little new with the series. It still looks and feels the same (from what I gather, though ultimately I won't know until I get my hands on it), but has more emphasis on verticality. There are dynamic events that happen in matches, such as a whole new room being dropped in, as we saw in the demo.

They seemed to make a lot of the CoD experience bigger, with more customization, and tweaking perks and other existing features, but I'm still only mildly excited for this. When the game was first revealed I was pretty pumped because it seemed fresh and new, but now I think about it and I don't know if I need it. Titanfall is different, and has giant mechs, but the game handles the same as CoD and though Titanfall has fewer features, they're similar enough that I've lost a little bit of interest in Advanced Warfare.



Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor -- The final demo on IGN for today is a game I'm ridiculously excited for despite not being a Tolkien fan at all.

After watching the demo: wow. The game just keeps getting better and better. The demo basically showcased how character and enemy progression happens, and how your relationships with the enemies and the world evolve. Any enemy can gain experience and they will remember you. Everything is connected, and there are a bunch of options on how to complete your goals. For example, you could take over a War Chief bodyguard and have him betray his master. Not only that, but after he betrays the War Chief and kills him, he will become a War Chief. It's an incredibly fascinating dynamic.

Not only that, but when you die, the world continues and relationships change while you're reviving. So you could die and a bunch of things would change, thus changing your own tactics.

The combat looks fluid and exciting, and it seems to have some depth and a bunch of different possibilities.

The demo was really awesome. If this isn't one of the best games of the year it will be a tragedy.

Gamescom 2014, Day 1: News, Impressions And Other Junk

Written By: Tyler

During Gamescom I'm going to try to put up an article near the end of each day where I talk about some of the miscellaneous news that I read/watch or the video game demos that I watch. Tomorrow will have more of a focus on what I think of gameplay because IGN will start streaming and I'm going to try to watch what I can. Also, some of this news may have not actually been released at Gamescom, but it's still stuff of interest during the day.



Meta Knight Is In Smash Bros.
http://www.gamespot.com/articles/super-smash-bros-wii-u-3ds-meta-knight-confirmed-s/1100-6421699/

I liked Meta Knight in the last one so this is good news.



Rise of the Tomb Raider Is  Not Actually An Xbox Exclusive... Forever
http://www.gamespot.com/articles/microsoft-admits-xboxs-rise-of-the-tomb-raider-exc/1100-6421700/

Phil Spencer said, "Yes, the deal has a duration. I didn't buy it. I don't own the franchise." So there you have it, it's only a timed exclusive so everybody can stop being so pissed off.



The Crew Is Also Coming To Xbox 360
http://www.gamespot.com/articles/ambitious-racing-game-the-crew-announced-for-xbox-/1100-6421687/

The Crew is being ported to last-gen consoles while being on PC, PS4 and Xbox One. Well... not PS3. And it's still not showing up on Wii U because nothing does.



Overkill Is Making A Walking Dead Co-Op FPS
http://www.gamespot.com/articles/walking-dead-co-op-fps-from-payday-2-developer-ann/1100-6421706/

The makers of Payday 2, Overkill Software, are making a co-op shooter based on the hit TV show/comic series The Walking Dead. There are really no other details at this point.



Play The New Unreal Tournament In Early Alpha Stage Now
http://ca.ign.com/articles/2014/08/13/you-can-play-unreal-tournament-2014-right-now

That's right, you can now play the new Unreal Tournament in a really early version by downloading it from https://ut.rushbase.net/raxxy/Builds, assuming you can get into a server. I haven't tried it as of writing this but people are having problems connecting due to the sheer volume of gamers trying to get in. Because y'know, it's Unreal Tournament.



Metal Gear Solid 5: The Phantom Pain Is Coming To PC/Steam
http://www.gamespot.com/articles/metal-gear-solid-5-pc-versions-revealed-at-gamesco/1100-6421707/

Before I continue, I must say that I really really wanted to see the 60 minute preview of the game... but I was unable to watch it live and as of writing this I can't find a replay. So with that said; Metal Gear Solid 5: The Phantom Pain is coming to PC via Steam, so all you kids in the master race can pick it up.

Fun fact, instead of a replay going up here where it says the livestream was, I got to see some dudes playing Suikoden. Not quite what I wanted but Suikoden is the bomb.

Gamescom 2014, Day 1: The EA Press Conference -- Yo, That Sim Died RIGHT IN FRONT Of The Other Two And Nobody Did Anything!

Written By: Tyler

 Watch the EA Press Conference Here

Today is the first official day of Gamescom 2014. There were some press conferences and some news, but the doors officially opened today. So what better way to kick that off than the company that everyone on the internet loves? Yeah, I'm talking EA. Electronic Arts. Evil Assholes.

Let's get on with this press conference, and sorry for the delay but again, I was at work and didn't get to see it live.



We start off with Andrew Wilson talking, claiming to have changed things up this year so we could be put in the heart of the action. Then we get to Dragon Age: Inquisition. No one expects Dragon Age: Inquisition!

There are 9 characters to lead. Extensive character customization system. 9 class specializations, 21 different combat trees, over 200 spells and abilities. 200 weapon upgrades, 150 types of armor, 80 different materials, so there will be a lot of stuff you can customize basically. Plus you get to name your items you create. There's a million words of dialogue so it's basically an Ayn Rand novel.

You lead and form the Inquisition. You start in a fortress called Skyhold, where you can strengthen the Inquisition, choose where to explore and choose missions.

It looks like a great time. I love the depth of the level progression and whatnot, and the tactical camera is cool. The action looks fluid and looks like a good RPG to sink your teeth into. I've never actually played a Dragon Age and this looks like a good place to start. The game releases November 18 in North America.

Next is TITANFALL (if you don't get why I capitalized it then you must be new to the blog but it's a running gag here because of how intense the game was supposed to be). The revealed the third and final map pack: IMC Rising. This fall you will be able to get three new maps.

NHL '15 is up next. It's going to be a more realistic, authentic experience and they're promising more control over everything, more leagues, better graphics, etc. Bigger and better like every year is supposed to be. It releases September 9 in North America and I believe a couple days later in Europe.

Peter Moore hits the stage and says words I don't understand. Then when he starts talking English he's talking about NHL '15. Then he talks about experiencing things with friends, which is a foreign concept to me, then starts talking about Sims 4. We get a live demo.

With the new Gallery you can share things online with people.

We start with Create-A-Sim. There's a lot of attention to detail when creating what your Sim looks like. Next is the personality: You pick a bunch of different traits, and things like walking style.

There's a build mode where you can easily build your house. You can pick up the entire house and move it, and easily expand your walls.

Using the gallery you can just pick an entire house from what people have made and make it your own.

Then we see the game in action. At first there's a maze and everybody is hungry. One of the Sims dies, and the Grim Reaper shows up. It's a pretty funny segment. The entire showcase of Sims was pretty comical and lighthearted. I enjoyed it. I haven't even played a Sims since the first one but even before this I planned on getting this one and seeing where the series has evolved.

The Sims 4 Create-A-Sim demo is available now. and you can put your sim in the full game when it launches in three weeks.

Before the new year, FIFA World will have a new game engine, complete dribbling and smarter AI. You will be able to keep your items and whatnot when they implement the new engine. I didn't even know that this game existed, if I'm being honest.

FIFA '15 is shown next. It's going to be a more realistic, authentic experience and they're promising more control over everything, more leagues, better graphics, etc. Bigger and better like every year is supposed to be.

That may seem like I made an error and accidentally pasted what I said about NHL '15. But I assure you... it was... no accident.

In Star Wars: The Old Republic, players will be able to get a new expansion next week called Galactic Strongholds Digital Expansion. In it you can build a house or conquer planets across the galaxy with your guild flagships.

Then there's Dawngate. It's a new MOBA, built on a foundation of player choice. You can choose any map and any character in the matches. You can sign-up to the beta at dawngate.com

Then there's a new online action-RPG IP from Bioware called Shadow Realms. The video is just a bunch of people fighting demons in a city and that makes it hard to really know how it plays. We do know that it takes place in a modern Fantasy world, is inspired by old pen-and-paper RPGs, and will have dynamic co-operative 3 vs 1 gameplay. The one player will get to control the bad guy: the Shadowlord.

It will have a continuously updated story, an ever changing world, and an episodic story arc.

The game will come out late next year. You can sign up for the alpha at shadowrealms.com.

The single-player in Battlefield Hardline apparently won't be as linear. It's going to play like a TV show which means it will be episodic, tense and have cliffhangers. You play as a young detective who is going cross country to track down someone from his past. Ooooh I do that sometimes.

They debut a short video of the single-player and it looks fun, but it's not really the reason I go to Battlefield these days anyway. You can flash your badge and make people freeze so you can handcuff them, since you are a coppa after all, see. The video ends with a fire fight, then it all of a sudden becomes Battlefield with things exploding.

More importantly they revealed two new multiplayer modes: Hotwire and Rescue. Hotwire is a high-speed chase, so it's fast and we shoot things from cars as far as I can tell. Rescue is an eSports-focused mode, where hostages have been taken by a team of five criminals. So naturally, five cops have to save them. Be careful though because you only have one life per round.



With that, the EA Press Conference ended and it was actually pretty solid. Got a new IP, some gameplay footage of other things and not just trailers with no gameplay (that's such a pet peeve of mine). Shadow Realms sounds interesting and I can't wait for Hardline.

August 12, Gamescom 2014: The Microsoft Press Conference -- Apparently Microsoft Likes Halo, Plus We Get To See Quantum Break, A Bunch of Cool Indie Games And Evolve!

Written By: Tyler

I'm a little late to the party on this one because by the time the replay hit I had to watch Sony. Damn you work!

But finally I'm here to talk a little bit about the Microsoft Press Conference from Gamescom 2014. Did they succeed? Find out here.


We start with Ubisoft and their new Assassin's Creed game, Assassin's Creed Unity. After a slow build-up, we see our hero running and platforming around the city, while we get a pretty cool piano track. It is coming on the 28th of October.

I can't understand a word of what this guy is saying but there's scrolling text on the bottom of the screen instead of a translator, then we get Phil Spencer. Hey Phil.

After the normal corporate spiel about how Xbox and gaming is awesome, we are told that they are going to bring the Xbox to 29 new markets on September 2.

He mentions Grand Theft Auto 5, and you can carry your character over. He then mentions Destiny, FIFA 15, Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare, Sunset Overdrive, Forza Horizon 2, Ori And The Blind Forest and the Master Chief Collection.

Phil then announces that there are some new bundles coming.

We move onto FIFA 15, and it will have exclusive content for the Xbox. With the new EA Access, you can play it before anyone else on Xbox One. People in Europe will be able to get a FIFA 15 bundle.  They bring out a legend to create a FIFA Ultimate Team. I actually enjoy FIFA despite not loving soccer/football, and I guess why Microsoft chose to talk so much about this while they're in Germany but is this really the best way to basically start the press conference (I mean after the opening speech)? This is way too long and not very exciting. As a rule I don't think spending a lot of time on an annual sports title is a good idea. I mean, gamers know what to expect, and because of being bored it's giving me a lot of time to complain.

ah good, we're moving on.

Chris Charla struts onto the stage, and talks about how they have a lot of indie games in the works. Then we get a quick preview. Yay montages of games: Blues and Bullets, Cuphead, Dungeon of the Endless, Fruit Ninja Kinect 2, Funk of Titans, Ghost of a Tale, Goat Simulator, Gunscape, Massive Chalice, Inside, Knight Squad, Lovers in a Dangerous Spacetime, #IDARB, No Time to Explain, Plague Inc: Evolved, Rivals of Aether, Smite, SlashDash, Space Engineers, Spectra, Pneuma: Breath of Life, Threes!, The Escapists, Volgarr the Viking, SpeedRunners, Superhot.

I'm already really high on a lot of these, like #IDARB, and Goat Simulator is already awesome. I won't talk about all of these but the future is bright on the indie game side of Xbox.

He talks about Space Engineers a bit and we see a video. On console, it will arrive first on Xbox One. I saw it on Steam and it looked interesting there so good for Xbox One. I would call this a victory.

Then, first to console on Xbox One, we got Superhot. I've never actually seen it but time only moves when you do which is neat. The trailer is really annoying because it keeps repeating SUPER... HOT. I get it. Outside of that, I dig the style and idea of this. I wonder if it's super hot though?

Then we get a preview of The Escapists, and I got into this game when I did my feature of new games releasing that week. It's already in Alpha on PC, but it's also coming to Xbox first when it hits consoles. This is a game worth checking out for sure.

Then we get to see Smite, another first to console on Xbox One. It's a MOBA that apparently will be fun to play with a controller. You get to play as a God. I like playing as Gods. I am a God. On the Godly. Okay I'm done, I just don't have a lot to do while I watch this footage. In all seriousness this is shaping up to be a good MOBA.

Chris leaves the stage and we see more of Below. There's no way around it, and I've seen saying it since I saw it the first time (before we even knew much about it): this game is going to be awesome. This new footage adds a lot of intrigue to the whole thing, not that it didn't already have its mysteries.

Hey Phil is back! And he's talking about Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare! Sony focuses on Destiny and Microsoft focuses on CoD... I think Sony wins that. Maybe not financially, but artistically. Anyway, I hope the two co-founders of Sledgehammer Games don't just razz each other awkwardly like they did yesterday during the multiplayer reveal.At least they brought new footage, this time the single-player.

The new footage shows player actually driving a vehicle  and then once it crashes they proceed on foot. Looks like CoD, smells like CoD. There is an Advanced Warfare bundle that you can pre-order today. Of note; the add-on content is available first on Xbox One. Now, moving on.

Here we go... Evolve. We get to see a new map called The Distillery. Evolve is going to be a lot of fun and the idea of the 4 vs 1 multiplayer is awesome. I like it being described as "boss battles where a player controls the boss." I just don't know how much replay value it will have and that scares me a bit.

There is an open beta in January only on Xbox One. It will be out February 10, 2015.

Next we have Rise of the Tomb Raider and it is now an Xbox exclusive. It will be coming in "Holiday 2015." It's a new month that Microsoft is creating.

From now on, every game here is exclusive.

We get a world premiere demo of Quantum Break, and it looks cool. In the video we see the main character walk around a bit, but we get to see some of the time manipulation when he runs during a gunfight and they lose track of him. He can also freeze time or even catch bullets and throw them back at the enemies. I don't think this game is going to be completely mind-blowing, but I have faith in Remedy that they will give us a great game. Or at the very least solid. Quantum Break looks to be that right now.

Next on the agenda is Fable Legends. I'm still not sold on this. I like the co-op idea and being able to play as a villain but it didn't grab me at E3 and it isn't doing it now either.  Sign up for the beta October 16 if you are interested.

 Now whatcha gonna show me? It turns out that they partnered with Frontier and in Spring of next year we are going to have a new game where you make roller coasters, titled Screamride.

Next we have Forza 5. We get new cars... today! For free!

Forza Horizon 2 is up in our grill next. It has an open-world, lots of events and a shit-ton of cars. They're encouraging you to play with friends, and there are driveatars. You can join a car club and earn Forza Fuel and unlock stuff.

Ori and the Blind Forest is a pretty game. I enjoyed it at E3 and nothing has changed. It's a gorgeous platformer and the footage they showed (with the character being chased by water) was pretty intense, with some neat platforming mechanics. I imagine this will get a lot of praise when it drops because it looks to be critic bait: amazing visuals, fun jumping and a lot of intrigue. I'm not saying "critic bait" as an insult because I'm ridiculously excited to. Pick it up on Xbox One and PC this holiday season.

Ted Price, the President of Insomniac Games, rocks onto the stage knowing he's about to talk about something we're all already crazy for. I don't even need to know more about Sunset Overdrive to know I need it. And neither do you, but we get more info and footage anyway.

The big news is that there's a special edition Sunset Overdrive bundle. You can pre-order it today, and you get Day One weapons and stuff.

Hey, that attractive girl from 343 Industries is back. What's better than an attractive girl if you're a straight male or a gay girl? Or a bi? An attractive girl who wants to talk about Halo. On December 29th, there's a Halo 5 multiplayer beta. Along with the Master Chief collection, there will be a Halo channel. It's like the WWE Network but with Halo! Or not. But it does seem really cool. Immerse yourself in that shit because there seems to be a lot of content and different things to watch.

You can watch things like Halo: Nightfall, explore the universe or join friends across any game in the Halo universe. There's also Twitch integration.

I know it's been said before, but damn the Master Chief Collection has a lot of content. They showed off part of the campaign in Halo 2... first they start off in classic mode and then they switch to the updated graphics.

Next we get to hear about the ranking system. Fans were vocal about liking the ranking system in Halo 2 so the ranking system in this is identical to that. People there can play some of the game on the floor. I can't because I suck, but have fun if you're there!

Next we got Halo 5. The focus on the beta will be 4 vs 4 arena combat. They have seven maps, three modes, eleven weapons and some armor customization. They will have small maps and no different loadouts. It will be sixty frames per-second. You can unlock some things in the beta that will carry over to the full game.

You will be able to pre-order and pre-download games too.


Microsoft definitely had more of a focus on AAA titles than Sony, and they definitely have some really interesting indie games that are going to show up on their system. I don't know how many of those are exclusive, though, so it may not matter that much in terms of competition. However, the new Tomb Raider being an Xbone exclusive is definitely big news. So after a really slow start, they kicked it up and did a good job.

August 12, Gamescom 2014: The Sony Press Conference: There's A Game Called Destiny Coming, Plus Some Awesome Boxes From MGS5! Oh Yeah... Some Indie Games Too

Written By: Tyler

Even though the Microsoft Press Conference was earlier today, I was at work so I didn't get a chance to watch it. After I post this article I will do so and do an article for it, so don't think that I'm only picking and choosing. I am trying to give the most comprehensive coverage of Gamescom that one man can do from his bedroom.

Keep in mind that a lot of this article is just me taking the notes I made and cleaning them up a little bit. That's why you're not exactly getting Cormac McCarthy in any of these Gamescom articles, because I am just watching the videos, taking quick notes and then tidying them up before posting. That, and I don't have half the talent that Cormac does.

Let's get to this.



When the Sony press conference officially begins, after showing us some clips from games like Little Big Planet 3, The Order: 1886 and Bloodborne, we get some eerie music and some different colours flash up on the screen. This, of course, is simply to introduce Playstation by showing us the classic square, x, triangle and circle. After those pop up on the screen, "This is for the players" flashes and then we're off to the races. We are shown clips from various games, interspersed with images of players enjoying the games on top of the clips... which is beyond cheesy.

Jim Ryan rolls up on screen, saying that the PS4 sales have exceeded 10 million units globally. You're welcome, Sony.

Then it cuts to showing us games that are "just a little bit different."

Q-Games has a new game that isn't Pixel Junk, and it's called The Tomorrow Children. The video shows some people digging then a girl shooting some robot things, while some definite nationalist music plays. "We will be comrades" flashes on the screen. There appears to be a jetpack as well. The video ends with a creepy dude and looking at us.

Then a more realistic looking game, visually, joins the fight. It is called The Vanishing Of Ethan Carter and in a nutshell there's a dead guy in a tomb and it looks like his spirit leaves his body and we watch a bunch of ghosts do stuff.

When we come back, the guy who made Thomas Was Alone is on the stage. He talked about how Thomas Was Alone changed his life. He announced Volume, which is a stealth game based on creativity. It is coming to PS4 and Vita first next year. It starts with sad music and I'm already into it because I loved Thomas Was Alone... then there's a narrator. It has an interesting visual style and seems to be going for something a little different in the genre.

Next we have a game where you play as a mercenary, and it's up to 4 player co-op. Lots of bullets fly, and it's called Hollowpoint. It's probably pretty okay, and inoffensive. Nothing awe-inspiring. It will come first to Playstation.

Runemaster will be talked about in the future.

My internet messed up and when I came back I was being told that PS4 owners could get into DayZ. In my estimate it'll probably never get out of Alpha on PC anyway, so don't bother looking forward to this one PS4 owners.

Next I'm told that the abyss stares into me if I stare into it, and that creeps me out because it's too metaphorical for me. We see a girl kneeling down holding a sword and there's some really atmospheric music. From the makers of Enslaved, DMC and Heavenly Sword comes Hellblade. The trailer was entertaining and mysterious but since there's no gameplay, who really knows? These types of reveals do very little for me.

Next we see a guy sitting with his feet int he water, then he sets out on his quest. We see him running, jumping, climbing, and seemingly going through a lot. It looks like it's a pretty interesting world.  The game looks beautiful and is called Rime. Think along the lines of "Journey" in ways, and less cryptic, and you have an idea of what's going on. It will also be a Playstation exclusive. Go Playstation!

Then we get a monstage of a bunch of indie games that will be showing up on Playstation.

 It was only a matter of time before we got to Destiny and here it is...  in 4 weeks nobody will be doing anything else. The economy will collapse, and the terrorists will win, because Destiny will be released then. Thanks for the reminder! It's the most pre-ordered new IP in history.

We got more details on the multiplayer, and the world premiere of the multiplayer trailer. We saw the different modes, and I think I missed one of them, but we get Skirmish, Rumble, Salvage, Clash, Combined Arms, and Control. There are timed exclusive maps for Playstation owners, with two expansions coming. The first expansion, The Dark Below, will be in December. Nothing makes the internet happier than announcing content that you have to buy before the game is even out.

Far Cry 4 shows up next and it basically just shows off a variety of environments and they talk about how you can invite your friend to join you in the open-world. Exclusive to Playstation, you can send up to ten free trials and your friends (if you have ten... I don't) can play the game with you for two hours.

There's a Middle-Earth: Shadow of Mordor trailer but meh, whatever. I'm already sold and this didn't show any gameplay.

Hideo Kojima pimps onto the stage, and shows off the different functions of the classic box. You can stand up with the box on you and there will be a variety of pictures to distract enemies or fool them, such as a saluting soldier or a hot chick. You can get different pictures like a hot chick (of course) laying in some roses. Use these realistic tactics to escape enemies. It ended with Big Boss putting a PS4 box on his head, and I laughed.

Then we get the "worlds first interactive teaser" called P.T. It's a little eerie and shows actual reactions from players playing it. I don't know if I believe these things, but whatever. It's available now on Playstation so I may have to check it out.

Then we get into the more technical aspects like System Software 2.0. It will have a better friend finder, you can see recommendations of players, upload shared videos to Youtube. You can share play where any PS Plus member can invite any friend, anywhere, to play your games with you. Or you can invite another PS Plus member to play with you and your friend doesn't need to own or download the game. 

There is then brief conversation about a bunch of things like Project Morpheus but nothing comes from it. Same with Playstation Now except for the fact that it is coming to Europe in 2015. The Playstation TV can pair your PS4 with a second TV and will be released in PAL territory for 99 Euros, and you get three digital games.

Until Dawn is rebuilt and is no longer a PS3 game. It's now on PS4 and and it's "a horror game unlike any other."  It's eight friends trying to survive a night from hell. You're stranded on a mountain like most horror movies. You decide who will survive. I don't really know if this will be any good or not. It will be arriving next year.

Next we have Driveclub. You can collaborate with your club and get the benefits together. You can use an app to keep up to speed with your club. You can live stream with the app to watch your friends. You can do anything besides actually race on it and conquer the world. We got to see a new element which is dynamic weather.

Driveclub is seeing a release on October 8th of this year, until it gets delayed.

Tearaway is now Tearaway Unfolded... reworked for ps4. The light bar will shine into the world. The touch pad will allow you to push down onto the surface of the world and when you release it, it will bounce back up. Swiping the touch pad will cause wind. There's also something to do with using the directional pad and shaking the controller to put things into the world. This will also come out next year.

The makers of Dead Nation and Resogun have another shooter where you have to survive at all costs. It is called Alienation and while it doesn't seem to promise anything new, Dead Nation was good and Resogun was awesome so count me in. By the way, it is also exclusive.

Then we have another exclusive game: Wild. It has a unique weather system, and you can play as humans or any living creature in the game. It doesn't show much besides the various creatures running around and doing shit, but I actually kinda dug it and am curious to see where this goes.



That's it. I'm sure there are disappointed people because they didn't show a ton of AAA titles, but they did show a good selection of smaller games. If you don't look forward to any indie games at this point, you're missing out on a lot.

August 11, Gamescom 2014: Call of Duty Advanced Warfare Multiplayer Reveal... Details and Opinions

Written By: Tyler

Watch the video here, and this is where I took all the details from:
http://www.gamespot.com/articles/watch-the-call-of-duty-advanced-warfare-multiplaye/1100-6421631/

Abilities:

• "Boost jump" allows you jump much higher than in the past
• "Slam" is an air-to-ground melee attack
• "Boost dodge" -- dodge while on the ground
• "Boost dash" -- move quickly in a direction while in mid-air
• "Boost slide" -- slide while on the ground
• Exo abilities are selectable within Pick 13 (see below) and are usable for as long as battery power is available
• "Exo cloak" -- turn at least partially invisible
• "Exo shield"
• "Exo cover"
• "Exo launcher"
• Super punch -- rather than a knife, you can punch an enemy player to death

Player Customization:

• XP still exists and is the "backbone" of the ranking system
• Create-an-Operator lets you customize the look of your character, including your head, helmet, exoskeleton, gloves, and boots
• Pick 13 system replaces Pick 10
  • You can select up to four score streaks or none at all, giving you more room to select Exo suit abilities or other items
  • Scorestreaks can be customized to make them more powerful; doing so doesn't cost Pick 13 points
  • Co-op scorestreaks let players work together, like allowing two players to make use of a flying vehicle
• Virtual firing range allows you to try out your custom loadout without having to go into a multiplayer match
• Virtual Lobby -- show off your character in the lobby, allowing you to view other players' look and loadout
• Supply drops -- rewarded through things like in-game challenges and time played; rewards you with weapons, special care packages
  • Three rarity levels: Enlisted, Professional, and Elite
  • Weapon loot -- custom weapons that modify weapons' base stats
  • Character gear will also be available, allowing you to customize your look as part of the Create-an-Operator feature
  • Thousands of rewards available and billions of possible combinations

Modes:

• 12 multiplayer modes on day one
• CTF, Search & Destroy, Hardpoint all returning
• Round-based Domination
• Uplink -- new mode where two teams fight for control of a drone that can be passed between players

Maps:

• Maps have dynamic elements, such as water from the ocean flooding a level when a tsunami rolls in
• Four maps announced today:
  • Biolab -- set in a bioengineering laboratory
  • Riot -- set in a prison in Baghdad
  • Ascend -- set in a space elevator terminal
  • Defender -- set in San Francisco next to the Golden Gate Bridge, features the aforementioned tsunami

I'm not a Call of Duty fan. I was, but then I got bored of it. It was never my shooter of choice but I did put some hours into the Modern Warfares. I don't overly enjoy the look and feel of it anymore, but I won't deny there was a time that I did. However, when I first heard of Advanced Warfare, I must admit that I said to myself, "This could be interesting." My favourite shooter series is Killzone so I enjoy Sci-Fi elements and it is interesting to see Call of Duty go in that direction.

The biggest element of the game this time around is the Exo, but we all figured that that would be the case. Because of these, you are able to boost jump, dodge, dash and slam. Now you can jump really high, or dash in a different direction while mid-air. This will no doubt add a different layer to the multiplayer because anytime you add a more vertical aspect then it'll drastically change things. It does look like Titanfall without the wall-running, but this was apparently conceived and implemented three years ago when they started development.

They talked a lot about the customization, and I'll do a quick rundown. There are a variety of choices for cosmetically altering your character, and they took "Pick 10" from Black Ops but made it "Pick 13." This basically means that there are a variety of ways to change your class to fit your needs. You can have up to four score streaks or zero (so you can focus on other things), so I give props to the amount of customization Sledgehammer Games is offering if this is your thing. I still prefer the Killzone way of set character classes, but being able to do more with your character is never bad.

You can also have a cloak, a hover or a shield, but it takes power from your Exo that doesn't recharge. You can use perks in order to add to your battery. Of course, since it's Call of Duty, there are a bunch of different perks.

XP and ranks still exist, but you can also gain stuff by supply drops that are based on time played and in-game challenges. These come in three different rarity levels and can include customized guns along with character gear. There are also rare one-time use items like perks and score streaks.

Outside of the actual combat, the virtual lobby now allows you to see more details of the people you're playing against instead of just name, rank and whatnot. There is also a virtual shooting range that allows you to test your guns.

One point of interest to me is the idea of co-op score streaks where you can now get involved in your teams score streaks to help them out. It's not mind-blowing, but it's still a neat little feature.

They showed off four maps, all with their different characteristics (obviously). The most interesting one is Defender because a Tsunami hits the map at some point during the match. There is Biolab, which has narrow hallways, Riot which has a security system that you can use to mark players, and lastly there's Ascend which really stresses the vertical nature of Advanced Warfare.

There are going to be twelve modes on day one, with a bunch of returning ones like Team Deathmatch, Hardpoint, Search and Destroy, Capture the Flag, etc. There is an update on War called Momentum and a new mode called Uplink which is basically you getting the satellite uplink and throwing it through a goal. If you jump through yourself, with the uplink, your team gets two points. We've seen things like this before, but it's still a fun mode to include. I actually have always praised Call of Duty for having a bunch of different modes... something that even Killzone doesn't seem to get right (though I love the modes they have).

If you pre-order the game, you can play the game 24 hours before the official launch. It is called The Day 0 Edition, and there will be double XP along with two bonus custom weapons and all the other bonuses. So now, if you're more casual or hate pre-ordering, you can be at a disadvantage on day one. Huzzah.



So what did I think though? I think it could be the best Call of Duty in a long time. I only believe this because I am so bored of how they did things that just being able to Titanfall my way around is a plus. I'd rather Titanfall just get more modes though because I'd rather keep playing that and it's light on content.

But I don't think it's going to be amazing. I think I'm too far gone at this point to truly love another Call of Duty. At first I got excited, when the presentation first started, but then as it went on I realized that outside of certain aspects, like the Exo, it's still just business as usual. The features that they were revealing to us are fine and dandy, but aren't a lot of them just minor improvements on a tried, tested and true formula? I didn't see anything that wowed me in any meaningful way. The Exo may have done so had Titanfall not just come out.

That's fine because people go to Call of Duty for Call of Duty, but since I no longer like the feel of a CoD, this may not appeal to me as much as it should. It's not for me, it's for the fans, but to their credit I am considering picking it up.