What I Like This Week: Bricks of War

This week's find comes from an outfit named Kooberz Studios. It's an awesome animation entitled "Bricks of War" in which Gears of War 3 is represented in LEGO form. Yeah. Freakin' awesome.



Of course, my favourite part is where Marcus chainsaws some hapless locust, cos, well, I bloody love chainsawing things. Anything. Anyway, this is an extremely well-made production including a Corpser, the Hammer of Dawn, grenades, and great sound effects from the game. I love it, and we here at the O&E commend Kooberz Studios for their work. We hope to see more from them, maybe a LEGO Skyrim or something along those lines. We can only hope.

Read more »

Back from the Dead, it's El Jefe

Hello and good day to you, dearest reader of the greatest blog in the galaxy! I know it's been quite some time since I've had any contact with you, and for that, I apologise. Things have been rough lately on nearly all fronts (luckily the Eastern Front seems to be holding, though I fear a Cossack breakthrough at any moment), and I've been remiss in being able to sit in front of a computer and coherently do anything besides churn out history papers. It's a curse.

I'm serious. If you are an exorcist or some sort of person with any experience in the occult, I'd really like your help with this.

Anyway, a lot has happened since I disappeared completely from all perceivable planes of existence. One is by far most important and exciting: Skyrim stuff! As you may well know, Skyrim's map was leaked earlier today by some loony Russians, likely after a long night of swilling vodka and... well...swilling more vodka. Rampant speculation, yes, but one man's slightly offensive stereotypes are another man's attempt at humour. Or so the saying goes. What's important is that the map is now on the internet in full size and is, according to one of our most seasoned analysts, "freakin' huge."* The game manual for the Xbox 360 version was also leaked, the photos of which are available on imgur.

#drool

What does this mean? Well, to quote our illustrious Vice President Joe Biden, "This is a big fucking deal." Why? Cos we here at the O&E (especially myself) are bloody excited about this game. 10 November will likely be the last time I see the light of day, and it can't be over soon enough so that 11 November can be here and I can play Skyrim until dead. Death by Skyrim. A noble end.

Other things have happened (Forza 4, Dead Rising 2: Off the Record, and Sesame Street), but in my opinion these don't touch Skyrim news. Also I haven't played any of these games, so it'd be irresponsible of me to offer my thoughts on them. Go play them, I guess? If you want.

One last thing: I'm starting a weekly segment (if one can really call it that) called "What I Like This Week" which is just some gaming article or another from the week that I particularly enjoyed (whether funny, awesome, or simply THE BEST). Hopefully, you'll enjoy it, too.

This week's article comes from the good people at Game Informer, and suggests that Republican presidential candidate Herman Cain may have been inspired by the default settings of SimCity 4 in developing his 999 tax plan (i.e. his plan to get your vote and give you a job, for the politically disinclined). I, for one, hope this is true, as it gives us the potential for hilarious reelection ads, should Mr. Cain be successful.

He's ready for the gotcha questions...

It's good to be back. Cheers.



*The analyst in question, is, in fact, myself.

Read more »

Here is a picture for for you.

Whilst practicing drawing expressions with my new nib for my tablet, I happened to draw that dashing dwarven rogue, Varric Tethras. And then I spent two hours on it. Oops. Well at least I have something to post here now (for once)! Enjoy and whatnot.

Creepy Varric is creepy.

Read more »

Is the Jak and Daxter Series Getting an HD Release?

I, for one, certainly hope this rumor is true. It is very rare that a series can go through a semi gritty reboot and still turn out fun as hell. Sure, I'm still a little freaked out by the fact that Jak's first words in the series, after a colorful and playful romp in Jak and Daxter, were "I'm gunna kill Praxis." But Jak II and III were just so... fun! The guns, the alternate forms; it made the transition worth it. I'm looking at you Prince of Persia: Warrior Within.

At present time this is just a rumor, albeit a promising one. In addition to the fact that we've seen several of these re-releases, South African retailer BT Games has listed a January 2012 release for "Jak & Daxter HD Collection." It has since taken the listing down, but it does remain in the retailer's database sans a date, price, or ordering info. In any event, I'm fully prepared to pay for games I already own again.

Read more »

Gears of War 3 Review

 The reason this is late is because this was supposed to be a joint review. Unfortunately, stuff. Yes, that is the official explanation. Anyway, I have taken it upon myself to do everything, because why the hell not. Let's start with the campaign, shall we?

Oh, the campaign. What an exciting romp through gore a drama. Before you begin this endeavor I would suggest you crank the difficulty up. Normal is, by and large, too easy. Your AI partners will do all the work for you while you sit back and sip iced tea, or whatever it is you do. I sip scotch because I have a problem. Anyway, once you take on the challenge of a higher difficulty you are mostly guaranteed to have fun. Lancers, gnashers; all the old amazing guns are there for you, along with new additions such as the sawn-off shotgun and retro lancer (among others). If you've played Gears before you know what to expect. It's messy, it's tight, and it's full of chest-high walls. The addition of 4-player co-op can only add to your experience and the lambent only add a new kind of challenge. In short, I enjoyed it immensely.

"braaaAAAAAAAGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH"

The story itself comes to a decent concision. It answered a question I never thought I had  to ask while ignoring one I have had since the beginning. Some characters meet an expected fate while others... well, actually it's kind of predictable. But I refuse to spoil anything. The script is fantastic and a particular moment where you assume control of Cole Train is kind of amazing. But I know you. You don't play Gears for the story alone. I merely suggesting that the actual plot tends to be entertaining from time to time.

But what of multiplayer? Admittedly, I didn't play a lot of Gears 2 online. In fact, I wouldn't have at all if it weren't for my blogmates. My experience in 2 was a practice in frustration. "What's the point of shooting if he can just roll away," I asked. Well, the retro lancer fixed that problem for me. The impressive thing, in my mind, is that this solution was one that suited me and others like me. Fans of the old weapons have stuck to their guns, so to speak, and are still highly effective. Epic has managed to add new weapons that are more conducive to other styles of play without destroying the effectiveness of people who are fans of the old weapons. I can respect that, even as a relative new-comer to online gears.

Just stay away from anyone who has one of these.

My true love, however, is Horde 2.0. I couldn't tell you how many hours I've already sunk into that mode of gameplay. The increasing difficulty, the raising of money to build fortifications, decoys, silverbacks,  and turrets, the adrenaline rush of boss fights; I simply cannot get enough, I have just purchased 4 Disney movies and I plan on getting the Team Ico Collection tonight and I still have every intention of getting a round of Horde in before I go to bed. It is the absolute test of teamwork, and it works. While a bad team will absolutely destroy your experience (I'm looking at you people who quit after the first boss wave) a good team will make you want to play until things are absolutely hopeless. It has become a drug of sorts, and I have actually no qualms about being addicted.

Warning: Results comparable to that of cocaine.

This brings us to Beast Mode. As much as I like it, it almost represents a lost potential. The objective is basically a reverse of Horde, in that you play as the locusts attacking a group of AI humans with increasing fortifications. It's fun, especially once you progress far enough and earn enough money to play as incredibly strong units (a freaking berserker). The issue for me is that it becomes too easy and a game will not last nearly as long as Horde. What I meant by "lost potential" is that they could have easily taken a page out of Valve's Left 4 Dead book and made Beast Mode, or at least another mode, a PvP sort of thing. Imagine one team of players having to hold off the locusts and keep them from earning new units while the locust do their best to break through the defenses. You know you want that. I mean, who wouldn't? Probably communists... or vegans. Or communist vegans! My word, this has devolved.

As long as we have bacon, we have hope.

All of this adds up to Gears 3 being (arguably) the best in the series. Yes, some things went unanswered and the lag online is kind of awful at times, but there are so many fun games modes built off such a solid foundation that it begs to be critically acclaimed. It's not worth missing.

10 out of 10

Read more »

A Quick Catch-Up (Two Mini-Reviews and an Explanation)

Okay, we admit it. We haven't done a hell of a lot lately. So to cover what we've missed and to explain our ridiculous posting rate I'm going to give an update on everything I can within reason. Thus, I'm not going to cover the myriad of trailers that came out at Tokyo Game Show. Most of it seems redundant anyway. I will give a quick two cents on both Dead Island and Resistance 3, though.

Two cents isn't enough for a joke, however.

 So why have we been gone? A stream of bad luck would not be an overstatement. School not withstanding, two of us have been sick and one I guess was just uninterested in everything.

But at least we have plenty of medicine

A more entertaining event, I should mention, is the fact that I've had to prepare to possibly take the owners of my previous residence to court. There's also this whole LSAT thing, whatever that is. It's been hectic to say the least.

So in summation of the last two things I mentioned, gavel.

So Dead Island. As far as unfinished games go I guess you could say it's a good one. It gets remarkably difficult around 30% in and a solo playthrough is quickly becoming more and more unlikely. A remarkably simple yet good idea, Borderlands with more realism and zombies (I know Borderlands DLC has zombies), just not brought through to it's own potential. Yes, there are glimpses of greatness, but the problems are just to frequent and numerous. The voice acting is atrocious, modified weapons still have a tendency to disappear from your inventory to never be seen again, and if I hear one more NPC yell at me, "wait, where are you going," while I'm fighting in front of him to save his ass I'm going to lose it. However, if I manage to secure other players I can honestly see myself have lots of fun, and isn't that one of the main goals of a game? Now if only my weapons didn't degrade 10 times faster than they should. And one more thing. Why do I need money to upgrade, fix, and make weapons? I find all the supplies I need to complete such tasks and it's all done at a workbench. Who on earth am I paying? The bench? It has no need for currency.

Trust me, workbenches will show nothing but quiet indifference to monetary contributions.

On the opposite end, we have Resistance 3. I say opposite because one is a first person shooter and the other isn't possibly that at all until later. Hell, if you choose Logan in Dead Island I would consider it almost a first person thrower. But I digress. Resistance, in short, blew me away. I wasn't even intending to get it until I heard the good buzz. After all, I was thoroughly unimpressed by the first two. It's not at all hard to love this game, especially if you love old school shooters. Yes, it has the appearance of the modern FPS with all it's cinematic set pieces and dramatic cutscenes, but it's guts are all old-school. Healthpacks restore your life and you get to carry all the guns at once. What more do those who yearn for games of yesteryear want? I would almost say Bulletstorm, which I adored, could have benefited from these implementations.

Unlike this chimera's face that does not benefit from a punch.

 Resistance 3's weapons almost seem to blast forth pure gaming joy, each with an ability to be upgraded twice (that is to say, to level 3) with use. The second you upgrade your Bullseye completely and tag three enemies at once all while shooting wildly in any direction you'll understand what I mean.  Wrap all of that up in a campaign about, as Jerry Holkins of Penny Arcade put it, mittens and there's plenty to love. If I were giving scores in this post I would be tempted to give it a 10. You know, if I was.

Hopefully, that catches us up to the present. Later, I'll be dragging my sleep deprived posterior over to gamestop to pick up Gears 3 at midnight. I'll be reporting on it's quality a lot sooner than I did with these two games. Unless, you know, I can make Stephen do it.

Read more »

First Max Payne 3 Trailer

Looks like we finally have a glimpse of some wonderful, wonderful Max Payne 3 goodness in full-motion glory. More importantly, with it comes some answers to questions I've had. Looks like Max will start out with a full head of hair and then shave it off at some point. For why I don't know (it's either symbolic or it's just too damn hot in Sao Paulo). Also, it looks like James McCaffrey WILL be returning to voice Max again. Happiness abounds.


Basically, prepare yourself for cynical simile.

Anyone else get chills when the classic Max Payne theme played at the beginning? Max Payne 3 is set to release March of next year.

Read more »