• 8Sep 11

  Assassin's Creed Brotherhood

  

  
  

  Brotherhood takes us to Rome on another adventure with Ezio. The story picks up where it last left of from Assassin's Creed 2, brotherhood begins with Cesare attacking Ezio's Villa, killing his uncle Mario and steals the Apple of Eden. For the main part you are playing as Ezio, trying to retrieve the Apple and get revenge on Cesare while upholding the Creed. Ezio goes through the main story recruiting assassins and forming alliances with different factions in Rome's underground. The main plot seems to repeat over and over again. There is allot in this game you to excite fans of the series.

  The game mechanics are very similar to AS2 however there are many little additions that make gameplay better. When in battle you can now string your moves together for single strike kills, these kills always look awesome there are many different animations that look very nice with lots of blood.
  New weapons and string kills make it allot more fun to start fights.

  

  From burning down towers to reveal areas on the map to riding a horse through Rome, there is plenty to do in this massive open world.

  Recruiting Assassins has also been added to the game. As you progress through the story you slowly recruit and train assassins. This is something I loved to play around with after they became fully fledged assassins by sending then on missions throughout Europe. You are able to use them at any time to remove an optical in battle without getting involved. Apart from backup there is no other purpose for them. There could have been a little more for the recruits to do after becoming full Assassins.

  Economy has become a big part of the game. In previous versions of AS you would get to a point and collect more money then you knew what to do with. In Brotherhood you can buy shortcuts through a network of tunnels under the city or landmarks such as the Colosseum, among many other things. Eventually you will own most of Rome.

  

  The entire map is packed with lots of detail from bricks on the houses to the furniture in them. The scenery everywhere is stunning, as I was playing this game I did stop to climb up a building to take a look at the surroundings. The depth in the map is great, if you are lucky enough to play this game on a system that is powerful enough, with all the settings turned up to the max you can really appreciate how massive the map is and the amount of work that would have gone in to creating this world.

  Online multiplayer has taken a risk in Brotherhood for the better. Multiplayer is not very action packed but it can get intense. You are an assassin as you'd expect and you have a contract kill to carry out. At the same time there is someone who has a contract on you. Something else to be aware of is someone could be after your contract, if they get to their first you lose it and the points with it. There are a few ways to get more points, one is with Sty-le kills. Another is to blend in and have the person after you kill another character that looks similar to you. Multiplayer is a nice change from the main story. Because the main story can be completed quickly for those who just play through main missions, multiplayer is a nice change.

  

  Overall I did love all of the extra content in Brotherhood and I can't wait for the next instalment of Assassins Creed.

  It's out on PC, MAC, X360 and PS3.

  I played this game using the Alienware M17X R3 Gaming Notebook, with all the settings turned up to the Max! I recommend tacking a look at my review on the M17x.

  LMedia

  • Posted Sep 8, 2011 6:48 am GMT
  • Category: Games
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• 8Sep 11

  Realistic. Unreal. Strategic. Entertainment or RUSE

  

  R.U.S.E is a RTS, "Real Time Strategy" that's based in World War II. This game has many good qualities, one of which is the excellent story line in Campaign mode. The cut scenes are really nice and the story is very straight forward, easy to understand. There is also a very interesting sub plot, a spy only known as 'Prometheus' is leaking Intel to the Germans, the story is told very well.
  In the first half of the game you play as US-Army General, Joe Sheridan. Later on you will play as German General, Major Erich Von Richter.
  This game is based in Europe so you will be able to play lots of battles, in many of different countries from North Africa to Germany.

  

  The game is called RUSE, so what is a RUSE? These are a variety of different tricks or traps to help you get ahead of your opponent. Some allow you to move units quickly across different areas of the map or setup decoy bases and even spy on the enemy camp for a tactical advantage. If you want to play a successful game you need to use the RUSE's because your enemy will.

  

  The first thing you notice when starting any level is the unique way they use the Zoom function. When you zoom all the way out, the map looks as though it's on a game board. All of your units turn into tokens so you're still able to command them. I didn't really like the size they grew when zoomed all the way out but it made for easy selections to command them around the map. When zoomed in the tokens disappear and you can see the units in their places. I keep the view zoomed around centre to be in the action, but to still able to see what was happening around me.

  

  The game is rather average for a RTS there is only one resource 'Money' and it runs out quickly. The unit upgrades are limited, however the strategy element of the game is awesome. All units have their own strengths and weaknesses, so there are many ways to takedown your enemies. Another thing that makes the game better is the intelligence of the AI, if you build anti-tank defences the AI will build artillery to destroy it. When playing I wasn't aware of this and had to learn fast to avoid major losses, If you're a RTS gamer this will keep you amused and always guessing.

  When moving units around the map there are very nice arrows showing where they are going and who you are attacking. The screen is very clean and easy to navigate, units and buildings are made very easy to building. All the game menus are quick to access and have everything you need ready to go.

  

  The multiplayer option is my thing playing with friends and showing them how bad they can beat me is always fun. You are able to play as the United Kingdom, United States, Germany, Italy, France, and the Soviet Union. In multiplayer you have many different maps to work with however I had trouble connecting quite a few times to verse friends.

  

  I would recommend to lovers of RTS because it can get boring for some. Trying to build up an army kill an enemy takes time. However for people who like RTS it is a great game with lots of 'replayability'in multiplayer and even the campaign mode.

  It's out on PC, PS3 and X360.

  I played this game using the Alienware M17X R3 Gaming Notebook, with all the settings turned up to the Max! I recommend tacking a look at my review on the M17x.

  LMedia

  • Posted Sep 8, 2011 6:45 am GMT
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• 8Sep 11

  Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell Conviction

  
  

  

  Stealth + Bad-ass Killer = Sam Fisher!
  Splinter Cell Conviction is a completely new experience in Stealth. When I first started playing Splinter Cell the run and gun approach was not working for me, however when I started using stealth it all fell in to place. The game is made with stealth in mind.

  

  The story continues from 'Splinter Cell Double Agent' where Sam's daughter was killed and he gets out of 'Third Echelon' an agency he worked for. In Conviction Sam is on his own tacking down terrorists and kicking ass.
  If you are new to Splinter Cell at the beginning you have lots of story recaps from the last game. The way they did this is something I really liked.
  A new feature to Splinter Cell is the way the used projected images. The projections show you short clips from the previous game to catch you up in the story but also to help you navigate the game, when you're unsure where to go or what to do just follow the projected text.

  

  A feature I had lots of fun with was Mark and Execute. The way this works is when you are under cover you tag targets 'Mark' then when you're ready to take them down you Execute. This feels like a quick way out but you need to fight the bad guys to build up your Execute meeter. Using it is very fun and sometimes very handy when in a tight spot.

  

  The game is about Speedy and Stealth. Saying that usually isn't enough but in this case it is. When using cover Sam is very fluid when moving around objects, it's very quick and easy to navigate around the map. Tacking down an enemy from within the shadows is always lots of fun, and how the game was made to be played.

  The levels are really well designed and play well but there was one level that I wasn't so sure about.The level based in Iraq, a flashback had reverence to the story but the game mechanics are changed. For me it felt a little clumsy when I was trying to use Mark and Execute as you do in the rest of the game, however it still looks great.

  

  Co-Op mode is great! There are various ops missions that you can play alone or with friends. This adds another layer to the game. This is a great because story mode is rather short and Co-Op gives you way more to do.

  Overall the game is made well with some of the best stealth features I've ever seen in a game.

  It's out on PC, MAC, X360 and the IPhone.

  I played this game using the Alienware M17X R3 Gaming Notebook, with all the settings turned up to the Max! I recommend tacking a look at my review on the M17x.

  LMedia

  • Posted Sep 8, 2011 6:16 am GMT
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