PSN Credit – A Gift From Me To Me
Summer is shit. It makes gaming so much harder, and as much as I love sitting in a stifling hot room, made hotter by my PlayStation, I will not quit. Instead, I will give the gift of heat and make my friends suffer with me, in the intolerable realms of summer gaming.
If you didn’t know, Green Man Gaming now have PSN credit available on the store. With $10, $20 and $50 credit available, now at 5% off!
So if your friends or family members are out having FUN in the sun, put an end to that now and get them to join you on your favourite multiplayer. Or treat yaself. Need multiplayer inspiration? Here’s our sizzling summer list.
Little Big Planet 3
For if you like cute things and rainbows and stickers and adorable little characters. If you do not, then you need to ask yourself why, because Little Big Planet 3 is amazing. It’s a side scrolling platformer, where you play as a stitched up little sackboy, which you can customise to your hearts content. You travel through different worlds, on some sort of heroic quest, coming up against different elements including ice, fire, spikes, tunnels, revolving platforms, tubes, some underwater and really pretty much anything. Little Big Planet is kind of this endless weird dream that you never want to end, because anything could happen. And best of all it’s voiced to Stephen King and his soothing voice will guide through. It’s also competitive, there is a leaderboard for who has collected the most stickers, so the cute ends there, that’s when it gets ugly.
Borderlands 2
Venture into the bright, bold, vibrant colours of Pandora and become a Vault Hunter, with endless guns, absolutely endless and with a pretty small inventory, you have to be choosy. I think I spent most the game deciding on my guns and having to part way with favourites, because you just can’t be too sure. This is the best game to play online with friends, the world is huge and varied, the enemies are tonnes of fun and the missions are well thought out and never disappoint. Every side quest feels like a main story and the characters you meet along the way are hilarious and fit the world perfectly. Expect major bants as the dialogue is fantastic.
DiRT 4
Do you like racing? And cars and racing cars? Well DiRT 4 offers something a little different, going back to its rally days, so you can expect varied terrain and intense, muddy drive offs. DiRT 4 has great map customisation, so you’re able to adjust the track and share it with friends. The Your Stage custom map creator, has two sliders calle length and complexity, so you’re able to make it as challenging as you want. There’s also custom competitive multiplayer modes for PvP for lobbies up to eight.
Injustice 2
A video game about superheroes. It’s a fighter, with all your favourite characters such as Superman, Batman, Joker, Harley Quinn, Wonder Woman and Green Lantern. The online multiplayer is an intense fight out which offers multiple friend options including ‘guilds’ which lets you join groups with your mates and team up to fight exclusive events to win Mother Boxes. These boxes can contain all sorts of gear goodies, including outfits, weapons and armour for your characters. This is also a great way to increase your stats! Ranked matches are also great fun, if you’re in it for the numbers, you can play against friends or in the wide world of players. Timed exclusive events also occur online with unlock awesome rewards. But, if you always just feel like battling your mate one on one, then take em down in a private match.
WipEout Omega Collection
Complete with WipEout HD, WipEout HD Fury, WipEout Pure, WipEout Pulse, WipEout 2048 – that’s a lot of WipEout. The Omega Collection amalgamates all of these game into one MEGA GAME. So you can race online in matches of up to eight people in 5 super exciting modes including Single Race, Tournament, Speed Lap, Time Trial and Zone. You’re gunna have fun playing this and if you don’t, do you even know what fun is?
The Black Death – A Day in the Life of a Peasant
The Black Death is a medieval survival game, where you start out from nothing and try to make something of yourself. Maybe you’ll become a knight and rule your lands from your castle…or maybe you’ll fall off a hill to your death wearing nothing but rags!
We caught up with noted peasant Dirk Bigge as he arrived in the diseased and unforgiving lands of The Black Death, and he told us about his day.
Hour 1
I’ve woken on a beach, my back aches and my clothes are torn. Nothing new there then. Creaking slowly I rise to my feet and head along the shore, maybe someone’ll be able to explain what happened to me and how I got here.
Trees appear as I turn the corner of the cliffs that jut out onto the barren beach. I see the treeline and amongst them, a swinging body.
I fear this will be an unfriendly land.
Hour 2
I have naught in my possession other than a torch, the clothes on my back, and some awful parsnips I have managed to forage from the side of the road.
A clash of metal startles me as I rest for a moment. I hide behind the nearest tree and peer out as two knights, armoured in full plate, smash together in a cacophony of violence.
The blood that erupts from one as the sword enters him takes my breath away. I hold my hand over my mouth as I try not to whimper, to cry. I’m a child of the city, I’ve never seen death like this before.
I sneak away, my hands deep in the rich fecund mud.
This is definitely an unfriendly land.
Hour 5
I’ve regained my composure and climbed a large hill away from the steel clad monsters which lurk behind me. I’ve managed to gather a few pieces of cotton and I’ll try to make some clothing out of it.
I fail, and the cotton disappears from my hands in a puff of smoke.
What a strange land I have found myself in.
Hour 9
I have spent the last 2 hours crouched on top of a freezing hill while the wind whipped around me, causing my tattered rags to flutter like a flag of poverty. I’ve been watching a castle, a small wooden motte and bailey castle that broods in the nearby valley, like a spider lurking threateningly at the bottom of a gutter.
I have seen nobody move there, no life at all. Building my nerve, I believe I will approach. I can’t stay up here anymore, I need shelter. I need warmth.
Hour 10
I am shaken by what I’ve found in the castle.
Bodies lie on the floor of each building, there’s no life at all within its palisades. Only death lives here, flies fill the air as I approach and the stench of death lies heavy as a miasma upon the land.
I managed to hold my nose and my nerve long enough to approach a likely looking corpse and strip it of possessions, taking a simple knife from his side.
Sneaking away, I notice a rasp in my lungs. Odd.
Hour 12
My lungs burn.
I have made my way with shaking legs towards a grand bridge I can see hunched over a nearby river. Maybe there I can find people, find a cure for this burning that fills my body, that wracks me with coughs every time I draw air.
I scratch at my skin and feel it peel away, buboes are forming on my face and I can feel myself falling apart.
I fear the Black Death has found me.
Hour 14
I have reached the bridge, but no safety awaits me there.
The cough has now become all encompassing and I can barely move, my skin burns, my insides burn, pustules cover my body.
I found water in a puddle and in my haste and to quench my thirst I drank deeply of it, its bitter flavour and filth causing endless tides of nausea that filled me to overflowing.
I must carry on, I must reach someone who can help.
Hour ??
I am alone. Night is coming.
Cold and torpor fills me. I fall to the ground. I need to rest.
I dreamed of a future, I dreamed of finally owning a house, of starting a business.
Now I only dream that the pain will end.
No-one can help me now. I will just close my eyes for a second. To rest. To sleep.
As my eyes close…I hope I will dream again.
…
The Black Death is available in Early Access now.
If You Play These Games, You Should Play Fortnite
Here at the Green Man Gaming offices we have been doing some number crunching. With the upcoming release of Fortnite we have been looking through the stats of some similar games in order to gauge the perfect Fortnite player. So without further a-do here are some player stats for similar games.
NOTE: These stats cover the last 12 months year to date
Left 4 Dead 2
How Is It Similar To Fortnite: Much like Fortnite, Left 4 Dead 2 is a team based survival game where you have to defeat hordes of the undead whilst you keep your buddies alive. True, Left 4 Dead doesn’t have the base building element that Fortnite has, but it does have a plethora of different types of zombies for players to defeat, which Fortnite is also promising.
Unique Users Who Have Played The Game: 86,938
Number Of Achievements Unlocked: 1,022,805
Most Achieved Achievement: Acid Reflex – Unlocked by 56,364 players
Least Achieved Achievement: Meat Tenderizer – Unlocked by 18,205 players
Total Time Played In:
Minutes: 29,525,753,037
Hours: 492,095,884
Days: 20,503,995
Weeks: 2,929,142
Years: 56,330
Orcs Must Die! 2
How Is It Similar To Fortnite: Described as an action based tower defence game. The aim of Orcs Must Die is to protect your towers from the onslaught of Orcs who are coming to destroy them. This is also the aim in Fortnite, minus the crafting, open world and hordes of the undead.
Unique Users Who Have Played The Game: 9,865
Number Of Achievements Unlocked: 126,136
Most Achieved Achievement: Ten At Once – Unlocked By 18,606 Players
Least Achieved Achievement: Have Some More – Unlocked by 864 Players
Total Time Played In:
Minutes: 3,404,034,454
Hours: 56,733,908
Days: 945,565
Weeks: 15,759
Years: 303
Dungeon Defenders II
How Is It Similar To Fortnite: A multiplayer game that combines tower defence and RPG. Dungeon Defenders uses some of the same ideas that Fortnite will be using once it has released. Like Fortnite, the game builds upon the classic tower defence mechanic and puts a pretty cool spin on it. I mean who doesn’t love a game that adds RPG elements, who doesn’t love character building?
Unique Users Who Have Played The Game: 1,236
Number Of Achievements Unlocked: 22,964
Most Achieved Achievement: Steady Aim – Unlocked by 8,429 Players
Least Achieved Achievement: Clever Girl – Unlocked by 2,453 players
Total Time Played In
Minuets:215,949,099
Hours: 3,599,152
Days: 59,986
Weeks: 1,000
Years: 19
We believe the above games are the most like Fortnite, therefore the players of those games should be the perfect canditates for the tower defence crafting game. All the above games cover the fundamentals of survival, slaying unnatural beasts in a team and building fortresses (except maybe Left 4 Dead but we can let that slide).
Fortnite is the new game by the People Can Fly (BulletStorm) and Gearbox Software (Borderlands), is looking like an amazing game as up to 14 players will be tasked to build a fortress and take on the undead in order to survive. It has been described as “Minecraft meets Left 4 Dead” by Tim Sweeny the founder of Epic Games.
We truly believe that of the 98,039 total gamers above will give Fortnite a go, its like the perfect amalgamation of Dungeon Defenders, Orcs Must Die! and Left for Dead, with (as Tim suggested) a healthy sprinkling of Minecraft crafting as well. You can check out the latest gameplay trailer for Fortnite below.
Agents of Mayhem Characters Confirmed So Far
Agents of Mayhem is the upcoming Saints Row spinoff, from developer Volition. The game is an open world adventure set within the Saints Row universe. Playing as the goodies, MAYHEM are the organisation against that fight the baddies, LEGION. It’s a simple good vs bad story, stuffed full of all the silliness and crass you’d expect from a Saints Row game. The humour is spot on and the dialogue is as effortlessly funny as previous Saints Row games. So here are the agents who you’ll be able to get behind in Agents of Mayhem, landing August.
Daisy
A total babe, she’s bold and in your face. She takes no prisoners with her larger than life mini gun and screw it attitude. She’s the berserker of the group and will be able to charge in with her heavy minigun and ‘kick out the jams’ ability, which she can use to stun large groups of enemies. Her minigun isn’t just any old minigun, it’s got serious force, with an increased rate of fire and minimal heat. She’s a bit of a rogue and hasn’t always played ball, which makes her exciting and slightly risky.
Fortune
Equipped with a drone called Glory, Fortune is a feisty, cunning sky pirate. She has an honest, upfront to fights, using her dual energy pistols for short range fire. A quick tap of the guns will release a high amount of damage over large areas. Glory is also a blast to use, literally, it will blast nearby enemies when detonated.
Joule
Charming and deadly, Joule is fashion obsessed, but doesn’t let that get in the way of her brilliant engineering mind. She’s enemy focussed and builds excellent machinery and is able to summon a ‘Prima Touretta’ that gives off a large pulse, which stuns enemies. Her weapon of choice is a energy beam gun, keeping enemies at bay she is single enemy focused, but the wipeout is quick and probably quite painful.
Rama
Recently showcased as one of the ‘bombshells’ – the most volatile of the agents. Rama is sharp, quick witted and has a dark sense of humour. She uses a bow in combat, spraying streams of lasers at enemies. Her abilities also include ‘death trap’ and ‘patient zero’, which are more delectable ways to use her weapon.
Hardtack
The badass sailor, the gentle giant that has a particular aggression towards LEGION. Hardtack is the tank of the group, with his heavy shotgun and charging attacks which deal high amounts of damage. He can also throw a harpoon and stun enemies. Stunning enemies seems to be a theme for the agents, let’s hope it’s effective.
Red Card
Another ‘bombshell’ of the agents, Red Card is the wild card, a manic in your face assault characters. Just waiting for the ‘go’ to charge into situations and stir it up. With his assault rifle and shotgun combo and bloodthirsty approach, Red Card can release explosive damage near large groups of enemies and is the character to cause more disruption and distraction.
Braddock
A dutiful soldier, Braddock is a young, highly trained and diligent former corp. She’s experienced in battle and her actions are precise, dealing extreme amounts of damage with specialised ammo that cuts through armor and the character you’d want bossing.
Hollywood
Posing, constantly. Hollywood is a former star and celebrity, turned soldier for MAYHEM. He is a showboater and he does everything with a certain style and class, never a hair out of place. He is an up close and personal shooter, with fire bouncing grenades for attention and a special ability called ‘action hero’ – cue music.
Yeti
Subject to experiments in Russia, Yeti is the gentle giant of the group. He is the powerhouse of the group and combined with his elemental powers, is an unstoppable force. He has a cold gun, which he can use to slow and freeze enemies – again, what’s with the whole stun thing aye?
Gat
The Saints Row legend himself Gat has been confirmed to return as an agent and we’re super excited for his incredible spectacle. Gat is a performer, playing as him is guaranteed Mayhem, but the guns will be tasty and the fight will be awesome.
Looking forward to Agents of Mayhem? Who do you want to play as? Let us know in the comment section at the bottom of this page.
You can also grab 15% off of Agents Of Mayhem right now! Use the code MAYHEM15, add the code to your basket before you check out.
What We Are Looking Forward To In Crash Bandicoot N. Sane Trilogy
Friday sees the release of Crash Bandicoot N. Sane Trilogy and a fair few of us here at the Green Man Gaming offices can’t wait. So we thought we would take trip down memory lane and list some of the things we are looking forward to.
Running Away From Boulders
Whether you did this back in the days of the PlayStation 1, or you did it recently in Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End (such a great Easter egg) The boulder level from the first Crash was the ultimate test of dexterity and reactions. Also great fun too.
Buddying up with Aku Aku
Anyone who has played Crash Bandicoot has more than likely shouted “Oooga Booga” at the TV when they have picked up the Aku Aku Mask. The Crash Bandicoot N. Sane Trilogy is going to give us the chance once again to shout “Oooga Booga” once again.
Riding Various Animals
The hog wild level in Crash Bandicoot and the Polar Bear Chase in Crash Bandicoot 2 were some of my favourite levels. So it will be great to relive these levels in glorious HD graphics. Also equally get frustrated at the game after iI have dies the 457th time in a row.
Spinning Enemies Into Hazards
Nothing is quite as satisfying as throwing an unsuspecting enemy into a pit. Need I say any more?
Repeatedly Failing
Every Crash Bandicoot experience should come with a large helping of epic game fails. Crash Bandicoot N. Sane Trilogy will no doubt come with a fair few of these through your play through, sure it’s frustrating, but pretty hilarious at the same time.
What were your favourite moments in Crash Bandicoot? Let us know in the comments section at the bottom of this page.
What Does Star Fox 2 Mean For The SNES Classic?
The SNES Classic was officially announced by Nintendo yesterday and with it was the list of games that would be pre installed on the console. It seems that Japan’s version of the console (which is called the Famicom Classic) will be getting a different line up compared to the West. If you don’t know the line up for each console you can check out the lists below.
The SNES Classic
- Contra III: The Alien Wars
- Donkey Kong Country
- EarthBound
- Final Fantasy III
- F-ZERO
- Kirby Super Star
- Kirby’s Dream Course
- The Legend of Zelda™: A Link to the Past
- Mega Man X
- Secret of Mana
- Star Fox
- Star Fox 2
- Street Fighter 2 Turbo: Hyper Fighting
- Super Castlevania 4
- Super Ghouls ‘n Ghosts
- Super Mario Kart
- Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars
- Super Mario World
- Super Metroid
- Super Punch-Out!!
- Yoshi’s Island
The Super Famicom Classic
- Contra III: The Alien Wars
- Donkey Kong Country
- Final Fantasy III (Final Fantasy VI in Japan)
- F-ZERO
- Fire Emblem: Mystery of the Emblem
- Kirby Super Star
- The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past
- Mega Man X (Rockman X in Japan)
- Panel de Pon (Tetris Attack in the West)
- Secret of Mana
- Star Fox
- Star Fox 2
- Super Street Fighter II: The New Challengers
- Super Formation Soccer
- Super Ghouls ‘n Ghosts
- Super Mario Kart
- Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars
- Super Mario World
- Super Metroid
- The Legend of the Mystical Ninja
- Yoshi’s Island
So, on the Japan side, the console will be getting games such as Fire Emblem: Mystery of the Emblem, Panel de Pon, Super Street Fighter II: The New Challengers, Super Formation Soccer and The Legend of the Mystical Ninja. Whilst the West will get EarthBound, Kirby’s Dream Course, Street Fighter II Turbo: Hyper Fighting, Super Castlevania IV and Super Punch-Out!!
Star Fox 2
All of which is very cool, but the standout game for both consoles is Star Fox 2. 22 years ago Star Fox 2 was one of the most highly anticipated sequels to come out for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System. Sadly the game was cancelled before it could ever be released, this was primarily due to the N64 being so close to release, so Nintendo had to focus their efforts on their new console. What’s more Sony had just released the PlayStation and Nintendo were too afraid that a new SNES game would just blend into the background and wouldn’t get sales. Speaking to NintendoLife Star Fox 2 Programmer Dylan Cuthbert stated that “I think that caught Nintendo off-guard. The decision was made because they didn’t want the old-gen 3D going up against the much better 3D of the next generation, side-by-side.” So the game was cancelled and would never see the light of day.
Skip ahead to 2017 and Star Fox 2 is finally getting released. According to Cuthbert when the game was first cancelled, it was 95% complete, so the developers finished the game anyway. They even went to the extent of having the game “fully QA’d through Mario Club.” As the game was so close to completion a ROM of Star Fox 2 was anonymously leaked a few years later by a Nintendo employee. The fans then jumped on this game to iron out the bugs, remove the debug code from it and even go to the extent of giving the game a full english translation.
Through these leaks, a lot of gamers out there do have a very good idea about how Star Fox 2 plays, however with these ROMs on the internet this still doesn’t give fans the authentic Star Fox experience that the developers wanted to give gamers all those years ago. But now, thanks to the SNES Classic, we can finally get our hands on Star Fox 2, just as the developers wanted.
Rejected Diablo III Classes
Diablo III‘s Necromancer is out today and it’s the latest (possibly last?) class to be added to the action RPG from Blizzard. There’s lots of classes in the game already, but did you know there were several that were rejected in the planning stage? Here’s the classes that Blizzard was going to include in Diablo III, but didn’t!
Diablo
Originally the bad guy in Diablo and then…the bad guy in Diablo II and then also a bad guy in Diablo III, did you know that Diablo was at one point going to be a playable character? The twist inclusion of Diablo into Diablo III was a late addition, as he was originally going to be turned good by the Soul Stone of Goodness and then become an unlockable protagonist for the game!
The Grim Reaper
The Reaper of Souls was based off the The Grim Reaper class, a class which combined wicked scythe play and also TALKED LIKE THIS. Accompanied by his non-combat pet Alfred, he was cut from the game for being too powerful as who can kill Death? Only the Auditors, and they weren’t going to be included until the sequel, Diablo IV: Death’s Wild Ride, starring Binky the White Steed.
A Deer
The original vision for the Diablo series was born when Blizzard CEO Mike Morhaime saw the original Bambi film, and since then he has always wanted to show deers getting their own back on humans. The protagonist of Diablo was always meant to be an angry deer, and the series was going to be called Deer-ablo. Despite this being changed at the last minute, plans to include a playable deer were going to be included in Diablo III as a nod to the original vision. Alas this was dropped in favour of the Monk class.
Rabbids
Mario + Rabbids isn’t the first crossover for the loveable rabbids, they were at one time planned to be included in the Diablo universe! After the Worldstone was destroyed at the end of Diablo II, other universes were going to be sucked into Sanctuary, with the Rabbids universe being one of them. Forget dressing up as Princess Peach, we could’ve been treated to the sight of a Rabbid Diablo, or a Rabbid Tyrael! Alas this wasn’t to be, the Rabbids universe getting mushed up with the Mushroom Kingdom instead.
Thrall
It’s Blizzard, of course Thrall was going to be a class in Diablo III.
There you have it! The Diablo III classes we never got to see, all cut from the game. Still, the game has blossomed into the pinnacle of action-RPG-dom without them, so it’s not all bad! Remember, you can pick up the game here, and the Necromancer class is out today!
The 10 Stages Of Playing Final Fantasy XV
With Final Fantasy XV’s latest DLC, Episode Prompto releasing today and the brief teaser we got of Episode Ignis, we thought we would pay homage to Final Fantasy XV’s main story. As we all know Final Fantasy XV is an emotional rollercoaster, so here are the emotions we experienced when playing Final Fantasy XV’s Main Story.
1. Excitement – YOU ARE PLAYING A NEW FINAL FANTASY GAME!
2. Nostalgia – The Feeling you get when you realise all the classic Final Fantasy tropes are included, like Gil, Pheonix Downs and Chocobos, speaking of which…
3. …Happiness – The feeling you get when you realise you can ride Chocobos and hug them and feed them and pet them.
4. Confusion – That moment where you ask yourself… ‘Is Prompto annoying or awesome?’
5. Surprise – When you come up against some of those awesome boss battles
6. Slight Displeasure – When the game takes a more liner path and you just want the open world back
7. Frustration – Chapter 13
8. Sadness – When everything starts to take a turn for the worse
9. Chronic Sadness – That ending…..
10. Admiration – when it is all finally over all you can do is applaud.
The History Of Micro Machines Games
Micro Machines has been around for over 2o years (26 to be exact) and the latest game, Micro Machines World Series, is coming out on the 3oth June. So whilst you wait the couple of days before the game is released we thought we would give you a history of Micro Machines games. Do you think World series is going to compare to these classics?
Micro Machines
Released all the way back in 1991 on the Nintendo Entertainment System (or the NES if you prefer) and then in 1993 on other consoles. This was the first game to lay down the Micro Machines foundations of racing miniature cars in unconventionally themed race tracks.
Micro Machines 2: Turbo Tournament
Micro Machines 2 added some brand new features to the series, such as different handling techniques for each car and other vehicles such as helicopters and hovercrafts. The game also featured different game modes such as head to head which awarded players for driving a full screen away from their opponents, which has become a micro machines staple. The PC version of the game also came with a track editor.
Micro Machines Turbo Tournament ’96
This title was only released on the Sega Mega Drive (or Genesis in the US). This was an up to date version of Micro Machines 2: Turbo Tournament. It featured new tracks and updated tracks from the original game. It also came with it’s own track construction kit that only came out for the PC version of the original game.
Micro Machines Military
This game was only released in Europe and Australia for the Sega Mega Drive, this game featured brand new tracks and as you would expect, military vehicles. These vehicles were given weapons which allowed players to attack their opponents.
Micro Machines V3
The first Micro Machines game to feature proper 3D graphics was released in March 1997 for the PlayStation. It’s tracks were themed on different areas of the household and featured multiple weapons for players to use. This was the first Micro Machines game to feature the controller share multiplayer option which became popular in the later games.
Micro Machines 64 Turbo
A port of Micro Machines V3 for the N64, Micro Machines 64 Turbo was the same game with some added extras. The game introduced 8 player local multiplayer with the gamepad share. This allowed 2 players to share a pad. The vehicles had automatic acceleration in order to compensate for the lack up buttons in this mode.
Micro Maniacs
Instead of cars, Micro Maniacs used running people instead. Occasionally these character would use vehicles on specific tracks, such as jet skis and skateboards. It had 12 characters to choose from and multiplayer games for up to 8 players.
Micro Machines (2002)
This version of Micro Machines came with advanced graphics and characters sporting unique vehicles. This version of Micro Machines however isn’t highly regarded as the best in the franchise and has since has faded into the background somewhat.
Micro Machines V4
What is considered at the true sequel to Micro Machines V3, V4 had over 25 tracks and 750 vehicles for players to choose from. Tracks also included locations such as the supermarket and ta swimming pool
Micro Machines World Series
The latest title in the franchise brings all of your favourite features from previous games and gives them a fresh lick of paint. With HD graphics and Brain Blessed announcing, this is set to be the best game in the series yet.
Thats if for our Micro Machines timeline, what was your favourite Micro Machines games? Will you be picking up Micro Machines World Series when it comes out on the 30th June?
Shadow Of War Nemesis System
The Middle-earth Timeline Infographic
The Best Upcoming Metroidvania Games
Metroidvania style games have made a comeback in the past couple of years, with great games such as Guacamelee and Ori and the Blind Forest. For those unaware, the term Metroidvania is used to describe 2D platformer games with an open map for players to explore which were made famous by Metroid and Castlevania back in the mid 80’s. Whether you love or hate the term there are some pretty decent games coming out for the ‘genre’. Here is what we are looking forward to.
Dead Cells
Described as a Roguevania style game (still counts) Dead Cells is currently in Early Access and looks pretty promising. The game will feature non-linear progression (as you would expect), lots of items which can be combined in many different ways and a Dark Souls-esque combat system. So if you like your Metroidvania’s to have challenging combat and almost infinite item combinations then Dead Cells should be right up your street.
Death’s Gambit
A Metroidvaina which focuses more of RPG gameplay, Death’s Gambit is another game that has been compared to the Dark Souls games in its tone and combat. Players play as an agent of Death and battle all sorts of beasts and horrors in a medieval style setting. The setting itself is described by the developers as an ‘alien medieval planet’, does this mean that Death’s Gambit may even have a hint of sci-fi thrown in for good measure?
Blasphemous
Blasphemous was recently funded on Kickstarter and looks nothing short of amazing. This Metroidvania style game is fast paced and soaked in blood and gore. As you can imagine from the game’s name, there are several religious connotations added in for good measure as well. So it is safe to say that this game in’t for the faint hearted. What makes Blasphemous stand out is that the combat is more akin to hack-n-slash games, which can make for some pretty great gameplay.
Bloodstained – Ritual of the Night
The next game from one of the pioneers of the Metroidvania game style, Koji Igarashi, Bloodstained is looking like a tough contender to beat. Koji Igarashi wrote and helped create both Castlevania: Symphony Of The Night and Castlevania: Aria of Sorrow both of which have been heralded as two of the best Castlevania games ever among fans. Bloodstained – Ritual of the Night brings in all the mechanics you loved in Castlevania: Symphony Of The Night and adds a brand new story and a brand new castle for players to explore.
Metroid: Samus Returns
After the big Metroid announcements at E3 it would be silly to not include Metroid: Samus Returns into this list. Metroid II: Return Of Samus was originally released on the Game Boy all the way back in 1991 and is one of the best Metroid games out there. Samus Returns is a remake of that exact game, which will be coming to the 3DS with shinier graphics and all the game play fans fell in love with first time around.
So that’s just some of the Metroidvania titles that will be coming out over the next couple of years. If you have any that you are looking forward to that do not feature in this list then let us know in the comments section below.
Here Are The Updates Coming To EVE Online
Summer 2017 is bringing some pretty cool updates for EVE Online. So if you want to get in on the EVE Online action, we are currently running a huge 50% off sale on premium and standard editions of the game.
If however you already have the game and want to know whats coming for EVE Online then here is what you can expect.
Project Discovery – Exoplanets
According to the official EVE Online website Project discovery Exoplanets – “Real life science is back in New Eden! In partnership with the University of Reykjavik and the University of Geneva, the search for Exoplanets is coming to EVE Online with this release.
This project will see you, the capsuleers of New Eden, taking part in a project within EVE Online that will assist with the processing and categorization of hundreds of thousands of images that may find new celestial bodies in faraway locations.”
Sounds pretty awesome if you are really into your deep space exploration.
NPE Improvements – New Empire Selection
The EVE Online developers are planning to improve the player experience. They have stated that “As part of the improved New Player Experience, new capsuleers will be introduced to the empires of New Eden with fresh new content on character creation. This will include new audio and user interface experiences, plus additional video content to give a better connection between a new capsuleer and their chosen faction.”
It’s nice to see that they are fleshing out the character creation, giving players more options to tailor their characters to their liking. New user and audio updates never go a miss either.
Vexor & Ishtar Redesign
Flicking through the EVE Online website it appears the ‘Federation Navey’ are doing some upgrades to EVE Online as well. “The Federation Navy have placed focus on the redesign of one of their staple combat cruisers – the Vexor. In this release the Vexor will receive a new lease of life for capsuleers to enjoy, with fresh textures, new geometry and transition animations between warp and traditional sub-light flight.”
It’s nice to see that the Vexor combat cruiser is getting a polish.
That’s all we know about the updates coming to EVE Online this summer. If you still haven’t played the game, you can get it half price on the Green Man Gaming Store right now.
Far Cry 5 – Will Joseph Seed Be The Best Bad Guy?
After an influx of information and footage from Ubisoft over the past month or so, Far Cry 5 is looking like a pretty great game. Set in Hope County, Montana, each players role is to take back the region from a fanatical doomsday cult called Eden’s Gate. This cult is led by Joseph Seed who sees himself as a prophet from god and believes he is cleansing Hope County of it’s sins.
Joseph Seed has potential to be the best Far Cry bad guy, but how does he stack up against the other antagonists in the series? Here’s what we think.
Doctor Krieger – Far Cry
The renowned scientist who once worked for the Department of Defence as a geneticist, Krieger is considered a very unethical scientist as his own genetic experiments on primates and humans created a mutant race known as the Trigens who terrorise humanity. If you thought zombies were bad, these guy are worse, think 28 days later on acid. Even though he is pretty unethical, in my opinion he doesn’t really have anything on Joseph Seed or any of the other Far Cry antagonists. True, creating crazed super mutants is pretty bad but you hardly see Krieger for a good 50% of the game.
The Jackal – Far Cry 2
A notorious arms dealer who sells weapons to many African countries and who has supplied arms for at least 16 wars. The Jackal already trounces Kreiger in my opinion. The Jackal is wanted by the UN for breaking arms laws. The player’s main mission in Far Cry 2 is to assassinate the Jackal and is led on a wild goose chase with the Jackal tormenting them at every turn. With both the Jackal and Jospeh Seed’s moral compasses being completely out of whack, it’s pretty hard to say who could be a better bad guy. Our money is on Joseph however, due to the fact he believes he is a prophet sent from god to cleanse the world by any means possible.
Vaas Montenegro – Far Cry 3
Even though Vaas is technically the secondary antagonist on Far Cry 3, the pirate leader has the most screen time and is the main focus for over half of the game. Vass is an unhinged leader who loves to lure unsuspecting tourists to a desolate island in order to torture them, ransom them and then sell them into slavery. Vaas has no morals, loves to torment the player through the game and at times is just damn right frightening. Joseph Seed is going to have a tough time beating Vaas as the best Far Cry bad guy, he is a fan favourite and is responsible for a lot of Far Cy’s iconic moments.
Colonel Ike Sloan – Far Cry 3: Blood Dragon
Once the commander of Rex Power Colt and Lieutenant T.T. “Spider” Brown, Ike Sloan became a Mark V Cyber-Commando and also became the leader of the Omega Force Cyborg army. That introduction alone is probably making you think that Sloan is in a completely different league to Joseph and any of the other Far Cry antagonists. It’s true, he is from the future and from a time line that was born from cult 80’s Sci-fi but he is a force to be reckoned with. Still not selling him to you? Okay I’ll move on.
P.S – Blood Dragon is a great game, just so far from any of the other Far Cry games that it can’t really compare. That’s my opinion anyway.
Pagan Min – Far Cry 4
The monarch of the region of Kyat, Pagen Min was born to a drug lord back in the 60’s. Min took control of the Kartel after his father died and joined the Royalist forces during the Kyat civil war. The Royalists eventually usurped the Kyrat Monarchy with Min killing the heir to the throne and claiming it for himself. Throughout Far Cry 4, it is the players main objective to over-throw Min and restore Kyat to it’s former glory. Even though Pagan Min is a heartless dictator who only looks out for himself he may find it tough to beat Joseph Seed as Seed’s vision is far greater than just becoming the ruler of a region.
Ull – Far Cry Primal
Going back to the year 10,000 BC, Far Cry Primal’s man bad guy is Ull the leader of the Udam tribe. The Udam command respect and fear from the other tribes in Far Cry Primal due to their barbaric and cannibalistic nature. Back in 10,000 BC that was as bad as morals went so Ull is pretty bad ass. It’s a shame that brute strength and cannibalism probably won’t beat Joseph Seed’s deluded and frightening nature.
So that’s our thoughts on how Seed will compare to the other Far Cry bad guys, he has the potential to become the best Far Cry antagonist yet. What are your thoughts?
Friday The 13th The Game – FREE STUFF
The Friday 13th developers want to say sorry to players for the server issues the best way they know how – FREE STUFF. I was really excited about the game as someone who loves the classic film and has always wanted to delve into a horror. An online horror? Perfect, because then I’m not scared alone and through the pulsating, trippy beats of Jason’s impending arrival, there’s also other people to make the whole experience a little less terrifying. Maybe it’s seeing the slightly rigid movements of other players looming in the distance, or the awkward clunk of a door being closed, but that just adds to the feel of the game, the unpolished, almost gimmicky look, really works wonders.
But through this I have been obviously frustrated at being kicked from games and not being able to get into one at all. Due to the unexpected popularity of Friday The 13th, the developers announced they were having server issues. However, fans did not give up on the game and whilst the small studio tackled the problem, working around the clock to get the issues solved, the game finally seems stable to the delight of players.
So here’s what the developers, Illfonic have given players for free for all their patience during the server issues they experienced. The update is FREE and available now, so why are you reading this? Get playing!
Improvements
- Steam matchmaking searches longer for lower pinged games.
- Various minor matchmaking optimizations made.
- Lobby countdown timer closes menus at the 3 second mark instead of when it starts.
- Warning beeps can now be heard from sub-menus.
- Added lots more environmental kill locations to all of the maps.
- Leaving a match while a party leader now prompts you to disband or take the party with you.
- Security updates to prevent account spoofing.
- Dynamic camera and character animation improvements.
- Added an option for controlling the PTT sound.
- Increased XP penalty of team killing fellow counselors to -1,000XP from -200XP.
Fixes
- Fixed several exploit locations on all maps.
- Fixed Steam party members not following the party leader.
- Fixed Steam party main menu voice stuttering.
- Fixed Jason getting stuck in the grab pose if a grabbed counselor disconnects while being pulled out of a car.
- Fixed an issue with block detection on boat seats.
- Fixed some counselor vehicle interactions not being blocked while in a context kill.
- Fixed some floating items on item swap and with traps.
- Fixed the Shotgun sometimes floating after use.
- Fixed an issue with tracking total Jason kills.
- Fixed multiple achievement related bugs.
- Fixed windows sometimes displaying the wrong open/close position on listen servers.
- Fixed an issue where sprint was canceling fear animations & some stances.
- Fixed some dynamic camera issues when interpolating from a kill back to the player.
- Fixed Jason being able to morph into the boat and get shoved out of the map.
- Fixed a case where spectators would not hear alive players.
- Fixed session presence not always updating immediately to point at your game session (for invites) after you leave a party session.
- Fixed some game server specific crashes.
- Fixed the game sitting for the duration of the outro when no outro is played.
- Fixed the scoreboard staying on the screen when the end match menu opens.
- Locking the end match scoreboard on-screen.
- Fixed defaults not always functioning in Video Settings.
- Made the Gamma slider easier to use with a gamepad.
- Fixed a case where a player’s mute state may not be sent to the server after loading the map.
- Fixed character placement issue when getting out of a tent.
- Fixed character placement issue when ejected from a car and your door is blocked.
- Fixed being able to use other items while using the sweater.
- Fixed some exploits with trap placement.
- Fixed multiple crouch exploits.
- Fixed multiple fireplace kill interaction distances.
- Fixed multiple cases of Jason being struck and flying off the map.
- Fixed multiple interaction lock bugs.
- Optimized Steam P2P lobby tag updates, dedicated server tag space usage.
Playing Friday the 13th? If not, why not?
The Best Guest Characters In Video Games
Video games have had their fair share of guest characters. Whether it’s a character from a film, comic book or another video game we have had some great cross overs. Now that Injustice 2 is inviting Sub Zero from Mortal Kombat to join its roster, we thought we would list our best guest characters in video games.
Spawn – Soul Caliber 2
Soul Caliber II had 3 guest characters in total, These characters were specific to what console you were playing on. The GameCube had Link from the Legend of Zelda, the PS2 had Heihachi Mishima and Xbox had Spawn from Image Comics. Now you could say that either Link or Heihachi are better, but for me Spawn was the best, not just because he is one of my favourite comic book characters. His moves and story made sense and he didn’t feel like he was just shoe horned into the game just to keep a niche group of fans happy. The easy thing to do would have been to put Master Chief into his slot instead, so I am glad they didn’t.
Also if the rumours are true about Spawn coming to Injustice 2 as a guest character that would be nothing short of amazing. Ed Boon if you are reading this please add him in, thanks.
Jason Voorhees – Mortal Kombat X/XL
Both Mortal Kombat 9 and X have had their fair share of guest appearances including Freddy Kruger, Leather Face, Predator and an Alien from the Alien series of films. Jason in my option has the edge over these guest characters with his move set and fatalities. He’s also pretty damn scary compared to most of the other guest characters, except the Alien maybe.
XCOM Squads – Civilisation V
Hands up, how many of you knew that you could call in XCOM squads in Civilization V? Probably a few of you but this is a pretty cool guest appearance as the strategy genre isn’t really teeming with guest appearances, especially from other strategy games. You could consider them a bit OP in Civ 5 though, as they don’t require resources and have a epically huge Giant Death Robot. Still fun to use though.
Link – Mario Kart 8
Before MarioKart 8, guest appearances were not heard of (except for R.O.B in Mario Kart 7). So when Link turned up as DLC for Mario Kart 8 a lot of Nintendo fans went crazy at the thought (both good crazy and bad crazy). He pioneered the way for other guest characters to join the game, such as characters from Splatoon and a whole host of F-Zero content (why they didn’t add Captain Falcon I have no idea). Link also came equipped with his own motor bike which looks like an armoured version of Epona, what more could you ask for?
Raiden (Mortal Kombat) – Unreal Championship 2
If like me you played the hell out of the Unreal Championship games on the Xbox then you would have more than likely crossed paths with Raiden from the Mortal Kombat series. His use of lightening worked really well in the Unreal Championship setting. True, his torpedo attack would have worked wonders in the game but you can’t have everything.
Dante and Trish – Viewtiful Joe
Both Dante and Trish from DMC (not to be confused with DmC) make a guest appearance in the PS2 version of the side scrolling beat em up game Viewtiful Joe. Not only did they do some pretty awesome Devil May Cry fan service in the game, they also had their own set of moves and attacks. These characters were unlocked after completing the game in any difficulty, they also came in pretty handy for beating the game on the harder levels.
Spartan Nicole – Dead Or Alive 4
As guest appearances go this one is a bit different. Dead Or Alive 4 added a character from the Halo series into its roster called Nicole, a female super soldier decked out in the classic Halo series Spartan Armour. Whilst technically classed as a brand new character (as Nicole has never appeared in the Halo universe) she is considered as a guest character because she is basically a female master chief (this was back in the days before Halo Reach, where female spartans were a thing).
Kratos – Shovel Knight
Kratos is a guest boss fight for shovel knight and is exclusive to the Sony version of Shovel Knight. He is great fun to play against and drops some pretty awesome loot once he is defeated. He also has some of his iconic moves from the God of War series as well as the ability to absorb orbs for health.
Spider-Man – Tony Hawks Pro Skater 2
Back in the PlayStation 1 days having Spider Man suddenly turn up in your extreme sports game was THE BEST THING! He came complete with his own tricks (which included his webs) and was possibly the best thing ever to happen to the Tony Hawks games.
Akuma – Tekken 7
To tide fans over until Tekken X Street Fighter comes out (still no word on what stage of development the game is in yet) Bandai Namco have added Akuma to Tekken 7 turning him into a hitman who has been sent on a mission to kill both Heihachi Mishima and his son Kazuya. It works really well and Akuma does not feel out of place in the game, he also stays loyal to his street fighter move set. If you get the chance to play as him, do it.
So that’s out best guest characters in Video games. Who are yours?
Five Fun Final Fantasy Facts
How Star Wars Battlefront 2 Is learning From Its Predecessor
Ever since Star Wars Battlefront 2 was officially announced in May, we have had a decent amount of information released about the game. One of the things that both EA and DICE keep referring to is how much they are listening to the fans and how they are learning from their mistakes. Here are a few things that Star Wars Battlefront 2 is bringing to the table that the first game didn’t.
A Single Player Story Campaign
Possibly one of the most noticeable features that Star Wars Battlefront 2 is giving players is a single player campaign mode. You probably know the spiel now but for those of you who have been out of the loop, the story mode is set between the The Return Of The Jedi and The Force Awakens. Players will be playing as Iden Versio, a member of the imperial Inferno Squad. If you are looking for the full synopsis of the story mode you can check out our previous article highlighting the story.
This is probably the feature both EA and DICE can add to Battlefront 2 as this makes the game instantly more accessible to gamers. True a lot of us out there do love a good multiplayer game but there are a number of us who do like to just shut off from the world and sink into a decent single player experience.
Classes
Battlefront 2 will be adding a brand new class system to multiplayer. This means players will get a lot more variety when it comes to choosing their characters for online play. Classes will be separated into four different roles including officer, heavy, assault and specialist. Each of these classes come with their own weapon modifications and unique abilities for players to use in the heat of battle. Weapon upgrades can be unlocked in game so you won’t have to pay any extra for new abilities and modifications.
Multiple Heroes During Battle
It has been confirmed that during multiplayer battles there is potential to have multiple heroes appearing during battle. This means you can have the likes of Luke Skywalker and Darth Vader on the battlefield at the same time. Hero characters won’t be as overpowered as they were in the last game either, giving all players the chance to defeat them and keep the game going. Classes will also play heavily in to taking the heroes out. As a mixture of classes working together will be able to take heroes down provided they have some tactics. You could say that this isn’t very loyal to the Star Wars franchise as Stormtroopers are usually just cannon fodder for the main characters, but if done correctly, this mechanic can make battles even more epic.
Free DLC
One of the biggest gripes that players had against Star Wars Battlefront was the fact they had to fork out even more cash to buy all of the DLC maps and expansions for the game. Battlefront 2 turns the table as both EA and DICE have confirmed that it will feature a season of DLC which will be completely free. This will feature star cards, new locations, new modes, new vehicles, new characters, new weapons and much much more.
Based off of these new features alone we can really tell that EA and DICE are listening to their fans. We can’t wait to jump into Star Wars Battlefront 2 when it releases on the 17th November 2017.
Metro Exodus
The Microsoft conference had probably some of the best announcements to come out of E3 2017, with first looks at the one and only Xbox One X One 111 X One and other fantastic games to emerge, including the long awaited Metro Exodus, can I get a hell yeah! But which are the best games to take the top spots, to earn the conference crown. I’ll tell you…
1. Metro Exodus
We have a winner. Metro Exodus is the third game in the Metro series and it looks badass. It’s got the grit, the gore, the survival, the horror, the desolate, hopeless setting that means you’ll probably spend the whole game panicking.
2. Metro Exodus
DID I MENTION AT ALL, IT HAS MUTANT ANIMALS. Not just your regular bear, a raging, ravenous, disfigured bear and wolves, which are pretty cute actually, I’ll feel bad about killing those. But our favourite mutant mole things (Nosalis) are back!
3. Metro Exodus
There’s this game called Metro Exodus and it looks like it will be mainly set outside, yay! I like the outside, more places to run and escape. Not that you should play that way, obviously, face your nightmares, take no prisoners!
4. Metro Exodus
The guns are gunna be guuuuud. There’s no time to stop still, which I guess is the point. True to Metro games, it’s mad dashing, hiding, surviving, and killing, mad dashing, hiding, surviving and killing…
5. Metro Exodus
Winter is the best month because you can play games without feeling bad about not going outside and having people say, hey, not got a tan yet. NO! Set in Moscow, the icy setting and perpetual winter just adds an extra chill to the creepy and barren setting. Although this Metro game features snow at the beginning, it looks like it could be Autumn in Moscow, that’s okay though, I’ll take some grass, it’s easier to spot enemies anyway.
6. Metro Exodus
7. Metro Exodus
THIS QUOTE from the game dev —–> “We’re doing this mix of classic gameplay and this new non-linear style and we wanted to maintain what our fans expect, what they’ve known, and what they’re used to and love, while also introducing something new that is blending of what we’ve done over the past two games and plus something that the core team at 4A Games has done in the past with the Stalker games.”
8. Metro Exodus
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QEuEOugOXcc
9. Anthem also looks good
Because of the exo-suits.
10. Ori and the Will of the Wisps
This is a whole different story for another day.
IN SUMMARY, Metro Exodus.