‘Halo 5: Guardians’ is good fun, but it’s better with friends
I’m a pretty huge video game fan, but I’ve never played a minute of the Halo series in my life; I’ve never even owned an Xbox console. As such, it’s somewhat appropriate that a preview of Halo 5: Guardians was my introduction to the series — it’s the first Halo game for the Xbox One, and it’s undoubtedly a title that Microsoft is looking at as a system seller. The game shouldn’t have a hard time getting long-time fans back into the fold, but what about someone like me?
As an outsider to the series, it doesn’t feel particularly welcoming. There’s a huge amount of story lore to know about Halo at this point — and, perhaps more importantly, the fifth game in a series probably assumes some gameplay and story knowledge on the part of participants. As someone without that knowledge, I was hoping developer 343 Industries managed to make the latest entry welcoming for noobs and veterans alike.
Unfortunately, at this point, the verdict is still out. At a media-only event in San Francisco last week, I played through two single-player missions of Halo 5, but they weren’t consecutive, nor were they the missions at the start of the game. I jumped right in with Master Chief and Blue Team in mission two, and then followed that up by getting my first look at Jameson Locke and his team in the game’s tenth mission.
The Master Chief mission was set deep in a cold, dark, and generally unfriendly space station, complete with the obligatory (but beautiful) views out the windows of the desolation and emptiness of space. Your mission is to try and reclaim the station, but things go awry and instead you’re forced to activate a nuclear reactor and blow the place to smithereens. The Locke mission takes place in an entirely different environment; the goal being to take out a massive spaceship called the Kraken that’s laying siege to the rocky, sun-baked canyons and mountains of the planet you’ve landed on. But beyond each mission’s immediate goals, I had no sense of how these events were of importance to the overall narrative. The Halo universe is complicated, almost byzantine, and I had no real sense of what each character’s motivations were at any point aside from “don’t die.”
That said, it doesn’t seem fair to judge a game’s story elements when you’re not playing from the beginning. Fortunately, the jumbled story didn’t detract from Halo 5‘s other delights. Yes, it might be hard to jump right into the universe if you’re new to the series, but from a gameplay perspective, Halo remains as tight a first-person shooter experience as you can get. It’s an extremely polished affair, with controls that are easily grasped. If you’ve ever played any console-based FPS game before, you’ll be right at home here. The game runs smoothly at 60fps, and exudes a level of polish that makes you confident about what you’re getting into. It’s the definition of a “AAA” title. Overall, though, the missions weren’t exactly memorable — even a day later, I had a hard time trying to remember exactly what I was trying to accomplish.
The gameplay was refreshingly varied, though: Both episodes featured plenty of first-person shooting, but there was also some fun (and challenging) vehicle-based sections that did a great job of breaking up wave after wave of enemies. The Locke mission had a particularly thrilling section where you needed to fly into the heart of Kraken, land on the ship after dispatching a number of turrets, and then fight your way into its depths to blow up the core. It’s the kind of well-executed action set piece that could set the game apart from the many other titles like it.
Even the alien-killing didn’t get tired due to continually-changing environments. In particular, each mission had a lot of depth. There’s a lot of action happening above and below you, making it extra-challenging to know where to train your attention while clearing out a part of the map. But even though the majority of the missions involved mowing down hordes of Covenant Grunts, Elites, Jackals and Hunters, they felt significantly less repetitive than those in Destiny, which is perhaps the most obvious point of comparison.
Still, I wouldn’t characterize the single-player experience as anything unexpected, nor was it particularly engaging or all that difficult. But that all changed when I got to try the co-op missions with three fellow human players. When you’re playing by yourself, Halo 5‘s AI controls the other three members of your team; at no point did I ever really feel those companions were much of a help or a hinderance. They were just there.
In co-op, that’s entirely different. The game ramps up the difficulty to account for your human-controlled companions. Fortunately, this made the whole experience a lot more fun. There were at least two sections where our team battled several massive Hunters as well as hordes of more standard enemies, and we had to be far more cautious and deliberate than in the single-player campaign. Case in point: If more than two of your teammates are down and waiting for assistance, chances are you’re going to have to start over from scratch. The relief and feeling of success after getting past these tough sections was palpable — something that didn’t come across while playing solo.
Would Halo 5: Guardians be enough to get me to buy an Xbox One? Based on the what I saw of the single-player preview, probably not — this title will most likely appeal to the (large) group of hardcore fans out there, and will probably sell a bunch of Xbox Ones to those who haven’t come on board yet. As for a noob like me, playing with friends made me realize that multiplayer — and in particular, this new co-op mode — is the way to best enjoy Halo. It’s been the series’ strength since the very beginning, and Halo 5 seems poised to succeed again on the strength of that shared experience.
Peek behind the developers’ curtain with ‘SpyParty’ slider images
Most 3D games don’t begin life as gorgeous, fully animated, shaded and colored products. They start with concept art and placeholder images that allow developers to fine-tune the mechanics and build out a full experience. Sometimes, these placeholder characters are unrefined. Sometimes, they look like a weird hybrid between a Lego man and one of the original Sims. That’s the case for SpyParty, an intense game of one-on-one stealth, misdirection and sharpshooting that’s been in development for roughly eight years. And, looking at its original art, we do mean rough (though the OG characters are beloved by many early players). In a blog update, SpyParty creator Chris Hecker shows off how his game has changed since its placeholder days, in a set of images with sliders comparing old and new, fancy graphics provided by artist John Cimino.
Source: SpyParty
Microsoft’s Xbox Beta app hits the Windows 10 store
A few days ago, Microsoft revealed that Windows 10 users could soon help it shape its Xbox app for the new OS. And well, that’s happening today. The Xbox Beta app is based on the popular Xbox One Preview Program, which gives people access to features before they’re released to the public and lets them provide feedback based on their experience with those. Similarly, Microsoft says the goal with this new application is to have fans provide early input on features and enhancements that are intended to come to the Xbox app for Windows 10. If you’re interested in checking it out and being a part of the program, you can download Xbox Beta now from the Windows Store.
Xbox Beta app now available in W10 Store – includes real-time activity feed in friends list. https://t.co/XY8lhqhq87 pic.twitter.com/Ts5RonejWD
— Larry Hryb (@majornelson) September 22, 2015
Source: Xbox Beta (Windows Store)
Playdate: Racing into action with ‘Skylanders Superchargers’
If you have an undying love of weird monsters, action-adventure video games, expensive collectible toys and wacky vehicles, you’ve come to the right place: Tim Seppala and I are about to play Skylanders Superchargers. That’s right, the franchise that kicked off the toys-to-life trend is now in its 5th generation, enticing veteran players to dust off their figure collections for an all new gimmick — planes, boats and automobiles. As for us? This is our first Skylanders game, ever. Come join us at 6 pm ET / 3 pm PT to find out if it’s a good starting point for new players. As always, you can watch our broadcast on this very post, the Engadget Gaming homepage or, if you want to chat along with us, head over to Twitch.tv/joystiq. While you’re there, hit the heart button below the streaming window to give us a follow.
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[We’re streaming Skylanders Superchargers on PlayStation 4 and at 720p through OBS. Rest assured, this game will look much better on your setup at home.]
1TB PS4 lands in the US, but it’s in an ugly ‘Black Ops 3’ bundle
Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, but orange and grey is so last season, every season. The 1TB PlayStation 4 officially arrives in North America on November 6th in a specially designed Call of Duty: Black Ops 3 bundle that includes the game, Nuk3town bonus map, console and matching controller. It costs $450 in the US and CAD$550 in Canada, and pre-orders are available today. Seriously though, we won’t judge anyone for snagging this thing — 1TB is a lot of storage, after all.
The 1TB PS4 launched in Europe in July, minus the Black Ops 3 artwork. It costs £350 in the UK, the same price as Microsoft’s 1TB Xbox One. In the US, the 1TB Xbox One runs $400.
Sony and Activision, the publisher behind Black Ops 3, announced a partnership at E3 2015 that makes the PS4 the “new home of Call of Duty.” For years, Microsoft’s Xbox 360 and Xbox One received special treatment within the Call of Duty franchise, often launching betas and DLC weeks before any other platforms.
Source: PlayStation Blog
Classic cyberpunk shooter ‘System Shock’ gets revamped on GOG.com
Twenty-one years after its launch on PCs, System Shock is back and revamped for modern systems. System Shock: Enhanced Edition is available on GOG.com and it’s currently just $8 in a launch sale running through September 29th. System Shock is a cyberpunk, first-person shooter and role-playing game, and it was the first of its kind back in 1994. Both Warren Spector (the creator of Deus Ex) and Ken Levine (the creator of BioShock) had a hand in the series. The Enhanced Edition ups resolution support from 640×480 to 1024×768, with a native widescreen mode of 854×480, plus it adds remappable keys, bug fixes and mouselook mode. For all of the purists out there, the classic System Shock is included with the Enhanced Edition on GOG.Slideshow-322387
Source: GOG.com
‘Hitman’ delayed to March 2016
IO Interactive needs a few more months to bulk out the new Hitman — the studio has pushed the game’s release date back from December 2015 to March 2016. The delay applies to all versions: PlayStation 4, Xbox One and Steam. Wherever and whenever you end up playing Hitman, it’s going to be a slightly different experience for the series. IO Interactive and publisher Square Enix plan to release Hitman in chunks, starting with a large initial launch. Afterward, the game’s remaining locations will be released over time. The new Hitman‘s tagline is, “Enter a world of assassination,” which feeds into the idea of a constantly updated, evolving landscape.
“These few extra months will mean we can add more to the launch content of the game, more than we had originally planned, and then follow with a tighter frequency of updates, which ultimately will create a better game for everyone,” IO Interactive writes on the Hitman blog. “And in the end, that’s what we’re all looking for.”
Source: Hitman blog
The Gamebeat: A portable gaming controller and phone case in one design
Gaming on mobile devices is not as user friendly as controller based setups like you have at home. Playing games like Grand Theft Auto on your Android device is fun while you’re out and about, but can be extremely frustrating when you need precise controls that you cannot get from on screen buttons. I personally have never liked games like that on my Android devices because I leave on screen controls for games like Words with Friends where precision is not vital to the success of winning the game.
Of course there are companies that offer wireless gaming controllers for your device, but they are huge and are not really portable. Most even require their own charging cable because the battery is so large.
In comes a project that is looking for funding over at Indiegogo called GameBeat, which is a case and game controller all in one design to keep things mobile.
What is the GameBeat? (from the indiegogo campaign)
2. The GameBeat case has a specially designed friction hinge, which is sewed into the case when it’s manufactured. It locks in place at any angle the user wants up to the 360 degrees (so it won’t bother you when you aren’t gaming). It is strong enough to hold your phone at any angle you want (like Lenovo yoga ultrabooks), but also soft enough to easily open and close it. Both the phone and the GameBeat controller can easily detach from the case.
– 4 sizes and 4 colors (pink, black, white, blue) of universal* cases are available :
- up to 4.5” smartphones
- from 4.5” to 5” smartphones
- from 5” to 5.5” smartphones
- from 5,5” to 6” smartphones
*Universal means it fits on any smartphone model or manufacturer. So no matter if you have Samsung, HTC, Motorola, Lenovo… smartphones, they will fit on the case.
For the LG G line and all the other smartphones with the volume buttons on the back, special cases with the cut out on the back will be manufactured.
Funding for the Gamebeat is still in very early stages which means you can pick one of these up for $45 if you get in now. $45 is much cheaper than those other bulky options especially if you consider you are getting a phone case too. Check it out over at indiegogo.com. The first 100 backers will get in for $45, the next 500 will get in at $60, and the rest will get in at $70 which is $15 off the suggested retail price. This bluetooth gaming controller is expected to ship before next summer.
The post The Gamebeat: A portable gaming controller and phone case in one design appeared first on AndroidGuys.
Try to survive a sadistic circus in ‘Penarium’ for PC and consoles
Humans make for more complex strategy than code can. Take Penarium designer and producer Rick van Ginkel’s story for example: His studio, Self Made Miracle, once tried to develop a strategy game that relied on complicated spreadsheets and algorithms. It “failed horribly,” he says. “I was doing spreadsheet balancing all the time and couldn’t get it right. That is why we decided to go for an action game where I could do game design based more on ‘feeling’ rather than mathematics.” That new, feeling-based game is Penarium, a twitchy, bloody, pixelated romp about a man attempting to survive a violent circus attraction in the late 19th century. Instead of forcing strategy into the code or controls, Penarium puts the complexity in players’ hands.Slideshow-322298
Penarium requires a mix of timing, luck and that sudden, instinctual urge that prompts players to jump in a certain direction at a specific time. It’s a gut-feeling kind of game. Penarium has just two basic controls — run and jump — and it throws all manner of explosives, rotating blades, spiked walls, fiery beams, giant metal balls and other lethal obstacles at Willy, the silly protagonist. It’s basically assured that Willy will die in Penarium. In fact, that’s part of the fun. But, with each life lost, players learn more efficient ways of surviving each level.
In that way, it’s almost like Super Meat Boy, though van Ginkel and fellow designer Teun Westenenk say they don’t consider that game among Penarium‘s influences.
“Super Meat Boy gets brought up a lot (and I understand why) but was never really a game we looked to a lot during development,” van Ginkel says. “We did take a good look at the original arcade version of Super Mario Brothers as well as Super Smash Bros and Super Crate Box. Perhaps we should have called our game Super Penarium as well to fit in nicely.”
Penarium differs from Super Meat Boy in another major way: It features local multiplayer alongside the solo campaign modes. This applies to all versions of the game (PlayStation 4, Xbox One and PC via Steam).
During development, van Ginkel and Westenenk received help from other independent studios in the Dutch Game Garden, a federally funded game-making incubator in the Netherlands that’s spawned successes such as Vlambeer‘s Ridiculous Fishing and Nuclear Throne, Abbey Games‘ Renowned Explorers, and Ronimo‘s Awesomenauts. The Dutch Game Garden encourages developers to work together and support each other, and it provides a staff dedicated to helping out individual projects. This team helped Self Made Miracle negotiate a publishing contract with Worms studio Team17.
“The Dutch Game Garden helped us grow as a company really fast,” Westenenk says. “Before we moved into the DGG, we knew how to make games, but we had no network whatsoever and didn’t know how to do things like marketing and business. This is where a place like the DGG is perfect.”
Now, after two years of work and contracts, Penarium is due to hit PS4, Xbox One and PC this week. Oddly enough, though, it started out as a Mac game.
“We actually made the original version of the game for Mac,” van Ginkel says. “We are all used to working on Macs ourselves, so we started building it for that and than ported it over to Windows. We had to buy Windows machines as we didn’t have any in the office.”
Westenenk and van Ginkel are nervous, yet hopeful, about Penarium‘s launch this week — September 22nd on Steam and PS4, and September 23rd on Xbox One. In the end, they hope players learn that simple controls can make for a surprisingly complex, entertaining game.
But, even if Penarium doesn’t convince players of the merits of simple controls, Westenenk hopes the game’s true moral comes across: “Never, ever go to a circus.”
So yeah.. the game we have been working on for almost 2 years is coming out tomorrow.. that’s not scary at all..
— Self Made Miracle (@SelfMadeNL) September 21, 2015
[Images: Self Made Miracle/Team17]
NVIDIA brings its top-end desktop graphics to laptops
You no longer need a huge, water-cooled rig to play the latest blockbuster shooters, with plenty of gaming laptops doing a fine job of marrying performance with portability. But a divide still exists, with even the best mobile GPUs defined as “desktop-class,” which is a nice way of saying they aren’t quite as powerful as the cards made for home office-hogging towers. That said, in what NVIDIA claims is an industry first, the company has today announced its top-end GeForce GTX 980 desktop GPU is headed to laptops. Not to be confused with the GTX 980M — NVIDIA’s previous flagship GPU for notebooks — the GTX 980 for laptops is exactly the same as the desktop version, offering identical gaming performance.Slideshow-322349
Crafted using NVIDIA’s power efficient Maxwell architecture, the GTX 980 runs at a base 1.1GHz clock speed, with 2048 CUDA cores and 4GB of GDDR5 video memory (7 Gbps memory speed). All these numbers culminate in a laptop GPU that can comfortable run any of the latest titles at over 60 fps on maximum graphics settings. The GTX 980 can also drive three 1080p displays (should a notebook’s outputs allow it), and is “fully certified by Oculus,” meaning it’s effectively guaranteed to hold up to the demands of VR gaming.
Furthermore, the GTX 980 for laptops is made with serious enthusiasts in mind, and according to NVIDIA, is the first fully unlocked GPU for notebooks. Any laptop sporting the chip will feature NVIDIA software that lets you overclock the GPU, and make other tweaks like set temperature thresholds and cooling fan speeds. Obviously, the GTX 980 is destined for the cream of the crop of gaming laptops, such as the recently announced water-cooled ASUS GX700 (pictured above), and others from the likes of Gigabyte, Clevo and MSI. The 18-inch MSI GT80 will even boast two of the new top-end GPUs, and you can expect many more partners announcing laptops in the near future sporting this new benchmark in notebook graphics.
AIVAnet 