Editor-in-chief: MasterAbbott
I’ve been quite busy this week organizing our appointments for this year’s E3 which starts on the 7th of June. So many great new games on the cards this year and also Nintendo’s BIG announcement of the Wii 2 has a few of us here at Capsule Computers very excited. Anyway, what have I been playing you ask ? Well the same old games this week unfortunately. I’ve been kicking locust’s ass in the Gears Of War 3 Beta which sadly ends on the 15th of May. I ended up unlocking all the weapons, executions and skins along with characters like Cole and Anya that will unlock in the retail game once its released. I finally got my hands on the Hammer of Dawn this week which was quite enjoyable to use allowing me to decimate the locust scum quickly and easily. My overall experience with the Gears 3 BETA has been pleasant (APART FROM THE FREAKS USING THE SAWN-OFF SHOTGUNS), finding a public match was very quick, I never lagged out and game modes were fun to play. Hopefully EPIC Games can take all this valuable game data and fine tune the online multiplayer experience even more making Gears 3 a major player on Xbox Live leader board once it’s released.
Other games I’ve played this week included Gameloft’s Order & Chaos. I wish I could take this game with me everywhere I go but you need to connect to a Wi-Fi point. Standard 3G just can’t handle the sheer size of this online MMO game, but it’s still keeping me busy with the little time I have. I’ve also been playing my 3DS, it’s like a daily ritual now. I go for a walk, find some Mii’s using Street Pass, I jump into the Mii Plaza and start up Puzzle Swap and pick up some new Puzzle Pieces, then hire me some heroes to aid my newly found Mii’s on their quest to rescue my own Mii from the clutches of the EVIL Ghosts! It’s a great 10-15 min break and something you all should do if you have a 3DS.
Anyway. that’s all from me this week. I’m off to go check some emails and get ready for E3, only 22 days left to go! Woohoo! Have a great week.
Senior Editor: Travis Bruno
This weekend I spent a large amount of my time playing Brink for the Xbox 360. I’d have to say its a great game for the most part and it is obvious that Splash Damage at least got some sort of inspiration from Team Fortress 2 as many of the classes are quite similar. It is unfortunate though that the allied AI is very poorly designed and that the online modes that the game focuses on entirely are so laggy. There was an update released today for the Xbox 360 version so hopefully it will fix some of the problems at least. With the PSN down for so long, my PlayStation 3 has been doing practically nothing besides collecting dust but I did spend some time with Hyperdimension Neptunia for the sake of getting a decent RPG experience again.
Besides that I got my hands on The First Templar and Lego: Pirates of the Carribbean. Haven’t played either one a whole lot though I can say that the Pirates game is definitely one of the best looking Lego titles that they have ever released. Also it is about time that they let you select whatever character you want in Free Play during the level, should have been something they incorporated right from the beginning. As for The First Templar it looks like it was an Xbox original port as far as graphics go. There really isn’t a whole lot to say about the title because unfortunately there isn’t anything that stands out, just a hum drum action adventure with a Templar setting. Poor 3DS and PSP collected dust this week, though I know everything will collect dust next week with L.A. Noire coming out.
Senior Editor: Dustin Spencer
During the past week I got a small flood of new titles which are varied for the most part. Of course, Brink came out which I picked up, and so far I am really enjoying it aside from the lag. I guess I could best explain it as Mirror’s Edge meets…well, your standard shooter with classes. Interesting concept but there is certainly a lot to learn. I am currently playing two different versions of Thor, one on the DS and one on the Xbox 360. The DS one is awesome (so far) as it reminds me a bit of side-scrolling beat-em ups from the 90’s with both screens in full use. The Xbox 360 one…yeah. Uninspired gameplay, choppy framerates, and just bland overall. The reviews for both should be up soon so keep an eye out for that. I also finished Gattling Gears for the XBLA, which was twin-stick shooting at the best I think I have ever seen it so you can check out that review as well (review link here, will be up tonight).
Continuing my 3DS collection a bit, I picked up Dream Trigger 3D, which I thought would be an arcade shooter but instead it is a little bit of a different experience which I can’t quite put my finger on. I guess you could say if you combined Lumines and REZ maybe? Finally, Mighty Milky Way was released for the DSiWare, and being a huge Wayforward fan, I had to grab it up quickly and it certainly is an interesting little game.
Editor: Jared Hilliers
So I have a back catalogue of games like most other gamers, but mine is that bad that I have some from 2008 to catch up on, like Metal Gear Solid 4. I’ve travelled back in time with Snake along with the original Dragon Age, why? Because I really don’t like leaving anything unfinished, even if the game was free. Most of these games I got halfway through and walked away from for some reason, like being scared of a boss or something stupid like that, but hey, the laughing octopus in MGS4 freaked me in out with surround sound in the dark.
Back to the year 2011, I’m looking forward to LA.Noire, which comes out this week. It’s a home grown game (Sydney based) and some people I went to University with worked on it (trippy!). Plus the most memorable game I played in the last 12 months was a Rockstar published game as well (Red dead anyone?), so I’m betting this game is going to have a big impact this year.
Editor: Roger Ma
Surprisingly, I’ve recently just re-picked up playing Pokemon Gold on my old Gameboy Colour which brings back alot of old memories (my game’s just passed the 100 hour mark). Asides from this, I’ve also been playing Call of Duty: Black Ops multiplayer with some friends; it’s basically us vs. bots which is unexpectedly very fun as it is just getting and using Killstreaks – a lot of helicopters! Also, my mates and I are still trying to crack 69 stars on Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 Spec Ops, those juggernauts are very very hard to kill, we’re stuck on Echo.
Editor: Michael Marr
This week I, I thought I would try my hand at a game that I have always heard about, and most certainly know about, but never played or experienced personally. Prepare yourselves for a shock: this week, I began playing Half-Life 2 for the very first time. Believe it or not, I originally purchased the Orange Box in order to play Team Fortress 2, and I was also interested in this little known number called Portal. However, in the 2 odd years since I first got it, I never really thought to turn on Half-Life 2 to see what all the fuss was about…until now that is.
I gotta say, it’s a GOOD game. BUT. But, but, but… I don’t think it’s as great as people make it out to be. I mean sure, it’s fun, the story is enjoyable and the action well paced, but given all the hype I’ve heard about this, I was expecting a digital embodiment of perfection. Then again I remembered that Portal already swooped in and attained that title for itself. Oh, speaking of which, I FINALLY got enough free time to finish off playing Portal 2.
Besides that, other smaller plays on my list included Operation Flashpoint: Dragon Rising (for a review), Left 4 Dead 2, Pokemon Soulsilver and Dragon Age 2.
Editor: Ben Webb
What have I been playing this week? Hmm… Lemme think….QuakeLive.
Yars’ Revenge PC – Awesome game, absolutely loved it! Only problem is that are a few bugs, namely on the second level where you can’t use the mouse! Luckily I have a X360 controller handy. It’s weird though: all the other levels work with the mouse fine, but hopefully ATARI get around to patching the problem.
Puzzle Bobble Universe – Got a review up for this one, it was fairly entertaining and can be quite ifficult at times, read my review for my full impressions.
Avadon: The Black Fortress – An Indie RPG about dudes called hands who have authority similar to that of a Specters in Mass Effect. It’s an alright game I guess. Expect a review up soon if it’s not already up.
I also got back into Diablo 2 recently, so I’ve put a few hours into that.
On another note, has anyone been watching Eurovision? Man it’s been pretty fun this year and can’t wait for next years contest!
Editor: Michael Irving
With the sequel coming this year, I thought I’d dig Prototype out of hibernation. I got it about 2 years ago, played for maybe an hour, and for some reason never picked it up again. And while it’s a fun concept, like GTA with more verticality, I found it endlessly frustrating. I tried really hard to enjoy the game, but there’s a ridiculous amount of stuff to keep track of. Traveling around the huge city can be a nightmare, as, for example, you have to release the glide button and press jump to get a mid-air boost, and half the time that drops you to the ground. And i always get slaughtered in combat, as I frantically try to remember the combos, or even the basic attacks. I end up jumping all over the place, attacking the wrong targets, picking stuff up instead of punching, assuming I have my shield thing active when I accidentally pressed the button to cancel it. I’m not a rager at all, but this was the closest I’ve ever been to throwing the controller into the TV.
It’s unfortunate, i really like the idea, and it looks fun, I just can’t get into it. But I remember having the same problem with Just Cause 2, and I ended up loving that, so maybe I need to give it another chance. I’m just worried about my TV’s welfare…
I also finished Oddworld: Abe’s Exodus this week, the second game in the Oddboxx. I’ll move onto the third this week, but I’m a little unsure of how the series will transition into 3D.
Editor: Kelly Teng
This week, I’ve been going back to World of Warcraft because…well, let’s face it, we all have a soft spot for WoW. I’d forgotten how great the 80-85 instances were, but I’d also forgotten how playing WoW means minutes turns into hours and before you know it, a day has passed you. I’ve also watched American: The Bill Hicks Story for review (awesome documentary, anyone who loves comedy should watch this). I also got Top Spin 4 back from my friend and played a little bit of the career mode again. No matter how cool Virtua Tennis 4 is, I still have a soft spot for Top Spin; with Rafa beating Nole in the Rome Masters, I figured I could exact my own form of vengeance by beating Nole in the game.
Other than that, I’m really just biding my time until L.A. Noire comes out. Anyone who has been following L.A. Noire will know how exciting this release is, and anyone who has even seen my posts on this site or spoken to me will know just how excited I am for this game. I’ll also be doing a film noir DVD review special in celebration of L.A. Noire’s release, so keep an eye out for that in the coming weeks!
Editor: Alexis Ayala
I’ve been playing a very new game to me. It’s called: Move to Sydney from New York. But seriously I haven’t had too much time to play much of anything aside of some Halo: Reach with my (17 year old) brother in law (who owns me… because he’s 17) and rocking out hard with some iOS games. I’ve maintained a healthy addiction to Game Dev Story for the past couple of months, which if you haven’t tried yet I would only recommend if you’re willing to give up your entire life…because that’s whats going to happen…because it’s digital crack. I’ve also been going through the fantastic Superbrothers: Sword & Sworcery EP which is really the first experience on iPhone that I’ve had that has really shown me what the platform is capable of. Sword & Sworcery is a game that’s not possible on other devices and really takes advantage of all the features of the iPhone (or iPad). I’ve also been playing through World of Goo again. This is the 3rd time I’ve purchased World of Goo (Wii, Steam, iOS) and its been worth buying every time. What a fantastic game! And last but not least I’ve just started to go through Portal (Steam for Mac) again. I’m going through with the commentary this time to prepare myself forPortal 2, which I’ve already purchased but wont be able to play for another 6 weeks or so (which is when my stuff arrives from New York).
So obviously I’m looking forward to getting all my stuff from New York. My wife and I have an apartment furnished with a blowup mattress, a couple of stools and a barbeque (which is the first thing I bought when we moved in… priorities you know). Feng shui isn’t difficult when you have 3 items. However, I’m foaming at the mouth waiting for L.A. Noire and the chance to finally play Portal 2. It’s funny, waiting for your own stuff to arrive feels like the way Christmas felt when you were a little kid. I just can’t wait!
Editor: Darren Resnekov
I’ve been playing Portal 2 on Xbox360. Having never played the first game, I didn’t know what to expect. Aside from the lack of blood and guns, I found it to be a very welcome change from the current titles available. The puzzles and environments are amazing. Going to begin Brink after hearing mixed reviews about it – I am keen to see what all the hype is. I’ve also been playing more Fifa 11, and I reviewed Socom 4 which had its good elements in the stealth missions and AFL Live which requires more patience than a high school teacher.
