Review: WWE ’12 is a marked improvement that could use more refinement

Author’s Note: This review article was published November 23, 2011 and originally appeared on Examiner.com. Clicking on this link will take you to its original location.

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The WWE SmackDown! series was one of the most successful WWE video game franchises of all time. Marked by a dedication to presentation and gameplay, the original WWE SmackDown! for PS1 set a new bar for what gamers would expect from wrestling games in the years to come. The franchise, however, had stayed very close to a certain style of gameplay for a number of years and both fans and critics were calling out for change. THQ and Yuke’s acknowledged those calls with WWE ’12, a game that promises improvements to the gameplay formula. Have THQ and Yuke’s made good on that promise? The answer is yes, but a bit more work still needs to be done.

To be clear: WWE ’12 will, right away, feel vastly improved over its predecessor — and that’s because it is. The controls are easier to navigate, thanks to Yuke’s mapping grapples back to buttons instead of the right analog stick. The moves and action flow much better and feel less like a series of animations playing out in front of you. Moves can be interrupted, reversals are more organic and natural, and a sense of weight has been added to most moves (i.e. suplexing Big Show takes longer than suplexing Daniel Bryan).

The difficulty has been ramped up and the A.I. poses much more of a challenge than ever before, which is quite welcome. Players can expect to lose matches. Players can also expect to begin paying attention to in-game statistics more than ever, as a notable difference between the performance of main eventers and wrestlers with less impressive records has finally been established. The experience as a whole has been upgraded and feels like a better wrestling game for it.

Review: Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 is an adrenaline-pumping good time

Author’s Note: This review article was published November 17, 2011 and originally appeared on Examiner.com. Clicking on this link will take you to its original location.

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In 2007, Infinity Ward set the FPS gaming scene and genre ablaze with the blockbuster Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare. Modern Warfare proved to be so popular that it has become its own sub-series within Call of Duty, with its own continuing plotline about saving the world from a maniacal Russian terrorist. Both COD4 and Modern Warfare 2 earned critical acclaim and sold millions upon millions of units. The recently released sequel, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3, has plenty of expectations to live up to. Gamers have no need to worry about MW3 not meeting those expectations, as Infinity Ward and Sledgehammer Games have crafted another quality installment of the Modern Warfare series.

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 continues the story of Price and Soap’s ongoing battle against Makarov, whose various manipulations have resulted in the onset of global military conflict. Players will assume the identities of a variety of key players in the conflict who mostly are trying to do whatever it takes to try to help bring the war to an end. Soap and Price’s story is far more personal, with the disavowed task force relentlessly hunting Makarov or doing whatever they can to halt his terrorist activities.

Modern Warfare 3′s plot and storytelling are much better than Modern Warfare 2′s, where following the story tended to be a bit difficult for gamers who didn’t know the story of COD4 as well as others. Also, the Price/Soap/Makarov plot feels much closer to the style in COD4 and remains very faithful to the details and intensity of their conflict as established in previous Modern Warfare installments. The Price/Soap/Makarov plot is arguably the biggest story draw of Modern Warfare 3, as the more personal feel of those sections make them feel like at least the most gripping story-powered sections in the Modern Warfare series to date.

Batman: Arkham City Strategy Guide Review

Author’s Note: This review article was published November 15, 2011 and originally appeared on strategyguidereviews.com. Clicking on this link will take you to its original location.

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Batman: Arkham City is the sequel to one of the greatest superhero games of all time, Batman: Arkham Asylum. Arkham City expands on everything that made Arkham Asylum great and adds an amazing open-world game environment to the mix. The Batman series under Rocksteady is known for its secrets and Metroidvania-esque exploration elements, so Arkham City requires a great guide with plenty of depth. BradyGames’ Batman: Arkham City strategy guide is that guide for the most part, but does have a few noteworthy trouble spots.

On one hand, the guide does cover plenty of content in Arkham City well. It gives a good walkthrough and most times offers great strategies on how to beat the game, offering advice that gamers of most any skill level can follow. The guide is also well designed and easy to navigate, with clear (as in, not cluttered) white pages and some really well designed call-out boxes. The combat sections have a nice degree of detail and provide some tips about combat in Arkham games that may otherwise take some gamers a bit of time and experience to uncover.

Something else the guide does well–and this is difficult to explain–is teach gamers how to think about approaching a section in Arkham City, maybe akin to a survival guide. The guide points out instances where Batman’s gadgets or a combat technique can be used. When the gamer recognizes that situation happening again, they’ll have learned that technique and know how to use it. Batman: Arkham City is a game that’s easy to learn and play but sort of difficult to master (because gadgets and techniques have straightforward uses and somewhat different instances of use for combat or Riddler Trophy collecting), so the guide gives gamers a kind of “skill arsenal” to use to their advantage.

Review: Uncharted 3: Drake’s Deception is a fun, cinematic thrill ride

Author’s Note: This review article was published November 2, 2011 and originally appeared on Examiner.com. Clicking on this link will take you to its original location.

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Designing a follow-up to Uncharted 2: Among Thieves is no easy task. Naughty Dog’s epic PlayStation3 exclusive was critically acclaimed from top to bottom for a memorable single player campaign that ranked with the best this console generation has to offer and a rewarding multiplayer mode that didn’t deviate from Uncharted’s identity. Uncharted 2 took home a multitude of Game Of The Year awards and became one of the best titles to own a PS3 for. Now, Naughty Dog has created a third Uncharted game, with the ambition of topping their runaway hit. Although Uncharted 3: Drake’s Deception doesn’t top its predecessor, Naughty Dog’s latest is an amazing game that is plenty of fun.

Uncharted 3 is the story of Nathan Drake’s ring and a woman named Marlowe who wants to use it to help her find the hidden desert city known as “Atlantis Of The Sands,” a city that the game’s story alleges Sir Francis Drake came across on a mission, but never acknowledged in the tale of his mission. Nate and Sully go off in pursuit of Marlowe and her secretive organization to find out what they want with the city and to see if they can they stop them. At first, both Nate and Sully think that they’re going off to find treasure. However, they slowly discover that what Marlowe is after in the city is far worse than they could’ve ever imagined.

Uncharted 3′s story meets the bar set by Uncharted 2 in terms of writing and presentation. The story is rich with detail and does a great job of not just bringing the characters to life, but filling them with personality. Nate, Sully, Elena, and Chloe continue to be standout hero characters and although Marlowe isn’t as evil as Lazarevic, she is quite a villain. Also, Uncharted 3′s story doesn’t miss a step and can transition from drama to humor to an action scene without fail. The way Uncharted 3 blends all of these elements together and integrates them into an epic adventure is what has kept fans coming back to this franchise (story-wise, at least) and lives up to the quality they’ve come to expect from the series.

Review: Deus Ex: Human Revolution The Missing Link DLC

Author’s Note: This review article was published October 28, 2011 and originally appeared on Examiner.com. Clicking on this link will take you to its original location.

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Deus Ex: Human’s Revolution’s The Missing Link DLC, in theory, is the kind of DLC that gamers say they want: a full-blown extension of the game itself (i.e. not a random level that doesn’t add anything), with story components and hours of gameplay. However, Deus Ex: Human Revolution was a unique game in that the choices made compiled over time and affected the story of the game. The Missing Link DLC tries to strike a balance between extending DE:HR’s story, continuing the influence of choice on story, and acting sort of like a standalone expansion so that gamers who beat the game won’t have to start a new game just to experience it. The good news for Deus Ex fans is that The Missing Link succeeds in striking this balance, succeeds as an extension of DE:HR and is a worthwhile experience.

The Missing Link DLC gives gamers control over Adam Jensen once again, this time as he’s been being held captive aboard a ship by mercenary group Belltower. Jensen finds himself without his augmentations and must escape a ship full of enemies, being guided only by a mysterious voice guiding him over a wireless connection. Jensen, while escaping, discovers a terrible truth regarding the purpose of the ship he’s been held on and dedicates himself to finding a way to stop what’s been happening aboard the vessel.

The Missing Link DLC’s story, much to Eidos Montreal’s credit, is very good. The Missing Link spares nothing by way of detail, conspiracy, choice, voice acting, or writing in its presentation. All of the story elements that kept gamers playing through to the end in the main game are present in The Missing Link and are also of the caliber that gamers received in the original game. The Missing Link is also one of the darker stories of DE:HR and has some difficult choices contained within it that will leave gamers considering the potential consequences of their decisions.

Review: Batman: Arkham City is a superheroic Game Of The Year contender

Author’s Note: This review article was published October 24, 2011 and originally appeared on Examiner.com. Clicking on this link will take you to its original location.

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In 2009, Rocksteady Games surprised the video game industry with Batman: Arkham Asylum. Arkham Asylum wasn’t only a surprise because it was an amazing Batman game, but because it was also an amazing video game and undoubtedly the best superhero game of all time for its faithfulness and portrayal of The Dark Knight’s universe. This year, Rocksteady has returned with a sequel, a new Batman title facing the immense hype of gamers who have been waiting two years for a worthy follow-up. Good news: Batman: Arkham City is the game that Arkham Asylum fans have been waiting for and measures up to even the strongest of hype.

Batman: Arkham City is the story of Mayor Quincy Sharp and Batman nemesis Hugo Strange collaborating to build an isolated sector of Gotham called Arkham City, in which all of the inmates and villains who broke out from Arkham Asylum are contained. Bruce Wayne, after voicing opposition to the creation of the criminal prison city, is kidnapped by mercenaries hired by Hugo Strange and dropped into Arkham City. Upon arrival into AC, Bruce realizes that Batman has to do something to get to the bottom of this situation, why Strange is involved, and what he’s after. In the mean time, Harley Quinn and an ailing Joker return and continue in their quest to pursue Batman…but not for the reason gamers might think.

The story of Batman: Arkham City is immersive and engaging, possibly even more so than Arkham Asylum’s. Paul Dini has done a terrific job of crafting a much darker, more twisted and moody Batman story that fits the dangerous atmosphere of Arkham City. Dini’s script is nothing short of authentic Batman, featuring a Joker closer to his darker graphic novel presentation and who’s who roster of Batman characters and villains absolutely true to Batman lore. Rocksteady also deserves credit for bringing Dini’s script to life with authenticity as well: they’ve built the right character models, constructed the right boss fights, and hired the right voice actors to flesh out the story he’s written.

Review: Freedom makes Deus Ex: Human Revolution a GOTY contender

Author’s Note: This review article was published August 23, 2011 and originally appeared on Examiner.com. Clicking on this link will take you to its original location.

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Deus Ex: Human Revolution is a rare title that emphasizes player choices, control, and preferences. DE: HR allows the player to choose exactly how they want to play and gives them nearly every tool they need to succeed, from abilities to weapons to the design of the actual environments. No one right way exists to play DE: HR and there is no “wrong” way, either. DE: HR chooses to give the player nearly unrivaled freedom to play in whatever style they decide to with rarely an inconvenience. The player chooses how they want to approach the game and DE: HR allows them to do so. DE: HR, because of the way Eidos Montreal has incorporated choice into the deft blend of FPS, RPG, and stealth that comprises the title’s gameplay, is a heavyweight contender for Game Of The Year 2011.

DE: HR is the futuristic sci-fi story of Adam Jensen, the head of security for Sarif Industries, a company that creates augmentations (computerized mechanical implants that grant special abilities to the user). Augmentations are a controversial issue in the world of DE: HR and the industry is very competitive. When an overwhelming force breaks into Sarif, Jensen responds and is the victim of a deadly assault. To save his life, Sarif Industries heavily augments Jensen. From there, Jensen puts himself on a path to discover the truth behind the break-in and his mysterious assailants.

The writing and dedication to the construction of the sci-fi world of DE: HR is terrific. DE: HR is very likely the best sci-fi game since the titles that comprise the Mass Effect series, at least in terms of bringing a sci-fi world to life inside a game. DE: HR has tons of story detail everywhere for anyone who wants to look deep enough into the game’s fiction and discover more. The world of DE: HR is rife with conspiracies and everyone with their own take on what’s actually going on, creating tension and good atmosphere that keeps the story interesting at all times.

Brink Strategy Guide Review

Author’s Note: This review article was published June 29, 2011 and originally appeared on strategyguidereviews.com. Clicking on this link will take you to its original location.

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Brink is the kind of FPS that some gamers may really want to buy a guide for, as Splash Damage has changed many of the typical rules of the genre. For instance, no single weapon is capable of killing a player in one shot (even if that shot is a headshot), players can change classes mid-match, and the game is completely objective focused. The Prima Official Game Guide for Brink does a good job of trying to help players adjust to the many changes introduced by this innovative title.

In the introductory sections, the guide details the pros and cons of each body type available for the player’s characters, tips on how to use the Mirror’s Edge-esque SMART movement system, and a breakdown of what each ability for each class does. The guide also provides much needed perspective into Brink‘s backstory, which really isn’t provided as much through the game’s cut scenes prior to each match. The introductory sections will help some gamers trying to get used to Brink be able to find their way around the game’s changes to the usual FPS formula.

The guide has two primary sections for maps, one for each of the game’s factions (Resistance and Security). Each section is broken down with sections for maps. Each map section opens with a map overview that details specific areas of interest, such as optimum placement for turrets and mines. The next page details the objectives, the best number of each class to succeed for each objective, the story briefing, and a list of the important locations in each map. Then, the guide moves on to primary and secondary objective descriptions with tips on how to approach each objective.

L.A. Noire Strategy Guide Review

Author’s Note: This review article was published June 10, 2011 and originally appeared on strategyguidereviews.com. Clicking on this link will take you to its original location.

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L.A. Noire is a new and different kind of game that combines open-world and adventure game elements, testing the deduction capabilities of gamers as much as their action game skills. For such a game, an exhaustive guide is required and L.A. Noire has quite the official game guide from BradyGames that will make playing a breeze for anyone who might be having trouble. However, the same near-perfection that will help any gamer play through L.A. Noiremay also end up telling some gamers a bit too much.

The L.A. Noire Signature Series Guide from BradyGames leaves no stone unturned. Every single process gamers will need to help them solve each and every case is written out as precisely as possible. Every vital piece of evidence is detailed and shown in screenshots when possible. Every interrogation choice is spelled out one hundred percent correctly, down to the details of each response to each question. The guide even details how to approach each chase or action sequence that may occur in a case.

The only problem with the guide isn’t actually a problem, per se; the guide does its job a little too well. Playing L.A. Noire step-by-step with this guide is like playing the game on autopilot. Everything is spelled out in the guide with so much detail that nearly no guesswork is required by the player. Giving this much information is necessary to help a gamer get through whatever part of L.A. Noire that they’re having problems with, but at the same time, the level of information makes playing the game too easy. Admittedly, saying that a guide does its job too well is a rare Catch-22 for strategy guides.

Review: L.A. Noire is a fantastic, suspenseful, story-driven thriller

Author’s Note: This review article was published May 31, 2011 and originally appeared on Examiner.com. Clicking on this link will take you to its original location.

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L.A. Noire is an ambitious title that, sort of like Heavy Rain, draws from conventions of the Adventure genre and attempts to implement some of that approach into a game for home consoles. Although possessing open-world elements, L.A. Noire is a heavily story-driven detective game that asks players to discover evidence, interrogate suspects, and arrest the right perpetrators of various crimes committed across 1940s Los Angeles. L.A. Noire’s unconventional approach immediately impresses — especially to gamers who may be longing for more mature narrative in videogames — and the title seems to naturally ooze style as the murky details of each case unfold. Team Bondi’s latest is an important title that captivates and only has a few trouble spots.

L.A. Noire puts players into the shoes of Cole Phelps, a decorated hero from World War 2 who comes home from the war and joins the Los Angeles Police Department. Phelps starts off with a few basic cases as a policeman and eventually catches a big break, getting promoted to detective. Phelps is portrayed as a moral crusader, a defender of the law who does right at any cost. Phelps’ obsessive need to uphold the law may initially come off as a harder edged version of “duty bound” characters from other games (i.e. a full Paragon Commander Shepard from Mass Effect), but the way in which L.A. Noire implements Phelps’ tendencies into the plot is a great touch that helps set L.A. Noire apart from the rest of the pack.

Indeed, storytelling, plot, and presentation are among the strongest elements that L.A. Noire has to offer. The art style that Team Bondi used for L.A. Noire’s 1940s Los Angeles comes alive with a high quality graphics engine that stuns in high definition. The individual stories of L.A. Noire stand out with intrigue, suspense, and a notable cast of characters that range from the virtuous to the despicable. Of course, going hand-in-hand with these elements are the incredibly talented voice actors and the detailed motion scan technology that captures plenty of nuances of expression in the human face. Given the importance that these elements have in L.A. Noire’s gameplay, Team Bondi was right to give them such careful attention.