Tuesday 30 April 2013

RUMOR: Star Trek: The Video Game Getting Fake User Reviews and Forum Postings

Recently there have been many people abusing the Metacritic user reviews to give a game ridiculously low scores without buying the game (like with Call of Duty and Mass Effect). People are bashing games they have never played before, for the very fact they have a stigma attached to the name. With the newly released Star Trek game however, there is an issue that is all the more worrying.
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The inevitable video game tie-in to the blockbuster JJ Abrams film, Star Trek: Into Darkness was released this week and on Metacritic, the game is doing badly both on the few critic reviews and the user reviews. This is not unheard of for a film tie-in but there seems to be problems with the user reviews: There are accounts posting exceptionally high reviews for the game, who have never posted before the release date.
Here is a taste of some of the reviews:
- “I’m not going to ruin it for other players but just to say, if you like Mass Effect type adventure games with a brilliant story, great action scenes then you really need to consider this game.
If your a Star Trek fan then why are you still reading this? Get down to your local store and grab a copy RIGHT NOW.” – SoulLessBoot (Previous reviews = 0)
- “Refreshing take on Star Trek Enjoyable Gameplay, Excellent Story, Good Atmosphere, Good Graphics, Excellent Music and Sound, Good Platforming and Puzzles, overall a game well worth its money and can compare with some high-profile titles.”Girland (Previous Reviews = 0)
- “Got the PC version on-line today (Save $10 and do the online download). This won’t be game of the year, but is still a fun game. The rating is an 8 if you enjoy the story of star trek and movie you’ll enjoy the adventurous storyline.” – AmerFreedom (Previous Reviews = 0)
There are many more to be found if you want to look for yourself but some people are starting to suspect the developers (Digital Extremes) and the publisher (Namco Bandai) of creating fake accounts to bump up the negative review scores away from the ridiculously low scores that it was getting. For example, Metacritic user Coletrain128 is one of the growing group of people saying it is Namco Bandai employees, “Stop lying to consumers Namco Bandai. The fact that you delayed review copies, denying that Co-op doesn’t work and having to create fake accounts on Metacritic in order to combat the negative press reviews this game is about to get is crap. Incredibly unprofessional.”
We want to stress that this IS a rumor as there is absolutely no proof as to WHO is responsible for these fake accounts. 
However, on Reddit yesterday, screenshots surfaced that showed the contents of a forum filled with people having issues with online co-op mode for the game. In among these postings, one user was shown to say “Works fine for me. Game uses Steam servers.” The user in question is kenneth.lindenbaum otherwise known as Kenneth Lindenbaum, Senior Producer on Star Trek: The Video Game.
Obviously there are people who are wanting to impact the game’s reception slightly.
What do you think about these reviews? Who do you think is to blame for the user reviews?

REPORT: New Engine Confirmed For Next Call of Duty

Last week, Tesco, the United Kingdom based retailer, accidentally posted the box art and a release date along with the confirmation that the game will be subtitled “Ghosts”. Rumors had been suggesting the name “Ghosts” for some time but Tesco’s blunder finally confirmed it as the official box art had the title emblazoned on the front. But today, more details have been pulled from Tesco.
The page that allows customers to pre-order the next Call of Duty had been updated with a product description that gives some interesting information regarding the game. Here is the full description: “The franchise that has defined a generation of gaming is set to raise the bar once again with the all-new Call of Duty: Ghosts. Published by Activision and developed by Infinity Ward, the studio that created the original Call of Duty and the seminal Call of Duty: Modern Warfare series. Call of Duty: Ghosts ushers in the next generation of the franchise, delivering a riveting all-new experience built on an entirely new story, setting and cast, all powered by a new next generation Call of Duty engine.”
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The interesting part here is that the game will feature an all new engine, for the first time since Call of Duty 2 used what is called the IW engine in 2005. This is exciting as this is one of the features that many fans have been craving for years, since the Battlefield series became a cornerstone for first person shooter graphics. Part of the quote also says “new story” which confirms that the game will not have its roots completely based in the Modern Warfare series where the character on the box art, Ghost, was first seen. This may come as a welcome change for Infinity Ward fans.
This is exciting news as changes in much of the game have been long overdue. The game is supposedly being released on both current and next generation consoles by the end of 2013.
Is this news exciting for any Call of Duty fans out there?

New Batman: Arkham Origins Information

Thanks to some magazine reveals and some eagle eyed forum posters, we have new information for the upcoming Batman: Arkham Origins game from new developer Warner Brothers Montreal. Thankfully, most of the information is promising for the prequel.
In a GameInformer interview, DC Comics’ Chief Creative Officer Geoff Johns has talked about the game saying, ““It’s called Arkham Origins and it really is the introduction of what Arkham means. Arkham evokes a sense of insanity and chaos embodied in the twisted minds and colorful villains of the Batman universe. That had to start somewhere. This is really more about Batman’s initiation into that insane world, where my book’s more about Batman as a vigilante and really deciding which path to go down.”
The other magazine in question is GamesMaster UK, who had exclusive access to the game in the most recently released issue. On the Arkhamverse.com forums, users have been posting extracts from the reveal to let us know about the game. There is information ranging from cuts made to the game plus additional features.
Senior Producer of Warner Brothers Games Ben Mattes introduces the information in the magazine. Firstly, there was talk of the inclusion of a dynamic weather system, caused by a snowstorm in Gotham. It was designed to affect combat in the game but it “sucks” so they took out the feature’s effect on freeflow combat. They also cut a drone-type enemy that follows Batman while in Predator mode, but didn’t want the player to be on the defensive while in this mode.
Apparently, each boss battle is unique, presumably responding to the nature of previous games where the boss levels seemed to be shallow and of a lesser quality than the rest of the game. Origins’ Montreal based developer seem o think that their version of Deathstroke, one of Batman’s primary enemies in the game, is the best, “We really believe that we’ve made the coolest version of Deathstroke [in any media].”
Two interesting quotes from Mattes explain the approach that they are taking towards Batman. He says that ”The Batman of Arkham City is Batman 5.0. He will punch out a guy without looking at him knowing exactly how many teeth he’s just fractured just from the feeling from his knuckles. Our Batman is version 0.9.” This reinforces what we already know about this game, that Batman will be an unfinished version who is rough around the edges. The second quote is about how they want Batman to be more mythical-like. ”Making Batman scary again is important,” says Mattes. “In later years Batman becomes very much a part of the institution. That’s not who our Batman is. Our Batman blows a hole in a wall, steps through, completely wraith-like with glowing eyes, grabs a guy and disappears before the rest can even blink. And they’re like, “What was that? Was that a vampire?”
With the magazine comes a really cool poster, here is the image below:
480352_579516162069299_170169274_nBatman: Arkham Origins is set for release October 25th 2013 worldwide and for PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, PC and Wii U platforms.

The “Arkham Quality”: How It Should Become A New Standard For Superhero Games

In recently announced details for Batman: Arkham Asylum, the developers mentioned something called the “Arkham Quality.” This is an interesting concept. The fact that the previous Arkham games have bred a new standard for the developer, Warner Brothers Montreal, is a good indicator of how people can strive to create a great game without copying actual gameplay.
The full quote from Ben Mattes, the Senior Producer at Warner Brothers Games, says “As a team we are absolutely not only acutely aware of, but perhaps obsessed with, the ramifications of ‘Arkham Quality.’ ‘Arkham Quality’ has been our life since we started development. ‘Arkham Quality’ is not “this feature’s kinda cool” it’s, ‘This feature is perfect.’ If it’s not perfect it doesn’t go in the box.” While not necessarily saying that they are copying the previous games, they know that the game’s new features have to be polished to the same standard. For superhero games, this is something that is rarely seen.
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When Arkham Asylum was first released, the reception was stellar. The features were not all new per se, but the way they interacted with the characters made them special. The predator mode, for example, was great fun as it captured exactly what we all see in the comics, films and television shows: Hiding in the shadows, unsettling the enemy and silently taking them down. This is, at its base, a feature of his character that is synonymous with the name Batman. Similarly, Spider-Man has the web swinging which, since Spider-man 2, has featured realistic physics which mimic the thrill of what we see in other medias. Another example is Hulk: Ultimate Destruction’s portrayal of pure power… and destruction. These games all nailed the basic principles of the characters we love, and they flourished for it. More recently, superhero games have been different.
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Games  in the genre tend to “borrow” features nowadays, such as the freeflow combat system in the Arkham games rather than bringing innovation to the table and making those features full of quality. There is no longer a desire to deepen the character, to find what makes them tick. It is a money spinner for many companies. What should now happen is to use this “Arkham Quality” scale to get into a superhero story and find what works with this type of game and what definitely doesn’t rather than pointlessly adding parts of other games that have different context.

Do you think that this can become something that will improve future games? Comment below.

Valve Will Not Be Exhibiting at E3 2013

For quite some time, many people have been clamoring for news of Half Life 3. Maybe not even a reveal, just some sort of news, tease or otherwise to let them know it is coming. If this information is to come, it will definitely not be at this years Electronic Entertainment Expo (or as it is better known, E3 2013) as Valve have confirmed themselves that they will not be attending.
The news comes from a NeoGAF forum poster who has posted a screenshot of an email reply from Valve’s Director of Marketing, Doug Lombardi. In the post, the user says that the original email was sent to Lombardi by valvetime.net, a community forum that has tried to gather every piece of information about Valve games that they can. They asked him whether Valve would be attending this year’s E3 in order to finally present the long awaited sequel to the much beloved Half Life series. The response was, as the forum user put it, “blunt” to say the least. “Hey, Valve is not exhibiting at e3 this year. Thanks for checking with us.”
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This is disappointing for both fans of Valve and people who are not, purely for the reason that it would finally have stopped the Valve fans’ whining about a lack of Half Life 3. There is no doubt that people from Valve will be present at E3 to peruse the various games that will be shown.
This also follows on from this weeks’ announcement that Nintendo will not be conducting a press conference at E3 2013, where they instead want to focus on showcasing their games. The Nintendo Direct service will be the place to view all of the announcements for future Nintendo games before and during E3 this year.
Does this news disappoint you? Will we ever see the release of the Half Life 3 game in our life time? Comment below.

How Nintendo Can Reboot The Wii U

Today, Gamechup.com reported statements from Satoru Iwata in which the Nintendo President stated that the company’s flagship console, the Wii U was misunderstood. There seems to be a general misunderstanding from within Nintendo about the views towards the Wii U from many gamers and developers. Nintendo can certainly make the console compete in the industry far beyond the release of the next generation consoles, but they must first accept the current failure of the console.
The release of the Wii U was a troubling one. After the announcement of games like Pikmin 3, Smash Bros. U and other games that would possibly be massive system sellers, the console went into a quiet patch. The release of such games as Assassin’s Creed 3, Batman: Arkham City Armored Edition, and Mass Effect 3 were exciting but not enough to persuade someone to buy the console. Who will buy a current generation console immediately before a new console cycle when that console has nothing but games we already own? Exclusive games such as ZombiU, Super Mario Bros. U and Nintendo Land were hardly inspiring. ZombiU is a perfect example of the console going wrong at the very start. A new IP that is supposed to bring Nintendo out of the stereotype of family-only games was a great concept, but in practice the game was rather lackluster. Mario? We already have enough of him on the original Wii as it is, why buy a new console for an incredibly similar game?
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Some gamers (like me) are still waiting patiently for concrete news of an exclusive and very large property in the vein of Smash Bros. or a Zelda game, but Nintendo seems to be trying to focus on expanding their catalog with anything and everything else. So far, Nintendo have seemed to turn a blind eye to their faithful following and play catch up with many games that already feature elsewhere. With the imminent release of the next generation, some are fearing for the Wii U, but it is perfectly capable of surviving.
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What does Nintendo need to do? What they should have done already. Release fan favorites in a relaunch. I can guarantee that if the console had one of the tried and tested, but still unique (to a degree), games such as a fully 3D Mario, Metroid or the previously mentioned Smash Bros. U in the launch library, it would have sold in droves. These kinds of games should have been released earlier to stop people from slowly losing their patience. Snatching up the sequel to Bayonetta was a brilliant move in this respect, as people will pay to play Bayonetta 2 and the exclusive nature of the game will lend Nintendo a great deal of hope. In addition, Nintendo need to show humility and admit that the Wii U has been a near failure. Following up this admission should be an explosion of exciting game reveals.
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People love Nintendo. Nintendo has been the gateway into the gaming world for many people and will be thought of fondly. So reboot the Wii U. When the games that people love, games that Nintendo knew would be massive and were promised us, are a month or so away from their release dates, re-introduce the masses to the console. Remind them of the games they played when they were younger and how they still offer these experiences with other alternatives to sample. Gamers are always drawn to the next new and shiny piece of hardware, but gamers are also a nostalgic breed. If I had a dollar for every time someone mentioned GoldenEye in a first person shooter forum, I would be a millionaire. This is where Nintendo have the leverage, as just naming games such as Pokemon, Metroid, Zelda and many others all turn heads instantly. Provide these games, and will we come running towards you.
This is a universally known moment in gaming.
This is a universally known moment in gaming.
Do you think Nintendo can survive in next generation? What would you like them to release that would make you consider buying the Wii U? Let us know in the comments below.

Call of Duty: Ghosts Teaser Site Launched

After the two leaks from Tesco of the box art plus the name of the next Call of Duty, called Ghosts, followed closely by the information that there will be a new engine powering the new game, a new story as well as a whole new cast (news to the ears of many fans), more information seems to be coming our way after a website has been revealed, teasing the game.
People who open the website are greeted to the options of “add me” and “find me.” The first button adds you and a tweet to what the website has named the “Call of Duty Mosaic” which, on the home screen, is adding up all of the user’s tweets into what seems to be a representation of the mask worn by the character Ghost. Ghost is a character last seen in Modern Warfare 2 and is presumably the main character going by the title and the inclusion of his distinctive mask which features a skull painted on the front. The second option allows users to “find” themselves on the mosaic to see if their tweet has been included in the giant skull. Here is an image of the website:
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As you can see, the image is still yet to completely form. There is also options to “connect” to the website using Google+, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and Statigram. If you want to join in this campaign, simply go to the website and tweet #CallofDuty and see if you have made it onto the image.
According to the leaks, Call of Duty: Ghosts will be released x and will be available on PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 and next generation platforms. A Wii U version of the game is also said to be in development, which would be likely seeing as Call of Duty: Black Ops 2 was also released on Nintendo’s flagship console.

Rumor: Respawn’s New Game An Xbox 720 Exclusive

Much has been thrown about in terms of rumors these past few weeks regarding the next console from Microsoft. The console has had many rumors from the bad to the good, some even debating just the console’s name. Today, a rumor has said that the next console will be getting a major boost from an exciting new developer that everyone is waiting to hear from: Respawn Entertainment.
The rumor comes from Kotaku who say that Respawn Entertainment, formed by the former creators of Infinity Ward and many of its employees, will make their first game will be released for Xbox consoles ONLY. Yes, Xbox consoles. Kotaku reports that the two sources that have given them this exciting information have also reported that the game will be available for the Xbox 360, Microsoft’s current home console, as well.
In addition, the sources detailed a bit about the game. They called it a “futuristic multiplayer-centric online shooter” with giant exo-skeletons, called Titans, available to be piloted by “heavily-armed footsoldiers.” This reveals the trademark that was recently filed for “Titan” by Respawn. To keep balance within the game, these exo-suits can only be used by a certain number of people. Foot soldiers can destroy the mechs with the right weapons chosen. The game may be based on an updated Source engine and may be always online as rumors have suggested the next Xbox will be.
There is no indication from the sources that the game will not come to the other games hardware, Sony’s PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, PC and Wii U, so a timed exclusive is still not off the cards.
There has been no word from Respawn Enerainment about the nature of their game since this blurry image, what do you think will happen?
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The article also says that Microsoft are “aggressively” attempting to sign massive games for their new console. This being due to a lack of first party studios in comparison to the other two big hitters, Sony and Nintendo.
Seeing as this is not confirmed by Respawn themselves or EA, take this as a complete rumor for now. Would this change the battlefield for next generation in Microsoft’s favor somewhat or will Sony have something similarly giant in their locker? Keep with Leviathyn to find out.

Thursday 25 April 2013

New Battlefield 4 Details Leaked From Promo Poster?

A retail poster has surfaced from Australia for EA’s first person shooter, Battlefield 4. The poster includes information regarding downloadable content, the next generation of Battlelog (2.0, surprisingly) and more.
According to bf4central.com, who posted the image, the poster originates from Australian retailer EB Games. The poster itself is very interesting, if it is real, as it sheds light on some features in the game that we have not yet heard about. Firstly, the poster talks about a “brand new Commander mode.” Commander mode was a feature that has been absent from the Battlefield series since Battlefield 2142 which was released in 2006. It allowed one payer on a team to view the entire battlefield from a top-down perspective and direct team mates from the position. Also revealed in the promotional image was Battlelog 2.0 being implemented into the game, to “track every shot, every enemy, every detail of your Battlefield career.” Battlefield Premium, a paid-for service that was introduced in Battlefield 3 for $49.99, will return for the fourth game, giving buyers “exclusive uniforms, weapons, and more.” In this section, a DLC package was also mentioned. Called Drone Strike, it will be the first package to release for Battlefield 4, according to the poster. Here is the image (thanks to bf4central.com for the image):
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The poster features all the right logos and images but it is still not clear if the poster is real. If the poster is fake, that is a marvelous job of faking a promotional poster.
We had previously covered the first reveal video of Battlefield 4 featuring 17 minutes of pure gameplay footage.
Battlefield 4 is currently announced for PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, PC and a release on next generation consoles had been heavily rumored until confirmation came from EA’s President, Frank Gibeau. The game’s official release window is Fall 2013 and the poster reflects this with an October 31st 2013 date at the top.

New Grand Theft Auto V Trailers Next Week

This week has been rife with exiting news but we have already seen a tease for what may make next week even bigger. Rockstar will release new promotional trailers for their highly anticipated game, Grand Theft Auto V.
The developer released an image on their ‘Rockstar Newswire‘ page today which reads “Michael. Franklin. Trevor. Trailers 4.30.” There is no additional information apart from the image, which makes this an frustratingly bare tease. However, from the image, there is the suggestion that there will be more than one trailer. The three names on the image point to the three main protagonists of Grand Theft Auto V, could we see separate trailers for each of the different characters? We certainly hope so. Regardless of the quantity, the new videos will be released April 30th. Yes, you heard that right, there is just FIVE days to wait for the next slice of Grand Theft Auto goodness. Here is the image:
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Could this be a link to recent images that have spread of a live-action trailer being filmed in Mexico City? The images, posted by Reddit user marcodj,  show destruction, car accidents and more destruction… All of the common features of a Grand Theft Auto game. Here are the images:
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Rockstar have not released any trailers featuring gameplay footage or otherwise since November 2012, a long time ago for a game of this popularity. This pretty much guarantees that the die hard Grand Theft Auto fans will be foaming at the mouth for a potential insight into the fifth game. Here is the previous trailer to scratch that Grand Theft Auto V itch:
Rockstar’s Grand Theft Auto V is penciled in for a September 17th release date. The game is to be released on the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 consoles.
What do you think of the image? Are you excited for the trailers or would this be just another day?

Wednesday 24 April 2013

Microsoft Confirms Next Generation Xbox Reveal Date

Much has been rumored about the next Microsoft console, including the console being always online and murmurings of announcement dates being changed or pushed back, but today, we have finally been given a time and date for the reveal of the next generation console that will contest the already impressive looking Sony PlayStation 4.
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Since the announcement of the PlayStation 4, Microsoft have been very quiet and extremely secretive. Even when there were rumors about the specs and the possibility of an always online nature to the next Xbox, the manufacturer chose to keep it’s silence. On Lawrence Hryb’s (or Major Nelson as he is commonly referred to) personal website, a countdown was released along with a short statement. In the statement, it is stated that there will be the “new generation of games, TV and entertainment.” This suggests that Microsoft will in fact be broadening their horizons to more than specifically gaming needs. Here is the statement in its entirety:
“On Tuesday May 21st, we’ll mark the beginning of a new generation of games, TV and entertainment. On that day, we’ll be holding a special press event on the Xbox campus and we invite you to join us via the live global stream that will be available on Xbox.com, Xbox LIVE and broadcast on Spike TV if you are in the US or Canada.
On that day, we’ll share our vision for Xbox, and give you a real taste of the future. Then, 19-days later at the Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3) in Los Angeles, we’ll continue the conversation and showcase our full lineup of blockbuster games.
We are thrilled to pull back the curtain and reveal what we’ve been working on.”
The page also says that Major Nelson’s Twitter feed will provide updates leading up to the event. Hopefully we will learn more information as the date draws near.
Along with the statement, a website was launched for people who have been invited to the event. The website asks for e-mails of the recipient to confirm their attendance. The website has just the name Xbox and the details underneath, giving no other hints as to what we may be treated to on May 21st.
What are your thoughts? Are you excited for the next Xbox reveal?

Call of Duty: Ghosts Box Art Revealed

There has been many rumors swirling around certain corners of the gaming industry as to what the new Call of Duty game will be called. Today, the box art for the game has been leaked through a United Kingdom retailer.
The retailer, Tesco, posted the pre order option for the next game. According to the website, the game is called Call of Duty: Ghosts, the same name as the one that has been rumored for some time. Alongside the title, Tesco posted box art for the game which has not been seen previously. The image shows the character Ghost, who appeared in Infinity Ward’s massive hit, Modern Warfare 2 but the character has not been seen since. The character is identifiable through his distinctive mask which had a skull printed on the front. The art also shows off the confirmation that Infinity Ward, creators of the Call of Duty series, will be taking the lead n development this time around. The most recently released Infinity Ward Call of Duty game was Modern Warfare 3 as Treyarch took over for last year’s entry, Black Ops II. Below is the box art:
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The retailer also had a release date accompanying the title and the box art. Seeing as the release date is 30/12/2013 I would expect to be purely a place holder by the company. Previous Call of Duty games have been released in the month of October or around that month, so a December release would be out of the ordinary. Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 are the only confirmed platforms by Tesco but expect next generation releases to accompany these.
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Call of Duty: Ghosts was leaked previously by YouTube user Drift0r who suggested the name and also details such as the setting being in the near future, akin to Black Ops II, but featuring currently available weaponry. Expect more details in the coming weeks.

Beyond: Two Souls’ Script Is Very Long


Beyond: Two Souls is the next game from the talented developers at Quantic Dream, the creators of games such as Omikron: The Nomad Soul and Fahrenheit: Indigo Prophecy. For the game, they have enlisted the services of talented actors and actresses (see Willem Dafoe and Ellen Page) to ensure that the game will be full to the brim with true emotion and realistic motion-capture performances. The developer’s most recent game, Heavy Rain, was likely the first step in this direction, featuring a more compelling story line and characters than actual gameplay. Today, some information was released from Beyond: Two Souls in the form of a photograph detailing the story length.
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On Facebook, Dan Ackerman, CNET’s Senior Editor, posted a photograph of a representative script from Beyond: Two Souls. The script features no hints at the actual nature of the story because every ingle page is completely blank (so no spoilers, don’t worry). It does, however, give us gamers an insight into the depth that David Cage, the founder, co-CEO and screenwriter for Quantic Dream, has poured into the game in an effort to create more drama, emotion and movie-like qualities. According to Ackerman, the script that Sony sent him has over 2000 pages to it. This is many more pages than your average movie script and I would wager a large sum of money on it being many times larger than your average video game script. Amazing. The fact that Sony have wanted to show the script length off to the public is a good sign, as it shows that they are confident in the project.
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Let us hope that the full game delivers the same ‘larger than life’ vibe that the script seems to be giving us. Beyond: Two Souls is set for an October release date and is a PlayStation 3 exclusive.

How Quantic Dream Innovated This Generation

“The eyes are the windows to the soul.” Who hasn’t heard that phrase before? The team at Quantic Dream took that quite literally with their most recently released game, Heavy Rain. The team built up a whole new way to track and capture eye movements and the details to enhance the character driven story telling nature or “the soul” of the game. This was only one of the many things that were put into the game that changed how we view out media, and the next game from the developers, Beyond: Two Souls, looks like it may just do the same thing.
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Heavy Rain was a difficult concept from the beginning: an adult, emotional, multi-layered and multi-character plot that you controlled through quick time events. Many gamers, myself included, find QTEs boring and in some cases, just pure laziness. However, Quantic Dream took this stereotype and expanded it to make the whole control system for the game based on these QTEs, but made it useful. Integrating it deep into the system and making it difficult in some situations was a breath of fresh air in the current climate of Call of Duty clones. I still remember the scene that had you stop the character from having an asthma attack, and the frantic button presses reflected that character’s crazed search for the relief to his troubles. In addition, it also opens up to you the possibility of multiple play styles on screen, making it easier to choose your path. This was a stroke of genius that very few developers would have risked a whole game on, and I bet that many of them would never have thought to integrate it in the same way that Quantic did.
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There has been a debate recently about the need for good graphics in a game. Do we really need to have gorgeous graphics to tell a good story? The answer is no, but if you want to have a good story where you can see how things affect the character, then yes graphics are important. Heavy Rain went into so much detail that the developers wanted to map the actors’ eyes (like mentioned in the first paragraph). They obviously felt that, to convey the level of emotion that some of the characters from the game needed, they had to make it look as close as possible to how real people would react in the same situations. We feel for those men and women in the game. That is something that we don’t see often in today’s video games, and is something that will be explored further in Beyond: Two Souls, where Ellen Page and Willem Dafoe will ply their Hollywood trade to the characters. This will hopefully see even more emotion and empathy being shared between the gamer and the characters on-screen.
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Even with Beyond still in development, the team at Quantic have been looking forward to how emotions can be displayed in a next generation environment. Look forward to this old man in a game soon:
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Lastly, Quantic Dream seem to have the mindset that story, above all else, will make the game unique. A deep, compelling plot is not necessary for a game, as most mobile games are endless fun without even a hint of a story line. Will you remember these games in a few years time? Probably not. It hasn’t provided you with memorable plot twists, emotional connections built through deep character development, and moments that you will remember forever. Quantic made Heavy Rain memorable. You connected to the characters, and will you forget the finale and uncovering of the Origami Killer in a hurry? Even the tagline for the game “How far will you go to save someone you love?” invites the gamer to become attached and imagine themselves in the same situation, or how they would react. The new game will follow the character of Jody Holmes through her life from ages 8 to 23, a coming of age, overcoming your troubles story that will make you reflect on similar feelings that you may have experienced. Through a picture earlier today, the game’s script length had been revealed, giving us hope that the story will be the driving factor again in Beyond: Two Souls.
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Quantic Dream have succeeded in transcending what we have become accustom to this generation. With the safe copycat games becoming increasingly popular, David Cage and his team have succeeded in moving forward how we think about games, how we play them and how we look at them. Will they continue with this next generation? I hope so.
What do you think? 

Saturday 20 April 2013

What Needs To Happen In FIFA 14

The next game in the multi-million selling FIFA franchise has been revealed earlier this week, and with it came screenshots and information on the game. The improvements that have been shown are more small things that will add up to more streamlined gameplay than previous games, but what would someone who plays the games on a regular basis ask EA Sports to do? Certainly not “improve the ball physics.”
The Impact Engine – The way EA talks about the Impact Engine, touting it as revolutionary and a great addition to the game, makes it seem almost perfect.  In reality it is far from perfect. Small collisions can render the player useless for ridiculous amounts of time, frustrating you to the point of throwing the controller at the wall (I have done this, twice!). The glitches are far too many for a game of this popularity, prompting hilarious YouTube compilations. For example, tackling a person accidentally while they get ready for a throw in ended up with the player picking up the ball and trying to run away with it. Nice. The engine is not without its merits though, as we see with injuries and the large majority of encounters between players end up realistic, but the glitches and gaps in some instances are noticeable. Seriously EA, fixing this is crucial.
Example.
Exhibit A
Gameplay Predictability – FIFA 13 introduced the first touch system which made games unpredictable in how players would receive the ball. In FIFA 14, there is a variable dribble touch which is the same idea…while dribbling. This seems insignificant to me in comparison to the tonne of other things that can be fixed. For one, the game relies on pace and pace only. You want to play build-up play with flowing passing, Barcelona style? Tough, get any fast player with average dribbling and BAM! Its a goal. What needs to happen is for there to be a balance; if you want to play flowing football, that should be possible and the emphasis on pace should be nerfed.
Pace abuuuuse.
Pace Abuse
Goalkeepers In General – Another great idea is to fix the atrocious goal keepers in the game. For years the keepers have either been overpowered, or just down right awful. Oh, you thought your goal keeper would save that simple shot that is rolling at the pace of a snail? “THINK AGAIN” says FIFA. Hopefully, the introduction of the new Pure Shot and Real Ball physics will stop the same goals being scored over and over again, making you wonder why the keeper hasn’t learnt how to keep it out from the last time. Or how about the near post fails in FIFA 13? Apparently goal keepers cannot save anything if it is on the near post. Another gripe with the keepers is that they are invincible. I could boot one of them in the head while they are on the ground and the player that kicked would be injured instead of the insane lack of red cards for goalies. Sort it out.
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Exhibit B
Broken Online - Overpowered players, connection issues and glitches are to blame here, and not once have EA tried to fix them. Ultimate team allows you to create the dream team that you have always wanted. But no matter the quality of the players, you can score from anywhere from just about anything. The EA servers are genuinely terrible, and I must have spent more time watching a message telling me I have been disconnected than actually playing the game! This is another piece of the game that is constantly ridiculed on FIFA Facebook pages and Twitter. Lastly, the glitches that cause the console to freeze, slow down to the point that the game is unplayable, or just give up completely and shut off are becoming a major annoyance in the latest games in the franchise, and if they are not ratified, it could be the beginning of the end for EA Sports’ customer patience.
Is there anything you would like to be fixed in future FIFA games? Does FIFA 14 already satisfy your needs? Let us know in the comments.