• 29May 13

  Resident Evil...what is happening?

  I am writing to you with this grotesque monster in my field of vision. It's perched on my shelf, sitting there. Mocking me. I was one of the many people who spent £129.99 on the Resident Evil 6 GAME Exclusive Collector's Edition. Only for it to be reduced to £30 a mere 6 months later. But that's not my main problem.

  

   

  Resident Evil is my favourite gaming franchise. Up until recently they were one of the few main franchises that guaranteed a great game. There are the spin-offs that are terrible like Resident Evil Survivor, but the main games have always been intense and gripping. I love Resident Evil. Resident Evil changed when RE4 hit the shelves. It was a fantastic game, but it was less scary and more action. RE5 soon changed that, making it feel darker and deeper. The DLC was fantastic, especially the mansion. 

   

  Resident Evil 6 for me was poor. Even Gamespot hit it with a 4.5. It feels far more action-packed, and is trying to please everyone. I feel that Resident Evil 6 is tearing itself apart. They have tried to please everyone, but have eneded up pleasing no-one. I can't bear to finish it.

   

  Any thoughts on how Resident Evil can turn around? Is this the time where Capcom release their trump card and remake Resident Evil 2?

   

  • Posted May 29, 2013 6:24 am GMT
  • Category: Editorial
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• 24May 13

  Walking Dead: Survival Instinct - Why it's good

  Walking Dead Survival Instinct is a good game. Despite mediocre reviews, I rented it and loved it. Why? Because it's the perfect zombie game. Walk with me I'll explain on the way...

  

   

  There are plenty of zombies games out there. Resident Evil really kicked it off with the zombie scene, and for a 12-year old it was the scariest thing on Playstation. The game brought fear and created a creepy, slow atmosphere. A horde of shuffling, groaning zombies is absolutely chilling. That was topped off by Resident Evil 2, which brought the game to the streets and introduced a claustrophobic atmosphere in open spaces. I felt trapped in a huge city. 

   

  Sneaky Daryl...sneaky...

  Fast forward a few years down the line. Dawn of the Dead was released in 2004, and brought to my attention, and many others, the notion of zombies running. Now THATS scary. Running, flesh-eating monsters. But since then, games have tried to follow suit. Left 4 Dead brought multiplayer zombie survival, with running zombies. Don't get me wrong, the game is fantastic, but with the running zombies came more firepower. It just didn't feel right.

   

  Walking Dead (the original download version) was fantastic, but I never felt in control. Then came along Walking Dead: Survival Instinct, which blew my mind. Zombies were the enemy, but they could easily overpower you. They were shuffling monsters, and they kept appearing. You only have a hunting knife, and you need to scavenge food, fuel and weapons. THAT'S SURVIVAL. 

   

  Running zombies. Not cool.

  For many the game may appear to be slow and repetitive, but so is life. This game is meant to be an experience. Nothing says scary like sneaking past zombies, only for you to set off an alarm and to alert the horde of zombies. The story follows before the main television series, and for fans it is a must. There are a few clunky mechanisms, the most notorious is when a horde of zombies grab you, you fight them one-on-one like Bruce Lee rather then getting grabbed and torn apart. Despite this, you learn to be sneaky, throwing flares, silent kills, and to avoid using guns. Yes, avoid using guns. A world apart from Left 4 Dead. The greatest moment must be where you use Daryl's crossbow. A silent, long-ranged weapon, and you can pluck the arrows back out of the undead corpses.

   

  So all in all, this game is a perfect match for me. I know there are a lot of people out there who don't like zombies, or believe the world will be overtaken by zombies (I've got my box of beans and noodles ready for that date), but as far as I'm concerned, this game is brilliant.

   

  Bring on the zombie apocalypse.

   

   

   

  • Posted May 24, 2013 3:11 am GMT
  • Category: Editorial
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• 26Apr 13

  Risk(y) business

  

   

   

  Risk. It's a board game. I have the board game in my loft (somewhere). So why do I find it better on XBLA?

   

  There are a couple of obvious answers, it's far less time to set up, no cheating friends who move pieces when you go to the toilet, and no missing pieces that you find a week after binning it. Apart from that it's the same game I've owned for 10 years. What makes it different?

   

  Risk Factions on XBLA offers a poor storyline, with some funny characters and a small campaign mode. But it's online mode where the real fun is. There people quit early, leave games, or take 5 minutes to attack to go toilet.

   

  So why do I force myself to play? Is it self-inflicting? Am I the forever optimist? Maybe it's because nobody in real life will play me at Risk, as I tend to win. Whatever the reason, I'm sticking with it...for the mean time.

   

   

   

  • Posted Apr 26, 2013 5:18 am GMT
  • Category: Editorial
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