Dead Space 3

At its heart, Dead Space is a game about being alone. About being alone in a dark corridor hurtling through an uncaring void, with mutated creatures that were once human shambling towards you.

Dead Space 3 is exactly like that, except you're not in a corridor. And it's not dark. And the enemies were never human. And you're on a planet. And you're not alone.

How, then, is it Dead Space?

Many people (around half the internet at last count) weighed in with this opinion when the title was unveiled at E3 in June. But the sound and fury of the Electronics Entertainment Expo are a difficult game to play, given the ridiculous levels of fresh content that crops up every year.

Studios have to show that they've grown, but not outgrown their fans; that they've built on their previous successes, but aren't cutting loose intrinsic parts of their franchises in the quest for innovation.

Are two heads better than one?

The innovation in question is a co-operative mode, a first for the horror franchise, which sees vivisection enthusiast and glowing headcase Isaac Clarke teaming up with a gruff, no-nonsense military type in the form of Sgt John Carver.

Isaac, despite starting off as a mute doll for the player to steer through terrifying situations, has blossomed as a character since the series' inception. In struggling with the Necromorphs – horrendous zombie-like things from beyond the stars – he's gone mad. He's not a soldier, he's an engineer.

In the first game, most of his weapons were made of hastily-modified scientific equipment. By all rights, he never should have survived the first two games, and his sanity is having real problems coping with the implications of what he's done.

Carver, conversely, is a space marine, in that he is a marine that operates predominantly in space. He wears big red armour and has a shaved head and a bunch of scars and he uses the f-bomb like most people use simple hesitations or breathing in.

His wife? Dead. His child? Not among the living. He is the very essence, at first glance, of a bullet-spraying cardboard cutout that swings around a big gun and shouts at baddies when they run away. There might well be more to his character than this, but if there is, it's not to be seen in the demo.

What there is to be seen is action, and plenty of it. With the addition of Carver into the mix, the two characters chat to each other in cut-scenes (providing a much richer story than Isaac's quiet progression through the narrative, which is something) and during combat – but listening to your ally tell you where to shoot a monster is less panic-stricken than, say, furiously shooting at it yourself and hoping something will drop off.


Trust me, I'm an engineer

That said, creeping horror being replaced with frantic stress isn't a bad thing. Double the number of guns means additional enemies on screen and concurrent objectives to solve, which may not equal double the amount of horror, but it does open up new elements of gameplay.

In one section, a giant drill spins and rotates around a circular arena in a blatant contravention of established health and safety laws while hungry Necromorph monsters creep out of the woodwork and try to tear the heads off Isaac and Carver with their additional limbs.

One player must deal with the drill (by slowing it down with their suit's Statis field, a series staple that's normally used to stun enemies, and shooting out the engine) while the other fends off the alien horde. It's not a new idea by any means, but it's nice to see.

The fear isn't whether a corpse is going to shamble back to life and start ripping off arms, but whether both parties involved are doing their jobs. Dead Space 3 asks you to put your hands in the life of another, and that's an entirely different – and entirely valid – kind of scare.

The other change from the standard pattern is the addition of human enemies to the mix. Up until now, Isaac's limited his vivisectional tendencies to the grotesque horrors that are Necromorphs; but now – with their human servants, the Unitologists, becoming more desperate – he'll find squads of armoured men with machine guns trying to kill him on a semi-regular basis.

Sawing off their legs and stamping on them is appropriately grim, but entirely optional – unlike your normal foes, they can be shot in the chest and killed quickly thanks to their human physiology.


Back to the old school

During the hands-on, though, it became apparent that there was more to the game than co-op battles on desolate ice planets. During one level set earlier in the game, Isaac explores a derelict ship floating adrift in space and finds – who'd have thought it – Necromorphs, who try to kill him. This is the same old-fashioned terror that the series has dined out on so far: Isaac is under-prepared and struggling to make his way through rusty corridors while too many monsters burst out of the pipework too close to his face.

The same scares are still scary, which is testament to Visceral's ability to effectively program a futuristic haunted house. Approaching a dead body is still wrought with tension, and when it stands up (and they do often stand up) there's still a little thrill of excitement as you struggle to deal with an enemy that is suddenly within killing distance.

The traditional elements, then, are far from gone – players are still lopping the limbs off horrific enemies in a fight to survive, which is rather the point. The story, too, is still Dead Space, but different. It's evolved. There's talk of the ice planet that Isaac and Carver walk across holding the key to the origins of the Necromorphs and, it's hoped, the key to their destruction. For fans of the series, that's an exciting prospect.

None of this is mandatory

It's important to note that having a co-operative mode in a game doesn't mean you have to play it – the game is fully wired to be played alone, first, and then a second time with a friend on a higher difficulty with improved weapons earned on the first playthrough.

Complaining about an optional co-op mode in a horror game, especially when the secondary character is nowhere to be seen on a single-player run, is a bit like complaining Bioware got gay in your Mass Effect and your heterosexual Shepard isn't going to go anywhere near a galaxy where he might be able to kiss a man on the mouth. Silly, basically.

Crysis 3

Crytek has released some answers regarding the recent release of the Crysis 3 single player interactive ,demo. A fan on the Crytek Facebook page asked "can we use the Ceph weapons?”

A Crysis 3 producer named Michael Read responded with:

"Definitely! However, this isn’t the first time in the Crysis series where you could use Ceph weaponry. …

There was a weapon called the Molecular Arrestor from Crysis 1 which Nomad could use. This weapon was a type of freezing ray used by the Ceph.
Some of you may remember from Crysis 2 that the suit became infected with Alien DNA. In the 20+ years that have passed, the suit has evolved to have some extraordinary powers. The ability to fully utilize the arsenal of Ceph weaponry is one of them. Upon picking up these weapons, you will see that the HUD changes in an attempt to interact them in much the same way you see it with the human weapons.

“In Crysis 3 we have expanded the use of Alien Weapons. The Ceph Plasma Accelerator Cannon (aka. The X-Pac) was the first one we have showed during our E3 Demo. This weapon has two modes. A multi-shot plasma mortar and a single shot plasma burst. In total, there will be 5 alien weapons which you will be able to wield in Crysis 3. Of these 5 my personal favorite has got to be the Incinerator. Judging by the name of this, I am sure you can figure out what it does. More to come on these soon….”

So, it looks like you’re going to have access to some very exotic & powerful CEPH Weaponry. What kind of tactics do you think will be best for a weapon called "The Incinerator"?"

Crysis 3 - More like Crysis 1 or Crysis 2?
Crytek has recently answered another fan question on their Facebook page. The question was "Will Crysis 3 be more open like Crysis 1 or more linear and story driven like Crysis 2?"


"So before we get to the center of the question in regards to Crysis 3, let’s take a look at the history of the Crysis series.

Crysis 1 really did a great job at showcasing the power of what we were able to achieve in the CryENGINE 2 to create these very open and lush jungle environments. Seeing is believing, of course, and having a visual reference point to more open environments created a great impression of an open space. It’s a fact that you were able to run around within these large areas, but at the end of the day, much of this space was devoid of any real action sequences and interactions. To spend time filling this space out would draw people away from the goals we were trying to set.

In Crysis 2, there were many technical challenges that were presented when fleshing out the CryENGINE 3 for this product. The first and foremost was breaking this version of the engine down to prove that we could not only deliver on the PC, but consoles as well. Whatever your views are on Crysis 2, it provided a much different experience over the former and offered what some considered to be a more linear experience. We believed this had more to do with the visual reference points I mentioned above and how we utilized urban grid layout for Crysis 2.

This brings us to today and what we want to deliver to you in Crysis 3. I would say that we’ve learned a lot over the last 5 years and between these two games, and what we have set out to do for this one is bring people the best of both worlds. At the core of the storyline in Crysis 3, as with the two prior, is a very linear experience. This time around, we think people are going to be very pleased with how we have created more depth and interactions between the characters. Crysis 3 will also be helping to answer some of the burning questions people have been asking on the prime fiction side for years. On the flipside of the story elements we have the gameplay and environments. Crysis 1 and 2 had their merits and, to different extremes, their drawbacks. We worked to identify these and have set out to bring people an experience that is much more refined. Creating a unique environment like the Urban Rainforest has allowed us to integrate these two elements into Crysis 3 and create a sense of openness where the player has various options in the way they tackle the action sequences in the game. More Nanosuit customizability, weapons, attachments, environmental manipulation, exploration rewards, and the return of secondary objectives will help take this even further.

As we move up to launch, we’ll be demonstrating how more of what I am talking about for Crysis 3 and beyond what we demonstrated at E3 with the Canyon wonder. I’m certain you’ll be pleased with the results."

To sum it up, Crysis 3 will have "more depth and interactions between the characters." Crysis 3 will answer questions that have been hanging around. A more refined game that addresses issues from the previous 2 games. It will be more open similar to Crysis 1. There will be more "Nanosuit customization's, weapons, attachments, environmental manipulation, exploration rewards, and the return of the secondary objectives."

When is the Crysis 3 Release Date?

As of this point in time the Crysis 3 release date is February 2013. This date was provided by Crytek and it still holds true. Amazon on the other hand is claiming that the release date is December 31, 2013; I really hope that date is wrong. As of right now, I would go with the release date that Crytek provided, and disregard the release date that Amazon is showing. Crysis 3 pre-order is currently available on Amazon.com for PC, Xbox 360 and PS3.

So far we know that the game will feature Alcatraz back in New York City trying to kill the aliens overtaking the Big Apple. The big noticeable difference between Crysis 3 and the others before it is that there will be a bow used as the primary weapon. Read more about the story to see exactly what's going on in Crysis 3.

Crysis 3 Priorities Graphics or Gameplay?

The Crysis Facebook page recently had a Q and A. They were looking for question from fans, so that they can answer. This question and answer quote was taken directly from the Facebook Crysis page.

What is the priority in Crysis 3, graphics or gameplay?

"With Crysis 3, it's definitely a balance of both of these things, but let's not forget about the story elements as well. There are things that need to be revealed and tied up to make the story fit together as a whole. So let's start with the story...

Crysis 3 has a very deep story that progresses in a linear fashion. Our Cinematics Director, who heads up the process of integrating the story into the game, works very closely with both art and design to ensure the experience, is a thoughtful and engaging one. We get countless questions from our hardcore fans on many elements from Crysis 1, Crysis Warhead and Crysis 2. Without giving any key things away here, Crysis 3 is going to help answer a lot of these questions that players have been asking for years. All of this basically means the gameplay and story go hand in hand to give players a great narrative that is advanced by action sequences they can play in their own unique way.

From the graphics side - the art direction has centered on creating this new environment we call an "Urban Rainforest". What we wanted to bring to the fore is something more organic that has a mix of man-made elements combined with living, breathing flora and fauna. Each of the different areas within the urban rainforest has provided us with some new challenges that we are working to overcome to create a setting that is more interactive and alive than what we'd been previously able to achieve in the CryENGINE.

If we simply had the graphics driving everything here, we wouldn't be able to do the things I outlined above. It's nice to have realistic lighting, particle effects that provide that “wow” factor and water that looks like something you would go swimming in. But we also need certain elements to drive those things ahead and help us make a better engine not only for ourselves, but all projects that use our technology platform. Without having solid creativity to drive things at the core, we'd be designing tools and elements that have no functional purpose.

So, in a nutshell, the priority for Crysis 3 is to make a great all-round experience and not hone in on a single specific aspect."

Crysis 3 Trailer
Official EA Crysis 3 Trailer Gameplay in HD

Crysis 3 Gameplay Trailer - The hunted becomes the hunter. Powered by Crytek's CryENGINE® 3, Crysis 3 advances the state of the art with unparalleled visuals and dynamic shooter gameplay. Take on the role of 'Prophet' as he returns to New York, only to discover that the city has been encased in a Nanodome created by the corrupt Cell Corporation. Within the Liberty Dome, seven distinct and treacherous environments become known as the Seven Wonders. This dangerous new world demands advanced weapons and tactics. Prophet will utilize a lethal composite bow, an enhanced Nanosuit and devastating alien tech to become the deadliest hunter on the planet. Coming in 2013 on X360, PS3, and PC.

The Crysis 3 release date is expected to be February 2013. If you would like to pre-order Crysis 3 visit the pre-order page!

Stronghold 3

Priznajte – oduvijek ste željeli izgraditi svoju verziju Camelota te nad svojim pukom vladati čvrstom muškom rukom. No budite realni – taj se san nikada neće ostvariti ako ne odigrate Minecraft… ne ček, zajeb – ako ne odigrate Stronghold. I to po mogućnosti novi nastavak koji nam stiže uskoro.

Osobno nisam fan strateških igara, no vjerovat ćete mi na riječ da mi je originalni Stronghold iz 2001. godine jedan od dražih PC naslova kojega i danas vrlo rado zaigram. Naravno da vas nije briga za moje preferencije, no poanta je ta da je Stronghold svojim tematikom i izvođenjem pristupačan i primamljiv čak i korisnicima kojima je RTS žanr odbojan. To se inače ne može reći za mnogo strateških igara, pa ovim uvodom valjda pokušavam dočarati nekakvu atmosferu koja će bez dosadnog ponavljanja povijesti ovog serijala stvoriti sliku o simulaciji gradnje dvorca voljenoj od strane ljubitelja žanra, ali i običnih smrtnika. Ne znam hoću li u tome uspjeti, no red je da kroz sljedeće retke najavim Stronghold 3, a o svemu ostalom brinut ćemo "u hodu".

… NISU SE MAKNULI DALJE OD POČETKA

Nakon niza neuspješnih nastavaka i spin-offa, Stronghold se u trećem dijelu vraća osnovnom konceptu koji je prije deset godina proslavio original. Moglo bi se reći da se serijal u deset godina nije maknuo dalje od početka, ali razvojni tim Firefly Studios ističe kako su im čak i neuspjesi kroz Stronghold 2 te Stronghold Legends pomogli da u trećem dijelu pogode zlatnu sredinu između kvalitete i kvantitete gameplay elemenata. Novu igru stoga opisuju kao nastavak s kojim znaju što rade, a mi se nadamo da je uistinu tako. No na stranu apstraktna obećanja, što nam to konkretno donosi Stronghold 3?


Stronghold 3 screenshot galerija

U odnosu na prethodnika, igra je pojednostavljena. Iako to možda zvuči kao loša stvar za jedan RTS, u slučaju Strongholda, situacija je potpuno suprotna. Bespotrebno komplicirani sustav kriminala iz drugog dijela je izbačen, a općenite restrikcije kod postavljanja objekata su znatno smanjene. Kad smo već kod objekata, broj zgrada i popratnih dodataka je povećan, no ne bi trebao narušiti fluidnu funkcionalnost igre. A ono što će ju učiniti atraktivnijom su naizgled sitni, ali značajni noviteti na polju fizike i prezentacije.

Naime, igra koristi fizikalni model gamerima poznat pod imenom Havok, a to se očituje na raznim zamkama i nekonvencionalnom oružju. Primjerice, ukoliko neprijateljsku opsadu pokušavate onesposobiti bacanjem kotrljajućih klada, u obzir valja uzeti teren po kojemu će one proći – ako se bacaju po brdovitom terenu s puno manjih brežuljaka, vjerojatnost je da klade neće ići planiranom putanjom već će eventualno odskočiti i skrenuti s puta. No s druge strane, ako analizirate okoliš, fiziku možete okrenuti u svoju korist. Dakako, Havok će djelovati i na ostale elemente igre. Primjerice, urušavanje zidina sada će sada će donositi posljedice onima koji se nađu u blizini događaja. Drugim riječima, zidovi više neće postupno nestajati dok se ruše.

Stronghold 3 screenshot galerija

IĐE TRULO GOVEDO

Fizikalni model omogućit će i atraktivniju igru. Developer tako ističe da ćemo viđati zanimljive scene poput padanja strijelaca sa visokih zidina dvorca ili brutalno širenje vatrene stihije po šumovitom području, a mi jedva čekamo lansirati koju kravicu putem katapulta uz legendarni povik "Here comes Bessie!" ili pak "Hope they like beef!". Da stvari budu bolje, nećemo lansirati samo jadne kravice, životinjski arsenal sada će biti raznovrsniji pa ćemo bacati svinje, koze i koješta. Razlika? Pa, ostaje nam za vidjeti kada igra izađe.

Utjecaj na sam gameplay imat će i grafika. Pitate se kako? Pa, Vision Engine (korišten u nedavnim naslovima Settlers 7 i Gothic 4) u stanju je prikazati različita vremenska razdoblja i uvjete. Iako to i dalje zvuči kao kozmetički segment, tama u noćnim misijama poslužit će kao svojevrsni "fog of war" pa tako pri obrani svoje utvrde nećete uvijek znati s koje vam strane protivnik dolazi. Međutim, baš kao i fiziku, taj element možete koristiti kao prednost nad neprijateljem, što će zahtijevati malo više mozganja, taktiziranja i maštovitosti. Mi se posebno veselimo istome kod obračuna preko mreže, tim više što će igra koristiti Steamov matchmaking sustav.

Stronghold 3 screenshot galerija

I tako dođosmo do pozicije u tekstu kada smo presušili s novim informacijama o Strongholdu 3. Vrijeme je stoga da zaokružimo ovu najavu nekom mudrom mišlju. A kako svu mudrost čuvamo za 2011. godinu i strateško pozicioniranje svoje neosvojive utvrde, odnosno podlu invaziju na mrskog nam neprijatelja; nećemo previše pametovati. Na Stronghold 3 svakako treba pripaziti. Teško je reći može li nas igra iznenaditi jer su se trendovi kod RTS igara u međuvremenu promijenili. No ukoliko još uvijek pronalazite zadovoljstvo u čitavom nizu akcija koje vode do izgradnje dvorca, vjerojatnost je da se nadate najboljem. Zato ćemo najavu i završiti u pozitivnom tonu – s nadom da će nas Stronghold 3 sljedeće godine podsjetiti na kvalitetno vrijeme koje smo utukli originalom.

Ako ste i sami fanovi Strongholda, ili ste uvjereni da ćete to ovom igrom postati, obligatorni ste dati ocjenu i komentar. Ne šalimo se. Inače vam katapultiramo mrtvo tele kroz prozor.

Bettlefield 3

Najnovija inkarnacija popularne akcione multiplayer franšize konačno je među nama. Battlefield 3 podiže ulog u ratu za najbolju modernu pucačinu multiplayer iskustvom koje je najbogatije do sada, ali se sapliće kod linearne i generične solo kampanje, zbog čega ćete imati utisak da igrate dve različite igre.

 Izlizana priča, single player smešten u virtuelni hodnik i ular oko glava gejmera prestaje da bude važan kada okusite online ponudu ove pucačine. Moćna multiplayer platforma i društvena mreža za gejmere, Battlelog, biće vaša cetralna tačka za pokretanje igre, nalaženje servera, komunikaciju sa prijateljima, hvalisanje zbog uspeha i praćenje statistike.

Kada se konačno nađete na bojištu, ako ste početnik, nećete imati pojma šta vas je snašlo - gde da idete, šta da radite, ali jedno je sigurno: bićete oduševljeni, čak zastrašeni megalomanskom razmerom ovog iskustva. Ovde multiplayer mape nisu tereni za paintball i arene za brzo igranje: one su prave regije sa razrađenim geografskim i urbanim elementima. Na istoj mapi smenjivaće se vojne baze, gradsko okruženje i priroda. Biće potrebne nedelje igranja da doktorirate jednu mapu, a velike su šanse da je u celosti nećete videti dok ne kompletirate nekoliko multiplayer sesija. Sve mape su dostupne u svim multiplayer modovima, uz izvesne modifikacije.

Battlefield 3 multplayer je otvoreni sandbox kooji pruža najveću slobodu koju smo videli kod ovakve vrste igre: ovde nije štos da naučite mapu kako bi znali cool mesta za štek i kako bi pronašli najbolje rute, tačke prilaza i mesta za eliminaciju protivnika. Svet je suviše otvoren da su mogućnosti beskonačne: naravno postoje bolje ili lošije lokacije, ali broj mogućih pristupa je ogroman. Igra je i savršeno balansirana: na primer, desiće se da ne možete da mrdnete od snajperista, ali kada otkrijete u kom grmu leži zec, prevlast će biti u vašim rukama. Za svaku taktiku postoji lek, a ne postoji jedini najbolji pristup.

Novi Team Deathmatch mod donosi brži gejming i iskustvo koje više liči na konkurenciju. Tada je Battlefield 3 više individualna igra, ali ostali modovi mnogo više cene timski rad. Igra će vas nagraditi za timske akcije kao što je dopuna municije, lečenje zdravlja ili jednostavna vatrena podrška. Ako dovoljno zasipate paljbom neposrednu blizinu protivnika njemu će se slika zamutiti na neko vreme - dovoljno da spasite saborca u nevolji i da zaradite puno poena za preko potrebne nadogradnje.

Biraćete između četiri klase. Svaka ima svoje oružije, opremu i diktira određeni stil igranja. Kako napredujete otključaćete mnoge zanimljive sitnice, poput robota koji postavlja eksploziv umesto inženjera. Sem akcije, važno je i kako do nje stižete: zavisno od moda igre, sem kopnenih vozila, imaćete priliku da upravljate i helihopterom ili avionom. Ovo nema sasvim arkadni karakter, tako da je reč o gameplay elementu koji se uči. Battlefield 3 je igra koja od početnika traži da prati akciju i da se ne pravi pametan, a znanje će, vremenom, samo doći. Ako baš želite od starta do solirate, konstatovaćemo samo da ćemo sa uživanjem gledati kako se vaš avion zakucava u planinu koju niste umeli da zaobiđete pod protivničkim pritiskom.

Battlefeld 3 donosi manju destruktabilnost objekata nego Bad Company 2, ali je ona i dalje prisutna u znatno većoj meri nego što je to slučaj sa konkurencijom.

Multiplayer nije bez bagova: videćete stopala vojnika u ležećem položaju kako prolaze kroz zid ili glavu oborenog vojnika koja prolazi kroz vrata džipa. Ovo se ne dešava često i ne utiče na stabilnost i fluidnost igranja.

Ako vam iz nekog razloga padne na pamet da probate solo kampanju shvatićete da je pred vama druga vrsta igre, vredna ignorisanja. Dok je Bad Company doneo zabavnu priču protkanu humorom, Battlefield 3 se bavi ozbiljnom globalnom pretnjom kroz standardnu infantilnu formulu: hrapavai glasovi, nadrkani likovi, situacija koja uključuje oružije za masovno uništenje i naravno lude Ruse. Sve bi to bilo ok da igra nudi slobodu iz multiplayer-a. Umesto toga, Battlefield 3 solo iskustvo igrače stavlja u virtuelni linearni hodnik i traži od njih da mnogo ne razmišljaju. Postoje i takozvani brzi događaji koji od igrača traže da pretisnu odgovarajući taster u pravom trenutku. Jednostavno, razočaravajuće. Jedini razlog za igranje solo kampanje leži u fantastičnoj grafici.

Kooperativno isksutvo je znatno zanimljivije, ali Battelfield 3 u tom segmentu nudi svega šest misija.

Grafički i tehnički, teško je naći zamerke. Ako ste investirali u vašu mašinu vreme je da počnete da se hvalite što Battlefield 3 kod vas izgleda bolje nego na konzolama. Ukoliko, ipak, posedujete Xbox 360, Playstation 3 ili nešto slabiji PC, ova pucačina će i dalje izgledati konkurentno i više nego pristojno. U punoj snazi, Frostbite 2 Engine donosi fotorealističnu igru dima, senki i svetlosti. Teško je da se odlučimo da li su impresivniji segmenti smešteni danju ili noću, kada kontrast mraka i fluorescentne svetlosti stvara wow efekat na svakom koraku.

Battlefield 3 nije bez svojih problema, ali ova igra, u multiplayer smislu, predstavlja veliki i logičan korak u evoluciji žanra. Online isksutvo je veoma zarazno, i sa tonom stvari koje možete da radite, tako da garantuje da neće dosaditi mesecima. Možda nije kandidat za igru godine ali je, za sada, očigledan izbor za najbolji multiplayer 2011-te.