A new reason to be afraid of the dark

Apart from Evolve, Techland's Dying Light is the only "next generation" console game I'm looking forward to the release of. The difference though, is that Dying Light will also be getting a "previous gen." release. While the version for older consoles will no doubt lack all the bells and whistles of the next gen. edition, it still looks to offer an interesting gameplay experience. 

While the developers are endorsing this as the game that will make you want to upgrade to a next gen. console, it's the seamless integration the touch control, and voice recognition features that I'm more than a little sceptical about. To me these still come across as gimmicky extra that Sony and Microsoft added on in order to outdo the opposition. As you may have guessed, neither is particularly appealing to me. 

It would be really disappointing if the overall gameplay experience of this first-person, zombie survival horror story were to be let down due to clumsy implementation of these added next gen. features. However if the team at Techland manage to pull it off, I can see Dying Light becoming a popular title, with the obligatory sequel being developed in a few years time.

In terms of the actual story, I really like the idea of the zombies becoming stronger, faster, and more agile after the sun has set. It'll require the player to be able to adapt their playing style in order to survive various situations, dependent on the number of zombies in the area, as well as the amount of ambient light. Depending on how long the in-game day/ night cycle is, as well as whether or not zombies will actively seek out the player at night, could mean that hiding, and waiting out the night might actually be a viable option when you find yourself outnumbered, and alone in the dark. Oh, and during the day, you'll have to contend with other survivors who may pose just as much of a threat as the undead.

If you want to see some of the actual gameplay with developer commentary, then watch IGN's trailer below. I suggest setting the resolution to a minimum of 720p so that you can get an idea of just how detailed the environments are.

The Evolution of Multiplayer

I read about Evolve a few weeks back, and thought it had an interesting gameplay concept. I then pretty much forgot about the game, because it looked to be a multiplayer orientated, "next-generation" exclusive, which put me off. This was mostly due to the fact that I tend not to play online multiplayer games; I haven't even played Call of Duty: Ghosts multiplayer online,* which is what the game is essentially built for. 

Over the weekend however I picked up a postcard advertising Evolve, which showed that the game would be released for PC too. I headed over to the game's website to confirm, and ended up watching the official trailer (below), and the gameplay trailer (here). My interest in the game was instantly rekindled. 

While I'm unlikely to be able to afford the upgrade to the PlayStation 4 any time soon, I may be able to afford  upgrading my PC. Since my PC actually has an internet connection,* it means I'd be able to play online multiplayer too. That is assuming that I wont have to upgrade too many components in my PC. After some additional thought, I figured I could upgrade my PC, plug it into my TV, buy the yet to be confirmed "deluxe edition" of the game, and buy a Windows compatible controller, all for less than the price of a "next gen." console. This would allow me to play Evolve from the comfort of the same couch, and on the same TV, as I would have if I were to buy a PS4.

I may actually buy the controller sooner than the 'July-September 2014' release date of Evolve, so that I can test it out playing my PC copy of Darksiders.

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* My PlayStation 3 lives at my fiancée's house, and she doesn't have an internet connection. We are however looking into getting that amended so that I can play Borderlands and CoD: Ghosts online. I mean so that we can watch YouTube videos together of adorable cats doing cute things.

Batman: Arkham Knight - Trailer

After the relative disappointment* that was last years Batman: Arkham Origins, WB Games and DC Comics have teamed up once again for Batman: Arkham Knight. While the trailer looks pretty spectacular, I was a little perturbed about how soon after Origins it is being released, until I realised this is being developed by Rocksteady Studios. Thankfully Rocksteady Studios is the developer behind the first two titles, and not the last one. The cash-grab prequel was handled by another development team.

Batman: Arkham Knight is set for release on the PlayStation 4, Xbox One and PC. Those of us still jamming on "last-gen" consoles will either have to save up for a new console, upgrade our PCs, or give this title a miss. I might just go for the latter, as I still have a healthy backlog of PS3 games to get through, and apart from Evolve, there are no "next-gen" titles enticing enough for me to fork out the cash and upgrade to a PS4.

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* Metacritic scores for the previous Arkham Series games:

CoD: Ghosts of Christmas present

It's almost time to celebrate the winter/ summer solstice, dependent of whether you're in the Northern or Southern Hemisphere. Associated with this event, many also celebrate the holiday dedicated to Santa Claus's birthday by observing the cardinal sins; greed, envy, gluttony, and sloth, often in this precise order.

Fortunately those at the Call of Duty: Ghosts camp are being quite old fashioned, and are celebrating the occasion by giving us a gift in the form of the Festive Personalization Pack. The 'Festive Pack' contains a holiday sweater weapon camo, and seasonally themed reticle, playercard, background, and patch. 

If you're playing on an Xbox 360, Xbox One, or P,C the 'Festive Pack' is already available for download. However, if you're playing on a PlayStation 3 or 4, you'll have to wait a while longer for the holiday spirit to kick-in, as the release date is still 'TBA,' as per the CoD: Ghosts Micro Items site.

While to weapon camo looks utterly useless, I quite like the snowflake reticle and patch, which could work rather nicely for a soldier in a snow camouflaged uniform. Dependent on when the PlayStation versions of the Pack become available, and whether I can download it to my PC and transfer it to my PS3, will dictate whether I get this or not. On the top of my list if things to do next year, is to set up a wireless network at home, then I'll be able to start downloading all types of cool stuff for my PS3.

Xbox One revealed

The Xbox One is more than just a gaming console, it's a multi-purpose entertainment hub all-in-one. I watched some of the live unveil that took place last night, and what I saw (Skype integration, football fantasy league, TV guide, and the three operating systems of the One) quite impressed me, although I'm not sure some of the features will even work here in South Africa. I could be wrong. I'm also not so sure I'd find much use for some of the voice activated applications, but that's probably because I don't really watch much television, since I don't actually own one. However, the possibility of being able to Skype from the 32" TV in the living room, will put an end to the entire family crowding around a 15" computer screen in the study would definitely become a thing of the past.

From what I've read, the gaming community don't seem that impressed with what was unveiled, as Microsoft have targeted the TV watching community, as opposed to the gaming community. To be honest, I'd probably get one because of all the TV-orientated features, and not due to its gaming capabilities, although I'd still use it as such. I also like look of the Xbox One more than previous Xbox consoles, yes it is simply a box, but it just looks more refined and less childish than the previously shaped consoles.

For now the Xbox One looks like a better option than the PlayStation 4, but since we haven't really been shown too much of the functionality of the PS4, it's still way too early to really call it. Let's see what the PlayStation group come back with in the coming weeks.