Music Spotlight is a focus piece on various talented artists across the world, while any band may be featured it is usually smaller and less well known artists that get picked. This month's choice is a band featuring two of Confab's writers: Engraved
We have been working hard to bring you our first ever podcast, we hope you enjoy listening to it.
This week sees listeners join the Editor, Benjamyn Carron and contributors: Emma-Lee Davidson, Andy Robison, Charlotte Peters and lastly Michael Palmer talk about sexism in the video games industry.
Be sure to check out the article which spawned the topic for this weeks podcast: here
Prepare for the biggest war the galaxy has ever seen...
By playing a mini-game!
If you're a huge Mass Effect fan like I am, then you'll no doubt be dying for the release of the 3rd and final installment in the current story arc. The beta may have teased us by giving us a small taster of the absolutely gigantic battle that will take place in the epic universe, but it isn't long until we can save the galaxies (or fail miserably...) and send those nasty Reapers back for another 5000 year nap.
In the meantime, if you need to satiate your Mass Effect addiction, Bioware have just released this little minigame for the series called Take Earth Back. It's a simplified RTS style game, that gives you an overview of the galaxy with specific areas represented by coloured dots. You're the blue guys, and you have to spread your reach across the entire map as quickly as you can. It's not just a simple case of pointing and clicking and winning the game in seconds however. Each base will slowly spawn more ships, which are represented by tiny blue triangles, and you'll need to amass a good amount to travel forth and capture a base. The more enemies (who adorn the colour red) at their respective bases, the harder it will be to take down the base. It's best to gather your strength and pile in on the weakest bases and slowly get further across the map.
Of course, the enemy isn't defenceless. They'll attack your bases as you attack theirs, and if you lose even one base, it could potentially turn the tables on the whole game. The more ships you have at your bases, the harder it will be for them to be taken, so it's with this that you need to strike a specific balance to try and fire up a good offence, but not be so easily overwhelmed by sending all your troops out. There isn't really a huge amount of strategy to it so much. You'll find certain areas that are best to stockpile reserves and others that will act as your base for preparing the assault. Evil doesn't just wear red however, as occasionally rogue squads (Yellow) will enter the map from a random direction and head for one particular base. This stops the game from getting too boring too quickly as not only are you trying to take down one team and defend from them, but you'll have a sudden appearance from these enemy ships that have an annoying habit of almost taking out your bases that have just sent their troops into the front lines.
Overall, this game is short and sweet but a lot of fun. The music is quite nice when it appears though you'd be as well to listen to your own music. The gameplay elements, while simplistic, aren't boring. It's a fast paced game that can become very frantic as you try to beat the timer and get the best score you can. My only gripe is the constant chatter from when you confirm a command. If you send a ship to another base, it will say something like, "No problem," or "On our way". When you're clicking across the whole galaxy trying to move your ships around, it gets very annoying and cluttered.
This minigame is worth checking out if you're a Mass Effect fan, though there's really no lore of special stuff to look at. It's just a fun mini game with a Mass Effect theme, but it was certainly enjoyable to play and something to do in the wait for Mass Effect 3's launch on March 6th (North America) and March 9th (Europe)
The dream of creating an amazing game is a rather common thought to pass through a gamers mind. Perhaps you could be playing a game, and think, "this bit could be better like this," or "maybe that boss should say or do this instead". Whether it's the wandering train of thought from your own criticisms and ideas on one game, or simply a abundance of brilliant ideas for stories, epic battles or some sort of new innovative puzzle game, the prospect of making games is an awesome one. Of course, with the games industry being what it is, you need to know what you're doing to have all of your ideas come to life in whatever medium to try to imagine it, and though I couldn't say for sure, it looks to be pretty complicated, and of course, that's also most likely a full time job, with you working on the clock to create the new best video game.
I used to critique games until I took an arrow to the knee...
After the excruciatingly long wait, finally, the nine divines have blessed us with the gift of the fifth installment into the Elder Scrolls Series. Oh Talos, we thank ye for Skyrim and its amazing gameplay, huge, HUGE beautifully decorated open world and the captivating stories we learn about on our journey. Okay, so perhaps some would say I'm overreacting here, and whether you think I am or not, I don't care. If you played the predecessors to the highly anticipated 2011 release 'Skyrim' and you thought they were good, then I suggest you take a seat and... No, forget that, just go buy it. Don't even bother reading this!
The Xbox Live Arcade network has been getting some pretty good titles these days. It's nice to see developers being able to come up with some really fantastic games that we don't need to wait yonks for, (though not in all cases- Fez, 5 years?!) and for a reasonable price that doesn't burn a hole in your wallet like the price of your standard retail disc. Of course, as with any games platform, there are still plenty of flops in the Xbox Live Arcade library, but I think the recent gems that have shone through the grime of half-assed productions and sea of paper thin Indie games is a sweet treasure to behold. If I were a pirate, as in a sea pirate, I'd tell you that X(BLA) marks the spot for some incredibly entertaining, original and modestly priced games!
One such game that sparkles brightly in the newest additions to the XBLA platform is Trials Evolution. If you ever played its predecessor, Trials HD, I can tell you Trials Evolution quite simply has everything great about that game and more. Much, much more! The premise, for those unfamiliar, is simple: You ride a motorcycle in a series of different maps and have to make your way from start to finish as quickly as possible in one piece. The physics engine is the most crucial element to this, as you find yourself carefully balancing and tweaking your rider's position in order to traverse the many objects that will be in your path. Starting off with something as simple as a set of barrels and escalating up to near-vertical ramps and jumps between platforms that Mario would have a difficult job handling. It's a hard game. Oh yes. In similar vein to Super Meat Boy, it'll take some real skill to get through some of the more difficult levels and will most likely have you cursing wildly and pulling your hair out, but it's so awesomely addictive that it'll have you coming back for more every time. And when you do win, it feels great.
The single player mode starts you off with a tutorial telling you the basics and shoves you off from there, giving plenty of unique and exciting maps for you to better your technique in, before bumping up the difficulty and giving you a few new tips on overcoming the more challenging levels. At these milestones in your career, you'll also unlock new bikes that will let you go faster and be more agile than before, allowing for fast and frantic action speeding through the levels and also the careful precision required to beat the wonderfully crafted areas. You can also use these new bikes to play with online against other riders and beat your times in previous levels. There a 4 medals for each level. Bronze, Silver, Gold and Platinum, though the fourth is only an option when you complete most of the career. The better the medals you get, the quicker you can unlock new levels and experience grinding new joys and difficulties. The leaderboards are really a great part of the element that are brought up practically everywhere in the game, rather than just some option to look at off in the menus. Every level has the score board show your friend's best times, adding the element of competition that makes this game work so well.
Multiplayer is also rather good. Online, you can play supercross, trials or hardcore trials events with friends or strangers. Supercross is a racing mode that has up to four players on the screen at once in a frenetic battle to the chequered flag at the end. Trials is basically the single player mode, but still racing against other people, though it's just their ghosts. And hardcore trials is the same as the latter, though with the most difficult levels of the game playable. And they certainly are difficult. You can rank up in multiplayer also, but after you unlock Hardcore Trials, it's mostly just a number to represent your skill/time put into playing online.
Remember the golden days of building your own dream park in Tony Hawk's games? Well, Trials Evolution has its very own Track Editor. Though, when I say track editor, what I really mean is an absolutely mind blowing construction kit that lets you use the same tools as the developers to make your own levels. I haven't seen anything quite so advanced that's directly integrated in the game and allows for such incredible maps to be made except maybe the Elder Scrolls Development kits. It allows for anyone to try their hand at making some really great stuff, which has already been showcased online.
Track Central allows you to download other people's tracks made in the editor and try to get your own high score on it. Some of the maps we've seen on it already are pretty spectacular and we're still only a short time away from the game's release. It's even possible to make games that don't even have you doing trials at all. The developers themselves have shown how versatile the kit is by showing levels that mimic games such as Angry Birds or Marble Blast. There's even some first person scenarios where you have to find objects, or shoot targets. The community has already caught onto making some really good trials and skill games along these lines and the results have been nothing short of fantastic so far. The editor adds a huge amount of longevity to the game, with new maps coming out every day. It's certainly a strong excuse in buying the game alone.
Trials Evolution is a fantastic game that, if you have the patience to play is absolutely worth playing. For the great addictive gameplay, the fun multiplayer and leaderboards competition and the stunning map editor and the hundreds of creations it has spawned. It's time to get some high scores.
The highly anticipated Mass Effect 3 demo was released on the 14th of February and included the fantastically fun Multiplayer beta, so let's take a look at it shall we? The Mass Effect series up till now has been entirely a single player experience, for obvious reasons. The game is set in a hugely immersive galaxy teeming with life, and it's really something you can only experience fully on your own rather than dragging teammates around with you. This originally made the idea of multiplayer in ME a rather strange prospect and a little worrying for those who are diligent fans of the series. But now that it's been put out for us to see I can wholeheartedly say that it's brilliant.
As I'm not going to touch upon the single player aspect of the demo, I'll just quickly mention some of the newest aspects in Mass Effect 3. The graphics are excellent, and have definitely been polished up since the previous games. The visuals have always looked delicious, but I look at them now and wonder how they could possibly get any better. The controls also feel as though they have been tightened up to compliment the combat and action. I never realised until recently playing back on the first Mass Effect game just what a huge improvement there has been. One thing that was a really pleasant surprise was the hit marker that comes up when you successfully get a shot on someone, like in Call of Duty. The tiny X pops up on your reticule and you get a little vibration in the pad... It might sound a little weird, but if you've played the COD games, you'll probably understand what I mean.
Multiplayer Trailer
The basic premise of the multiplayer is styled around a horde mode, like Gears of War; but in my opinion a more refined and fun experience (not to mention with a lot less drab colours...) You and up to three other players can pick from six uniquely different classes to team up and try to complete the mission. All the classes are in the single player game already, so there's no unfamiliar powers or abilities that you'll have to get used to. Customisation is available as you choose from the different species: Humans, Asaris, Krogans, Turians, all the wonderfully absurd alien types that populate the galaxy. Along with choosing the armour colours and arranging the perfect loadout of powers and weapons for your mission; there's a nice amount of things to get done for your character/s. You'll have individual characters for each class you pick, so you can have two Infiltrators with different abilities, or two soldiers with different weapon kits. Once you get everything organised and start upgrading and levelling up all the different characters; you'll have a small squad of troops ready for almost any situation.
So, now we move onto the actual gameplay: You'll be given the task of defending against ten waves of increasingly difficult enemies, whilst completing small objectives along the way. Objectives such as: hacking a data bank, or taking out specific targets amidst the hordes. It certainly spices up the action and when the objective is thrown at you at the start of a wave, you'll have a specific time limit to get it done, or the mission will be aborted. You'll have to cut a path through the many groups of assault troopers: the powerful rifle wielding Nemesis; the shield-toting Guardians; the agile ninja-like Phantoms; and the huge mechanical Atlas if you want to reach the end of the mission and get all the sweet experience points and credits. There is a nice level of variation between all of the enemies that really do require some strategy in taking them all out efficiently, all depending on how your four man squad is built. To best take out the Phantoms, you'll need a class that can cut through biotic barriers or you'll end up grating away slowly at them with bullets, which I can tell you is no easy task. A sniper rifle would be best suited to the typical Assault troopers for taking them out easily, as well as the Guardians who only offer a small area to breach in their shields. It all requires good teamwork and some variation between each player rather than simply hoping to clean it all up with bullets, which was my original plan of action. Suffice to say, upon chopping and changing, you begin to find some really good tactics that work best in every different situation.
The two levels offered in the beta are a good idea of what's to come: one having tight areas for you to try and not become trapped in and the other with larger gaps to navigate and move around in. There are also three varying levels of difficulty: Bronze, Silver and Gold. If you want to move further up and get a bigger challenge, you'll need to upgrade your characters and unlock better weapons using your earned credits or you won't last two minutes on Silver, let alone Gold. Regarding the actual multiplayer experience overall; it's certainly a lot of fun and the beta hasn't become boring yet, with so many different character abilities and styles to level up and try. With a lot of online games recently, I found my matched partners quiet and longing for a lone wolf gig instead of truly following the idea of the game mode. Playing with friends has been the most enjoyable course of action, but you could say that about most games. A few things need to be fixed of course, but it is only a beta after all. You can't expect perfection from it, but it actually does work very well in most areas. The only major complaint is that in the pre-game menus, everything feels a little clunky. And in regards to matchmaking, there should be some better options for getting you and your friends into a room to make a full game.
I look forward to playing the full Mass Effect 3 multiplayer experience when it comes this March. The multiplayer modes actually help your single player campaign, by helping your 'Galactic Readiness' that will appear as you begin the fight for the galaxy. All the credits you earn in multiplayer supposedly will be sent over to single player too, which is a great bonus. If you haven't played the beta yet, download it and give it a shot. If you haven't played any of the Mass Effect games yet, then go out and buy them too! It's never too late to start the galactic RPG series.
Publisher: SEGA Original Platform: Sega Genesis/Mega Drive Currently available on: DS, PSN, PC, Virtual Console, XBLA Genre: Platformer Players: 1-2
With the recent release of the well received Sonic Generations and the upcoming Sonic 4: Episode 2 downloadable title, Sega's insanely fast blue mascot is once again having a long overdue successful return to gaming. With this in mind, Confab has taken to reviewing a blast from the past in Sonic's history and one of the most successful 16-bit titles and well reviewed games he's ever starred in:
Saturday, November 05, 2011Andy RobisonNo comments
Tropical paradise. Now with more zombies!
Publisher: Deep Silver
Developer: Techland
Platforms: PlayStation 3/Xbox 360/PC
Genres: First-Person-Shooter/Horror
Release Date: September 9th 2011
Price: PC- £29.99 Xbox 360/PS3- £39.99 (RRP)
Ok, let me just say this straight off the bat, I'm a huge zombie nut. I don't know why, but there's something so strangely compelling about the idea of undead humans stumbling around and feasting on our soon-to-extinct bodies. Of course, what makes this situation so compelling is the idea of survival. The idea of living against the odds and being a true hero of mankind, or something like that. Unfortunately, I doubt this would be the case if a zombie apocalypse were to actually spring up on our planet, (It could just happen yet, just you wait!)
Thursday, November 24, 2011Andy RobisonNo comments
Do you remember...
Final Fantasy VII?
This game holds a very special place in my heart. As a kid, I can remember playing this on the PS1, not quite understanding it as well as I do now, and maybe not playing as well as I could now, but dammit, I had fun. If you ever played this game, maybe your experiences differed slightly, but however you played the game, Final Fantasy VII is hailed as one of the greatest games in the universe ever. Maybe. It's definitely highly acclaimed, but whether the previous title is true or not remains to be confirmed officially by the boys down at the lab.
The Final Fantasy games have always been pretty damn awesome, and are definitely a stand out series in the RPG genre of video games. The very first game was made as a last ditch effort of saving the studio from dying out, the 'final' fantasy game for them to make. Luckily for them it worked, and from there on we've had a nice load of newer games from the series. They aren't sequels as such, though the games all share similar ideas in their gameplay and story premise. In each game, you're gradually introduced to your characters, your world, its setting and basic story plot to begin with. But soon, things will take a turn for the worst, and the antagonists will be revealed. The stories in the Final Fantasy games are usually always an incredible journey throughout the respective worlds, and tell a beautiful, enchanting tale with plenty of twists and turns.
Final Fantasy VII's story is one that has always been my favourite of them all. The premise to begin with quickly throws you in the boots of Cloud Strife, a spikey haired mercenary hired by the 'terrorist organisation' A.V.A.L.A.N.C.H.E., who are planning to blow up one of the mako reactors, the stations that give electricity and power to the city of Midgar and the rest of the planet, a technological/medieval setting that the game is based around. A kind of early steampunk style, but not quite full blown. Seconds in from riding in on the train to the reactor, you're quickly thrown into your first battle of the game, two soldiers of the S.H.I.N.R.A. army, and organisation that runs the production of the plants and is essentially the rather shady government of the world. As you make your way through the groups of enemies you encounter, which include the soldiers, guard robots and flying parrots on patrol, you'll break into the reactor and head deep inside to plant a bomb and make your escape, with the presence of a descending timer nudging you towards the door threatening that dreadful 'Game Over' screen with every ticking second.
Soon after your escape from the exploding reactor, the leader of A.V.A.L.A.N.C.H.E., Barret, a hot headed, strong-willed fighter with a gun for one arm explains the situation they're in, and what they're trying to do. To sum it up, the Mako reactors are hurting the planet, and Barret fears that if they don't stop the energy being sucked from the Lifestream, the planet will die and everyone else on it will follow just as quickly. So that's your set up. If you haven't played this game before, I'm not going to throw out any spoilers here, because it's bloody fantastic, and it's a story you really have to experience.
Gameplay and graphics for the time were pretty cool. Obviously, this being a PS1 game, there isn't exactly HD graphics. FF7 was the first leap into using 3D styles in a Final Fantasy game, all the predecessors being in 2D, and it's not too shabby. Though the areas are pre-rendered, with the 3D character models etc layered on top, the art style is captivating and great to look at, each location brilliantly detailed. The graphics are a lot better in the fights however, a lot more detail put into both your heroes and the enemies they come across. The huge monsters you encounter can be rather scary when you first see them towering over your characters! The fighting system is brilliant, and in my opinion the best style used in the Final Fantasy games with the inclusion of the Materia system, which allows you to completely customise your characters abilities, magic powers and give boosts to their HP or MP. Certainly an innovation in the genre in my opinion, and I'm rather disappointed that it hasn't shown up in any of the newer titles. Even when you begin to reach the ultimate climax to the story upon reaching the third disc, a whole new slew of things to do are unlocked and available to do. The Ruby and Emerald Weapons being a prime example of something that will haunt your dreams every night until you successful manage to smash the behemoths to pieces, a feat that isn't exactly easy.
Something I almost forgot to mention, which is absolutely mad of me, is the sensational soundtrack created by the legendary Nobuo Uematsu. This is definitely one of the best bunch of songs for a game I've ever heard. I actually have the whole 4 CDs or so of songs on my computer to listen to whenever I want. And I find myself sticking them on pretty regularly to be honest. It's a true testament to composition when I can hear the same melodies or themes when I'm stuck in a dungeon and never get sick of it, and I've been playing this game for a Long, long time. Each score fits the scene perfectly, and Uematsu does an excellent job of stirring up the atmosphere at the most intense of moments.
I could go on about this game for hours. The amount of hours I played it as a kid, when it was tragically taken away (or lost, I can't exactly remember...) I spent the years after always reminiscing about the story, the characters, everything I could remember. But as my memories faded of it, it became just that, a memory to me. Until I managed to pick up a copy of the game again around summer last year. Happy doesn't quite describe how I felt having a copy i my hands again. I'd started to worry on the way home that perhaps I'd just hyped it up in my head, having a happy childhood memory and building it up to be something it wasn't. And as well as that, technology has moved on a fair bit since the original Playstation. I had half expected to be a little disappointed with it, or for it to feel rather outdated in my hands and make me lose interest.
I can very firmly say that neither of those things happened. When I finally got my rickety old PS2 out from its retirement, playing through the opening scenes of the game got me so excited as everything slowly flooded back to me. And picking up the story again, and essentially learning it from scratch again, understanding the plot and sub plots better than I had as a younger child was simply awesome. I'm personally a little disappointed with the latest titles from Square Enix, and kind of wonder where it wrong, for me anyway, but at least I can always have this golden treasure in gaming to keep me knowing that video games really can be an excellent source of entertainment. Or something.
To round up, Final Fantasy VII is a game from my past that I freaking love. And I'm definitely not the only one. In my opinion, it's the best in the series, with the most satisfying story arc, most fascinating characters and a really immersive world. If you haven't played this game already, or at least heard of it, you're either too young to be on the Internet, or quite simply a fool. A fool I say! Go snap this up on eBay and play through a fantastic game that captured the hearts of millions.
Wednesday, October 05, 2011Andy RobisonNo comments
Opeth: Heritage Music Review
Released: 14/09/2011
Genre: Progressive Rock/Metal, Jazz Fusion
Label: RoadRunner
Songs: 10 (2 Bonus)
Heritage is the tenth album to be released by Swedish progressive metal band Opeth, and the follow up to the simply fantastic 'Watershed' album from 2008.
This album shows straight from the beginning, the departure from their death metal roots and a journey into the prog-rock, pyschedelic musical sounds that have apparently influenced the band, or at least lead vocalist and guitarist, Mikael Akerfeldt.
It's pretty cool that we are seeing HD ports of older video games being brought to our most recent consoles. There's a great dose of nostalgia for the good 'uns that pass into the borders of a high definition update. Titles from the Silent Hill and Devil May cry series have already made their way onto Xbox 360 and PS3 with some shinier pixels and it seems like this could go on for a little while longer. I personally find it a little strange that they can sell old games for your typical £40 or more, but the price covers a small handful of games that undoubtedly were popular at the time and still have a strong enough fan base that doesn't make a re-release redundant.
Unless you've been living under a cardboard box, you may have heard of one of these new HD collections being released. Metal Gear Solid HD, which features MGS2: Sons Of Liberty and MGS3: Snake Eater for the Playstation 2 and MGS: Peace Walker, originally on the PSP. If you've ever played any of these games and craved to see them in a shiny new way then you're in luck! I won't go on much about the plot points for these games, because it'd be a difficult and time consuming set up to summarise, but if you've played these titles before, the game-play and story remain exactly as they were originally. Smoother graphics that support 720p resolution on home consoles, crisper sound and integration with the trophy and achievement systems, some sweet reasons to go back and play some classics belonging to a series that brought so much to games upon their release.
Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons Of Liberty was originally released in 2001, and was the much anticipated sequel to the groundbreaking release of Metal Gear Solid on the original Playstation. The first game, alongside such other gaming classics as Super Mario 64 and Ocarina Of Time, helped to set the bar for what could be seen as a damn good game. So it was a pretty big deal when the second was released. A lot of people felt a little annoyed with the character shift however. In the first game, you played as Solid Snake, a spy soldier of commando unit FOXHOUND. Working alone, you had to infiltrate a military base and destroy the nuclear weapon, Metal Gear. However in the second, though you do play as Snake for the first portion of the game, it isn't long before you swap to a newbie character. Raiden wasn't exactly the expert bad ass spy that the fans were accustomed to, but he was still a pretty good character nonetheless. Raiden's mission sees you sneaking through the huge offshore oil cleanup facility, the Big Shell. Most of the game mechanics featured in the first game remain, updated for a better game play experience. The story line got some flak for being a little too complicated but if you can really pay attention to it, it's fantastic.
The graphics hold up really well, even to this day. There may be some flat textures and jagged character models but everything else is practically top notch. Even on it's release it was pushing the envelope for a great looking game. I don't think I ever saw a better looking game in that generation of console gaming until Snake Eater was released! The lighting is great, the animations of the characters and NPCs in cutscenes are well done and the game is just generally pretty. With the polish and buff from HD, it's as if it brings it into 2012 a brand new game.
Some people may find the controls a little hard to grasp at first. Sticking to the original game's control scheme, the camera would remain in a fixed position and move when you enter a new room or area, or turn a corner. Movement feels a little odd at first, if you're used to the newer angles and control methods in MGS4 or Peace Walker, (or MGS3 Subsistance, which is the version included in this pack!) then it might take a little while to re-adjust, though it's certainly not enough to put you off playing entirely.
This particular re-release of MGS2 is actually of Sons Of Liberty: Substance, which was sort of like DLC before you could download it. It included over 500 virtual and alternative missions set in both areas from the game and the VR computer constructed levels. It included all sorts of different tasks and exercises. Using different weapons to take out targets, sneaking missions, bomb disposal and many more whilst trying to get the best score you can. It added a lot of longevity to the game, as it's a pretty huge expansion. And that's not even mentioning the new 'Snake Tales' missions, that have you playing as Solid Snake in different scenarios, all with their own written narratives, each of these about an hour long at the least. Including the Boss Survival and Theater mode, (which comically allowed you to swap character models in significant cutscenes for others, resulting in plenty of chuckles) the MGS2: Substance edition packed so much into a disc that I reckon could have been considered mad at the time.
Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater is the third proper instalment into the MGS series. Released in 2004 on PS2, Kojima managed to catch the fanbase off-guard by releasing a prequel to the canon. MGS3 saw you playing as Naked Snake, or as he was later to be known, 'Big Boss', and tells the tale of how the entire story came to be from the very beginning. Set during the cold-war period in the 60's, the game follows Snake on his mission to infiltrate Soviet Union territory by moving throughout the jungles. The locations are what really set this game apart. Well detailed and unique, you need to rely on using the new camouflage system to effectively blend into the environment unseen by enemy soldiers. It introduced plenty of new features, such as the stamina gauge. If your stamina got low, it would require you to eat in order to keep Snake's strength up and continue. You would be able to obtain food by hunting for animals or finding flora. Some of it would be good, some bad, so you couldn't just eat anything. If you sustained an injury from a fall or a burn, these would have be treated properly in the Survival Viewer with splints or bandages. These new features really added a whole new level of depth to the game and made the survival element a big part of the game. No longer just about sneaking, it was about keeping Snake alive to complete his mission. In terms of controls, Subsistance made use of a completely 3D analogue controlled camera, rather than the fixed camera positions used in previous titles.
So whilst I said the graphics in MGS2 were fantastic, I found the HD visuals of Snake Eater to be absolutely outstanding. Particularly during cut-scenes, I found it difficult to believe that this game was released in 2004! With the amount of detail in the jungle areas and the characters, guns, wildlife, just everything, this could have been one of the best looking games on PS2 ever. Thanks to this HD collection, it gets to shine in the spotlight once again to show just how good looking it is, even in this day and age of gaming.
While this is technically MGS3: Subsistence, a few features of the original are missing. The mini game 'Snake VS. Monkey' is no longer there, nor is the Boss Survival mode, (or that strange nightmare sequence that happened when you reloaded the game at a certain area in the game...) instead being replaced with the original 2 Metal Gears from the MSX2 system and the NES. As a result, Snake Eater can feel a little bare when you finish the actual game, but despite having aged a lot more than the main acts in the collection, these are still two great games that you should play through. Even at the time, they were pushing great, innovative ideas that had never been seen before in video games. This particular edition also doesn't include Metal Gear Online which was originally included in Subsistence, which is a shame, as for the limited time it was out, it was great fun.
The final addition to the MGS HD collection is the port of Peacewalker, originally released for the PSP in 2010 and follows the journey of Big Boss 10 years after Snake Eater in Costa Rica. A sequel to Portable Ops, also on the PSP, the game used the same gameplay features which were in turn, a bit of a departure from earlier games in the series, not including MGS4. Similar 3D camera functions were used from Subsistence, but the actions were a bit different. Precision aiming is done in 3rd person, rather than first person typically used in the game's predecessors and the Close Quarters Combat (CQC) originally seen in Snake Eater isn't quite the same either. The main difference in Peace Walker compared to the others is that it's broken up into smaller missions. It features plenty of new areas and locations, but they are rather small, and not quite as detailed as they could have been if they were on the same platform as previous games, even in HD.
In Peace Walker, Snake is in control of a small army of mercenaries. This is a key point to the game. You need to expand your group by 'convincing' people to join your side. At the beginning, most of your new members will most likely be enemy soldiers that you extract from the battlefield, but as you become a larger force, more people will want to join you freely. With these members, you can choose to put them in different areas. Infantry, for sending into battle and as your main source of income, Medical for treating injured units, Intelligence for added benefits in new missions, the Mess Hall for keeping the morale of your crew up with some good nosh, and the technology department for creating new weapons and items. All are equally important in developing your army and progressing the game and as you proceed with the story, new opportunities will arise that will allow you to expand more.
If you haven't played Portable Ops before this, it might seem like an odd transition from games before, but once you get used to it, it's a pretty good game with a great story that continues to talk about the origins of the series. Of all three, this is graphically the weakest, but the HD remastering certainly helps bring it to life on the big screen.
If you have any sense as a gamer at all, it's definitely worth your while picking up the Metal Gear Solid HD collection. With two undeniable classics in it, you'd be a fool not to play them. And whilst Peacewalker doesn't quite have all the aspects of a gaming icon like Sons of Liberty or Snake Eater, it's still a great game and absolutely worth your time. If only they could have included the Twin Snakes too!
13:38 Dead Rising Cross dressing
15:40 Soul Calibur Females
16:30 Ivy from Soul Calibur 
The basic premise of the multiplayer is styled around a horde mode, like Gears of War; but in my opinion a more refined and fun experience (not to mention with a lot less drab colours...) You and up to three other players can pick from six uniquely different classes to team up and try to complete the mission. All the classes are in the single player game already, so there's no unfamiliar powers or abilities that you'll have to get used to. Customisation is available as you choose from the different species: Humans, Asaris, Krogans, Turians, all the wonderfully absurd alien types that populate the galaxy. Along with choosing the armour colours and arranging the perfect loadout of powers and weapons for your mission; there's a nice amount of things to get done for your character/s. You'll have individual characters for each class you pick, so you can have two Infiltrators with different abilities, or two soldiers with different weapon kits. Once you get everything organised and start upgrading and levelling up all the different characters; you'll have a small squad of troops ready for almost any situation.
