Gaming sites and magazines are already talking about the next generation Playstation 4 (PS4) and Xbox 720. Even though these names aren’t set in stone, we all know what systems they are talking about. Sony has made a lot of mistakes with the PS3 that will need to be fixed if I’m going to get a PS4. I own both the Xbox 360, since launch, and the PS3, a year after launch. I’ve seen many updates between both systems. I’ve seen new exclusive games come out that have kept people tied to their favorite console. I’ve even had to deal with the mistakes made with both systems. But after all this, I still favor the Xbox 360 much more than the PS3. Let me review what Sony needs to work on to make the PS4 work for me and probably many other gaming enthusiasts.
Category: Playstation
I’m a big first person shooter (FPS) fan. It was the original Doom on the PC that got me into this genre of game. Other games took me into new worlds and let my imagination explore what lie before me, but Doom actually put me into a fluid three dimensional world with ominous sounds and evil creatures that charge at me… I know that Castle Wolfenstein did the same thing, but I never got the same excitement as I did with Doom. Just knowing that there might be something ahead, in the dark, made me cringe while I moved forward using the keyboard and mouse.
I’m always excited to see what new innovative features are released with each generation of shooters. Doom was just a bunch of flat characters, with choppy animations, that attacked on a flat alien space station. At the time, it was amazing, but to see it now just reminds me of how far technology has progressed. Quake and Unreal introduced us to 3D polygon characters. They moved more fluid through worlds that now had stairs, ladders, hills, and cliffs. No more flat worlds. Goldeneye on the Nintendo 64 added better artificial intelligence to the characters. They ducked behind cover when being shot at. You could also shoot them in the leg or arm and see them react differently. Halo on the original Xbox brought us new wide open worlds to explore and battle across. They felt more alive with foliage and life. Characters looked more lifelike and less blocky. It really showed us what could be done using the technology of the time.
DC Universe Online came out January 11th and I picked up for the Sony PS3 a week later. I had been playing World of Warcraft (WoW), just getting my Night Elf Druid up to level 73. I’m wanting to get into the latest WoW Cataclysm expansion but the grinding through levels really wears on me… yes I do dungeons, but at this level, there isn’t much variety. Well, enough of WoW, this is about DC Universe Online (DCUO). It is a game that is going to have many comparisons to WoW. Having played WoW, I can explain the differences from a non-biased perspective. I’m a console gamer at heart but understand the keyboard and mouse controls of a PC. This is my first impression of DCUO since I’ve only played it a week. I picked up the PS3 version because I prefer the controller over the mouse/keyboard and love to sit on my couch and play the game on a big HDTV. I will try to include more updates later.
I never thought I would get into button mashing games. I didn’t like Ninety Nine Nights or Devil May Cry. I’ve got Bayonetta (Xbox 360) and have enjoyed it some. But Dante’s Inferno is what got me into the button mashing genre of games. I guess I should stop calling them button mashers now. Maybe a ‘timed response with correct weapon, grapple and a bit of dashing’ is correct, but a little complicated. Anyway, I got into the groove (no pun intended) after starting Dante’s Inferno (Xbox 360) and ended up getting God of War 3 (PS3) and Darksiders (Xbox 360) to go with it. I actually finished all three and thought I’d give you my comparison of them and tell you which one I had the best time with. There are enough reviews out there to tell you more about each game. God of War 3 is only available on the PS3. So if you own an Xbox 360 and wonder what God of War 3 is like, play Dante’s Inferno. Darksiders and Dante’s Inferno are available for both systems.
I’m a big fan of first person shooter (FPS) games. To break it down further, I’m a big fan of FPS games with objectives. They all started with your basic deathmatch and capture the flag modes, but the latest generation of consoles have enjoyed new modes carried over from PC shooters or new creations from the developers. Battlefield: Bad Company 2 (BFBC2), developed by DICE, has the objective modes that I enjoy and more. It also has the graphics and sound that can immerse you into a battle, if you have the right HDTV and sound system. Even if you are not the latest cinema geek, you will still have a blast online with BFBC2.
MAG (Massive Action Game) for the PS3 is being touted as the biggest FPS (First Person Shooter) ever on a console. This is true. MAG supports up to 256 players online during a match. Does that make it the best game? Does it make the game any more exciting than Modern Warfare 2 with 12 players online? Does all this end up being a bunch of chaos, or is it really an organized game with 256 players? Nobody can really give a true review of this game because there is nothing to finish. It is not a game with a start and an end. I’ve played hours of the Beta and have also spent quite some time with the final game. Hopefully this review of MAG will help you decide if this is the next best First Person Shooter.
Zipper Interactive developed MAG. They are the creators of the original Socom series of games that were a huge success on the Sony Playstation 2. This gives them some credibility when it comes to making FPS games with great matchmaking, clan support, and lots of action. Zipper wanted to take the First Person Shooter to the next level and felt that making MAG a 256 person shooter was the way to go.
Groovy's Geek Corner 