Beat Hazard Ultra

The best way that I can describe Beat Hazard Ultra is to take Super Stardust HD, put all your favorite dance/electro/dubstep music behind it and put thousands of music strobing lights on the screen at the same time.

When I first looked at a gameplay video of this game I couldn’t even keep track of what was going on, but soon after I downloaded it, I was already playing on Suicidal and it was pure fun!

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Gameinformer Overview – September Update 2011

Gameinformer Overview – September Update 2011

Can you believe it’s September? School has started and I hope you’re having fun in college, because I know I’m having fun while not in college! Either way, we have quite a few games to pick from today, so lets not waste anymore time and lets just jump in right away!

One of the first games listed in this months gameinformer issue is called tropico 4. Now, to be honest, this is the first time hearing of this game for me, but obviously this is the fourth installment in this series, so I suppose that would mean there are fans out there somewhere. From the looks of this game, it seems like it’s a replica of the sims games, except you’re on an island with a volcano on it. To me, this doesn’t seem interesting, but for those of you who are into this kind of thing, September 16th is the day to look forward to!

One thing that did come about early this September is Call of Duty XP! Unfortunately, I missed it this year, but rumor has it, that there will be another next year, so make sure you get signed up for this one, because I know I sure will be!

Next up on our list today is Borderlands 2! Unfortunately I never picked up Borderlands, the first one, but whenever Borderlands 2 is set to release in 2012, you can count me in, because I will not miss this opportunity this time! Graphically, it looks like the last one did, it has a very artsy and creative feel to it, so for everyone who fell in love with that look in the first edition, you should prepare yourself for some more, because Borderlands 2 is right around the corner!

One more upcoming title that has touched the hearts of all Playstation 3 owners is Resistance 3! When the PS3 system originally launched, this was one of the only games out for it at the time, so everyone who jumped on the Sony train early on, have had their fair share of gameplay in the Resistance franchise. So for everyone who liked the previous installments, get out your pens and mark September 6th on your calendars!

As always, there are a couple sports titles being released in the near future. Now, I used to be a huge fan of the NHL games back in the day, but as time progressed, I have evolved into a first person shooter beast, so I don’t play as many sports titles anymore, but I do like to keep a couple on the shelf just encase I need to break out a party game once in a while. Other than that though, I really have no use for any sports titles, for the simple fact that I’m not really a hardcore sports fan. I don’t play fantasy football and I don’t watch any sports games religiously, so as far as sports games go, they just don’t tickle my fancy.

Last, but not least, we have Guild Wars 2. Now, if you’ve been gaming for any period of time, I’m sure that you have got your hands on some MMORPG game and if you’re anything like the rest of us, you couldn’t put it down for years. This being said, when I hear about a new MMORPG being released to the public, I get a little tingly feeling inside and just as the ring called to Froto in the Lord of the Rings, every new MMORPG game calls to me and it’s not easy to resist!

Apparently, Guild Wars 2 is focusing very heavily on their storyline, which should be super interesting to see, because I think it would be fairly difficult to fluidly work in a strong storyline into any MMORPG game, but let’s hope that Guild Wars 2 doesn’t let us down and maybe GW2 will take off and we can all play it together and live happily ever after.

This just about wraps up this fairy tale, so bring up a browser and start researching some of these games a little deeper while you wait for Octobers issue of Gameinformer to be released!

Hanging With Friends

Hanging With Friends is the next game in the “With Friends” series after Words With Friends. I have to admit I was a little skeptical upon downloading it because I honestly didn’t think they could create a more fun game than Words With Friends. I was wrong. Hanging With Friends is  a lot better. This game is truly addictive.

As you may have guessed Hanging With Friends is a hangman-type game. When you start a game with someone you are given a random selection of letters in which you are to create a word with. Your opponent is then supposed to guess what the word is by selecting letters from A through Z. Your opponent is only given a select amount of times in which he can be wrong. If they don’t complete the word before running out of tries then one of their balloons pops. Each person has 5 balloons. Once your opponent has either figured out the word or failed they then create a word for you to figure out and so goes the game. You then try to guess their word. This goes back and forth until someone has failed 5 times. The better you do in the game the more your bonus meter grows. When your bonus meter gets filled you are given coins. You can spend these coins on perks. There are 3 different perks: The “Suspects” perk reveals four letters, one of which is in the word, the “Extinguish” perk removes four incorrect tiles, and the “Revive” perk removes one strike. These perks are free but you can only use each of them once per game. You can spend your coins to be able to use the perks more.

The cool thing about Hanging With Friends is that it is polished. The game has a cool background in which your characters are floating over lava holding on to whatever balloons they have left. It’s also nice that you have the option to watch how your opponent guessed their letters.

Overall Hanging With Friends is awesome. I currently have started a movement at work and everyone is playing it. As with all “With Friends” games, there is a free version with ads and a paid version without ads. I highly recommend this game. As of the time of writing this the game is only available on iPhone. I expect an Android and iPad version to surface soon.

Video Game Apocalypse: Day 5

Well folks, this looks like our last day. Our apocalyptic journey has let us play through worlds destroyed by demons and angels, wastelands created from nuclear war, worlds overrun with zombies, and humans enslaved by an alien race. Today’s game takes out all of that…No zombies or nuclear war, no alien races or crazy robots…No gods. No kings. Only man.

Bioshock

(Xbox 360, PS3, PC)

I can think of no better game to end the world with than with Bioshock. Not only is it one of my favorite games of all time, but the setting for the game is a perfect fit for May 21st. Welcome to Rapture. The moment you step foot into the entrance of Rapture you can tell this will be an experience unlike most games out there. A giant statue of Andrew Ryan looms over you holding a banner with “No gods or kings. Only Man.” on it. From there, you plunge into the dark and disturbing world of Rapture. Rapture makes its home at the bottom of the ocean floor. The buildings and art are crafted in a style that is a mixture of Steampunk and Art Deco. When the neon lights are on, it can be a place of great inspiration and beauty, but when the lights go out (and most of them are), paranoia and monsters await you in the shadows. It is very quick to see, this is a world tearing itself apart.

Bioshock takes us into a world where mankind is freed from rules and authority. Where freedom of science, art, and imagination can run wild. Andrew Ryan, the creator of Rapture, built the city with cues taken from Ayn Rand’s Objectivism philosophy. But while the philosophy inspires Rapture, it’s the intensity that builds it. Each character you meet seems to embody this self idealism and intensity. You go deeper and deeper down the rabbit hole trying to uncover the truth about this city in ruins. What you find at the bottom is a disturbing and cautionary tale of human behavior and the dangers of total unquestioning belief.

Video Game Apocalypse: Day 4

We’re on Day 4 and only two days away from the R-day. So many great games to try to squeeze in before then that I might just cover a little extra today. Today I bring you a double feature. Actually, this was pretty easy to do since both games came neatly packaged in the same disc.

WARNING: This article may contain slight spoilers to Half-Life 1

Half-Life 2 (series)

(Xbox 360, PS3, PC, Mac)

Ladies, do you like the strong silent type? Look no further than Gordon Freeman, the main character in Valve’s Half-Life series. He is a man of many actions but so few on words. Half-life 2 takes place approximately two decades after the events in the original Half-Life where a science experiment at Black Mesa goes bad…very bad. A cross dimensional portal is created and confused/hostile creatures decide to invade Earth’s greener pastures. This leads to a military race of aliens to cross over onto Earth who quickly enslave the human race. Freeman I’m sure would have gladly lead the battles against the invading aliens if he hadn’t been put into a state of stasis by a mysterious deity-like man (only known as G-Man). While the human race is pretty much enslaved, pockets of resistance exist fighting back. 20 years later, Freeman is taken out of stasis by G-Man and inserted right into the middle of the human resistance.

In the games we’ve covered so far, world apocalypse has been herald by people or events out the main character’s control (as far as we know). In Half-Life however, Gordon Freeman was involved in the Black Mesa experiment thus being partially responsible for the human enslavement that followed. The guilty feeling doesn’t last long long, especially when you’re running through close apartment quarters, open fields, sewer systems, and many more environments with enemy fire nipping at your heels.

With the resistance gaining strength, you often run through these pockets of fighters. However, you spend much of your fight alone. This is quite okay since you do have some company in the form of creative weapons including the innovative gravity gun. Half-life 2 is only but one of the many treasures found in the Orange Box.

Portal

(Xbox 360, PS3, PC, Mac)

Ever have one of those days where you wake up alone, in a strange place not knowing how you exactly got there, and have a demented AI forcing you to run endless tests? If so then you’re probably test subject x for Aperture science. While a clean, white laboratory may not exactly be your typical apocalypse setting, running through test after test with no end in sight with only a companion cube for a friend feels like the end of the world. Portal isn’t very long, but the entertainment it provides with its puzzles is long lasting. If I were to be left behind with only a diabolical robot with an obsession with tests and a portal gun, I’d be okay with that.

Day 5 Preview: The perfect place for the perfect time.

Video Game Apocalypse: Day 3

Don’t lie. I’m sure all of us have thought at one point in time, “What would I do if there ever was a zombie attack?”.  I’m double sure many of us have created several zombie survival plans in our head or even have them written down (I myself have 7 different plans). It may sound like science fiction, but there are insects and parasites in real life that have the ability to mind control their hosts. Parasitic spiny-head worms, green jeweled wasps, and many more parasites are out there are just waiting to control another species for its own purpose. Is it so farfetched, then, that our world is doomed to be destroyed by a virus/parasite that turns humans into brain craving lunatics?  Okay, maybe it is.  But in Day 3′s game we get to experience this world overrun with people who want a piece of your mind.

Left 4 Dead 2

(Xbox 360, PC)

Left 4 Dead and Left 4 Dead 2 take on that popular idea of being an immune survivor to a disease which has turned much of your race into mindless zombies. The concept is fairly simple and straight forward. You are paired up with three other survivors and must try to get from point A to point B without becoming finger food for the zombies. You are given an array of weapons to kill the many zombies that stand between you and your quest. These zombies aren’t your typical Dawn of the Dead zombies where they do the Michael Jackson shuffle towards you. These zombies are the 28 Days Later types of zombies that come barreling at you full force. Alone or in small packs, they aren’t a problem, but when a horde comes rushing in on you from every direction you will need your wits and team around you. Especially when the special infected move in.

What really makes left 4 Dead stand out is its online modes. You can team up with three friends to fight alongside you through the campaign or go into one of the several versus modes Left 4 Dead has and play as both survivors and the infected. And don’t think you can become the lone wolf of the team and go blasting off into the sunset by yourself. Teamwork is essential in this game. Without it, you will find yourself being turned into a play toy for the special infected.

Not only is it good practice for the inevitable zombie apocalypse, Left 4 Dead is an incredibly fun game and one that is made even better when you’re able to play it with friends.

Day 4 Preview: Only two words needed. Crowbar and cake.

VGA 2010: Mass Effect 3 Coming Holiday 2011

One of the more interesting things to come out of the VGA’s was the announcement of Mass Effect 3.  I don’t think fans of the title were surprised that we were going to get a sequel at some point, but the fact that it’s coming in holiday of 2011 has a lot of people very excited.  You can watch the World Premiere trailer below.