A Year of Surprises and Disappointments
posted by Derek "Dewar" Harwell
Over the last few months, I haven’t had a lot of money to pick up most of the popular releases and even less time to play the ones I have been able to grab. With my lack of variety and experience this year, I don’t really feel qualified to join the typical game of the year discussions. So I thought, rather than writing another article on how great Skyrim is, I’d talk about a couple of quality games that surprised me this year, and a couple not-so-quality ones that were pretty disappointing. continue reading
The Many Lists of 2011
posted by Leah Haydu
First things first.
It’s my fault that our 2011 lists are so late getting out. I asked GamerDork’s wonderful writing staff back in December to start thinking of “Game of the Year” lists, or explorations, or whatever they felt like doing to commemorate the year, so that I could have a whole bunch of stuff to start off the new year with a bang.
Then my computer exploded. Well, sort of. Anyway, the end result, excuses aside, is that a lot of great stuff has been waiting patiently in the background to be seen, and that’s what will be featured on GamerDork this week. Before I launch into other folks’ experiences, I just wanted to be up front about why they’re a little late.
Also, I wanted to get my own list out first. Editorial privilege, you know. continue reading
Belated Review: Driver: San Francisco
posted by Steve Robinson
[I wrote this the week it came out. I then had something of a gaming midlife crisis (again) and didn’t submit it. Consider it a review for a game you were waiting to drop to £19.99 for]
I used to wonder what it would take for me to become a ‘professional’ games journalist. I hate my job but know a lot about games so, y’know, writing for a living could be fun, right? I mean, you get to play games all day and write about them! What could go wrong?! And even if you got a game that was utter fucking gash, you could lay into it because hating on shit is also fun! It’s a win-win!
But what happens when you get games that are, for want of any better description, only ‘OK’? Forcing yourself through an abortion of a title is kind of fun, just so you can put the boot in, but what about those thousands of titles that fail to elicit ANY kind of response above a shrug and “…s’alright”? This is the problem I have with Driver:San Francisco. continue reading
Uncharted 3 Review
posted by delb2k
The term “video game” is comprised of an active and passive discipline merged together to create a unified whole. For the most part, the emphasis has been on the game aspect and the interactivity that it can bring to the entertainment spectrum. Recently, the various attempts to insert cinematic disciplines have led to more titles seeking to provide a viewpoint that is as much framed in terms of an interactive film as a gameplay experience. Arguably, the Uncharted series is at the forefront of these recent phenomena in its attempts to place the player in situations that are as much akin to blockbuster films as they are to the standard platforming constraints of running, jumping and climbing.
This review mainly concentrates on the single player storyline and the experience felt through playing that. Multiplayer and co-operative modes exist and build upon the foundations previously laid down. If you’re reading this and are a fan of those, feel free to add a further mark onto the score below. continue reading
ReDork: Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim review
posted by Paul "Mordecai" Brown
Chapter III
My Skyrim Collector’s Edition Story & Review
Ever been swiftly walking through a big area of crowded people that seem to despise the ground you walk on? Glaring intentionally (but “innocuously”) at the giant flashing sign that floats just above your head, pointing down at you, screaming “SCUM!” or “DORK WITH NO LIFE!” for some reason or another? Yeah, that was me on Friday as I was lugging my gigantic box of Skyrim through a busy shopping centre. I was slanted on one side, as I carried the heavy beast of a box through the masses of general public who judged me so harshly. Only a little slanted though, to show I’m at least semi-strong. So, was straining my shoulder and risking tomatoes and cabbage thrown at me, not to mention the price, worth it for some extra content with my copy of The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim? continue reading
Video Game Workout
posted by OnyersixTags: EA Active, fitness, PS3
Out of the box, you receive 6 AAA batteries, 1 USB receiver, 3 motion sensors (1 leg, 2 arms), 2 handles, and a giant elastic resistance band. The first thing to do is tie the resistance band to the handles. This requires some clever use of knotting, similar to inflatable balloons. You then need to test the knot as the tension applied when the band is stretched will cause a loose knot to fail.
You then need to fit the batteries, 2 to each motion sensor, and fit the sensors on to your upper thigh (I found the higher the better) of your right leg, and the arm sensors on the forearm, just before the elbow. The left arm sensor also has the pulse sensor attached, so this needs to sit in direct contact with the skin. There are instructional videos, but a bit of trial and error still needs to be applied.
Loading the disc you are then able to set up an avatar. Take the time to find something that you are happy with, as you will be staring at this avatar A LOT. You can also enter profile information including height and weight. This is helpful for the sensors to detect when you are moving about.
There are two main program modes: the 30-day “Kick Start Your Heart” program, and the 90-day workout. Either selection will give you a chart and suggest four workouts per week. I went for the 90-day program to really push myself. The software then asks you to select easy, medium, or hard for your level of intensity. Since I don’t consider myself unfit, just out of optimal shape, I chose hard. continue reading
Review: Batman: Arkham City
posted by Leah Haydu
Sequels to good games are chancy. Licensed games are even chancier. If you do the math, it seems like a sequel to a licensed game should be a bad idea right out of the gate. Thankfully, Batman: Arkham City bucks these notions and ends up delivering an experience that’s every bit as good — if not better — than its 2009 predecessor, Batman: Arkham Asylum.
Without being too spoilery (and there are likely to be some spoilers herein, but I’ll keep them after the break), the plot of Arkham City is thus: one year after the events of Arkham Asylum, Quincy Sharp (former head warden) has become mayor, and has used his influence to have a new prison system instated; a huge chunk of Gotham is walled off and used as a space to contain criminals, under the supervision of resident wacko Hugo Strange. Sounds like a great idea, right? I don’t know why more cities don’t subscribe to this model.
As Bruce Wayne, you are thrown into Arkham City for having the gall to publicly oppose Sharp and his policies; as Batman, you must then use your new position to expose the sinister plans of Sharp and Strange, all while running a seemingly endless string of errands and favors for a full roster of familiar Batman faces along the way — when you aren’t trying to punch said faces in, of course.
Link To The Past
posted by Bleeders
Okay, so my original intention was to write a blog post about the Ico/Shadow of the Colossus re-release. In fact, it was more than an intention; I had words and everything written down. However, after going back and revising it time and time again over the course of a few days, I eventually gave up with it because quite frankly, it was rubbish — the written piece, not the game.
It was back to square one again, so there I was on Saturday morning — a cup of tea, my laptop, a blank Word template and… nothing. I often work better first thing in the morning, rather than the afternoon when I can be found lagging somewhat. So with seemingly zero inspiration coming to me about what to write, I gave up and got myself ready to spend the weekend with family.
After seeing various relatives, I had been told that my ten-year old nephew was to be the recipient of an Xbox 360 for his birthday. It got me thinking as to what I wanted when I was ten years old. Now if my aging memory doesn’t fail me, I suspect it might have been a Sega Megadrive, even though it wasn’t due to arrive in Europe until November 1990. So, I continued to enjoy the Sega Master System and its vast array of titles. Okay, so it didn’t enjoy the success that the NES did, but I enjoyed it; certainly at the time I was deeply into Wonderboy. Certainly the Master System port, to my eyes at least, was ‘Arcade Perfect:’ a term you scarcely hear any more due to the home releases aping most arcade releases for visual fidelity nowadays.
It’s 2011 now and for my nephew’s tenth birthday, he will soon be the proud proprietor of an Xbox 360 console. He wants Xbox Live as well, so no doubt, I will be paying a visit to set this up for him, but I do often find myself thinking how lucky the youth of today have got it with gaming. continue reading
The Morality Problem
posted by Leah HayduTags: featured
I’ve been trying to write this article for weeks, but I’m actually glad I waited.
See, what I want to talk about is morality and choice in games, which is a topic I’m sure many of you think has been analyzed to death; while I agree to an extent, I think it’s interesting to periodically come back and examine the progress (or lack thereof) games are making in this regard by checking out how specific titles fare. The reason I’m glad I held off is that I originally had two relatively recent games in mind to feature: Catherine and inFAMOUS 2. Since my initial idea, though, I’ve played all the way through Deus Ex: Human Revolution, and it definitely deserves a place here as well. continue reading
Pro Elite Wireless Controller (PS3) – Review
posted by Paul "Mordecai" Brown
Okay gamers out there, I have a quick quiz for you all. In my hand I hold a chunky black coloured… controller (cheeky). It is two-handed and contains the following buttons on its body: In the centre is a circular button that turns on the controller This button lights up around the edges and has the numbers “1 – 4” around it to signify how many controllers are currently being used by the console. Two buttons on either side of it; to the far left of it is the left thumb-stick and to the far right of it is the four main face buttons. Below it on the left is the analogue ‘d-pad’ and to the right of that is the right thumb stick. Standard shoulder and trigger buttons at the top left and right of the controller. Essentially, I’ve just described to you the Xbox Elite issue controller, right? …Right? Wrong.
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