DAWN: A game idea by Brian McCain

Dawn is a Sci-fi action/adventure game based on the rather original forms of the genre, heralding back to the usage dating back to the late 60s to early 80s. Instead of science fiction nowadays where it’s all about action, pre-defined spatial warfare, and everything is pretty much known about the universe, Dawn is going back into what made Science Fiction more philosophical in the days of the original Star Trek and Star Wars emphasis on both mystery and mysticism. Instead of everything being “explored”, the player must “explore” almost everything the game has to offer, nothing is known before hand, the player is going where no one has gone before.
Due to this emphasis in both game-play and storylines, the art style should also emphasize this by having an art style that is inspired by late-60s to early 80s science fiction art direction. Combat should be of a more tactical nature, and Exploration should reward massive benefits to player in this unknown universe. The player should feel like a space captain should, have no way to predict what will happen if and when a possible threat occurs. Seeing how the game will obviously have a deep gritty look, the game should bare very little on-screen information that is only displayed when the player accesses said systems.
It is pretty much pre-determined in nowadays games that any game with non-linear game-play should have a consequence system based on their decisions, just like how Sci-fi used to be in the first place. Kirk made some really good decisions, and he made some really bad ones, and all of that got reflected in Star Trek.
I may have stated a game idea similar to this, but this is the most concrete form I have of this kind of idea yet, and I think if done right it would be extremely popular and a good demand on those who find newer Sci-fi material just sacrilegious to what “true” science fiction is to them.
That is pretty much it for now, thanks for reading.
-Brian (BrioCyrain) McCain

The Year in Review: My favorite 2011 Games as well as my anticipated games for 2012

It's been awhile since I posted, and with that another year bites the dust. This is that time where we have to say, "2011, how many games did I even buy?" and "Am I even gonna find anything to buy this year since it's 2012?". Well, like any year...it's hard to find the cream of the crop based on your personal taste, but last year I have to say I bought some games that were worth noting, as well as maybe a few that I wish I never even touched.

Deus Ex: Human Revolution: An Action/Tactical/FPS/RPG hybrid that is for people who like shooting people, but also want an engrossing storyline filled with RPG-style inventories, upgrades, and the like. The story is one of the best I ever seen, and hope to find the time to beat the game. My last post about this game IIRC was me giving the preview build a master score...10/10

Killzone 3: Need I say more? After absolutely loving the beta, and finally coming out the closest and buying the game...there's no other game quite like it that you can enjoy being the "bad guys", stabbing, snapping, smacking, and just any kind of means of killing somebody that you can find...It's not Killzone just because of the title...It pretty much the most enjoyable game that breaking people's faces is such a glorious view to see.

Battlefield 3: The latest and probably almost-greatest battlefield title, a true sequel that brings back some of the largest battle-maps known on PC, as well as distractingly-realistic graphics and quite satisfying gameplay, PC gaming has been taken to the next level.

Portal 2: Co-op puzzle-solving, it was not only glorious but mind-provoking, hilarious, and just all bouts of fun. I have yet to get around to beating the story mode, but the co-op was AWESOME.

LBP2: I haven't touched in awhile, but if you like LBP(1) then this is what the doctor ordered since in a sense you can "program" your own games with a more robust level/stage making system.

Skyward Sword: Any Legend of Zelda game I have played I have also enjoyed, and Skyward Sword is no different.

Brink: Probably my only regret of 2011, this game was ridiculously broken as far as CPU-AI being able to kick your butt and how unbalanced the maps were...probably 2/3 to 3/4 of online battles were one-sided at the first objective...meh!

Now onto 2012!

Soul Calibur V: The Fan-demanded return to the most graphically-robust Fighting series has arrived; with new characters, a new and updated art style, and hopefully a more complex series of game modes and lengthy story-lines which made the fourth installment kind of shallow in the gameplay department..hopefully for some the modes are more in comparison to the size of the third version as well as keeping the amazingly detailed visuals of the fourth.

Final Fantasy XIII-2: Returning back to a more open-world and more robust fighting system and world...Those who were highly disappointed by how linear the original game was will hopefully find more enjoyment in the second installment..if the story is less confusing as the craziest trailers are showing.

Binary Domain: Deadly Robots that look like people taking over the world and being made to look like people, and they THINK they ARE people...There's something wrong with that. Enter the Binary Domain...A world where both Humans and Robots co-exist, and probably not for the best. Hollow Children, robots given Human thought and form have begun invading all levels of society, not knowing in secrecy that they are indeed just robots. You take command as a UN sanctioned Spec Ops squad called the Rust Crew, and come Feb 12 you will be able to engross yourself in maybe the best story-based Third Person Shooters outside of the western-made market. The Graphics are gorgeous, the gameplay looks sick, and there's nothing like bashing tin-heads in glorious fashion!

Ghost Recon: Future Soldier: The somewhat odd-5 or so six year return of one of the greatest squad-tactical shooters is back...from the future! Whether it be cloak suits, mark and execute mechanics, streamlined and robust teamplay, and advances in graphics thanks to the hard work at Ubisoft...This game looks amazing and probably well best the fabled and frenetic predecessor that was GRAW.

Resident Evil: Operation Raccoon City: Welcome back to probably the most viewed part of history in the Resident Evil series...The outbreak of Umbrella's virus unleashed on the citizens of Raccoon City. Spanning the famed timeline of all of RE2, RE3, and the outbreak files series..you get the chance not not only play as the kick-butt force of the U.S.S., but have the chance to change canon buy eliminated fan-favorite icons such as Leon and Claire. Nothing but conspiracy awaits as you choose your preferred U.S.S. Agent, and fight off the waves of zombies and other filth that roam the streets and buildings. The game brings a new grasp of depth with fully-functional shooter controls and squad-based "tactical horror". Let's hope Vector and his comrades bring an unforgettable and awesome spin-off to one of the most famous game series known worldwide.

Resident Evil: Revelations: The most graphically-robust game as of now on the 3DS, as Capcom is working their PS3/360/PSV/Current Gen PC Engine magic on this handheld...it is pretty much a game that makes the Wii cry as far as visuals go. The story rumoured to take place between RE3 and RE5, where both Jill and Chris have been seperated for several years. The gameplay is similar but more advanced version of RE5/RE4...with some features just made for the 3DS such as zombies and such popping out the screen. The gameplay creepy, the graphics amazing for its system, and just downright how cool the story may seem...the 3DS might have a system-seller on its hands.

Ninja Gaiden III: As of right now coming out the same day as RE:ORC...you play as the famous and lofty ninja/assassin known as Ryu Hayabase. As almost as a semi-reboot of the series where action and story-telling has replaced the known and almost distastefully famous amounts of violence and gore...it is no longer the savage ninja-equivalent of Mortal Kombat. Ryu shows newcomers how awesome and kick-butt ninja's are with his platforming, sword-fighting, and just plain awesome super-moves...that and cute anime-style chicks are still making a comeback, so no worries there.

All other games past these in 2012 are still up in the air, as this year is still new and just getting started...

Hope you enjoyed this Year in Review and keep your eyes glued on this blog...cheers!

KILLZONE 2 REVIEW

Before I go on to the real review here, I want to explain the history behind this extraordinary purchase of mine...

Long ago there was a thing called "E3 2005", where few and far between any of the tech demos shown during Sony's rendition of the conference ever made it into real time in-game form. One of those games that ended up actually happening both in game and graphics form was KILLZONE 2. Known to some as the most infamous trailer of the 2005 show, about 4 years later the game came out and somehow matched or surpassed the quality of the prerendered trailer.

While this was all happening I was still under the guise of my family's taste of not touching M-rated games, and after two years and quite enjoying the KILLZONE 3 beta...I decided to take the plunge and buy KILLZONE 2 after realizing how good this series really is. Now let's start this review...

FIRST: This game is by no means a run-and-gun game, and to which you constantly have to be in cover. This game in this sense of progressing slowly through an area hails back to the fact that this game is pretty much "World War II in space" given the fact that Helghan looks like a degenerated Germany and the Helghast are just "Nazis and Darth Vader-esque suits". The game is pretty much a sci-fi medal of honor, so expect plenty of armored enemies, cover-filled areas, and weapons that are nothing but WWII weapons given a sci-fi facelift.

SECOND: This game is by no means easy due to this, and while the game is pretty fun..expect some of the "boss battles" to moderately irritating, especially the final boss. Besides that the game feels and looks like something out of an insane military simulation, as if Guerrilla's intention was to make a Medal of Honor game that's on overdosed steroids.

THIRD: The story while not amazing isn't trash either, as the characters while somewhat tactful are still believable in the setting they are in. Characters die, live, and have revenge just like any other similar war game on the market, and that's not neccessarily a bad thing in my book.

GRAPHICS: This game pretty much is the pinnacle of FPS graphics, while people might disagree and start screaming Crysis at this point...This game is oozing with detail, visual effects, and animations that pretty much comes to life, as far as how gritty looks go. You won't be disappointed definitely when you set the game to 1080(i/p).

MUSIC: Joris De Man pretty much makes this game the game equivalent of "prequel Star Wars", and sometimes he does a better job of booming themes and creepy sub-tunes than John Williams himself. You almost can feel what's going on in the cut-scenes thanks to this pretty much perfect score for such an underrated FPS franchise, and I don't say that lightly.

CLOSING: I highly recommend this game for someone looking for a "out-of-the-ordinary" military shooter, is good at cover systems, and willing to admit that some of the boss battles might want you to pull your hair out. The graphics are probably superior than anything else on the market, besides maybe games that are native DX11, which don't count really since this is a console-only game. That and while the multiplayer is mostly dead thanks to the third iteration, is quite fun in and of itself even if you're just sparring with a few enemies.

IN MY OPINION?

GRAPHICS: 10/10
STORY: 8.5/10
GAMEPLAY: 8.0/10
MUSIC: 9.5/10

OVERALL: 9/10

"Epic when Fun"

SPLINTER CELL: CONVICTION REVIEW

Well, there's only a few games recently that catch my whole-minded attention in terms of pure awesomeness and kicking butt gameplay...such in a way that after finishing the game I am left mind-blown and asking for more even after a moderately lengthy campaign. One of those games happen to be the latest iteration of the Splinter Cell series, perfectly named CONVICTION.

Though I have played only demos of the previous games, I knew why some people enjoyed the originals even though they were slow paced and jarringly difficult. Conviction is no major departure besides the fact that being detected doesn't mean instant game over. Personally this is currently the best Splinter Cell yet, with an amazing story and presentation like something straight from a blockbuster movie. Even though the game stresses patience and perfectly lined shots known in stealth games, the amount of enemies and action-packed cut-scenes never makes the game for a second feel dull. Sam Fisher is the ultimate agent, and the game shows you why.

Probably one of the coolest features of the game is the use of keeping you in the shadows and using silenced weapons to avoid detection, that and using CQC to acquire "Mark and Execute" points to be used to instantly kill multiple targets without much hassle. While the game isn't perfect in this regard, it still feels ALMOST perfect.

Nonetheless, due to the extreme espionage take, even Rookie mode is quite challenging if you don't know the right tactics or strategies of clearing an area.

Aiming, shooting, and movement have almost no issues in this game, to the point where if you know how to play a shooter you'll be dropping enemies with ease and be able to hide or get to cover with minimal frustration. Due to this I didn't find the game all that frustrating since dying was few and far between with the checkpoint system barely making you restart much of the level.

DENIABLE OPS: Deniable Ops is pretty much the co-op modes played with a single player save the Story mode, you can either play as the Third Echelon agent "ARCHER" or the Voron agent "KESTREL". Your job depends on the modes "HUNTER", "LAST STAND", or "INFILTRATION". Hunter is go through a whole map while taking out baddies, being spotted isn't game over but you do have to fight more people per zone. Last Stand is your typical "Horde" mode of keeping the supposed EMP generator safe while trying to fight waves of enemies. Infiltration seems to be the same as hunter but you can't be detected at all or game over.

This game mode is quite fun but you do not have the option of a partner, thus in my opinion making these modes only half as interesting as they are meant to be. It's still fun to take-down targets while trying to remain stealthy though.

CO-OP: While packing the same modes as Deniable Ops, there is one thing that really shines, the "Co-op Story". This is not your ordinary tacked-on mode with a few cut-scenes slapped on; the story present in this kicking-butt with a partner-fest actually sets as a prequel to the scenes geared in the Single Player/Story Mode. As mentioned before you AND a teammate are put into the boots of both Archer and Kestrel, given the job of taking out baddies stealthily with both scenes where you can or cannot be detected.

I found this mode in some ways more enjoyable than the story due to having pretty much "twice the fun" doing spy work. The only issue, while not a major flaw in the game is connectivity issues was present during my playthrough, though they are said to not be persistent and maybe just bad timing of when me and my partner bought the game.

That said I quite highly recommend at least trying the Co-op Story mode if you and your friend are capable of remaining stealthy in required areas.

GRAPHICS: Even though this game is "supposedly" running on UE3, obviously Ubisoft has had a field-day with re-engineering the game with almost perfectly moody visuals as well as mostly decent animations. While this is no "Blood Stone", it's not too far behind based on pretty much nailing the art direction they needed for Conviction.

MUSIC: Personally I cannot think of a Soundtrack more fitting for this game, but maybe that's just me. The tunes, themes, and such set the mood pretty much perfectly when and while they play during the game.

CLOSING: I highly recommend this game to anyone who savvies themselves a "spy/stealth gamer" willing to try a game that's not only out-of-the-ordinary, but just plain goodness-to-heck FUN. Death is minute and almost no where as frustrating as other games, and that's always a plus in my book. Just make sure you have a capable rig and recommended to have a fellow friend or steam-mate to help you Nash into some Co-op. I doubt you will be disappointed.

IN MY OPINION?

GRAPHICS:9.2/10
STORY: 9.0/10
GAMEPLAY:9.5/10
MUSIC: 10/10

OVERALL: 9.4/10

"Just plain Epic"

"The World's Future According to the TPS Genre"

Call me sadistic, but if the world was really like timeline seen in video game genres like Third Person Shooters, we would be totally screwed based on some of these horrifying plot-lines seen in this frenetic genre.

2011-2020:

First option: Mexican rebels try to nuke America because of government agreement, high tech special forces neutralize threat.

Second option: Russia blows up San Francisco with a large weapon, special forces take out the Russians (?).

2020-?: America sends special forces with cloaking and high-tech weaponry to settle overseas situations to maintain peace.

2000-2020:

First Option: A few cities are infected with a zombie virus, STARS and BSAA troops take out the infestations.

Second Option: PMCs take over the world, a single dude takes them all out.

Third Option: The american government goes sour and starts trying to kill former spies that used to work for it, single dude takes them all out.

2080: Androids with human-like souls attack a western company, special forces sent into Tokyo to stop their production, attacked by an Army of robots, the force isn't too high-tech.

2080-?: Giant mechs or mecha produced for war, single person or group of people takes out the bad guys.

?-A.T. 12: Colonization of planets like E.D.N. 3, Native aliens are new source of energy, Akrid retaliate and the force of NEVEC tries to steal all the energy and leave with the planet frozen solid. Single person or group of people take them all out.

2183-?: Humans find an advanced technology on Mars as uses it to travel the galaxy, only to find out that a dude awakens an old robot race called The Reapers who want to wipe out the universe.

Fourteen years after Emergence Day: We awake some bug/alien like monsters from the core of a planet called Sera...yay for waking up some deadly things!

LOST PLANET 2 SOUNDTRACK REVIEW

After having played both Lost Planet games as well as listening to the original game's soundtrack, I knew the music was going to be good but my expectations were also beaten by how every track is a masterpiece in its own right. Not many games tend to care to make ALL the music epic, but when Capcom hired Jamie back onto the series as well as some music-flexing in-house composers it wasn't hard that everyone wanted what could be one of the best TPS OSTs around.

Going down the line, from the Title Screen, Menus, and all the boss and stage music are well-orchestrated, beautifully-done, and just makes you want to go out and kill some Akrid and NEVEC. The WHOLE soundtrack is epic, and not one of them seems overly-generic and "meh" at the slightest. The only way to get tired of this OST....is you can't.

Probably my personal favorites of the OST is:
Title Screen
Main Menu
Welcome to the Jungle Boys!
Gordiant
Central City 1
Red Eye 1
Team Battle
The Polar Sea 1
Vagabundo
The Overland Battleship
Sub Theme
Over G Akrid 2
Main Theme

And that's about half the OST I just mentioned, and the others are still REALLY GOOD.

With this kind of OST, I am not sure how the game itself can ever get boring when you got booming brass, bashing drums, emotion-ripping strings, and the like.

IN MY OPINION?

9.5/10

TOM CLANCY'S: GHOST RECON ADVANCED WARFIGHTER 2 REVIEW

Expectations: After having played the first GRAW and enjoying it's sense of realism while maintaining the "futuristic flexing muscle" of Tom Clancy...I had kept my expectations to at least the level of the original GRAW. That said I was expecting to get killed plenty of times since you're not a bullet-sponge, but like other Tom Clancy games it's either kick butt or get butt kicked.

Initial Impressions: First things first, GRAW 1 was technically an Xbox 360 game (though there was a PC and PS2 version, they were not the "real" GRAW 1), and so the difference in controlling made a difference, even though you could use the Sixaxis to slide, barrel roll, or jump into cover...this seemed more of a gimmick since you could do the same by just pressing the right button combination.

GRAW 1 on Xbox 360 had more vibrant colors, allies had brownish uniforms, the cross-com system seemed like a light blue, environments were mostly clearly lit and stunningly detailed, and enemies were easier to make out with their red and green get-ups. GRAW 2 has changed this whole entire matter into making almost the entire environment shades of brown and gray, and you're clothing pretty much "blends into the bland" reverse-detailing. If you were to compare both games to Future Soldier (the next major title in the series), GRAW 1's coloring were closer to Nigeria where GRAW 2 is as dis-colored as the Soviet map. With all this said, the underlying resolution detail of GRAW 2 is improved (though having only about two different colors...doesn't do you much good).

The Game: With all this said, the game starts off with a bang and starts off where GRAW 1 ends. The point is simple in both games; try to take out the mexican rebels and neutralize their nuke arsenal before they can launch them into the US, and at this point it IS as hard as it sounds. The game has more solo missions than the first game, but also more "support" missions than the first also, which means pretty much in the same amount of time to finish the campaign the game seems multiplied on all fronts mission-wise. Solo missions are of course some of the more frustrating missions, but after awhile (with the right equipment) seem easier if you keep yourself out of enemy fire's way. "Suppport" Missions, as in having not only a squad, but also Strykers, Tanks, and even Choppers at your disposal to kick major butt...You can't help but say "HECK YEAH, THIS ROCKS" when you're little "army" is killing thugs and blowing up almost everything. Probably as previously in the first GRAW, the "Chopper Gunner" parts seem cool at first, but they get boring after awhile. Shooting people with a poorly accurate Fixed Gun on a Black Hawk just seems more like "lets get your blood going" than actual fun, and these tend to be shallow of checkpoints almost intentionally, since if you forget to take out a few tanks, whatever your protecting is doomed and Mission Failed.

Story: The story is nothing special, but how it's coordinated and presented keeps you motivated on your "Call of Duty". Dialog is engaging, you feel connected to the characters, and the relationships built by the previous GRAW into this one gives you a sense of loyalty and immersion within the confines on how epic (and dangerous) the plot is. That and you can't turn down a lead soldier with a whispering, somewhat gravely voice in these kind of games.

Music: Tom Clancy games have some of the best shooter music this side of the pond, and Tom Salta at the front makes this definitely so. From epic orchestrated booming themes, to even other epic "danger" pieces, you won't be disappointed with the music as it helps pushing you on mentally and emotionally. Anyone who has a good taste in music should search up the GRAW(1 and 2) OST.

Graphics: As I said before, the game is a bit of a back and forward step in the right direction from what was previously done in GRAW 1. Lack of vibrant or decent assortment of colors kind of takes away any sense of coloring detail, but the fact that the textures are more detailed with what they got keep the game in a more darker state, which probably plot-wise what Ubisoft was going for.

Fun-Factor: The game is fun if you don't get in a situation where you're undermanned and outgunned (some of this is due to long "hold your position missions" or the fact you let most of your squad get killed, and it's a pain to fight solo in a mission where you're meant to have back-up), but besides that the game is pretty awesome, and the controls feel tight and "right" most of the time...as long as you can shoot the enemies most of the time, you'll progress at a decent rate.

What could have been better: Less "On Chopper Rails Gunner" sessions and the somewhat too-prolonged ending for the story, and in some ways the story doesn't end on the most positive note.

IN MY OPINION?

Graphics: 8.8/10
Gameplay: 8.5/10
Music: 9.5/10
Story: 8.7/10

Overall: 9.2/10

"Epic When Fun"