Review: Trainz 2010

Genre: Simulation

            The simulation genre includes a great variety of games. Today there are flight, train, boat, farm, and life simulators just to name a few. Though it may not appear to be entertaining at first glance, train simulators can be very relaxing and enjoyable.  

Gameplay

            In Trainz 2010 you drive trains across a variety of landscapes across the world. Controls are fairly basic and the complexity of them can be controlled through the options. You choose to play certain preset missions such as transporting goods to one town to another or make stops at certain stations to pick up people. When doing this, you must watch your speed limit, stop for other trains, and stop the train slowly so passengers don’t get upset. At times you’ll find yourself doing nothing, but it is ok since the passing scenery is entertaining to look at.

            Besides from driving trains in this game, you can also create your own railroad tracks along with its surrounding environment. Though it takes a great amount of time to make a few miles of rail, the tools provided allow you to make almost any type of land you want. The only problem here is that the interface is tedious to navigate, since you need to scroll through large lists to find the items you want to place.

Graphics

            Trainz 2010’s graphics are varied. The train models themselves are wonderfully modeled and have sharp textures while the land, trees and surrounding buildings look fairly ugly. This however is partially needed for a smooth running game, but the option for better looking scenery would be appreciated.

Conclusion

            Train simulators are not for everyone. If you think you might like this game, then definitely pick it up because it has a great range of very long tracks, fun scenarios, and realistic trains. Graphically this game is lacking, and the interface sometimes is clunky, but these issues aren’t enough to keep you from having a good time.

Gameplay: 7.5

Graphics: 6.5

Lasting Appeal: 8.5

Overall: 7.3

Review: Half Life 2

Genre: First Person Shooter

            Half life 2 is everything a great shooter should be. It manages to really stand out with its engrossing story, memorable characters, and solid puzzles. Though its shooting mechanics are basic compared to other games, it is still very rewarding and rarely gets tiring.

Gameplay

            Half life 2 is a single player first person shooter. You start out as Gordon Freeman, a physicist working with rebel forces to rid the planet of a recent alien domination of the planet. You follow a linear path, meeting many new interesting characters on the way. As you progress, you encounter various easy yet entertaining puzzles that you will need to solve in order to continue on your way. These are very fun and take full advantage of the game’s realistic physics engine.

            Shooting in Half life 2 is in simple first person aim with no ability to look down the barrel of your weapon. This detracts from the experience somewhat, as this sometimes results in a lack of accuracy. However, these weapons alone are still highly enjoyable.

Graphics

            Released 7 years ago, Half Life 2 still looks very good in today’s standards. Some textures appear blurry up close, but not enough to complain about. Effects such as lighting and explosions are basic, as expected from a title this old. All of the environments, which range from the beach, to sewers, to abounded villages and run down dystopian cities are all well crafted and feel unique.

Conclusion

            Half Life 2 may only take you about 12 -15 hours to complete. Though this is a relatively short game, it is always fun to play it over. In addition, there are hundreds of mods created for Half Life 2, most of which are free, that add countless hours of gameplay. If you like first person shooters and haven’t played this already, you owe it yourself to check it out.

Gameplay: 9.5

Graphics: 8.7

Lasting Appeal: 9.0

Overall: 9.3

Review: Team Fortress 2

Genre: First Person Shooter

           Team Fortress 2 is what you would expect to get if Pixar was to create a first person shooter. Its beautiful art style, unique characters, and fun cooperative gameplay really make this game a fun experience you may never get tired of.

Gameplay

            In Team Fortress 2, you choose one of two teams, attackers or defenders, and attempt to either capture or destroy the enemy base. This is done through various checkpoints, whether you are capturing a point or pushing a train of explosives. In order to accomplish these tasks, you will need to kill the enemy team trying to stop you.

Before you begin, you can choose from the nine classes available. These roles are what you would expect in the average class based shooter, but there are enough variations here to keep things fresh. For example the spy and engineer are fairly unique to Team Fortress 2. Other classes include the medic, heavy gunner, sniper, demolition man, and a few others.

 The great selection of unlockable weapons adds to gameplay depth. Random items become available just by playing the game for a certain amount of time. This is true also for collectable hats. This incentive of unlocks is a good reason to keep playing but nevertheless the gameplay itself is enough to keep you entertained.

Graphics

            Team Fortress 2 really looks like no other game, except for imitators of course. The art style is very cartoon-ish with a slight 50’s theme. Colors used are mostly variations of blue and red. Maps in game look very nice and are well varied. Textures are clean and lighting is well done.

Conclusion

            If there is one shooter you play, make it Team Fortress 2. Its incredible art style and gameplay are rare to find in games lately. In addition, it is very funny with it’s over the top characters and announcer. Amazing atmosphere aside, gameplay here is very solid. Even when you grow tired of the game itself, which will take months, there are many user-created alterative game modes that are very entertaining.

Gameplay: 9.4

Graphics: 9.7

Lasting Appeal: 9.5

Overall: 9.8

Review: Mass Effect

Genre: Role Playing Game / Third Person Shooter         

         How many times have you started a game and found yourself skipping through the walls of text popping up on screen. It’s not everyday we come across one that has a deeply engrossing plotline with its set own unique and very believable characters. Mass Effect combines fun strategic gameplay with a highly detailed and rich story that you won’t forget any time soon.

           

Gameplay

            In Mass Effect you play the role of Commander Sheppard, an agent who is entrusted with protecting and maintaining peace in the galaxy. You have your own space ship and can fly to and from different planets and star systems as you please. As you progress through the main story and side quests, you gain new weapons, armor, upgrades, and squad mates. The range of these items is fairly limited, with many of the same items looking exactly the same.

            With each new place to visit, there are new people to meet, many of which being of alien races. Each of the individuals you meet has their own personalities, and all of them are extremely well voice acted. When interacting with them, you have different choices for dialogue. One of the most entertaining parts of playing Mass Effect is deciding on how to communicate with others. For the most part, you can either decide to be nice, neutral or mean, yet the choice is not always clear. This dialogue system also changes your path in the main story, as you can decide how to do certain missions and handle situations.

            Combat in Mass Effect, which includes third person shooting and some a magic system, is decent, however, many other games have done better. In general, moving around can feel a bit clunky and aiming can be inaccurate at times. Also, in some parts, mostly when navigating planets, the vehicle you control has a very limited range of aim, making for some frustrating moments. In general though, combat is entertaining and is very fun at times.

Graphics

            The world of Mass Effect is what you would expect from a science fiction game, though it does feel distinct. Nearly all of the environments are well constructed and nice to look at, except for the barren planets you will visit. On a technical level, everything looks very sharp and clean. Effects such as explosions and certain magic attacks are fun to look at. Character animations are very smooth and realistic looking.

Conclusion

            Chances are, even if you never really cared about a game’s story or its characters, you will care about Mass Effect’s. After you win the first time, you most likely will want to play again just to see how else the story could have turned out.  With its decent combat paired with its amazing story telling and character interaction, Mass Effect it a very entertaining 20 – 30 hours you won't forget.  

Gameplay: 9.2

Graphics: 9.0

Lasting Appeal: 9.2

Overall: 9.4

Review: Mount and Blade: Warband

Genre: Role-Playing

            Mount and Blade: Warband is a shining example of just how amazing games from an independent producer can be. Though visually it has the technical equivalence to that of a game made over five years ago, its engaging combat system is just as good as or better than any other role-playing game out today.

Gameplay

           

            In Warband, you can either play the single player campaign or multiplayer. In single player you gather and army and fight a range of enemies from bandits to armies of enemy kingdoms. Your goal overall is to control the most amount of land, which is almost always done by force. The majority of the game is spent fighting, and this is where the game is most enjoyable. What makes combat so fun is that you control every movement of your character from blocking to attacking. You also must choose which direction to attack or block, which can be very difficult if you aren’t paying attention to your enemy. At times, you may have a hundred or more people at a time engaging in battle, and it is these hectic times where you really need to think ahead in order to win.

            Multiplayer in Warband is just as fun as in single player, but also is far more challenging. It is recommended that you play through single player before you play online just to get familiar with all of the weapons and fighting strategies. Though multiplayer is very fun, it lacks any incentive for you to stay and continue playing like many other online games. There is no progression between games, you always start with the same standard choice of equipment each new game, and this definitely detracts from the experience.

Graphics

           

            You might be a little surprised to discover that Warband was released in early 2010 because of its lacking graphics. Though it is very basic looking, it isn’t horrible and many of the castles and stretches of land look nice. However, some areas tend to look a little too bland and barren, such as desert areas and forests. This doesn’t hurt the game too much since the main focus is combat after all.

Conclusion

            Poor visuals aside, Mount and Blade: Warband is an excellent game with a long lasting single player and challenging multiplayer. It is a good change of pace from the usual role playing game and anyone interesting in in-depth medieval combat should pick this up.

Gameplay: 9.0

Graphics: 6.0

Lasting Appeal: 8.5

Overall: 8.9

Review: Amnesia: The Dark Descent

Genre: Horror Adventure

            Real gripping horror is hard to come by in games. Usually most that claim to be scary offer short lived instances of shock or minor feelings of uneasiness. Amnesia however shows us how terrifying games really can be.

Gameplay

            In Amnesia you control your character in a first person view. The entire game takes place in a very large seemingly endless castle. You go through the castle solving various puzzles while avoiding getting killed by some unknown monsters following you. If you encounter one, the only thing you can do is run and hide. Your lack of any defense can really make you feel paranoid and uneasy throughout the game. Amnesia could benefit from more game mechanics other than running, hiding, and puzzles, but at least they work well here.

Graphics

            Amnesia is a dark game, a very dark game. You have a lantern however, but only a limited amount of fuel. The little light the lantern gives off combined with the dark halls of the castle make for a very creepy feeling. The castle itself is nicely decorated with nice rays of moonlight shining through windows. On a technical level, Amnesia looks good, but compared to other games out today it certainly isn’t near the best.

Conclusion

            Chances are Amnesia will scare you, and it will scare you often. The whole experience will last you about 10 hours with little to no chance of replay. Though it may feel repetitive at times, its amazing atmosphere and fun puzzles make Amnesia a great game that any horror fan should pick up.

Gameplay: 8.0

Graphics: 8.0

Lasting Appeal: 6.5

Overall: 7.9

Review: Sim City 4

Genre: Simulation

            Like its predecessors, SimCity 4 is a game of creating and managing your very own cities. You control ever part of your town from where roads go to how high taxes are. Though the formula hasn’t changed from SimCity’s initial release, SimCity 4 offers great new changes to the series that creates new levels of depth.

Graphics

            SimCity 4 is not spectacular looking. For a game made in 2003, it is decent with sharp textures when zoomed out a distance. However when zoomed in the game tends to look a little blurry. Regardless of this cities look nice with their good variety of buildings and vehicles moving around. It would be better if you were able to see the city in more than four viewing angles, but then again this is an older game.

Gameplay

            Basically you create a city in SimCity 4, big surprise. You start out with empty land and a set amount of money. You create roads, power plants, water facilities, parks, zones for people to build buildings, and what ever types of buildings you find in the average town. The strategy involved here is what to build where and when. Each area in town has certain desirability to it which relies on factors such as crime rate, pollution, and education. Rich people are not going to want to move into your city if you create zones for them to build near garbage dumps. Also, high tech industries won’t build anywhere near you if all of your citizens have an IQ of 50. The fun in SimCity 4 is managing all of these constantly changing demands and eventually creating the largest city you can.

Conclusion

            SimCity 4 can easily be played for hours on end. It can get frustrating at times, especially in large city scenarios where you are trying to expand more. Frequently it is nearly impossible to manage transportation and jobs at this point unless you think everything ahead completely. In any case though, SimCity 4 is an amazing city simulator that really tests your micromanaging skills.

Gameplay: 8.6

Graphics: 7.0

Lasting Appeal: 8.8

Overall: 8.7

Review: Myst Online Uru Live

Genre: Adventure

            Back in the early 90’s, Myst was one of the best selling computer games on the market. It’s easy to play point and click nature appealed to a wide audience back then and still does today. After four new Myst games, the final one was released: Myst Online Uru Live. Initially it was a pay per month title but after its disappointing start and near death, it is now offered for free.

Gameplay

           

            Myst games are all the same in that you are a nameless character who wanders around solving various logic puzzles. You can walk around, move levers, push buttons, read papers, look at diagrams and grab certain objects in trying to progress from level to level. The puzzle difficulty in game ranges from basic and straight forward to nearly impossible to complete. However, if you manage to solve one of these extremely hard brainteasers, you will feel very accomplished. The only thing holding the game back from being extremely immersive is its awkward camera and character control.

Graphics

            If you’re stuck on puzzles in Myst Online Uru, which you inevitably will be at some point, the good thing is that the game world is always very interesting to look at. Environments range from the desert to underground cities to fantasy islands in the sky. Each of these places are beautifully constructed with their own unique feel. Though the textures and lighting effects may not be the best, they get the job done and are enough to draw you into the game world.

Conclusion

            Lasting about 30 hours, or more depending on how much you get stuck, Myst Uru is an excellent free game. At first it may be difficult to understand how to play, with the game’s lack of any tutorial, but in time you will get the grasp of things. Some may be turned off by the puzzle difficulty, but they are all within reach if approached from a logical perspective. Myst Online Uru’s main feature is its engrossing environments and level design, and just for that it is worth a free download… and who knows, maybe you’ll beat a few puzzles.

Gameplay: 8.0

Graphics: 7.5

Lasting Appeal: 7.5

Overall: 7.9

Review: League of Legends

Genre: Massive Online Battle Arena

If you’re bored of the games you already have, chances are you’ve tried some free ones online. In general, nearly every single one of these titles are either only fun for a short amount of time, end up costing money, or are just plain horrible. League of Legends is the rare exception.

Gameplay

It’s very possible that you’ve never have encountered a game like League of Legends. It combines the action of a role-playing game with the tactics of a turn based strategy game. Basically, there are two teams each with 5 or 3 players, depending on which map you play on. You select one of the dozens of unique characters to play. The game takes place on one of two maps, and the goal is to destroy the other team’s base by destroying its surrounding towers. This is accomplished by killing the other team so they cannot defend their base. What makes League of Legends very fun is that in each new game, you level up your character and buy upgrade items for them. There sheer variety of items to buy combined with a tactical approach to purchasing can really make each game unique.

Where league of legends shines the most is in its combat and skill system. As your character levels up from killing enemies, you can choose certain skills to level up, skills that are unique to your certain character. Which ones you choose to level can impact your game substantially because more points in certain abilities make them more effective. After ten of fifteen minutes into the game when you have decent items and skills, the general focus is to kill as many enemy players as possible. This can be done in many ways depending on your character. You can catch them off guard by waiting them to enter part of the map not visible to them or just have your entire team fight all at once. The only downside to gameplay here is that your progress in game is largely determined by your team mates. If one or two people really screw up badly, you can forget your hopes of winning. Besides this though, League of Legends is thoroughly enjoyable.

Graphics

League of Legends can run on nearly any computer. It looks decent on low settings and very nice on high settings, however it is nothing too spectacular. What really makes it enjoyable to look at is all of the bright colors and crisp textures. Nothing is blurry looking, except maybe when zoomed in completely. For a free game graphical quality here is high.

Conclusion

            League of Legends manages to be free yet entertaining for months at a time. You can purchase in game things with real money, such as new character appearances, but unlike most other free games with real money shops, purchases made in League of Legends do not give buyers advantages over free users. With its bright graphics, excellent combat system and zero dollar price tag, League of Legends is an excellent game that anyone with an internet connection should try out.

 

Gameplay: 8.8

Graphics: 8.0

Lasting Appeal: 9.0

Overall: 9.0

Review: The Sims 3

Genre: Simulation

            The Sims 3 is what you would expect from a Sims game. You create sims, your virtual people, build them a house, and control their lives from birth to death. However, in this installment, the entire town where your sims live is completely open. There are no more waiting to visit the park or store, and for the first time in Sims games, your sims can visit other people’s homes. This new feature definitely improves upon older versions of the Sims, but does really warrant a purchase if you already own the Sims 2.

Gameplay

           

            In the Sims 3 you control nearly every aspect of your sims’ lives from their goals, family, job, and hobbies. You decide what you want to do, not following any set path but your own. This lends the game to be very entertaining for long amounts of time since there are so many different things for your sims to improve on, whether it be their work, relationships or skills. Not to mention, building and furnishing your sims’ home is very enjoyable due to all of the variety of items available for purchase. One issue here is that many of these items, and most of the gameplay is just a rehash of the old Sims games. Also, over time you may find yourself doing the same things over and over again.

Graphics

            In terms of visual appearance, the Sims 3 is a decent game. Nothing looks especially excellent, but the graphics get the job done well. The main improvement here in terms of graphics, compared to the sims 2, is the new lighting system. Night and day also are no longer just darkness or sunshine, there is area in between.

Conclusion

            The Sims 3 does not do anything radically new compared its predecessors. If you own the Sims 2, with its countless number of expansion packs, you will be extremely disappointed with the Sims 3’s amount of features. However, if you are new to the series, this is a good place to start.

Gameplay: 8.5

Graphics: 8.0

Lasting Appeal: 8.7

Overall (Newcomers): 8.8

Overall (Sims2 owners): 6.5

Review: Far Cry 2

Genre: First-Person Shooter

            It’s hard for first-person shooters to stand out in the gaming industry lately. You always need a little new something extra to be worth even mentioning. It’s not easy to break the mold of the usual shooter, but Far Cry 2 does a decent job at that, even with some of its shortcomings in terms of gameplay.

Gameplay

Far Cry 2’s mechanics at heart are just like the usual shooter. You have guns, you aim said guns, and shoot your enemies. The difference here is that in Far Cry 2 there is a completely open land of over 50 square kilometers. Basically you have freedom to go where ever, picking up side missions or completing the main story. This in theory combined with an open map should be good but it can be a hassle sometime, especially when you must travel large distance for petty quests. Often, when you travel, which you must, there is no quick traveling, you encounter many bands of enemies that you have to kill or they will shoot you down trying to drive by. This can get annoying fast and it will.

Besides the draw backs mentioned, the combat is very fun, especially with the good range of weapons available to you. The enemies are very smart, taking cover whenever and flanking you whenever possible. This forces you to play strategically and think before you act.

           

Graphics

            Far Cry 2 is a very beautiful game with its great range of landscapes, sharp textures, and awesome lighting effects. It also has wonderful fire and explosion effects. One graphical feature that really stands out is the sun rays that shimmer through trees. These great visuals do come at a price however. In order to run the game at full settings, you need a pretty beefy computer, but at medium settings everything still looks good and runs just fine.

Conclusion

            With its amazing graphics and pretty enjoyable gameplay, Far Cry 2 is a great game. Lasting about 30 hours for the single player campaign, you will certainly get your money’s worth, even if sometimes things feel repetitive. The draw backs in traveling defiantly hurts this game, but it’s nothing that won’t keep you from having a good time. Combined with its great combat, weapon selection, and open map, Far Cry 2 is for anyone who wants a change from the usual shooter.

Gameplay: 7.5

Graphics: 9.0

Lasting Appeal: 8.5

Overall: 8.3

Review: Rollercoaster Tycoon

Genre: Simulation, Strategy

            Rollercoaster tycoon is a game about creating an amusement park, managing park funds, and drowning your park guests! Do you drown them by the simple drag and drop technique or do you send them hurtling into a lake in a rollercoaster? In the end, it’s your decision!

Gameplay

            Drowning aside, Rollercoaster tycoon is a very entertaining park management game that allows you to create the park of your dreams. You control all of the aspects of your park from what rides to build, what scenery goes in, and the prices of everything. Just don’t charge ten dollars to use the bathroom. Each game starts with a set area of land with borders. Over time you unlock new rides and earn money from park guests. Usually each park has its own set of objectives you must meet such as making x amount of profit in two years or pay off this amount of your loan. These objectives keep you engaged in the game while still letting you be creative with your park design. It is also very fun and challenging to build on an awkwardly shaped map that has height restrictions.

           There s a wide selection of rides in rollercoaster tycoon. You have many types of coasters to choose from with some preset designs. If you prefer, you can even make your own custom tracks. Each track has its own statistics such as intensity and excitement. When building, you have to keep in mind not to make turns too fast or drops too high or else many guests won’t want to ride. The other kind of rides include your basic merry-go-round, pirate ship, railroad, Ferris wheel, and go karts just to name a few

Graphics

            Graphics in this game are very basic, but clean. Everything is presented in a nice isometric 3D view. Since the game was released in 1999, it is understandable how it has an older look to it. Many parks you begin with are beautifully laid out with great scenery placement and landscaping. With all the diverse rides, shops, and scenery, along with a large variety of custom colors for nearly everything, rollercoaster tycoon’s graphics are sure to please.

Conclusion
 

If you’re looking for a good way to kill many hours, rollercoaster tycoon is the game for you. The challenging aspect of managing your park, combined with certain requirements to meet, makes this a very enjoyable experience. Even after you win a level, you can still play and continue creating the park just as you see fit. This is a great game anyone should play, even if it is twelve years old.

Gameplay: 9.0

Graphics: 8.0

Lasting Appeal: 8.5

Overall: 9.0

Review: Minecraft

Genre: Adventure, Sandbox

            How many times have you been exploring a game world when you hit the invisible wall only to be left dreaming of exploring outside of it? It is an unfortunate restriction we’ve faced time and time again in nearly every game, but Minecraft is here to break the mold. Minecraft is a game of creating, exploring, and gathering. There is no story and there is no clear objective. Essentially, these are left up to your imagination. Minecraft, currently in its beta stage of development, is defiantly a game you will want to look into if you’re feeling creative and looking for a change from the usual linear plot based experience.  

Graphics

            Minecraft’s visual appearance is very basic yet charming. The entire world is composed of various blocks. For example there is a wood block, a dirt block, a sand block and so on. Their textures are noticeably pixilated but this only adds to the character of the game.

The natural generated terrain .

Its limited appearance up close is quickly improved when viewed from a distance. If you would prefer something more detailed however, you can always create your own textures or download someone else’s from the Minecraft forums.

Gameplay

            You begin on a randomly generated map left to figure out things on your own. No two maps are ever the same. As you move your character around to explore the world, the map grows in size in the direction you move. The world size is only limited by your hard drive space.

As you explore the vast world, you come across various resources such as wood, stone, meat, and ore, along with many other things. As it would seem, wood comes from trees, stone comes from rocks, meat comes from animals, and you get the idea. Some materials can be gathered by hand but others must be collected using tools created from basic resources you collect. For example, you can’t collect coal ore with your hands. You need to acquire wood from a tree first, craft a pickaxe from the wood, and then mine the coal with the pickaxe.

As time progresses, night falls, and monsters come out, and yes, they will attack you. At this time, it is advised you create a shelter and light it with torches so no enemies spawn near you. If you are killed from one of these creatures, you lose all of your items and spawn where you began. This can be frustrating but generally you should have an ok time staying alive if you play it safe. If you just want to explore, mine, and create, you can turn the monsters off.

My castle in progress made of wool and wood planks.

Exploring for resources in Minecraft can be one of the most exciting and addicting elements of the game. Mainly, only one rare material is sought after, which is diamond, and you’ll want to find a lot of it. With diamond you can create the most durable tools, such as shovels, pickaxes, axes, and hoes that tear through certain blocks extremely fast. You will spend hours in the world's natural caves looking for this illusive gem.

A house in progress.

Now fending off monsters and resource gathering may be fun, but the real long lasting enjoyment of Minecraft can be found in creating whatever you want. With the blocks you collect, you can arrange them into anything you can think of. However, the first thing anyone usually makes is a home. If you can imagine what you want to create, chances are you can build in Minecraft. This is the main reason why you can spend hours upon hours just building your structure to find 5 hours have gone by.

Conclusion

Minecraft can be seen as a game of unlimited possibilities. Whatever you want to create, you can. Going through the trouble of collecting resources and fending off monsters in the process just makes the whole process of building more rewarding. You can spend days creating a massive castle or a few minutes making a cozy house. Ultimately, it’s your decision how you play and what you do, which is probably why it has become so popular within the past year. Overall, Minecraft is an excellent game for anyone who likes to create and explore. At only about 20$, with updates promised in the future, this is an amazing value that shouldn't be overlooked by anyone.

Gameplay: 8.5                                (scores are out of 10, final score is not an average)
Graphics: 7.0
Lasting Appeal: 9.5

Overall :  9.2