08 June 2010

Deus Ex: Human Revolution takes the spotlight


Ill admit that I've never played the original game it is something that I've never got around to playing for whatever reason. So seeing this i was going in fairly blind, going by some of what i had heard of the years.
Long story short i am hugely impressed in the direction they are going with this game from a pure story standpoint it looks incredibly epic seems more like a movie trailer than that of a game the voice acting seems superb and it has a real sense of connection to the characters and the world, its hard to put into words but this kind of things ticks all the boxes in my book.

From what is out on the market this just seems really refreshing to me, there is a sense of influence from the likes of Blade Runner in the aesthetics which I'm a fan of but they haven't copied but taken it and gone in their own direction with it.

Towards the gameplay not much is known, only that it will be a FPS/RPG I'm sure it will bring back update features from the original. I'm hoping come E3 some in game footage is shown to back up what they have shown in this trailer, to me in terms of story, going purely by the trailer it seems like the studio has something special on their hands.
If you want to check out the trailer i recommend going over to gametrailers to watch it in HD. Here's the link Deus EX, HD Trailer

01 June 2010

Black Ops: Treyarchs Time To Shine

For many years the Call of Duty franchise has been held in the firm grasp of Infinity Ward, but with the recent implosion of the studio and key figures MIA the future of the franchise as a market leader is on rocky grounds or is it?

Treyarch could of been seen as Activisions backup, always there to put out a Call of Duty game in between the times when Infinity Ward were creating the next game or in recent years the next Modern Warfare installment.  Though maybe not intentionally Treyarch were always working in the shadow of Infinity Ward, with the studio now looking like a bare bones affair the juicy bit of steak is gone its come the time when Treyarch can step out from the shadows and become something more than what they currently are or what they are perceived to be, Black Ops is a great opportunity for themselves to set their mark in the aftermath of the self destruction of Infinity Ward taking the helm and driving the series forward in their own direction.
This is only greater cemented by Activision recently announcing that Treyarch will be strictly Call of Duty from now on which in my eyes means they are stepping in the shoes as the main Call of Duty developer at Activision, what this means for the rest of Infinity Ward is uncertain at this point.

From gamers and the press allot of love was given to Infinity Wards outings, though Treyarchs efforts were good games in there own right they were not received on the same level, this has kind of changed from the build up to Modern Warfare 2 and post release, to the bad press for abandoning PC gamers with the lack of dedicated servers and post release criticism from players concerning the multiplayer aspect of Modern Warfare 2. It leaves allot of disheartened people which if Treyarch play their cards right can come out smelling of roses if they warm up to these players bringing them over to their side, it sets a foothold for them to build on in the future and if they go in their own direction much like how Modern Warfare was for Infinity Ward.

We wont find out what will happen come November but it will be a good impression how Activision handles the buildup and also how the game is received by the press but until then we will have to wait and see, but i wish Treyarch all the best in their efforts to be the top dog.