Steam Box And The PC Games Console

An Artists Impression

Oh Look it's my PC!

I've been following this story with much interest and I get the feeling that the gaming community both PC and console don't seem to see beyond "but it's just a PC". The community seem to be seeing hardware and not the most important aspect of this possible new product.

You see to understand the benefit of this so called PC console we need to take a critical look at PC gaming. Now as a dedicated PC gamer I know the benefits, I can buy cheep games brand new off the internet from places such as wowhd.com.au and steam. I can even buy discounted PC hardware from warehouses and put the thing together myself and save hundreds of dollars. It's not hard it just takes time. Hard core PC gamers know this, their proud they have the know how to do it. That's fair, BUT they also expect others to take the time and learn all this for themselves and that's just not realistic.

The problem lies in that there is a lot of people that don't have the time or will power to learn this stuff, it's simpler to just walk into a shop and buy a console for their gaming needs. I can understand that (although I'd still say your missing out if your not gaming on PC). So PC is missing out by only offering sub par Dell packages or overpriced Alienware PCs for the customer looking for an easy hassle free perchance.

So the key to a successful PC Games Console like the Steam Box concept is not in the hardware being something new and different it's in the product as a whole, its concept. It would have to be marketed like a console, an entertainment unit advertised to be plugged into your living room. It could be packaged up with a wireless mouse, keyboard and game controller. It would be pre-built to run games and video. A hassle free plug and play PC. It would have mass market appeal as a singular boxed product like a console, but with the benefit of thousands of games available on launch day, the open platform flexibility and upgradeability of a PC. A true hybrid.

The PC has everything it needs for mass market, software such as steam smashes old limitations such difficulties installing games and updating graphics drivers. You can now 'one click' install games and AMD graphics drivers through steam, hassle free. But the hardware of a PC is different it's not within today's mass market popularity. Buying a new graphics card is not the same as buying a new tablet. I could see the steam AMD partnership growing to fill this gap. AMD already makes it's products as a platform, such as their Spider and Dragon platforms, consisting a family of chipsets, CPUs and GPUs. Transferring those necessary possessors into a pre-build system by one or two manufactures is not out of the question. And then you could potentially have an affordable hardware platform for steam software.

I consider myself bit of a PC enthusiast and I think I will always build a custom PC myself, but I can see the benefit of this hybrid, this console marketed optimized PC platform, this Steam Box idea. It could bring PC gaming to large numbers of people that are turned off by the few remaining down sides to PC gaming or still under the false impression of past flaws that are no longer. The next gen consoles need to evolve under pressure from an expanding PC market and portable gaming tablets. So they are most likely to become more PC like anyway, more internet reliant and so more at risk of hackers like the despicable attack on the PS3. But the big three will still hamstring developers with their closed platform that delays patches, restricting games as exclusives, and limiting graphic potential. Perhaps a console PC hybrid might foster change? Brake dawn the closed platform barriers to compete? End the exclusives that divide fallow gamers to no end? One can only hope. But a Steam Box would be a nice addition to the gaming landscape regardless.

Now that's a gaming rig!

Baldur's Gate 1&2 Remade!

This is big news, for many many fans! (myself included!) Old school RPG fans rejoice! The Baldur Gate games hold a special place in many a gamers heart as one of the finest RPGs ever, with an engaging story, wonderful characters and deep RPG elements.  Details are slim but we do know the games are being remade by Overhaul Games, they have this little tid bit on there website: " We are Overhaul Games. since we got our start at Bioware we've made a few games, met a few friends, and now we're back working on the games we love. For years we've wanted to continue our journey on Baldur's Gate, and now after months negotiations we get to do just that." - and this latter statement - "will feature a re-forged version of the Infinity Engine with a variety of modern improvements, We're adding new original content in the spirit of the original game".

Other good news is that this will not involve EA-Bioware, thank the gaming gods! Mainly because the D&D rules set is now in use by Wizards of the Coast.

So we can expect a better looking/sounding game with some new content mixed in. Sounds like a dream come true so far!

Mechwarrior Gameplay Video!

Fire da missiles!!

If you have not heard developer Piranha Games has been hard at work on Mechwarrior: Online a PC only MMO. Piranha Games are self confessed Battletech fans and it shows with their attention to detail in relation to battletech cannon. What makes this game particularly interesting is it's use of role warfare; light mechs will not just be the lame thing you start off with, but a viable asset if not a necessary scouting asset in every mission. I also like the way every real world day is another day in the timeline of the battletech universe, this means that at launch there will be no Clan mechs but not too long into the future the Clan invasion will happen...
It's a great looking game too as you will see in the videos, I for one am really looking forward to this!

This vid is a developer interview with gameplay: Click Here

This one is just the gameplay and will take you to the official website too: Click Here

Mass Effect 3 Needs Origin to Play

If you haven't heard to play Mass Effect 3 EA's next big thing then you'll be forced to use the widely despised Origin software. You will need Origin to play ME3's multiplayer and will require a one time, single authorization for the single player game, whether you buy the game through Origin as a digital download or as a boxed game.

Sounds a bit like Steam yeah? But there are a few major drawbacks. Origins history has been shown that the application collects information from your system, something akin to spyware. The only assurances we get from Bioware the developer is "Users will be allowed to opt-out of Mass Effect 3 data collection" But that only covers ME3 data as for other data I can't say and nether did Bioware.

The Forums are blazing with angry customers, many stating they no longer wish to buy ME3 instead choosing moral dignity over entertainment. Others stated they canceled their pre-order in disgust. The reasons for this are more then Origins history, forcing players to use EA's Origin means players are slave to what ever price EA places on the game and the DLC. It's the DLC that EA seem most concerned about. To buy DLC for a game like ME3 a player must first buy Bioware points, the points are strategically coasted so that a player must buy more points then is necessary for the DLC they wont. This forces the customer to pay more then they would if buying the DLC directly through other outlets like Steam. Other players simply just don't wont another application on their system when they are happy with the better alternative they already have, and have invested in with a library of games and friends.

Most unfortunate although expected are those that have stated their intention to turn to piracy, showing that shoving DRM down peoples throats and in this case software too only pushes gamers into piracy. Some will do it as a way to hit back at the big company's disrespect at punishing those that do the right thing and buy the game. Others will do it just to dodge the DRM

So if your a firm hater of DRM and the Origins software your going to have a bad time when installing your shinny new copy of ME3. As for me the Mass Effect saga will be on hold until EA drops the BS, I know I'll be waiting a long time, but there are other brilliant games out there that don't force feed me applications and DRM I don't wont/need.

If your interested here are some links the the discussions and info: IGN forum and Bioware forum.  

Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine - First Impressions

In the December/January Steam sales I picked up warhammer 40,000 Space Marine by Relic. I've played their previous 40K title Dawn of War 2 and really enjoyed it, so I thought I'd give this new one a go.

I installed the game just a couple of days ago and have been blasting my way through the campaign ever since. It would come as no surprise to Dawn of War 2 players that the story and characters are a bit two dimensional, but so far from what I have seen it's not necessarily bad. After all it's all about stomping around as a heavily armored Space Marine and smashing squishy orks!

That brings me to the combat, it's fast and bloody, easy to pick up but can be a bit cumbersome in melee. Ranged combat works very well and you'll have a range of heavy and small arms to blow your enemy's away from afar. The thing I like most about the weapons in this game is that there are no "crap" guns, their all good in their own way so your free to use your favorite without disadvantage.

When it comes to interacting with the environment there's not much to be had, other then pressing buttons (also a little cumbersome at times), you can't "take cover" gears of war style so you'll have to stay mobile with room to maneuver if you are to avoid incoming attacks. But on the plus side the developer did a great job of showing the weight of your Space Marine as you stomp around the battlefield.  

One reason why I did buy this game is because of the co-op mode released not too long ago called Exterminatus. I got addicted to the co-op in Dawn of War 2's last stand and expected a similar experience for Space Marine's co-op mode. It's similar in the way that a team of four player work together to fight off wave after wave a bad guys with increasing difficulty and it's just as addictive and fun as Last Stand. It seems less social compered to Last Stand but that's probably because there's just no time to chat compered to it's real time strategy counterpart.

I hope this little insight helps those thinking about buying the game, if you already have the game I'll see you online!

Skyrim: First Impressions

It's been a long time coming but the new Elder Scrolls game arrived over a  week ago, much to the joy of beloved Elder Scrolls fans world wide, (myself included). I'm 30 hours in and I've messed with peoples love life on two occasions, told off a little kid, killed two dragons and got into not one but two fist fights after just moments of walking in to a tavern. So all in all I'm having a great time in Skyrim!

No doubt about it, it's an awesome feeling when you escape prison or captivity and walk out into a new open world as a fresh level one character with an entire realm just begging to be explored. Exploration is something Skyrim dose very well, and it's all the more rewarding in a world that looks so darn good! You can't help but explore with little rivers winding though the landscape beneath the shadows of misty mountains, caves and castles hiding all sorts of secrets and loot.

Changes made from Oblivion are mostly very positive, all weapons are now more logically categorized as single handed, two handed and ranged. The new feature to have a one handed weapon (or spell) in each hand could have ended up as a gimmick but is actually a great new feature that works very well. The map has regained it's zoom feature, and a crafting system has been introduced for those that like to forge there own armour. Although maybe considered a minor thing I'm glade to see such an abundance of wild life that dose NOT try and eat you on sight! It just make the would so much more believable to have rabbits, foxes, dear, butterflies, eagles and more just part of the environment.

The sound effects and music are wonderfully done, from your foot steps in the snow to the sound of an arrow sliding across a bow. Another improvement over Oblivion I'm very happy to see is the visual effects of magic, making powerful spells look awesome compared to the very boring visuals seen in Oblivion.

As in all massive open world Bethesda games there are a few little glitches here and there. Nothing that will ruin the game, in fact some glitches are so funny gamers don't wont them removed! For example I've seen a mammoth drop out of the sky! And the skeleton of the first dragon I killed somehow "re-located" to fall on my head just as I exited Whiterun one day. This is just a few of the ones I've personally com across if you'd like to see some glitches in video, the people over at IGN have gathered some of the funniest of all from you tube on this page.

At this early stage of 30 hours of game play I've only just scratched the surface, but I can say this game is outstanding, if your even remotely thinking about buying skyrim then you should stop thinking and start buying, it's amazing.

The Witcher 2 Update 2.0 Review

Just released The Witcher 2 2.0 update has arrived in typical CD Projekt RED fashion -  free and full of awesome! This is no mere patch, the update includes a new game mode, new difficulty setting for the really hard core players, a new tutorial system and includes all the previously released DLC thus far.

The new game mode is the Arena, here you test your combat skills in challenging gladiator style fights. The rules are simple: kill or be killed. It's a fresh change to the Witcher series that has so far been restricted to a single game mode, so it adds some variety and extra re-playability.

You start off in the arena with next to nothing - your level 1, you have crummy armor and weapons and the first fight pits you against a team of enemies that wont your blood. This adds to the challenge big time, but also gives you a chance to try out abilities and powers you may not have used during your main story play through. With each win in the arena you will be rewarded with gold, XP, points and one of three items that you can choose from. You can sell your excess loot for more money, and buy supplies. There are also three mercenary characters you can hire to help you during arena fights. While it's not multiplayer there are leader boards and getting to the top would come with much prestige I'm sure.

The arena map itself is well detailed like any other Witcher environment, you'll need to avoid the fires whilst taking advantage of the far edge of the arena by using the Ard sign to knock enemies over the cliff (very satisfying tactic by the way). In most games that include an arena (that I've played) pay little attention to the crowd but CD Projekt RED have done a great job. It's invigorating to hear the crowd roar with excitement as I slaughter one enemy after another, then boo me if I start running away like a coward. There are also plenty of spectators watching, some of them with a big mouth too, I swear I heard dwarf say he wonted to marry the Witcher after a particularly gruesome kill!

The update was simple and problem free, the game prompts you at the lunch menu and from there will download and install. Easy, just the way we like it. I'd give this update a 10/10 but one thing bothers me about it, when it comes to scoring points for the leader boards, players may find that dieing and so preventing the acquisition of more points bit of a turn off. Personally, it don't bother me as I don't intend to compete with others, but I can understand it may affect other players. Although it dose add to the challenge I think I'd rather see a penalty in the form of a point reduction instead.

It's easy to see why gamers have such high respect for CD Projekt RED, they give DLC for free and listen to their fans, and most of all produce a sold and true RPG.

PC Gamer Guy's Score: 9/10

Witcher 2 Screen Shots

I've been slowly playing my way through The Witcher 2, So I thought I'd share my three best screen shots so far. If you haven't picked up The Witcher 2 yet then your missing out on an absolutely incredible game! For me its among the greatest RPGs of all time, right up there with BG2 and FF7.



Dragon Age: Origins patch 1.05 On It's Way

A few days ago Bioware announced that it's in the early sages of a new patch for the much troubled fantasy RPG. Origins has suffered from bugs and glitches since it's release in November 2009 and despite numerous patches for both the PC and Console versions there are still game breaking bugs in need of fixing. So yet again Bioware customers wait patiently for some much delayed bug squishing. 


I purchased Origins on release day and ever since have had to scour the Bioware tech support forums for answers. Many gamers complaints ranged from CTDs, memory leaks, increasingly long loading times, quest bugs, item bugs, authorization issues and many more. I watched (and endured) the numerous patch releases that at times caused more new issues then fixes, and to make it worse you needed to have an updated game to play the expansion and later the many DLC additions. Minimal community interaction from Bioware, and useless EA tech support didn't help ether, players felt left in the dark and ripped off. I witnessed (and yes added to) the many frustrated and angry voices on the Bioware forums. So many players lost their respect for Bioware, me included despite being a long time fan, the worst gaming experience I have ever had has changed that for good.


Bioware's recent track record of dodgy Origins patches leaves me sceptical as to weather or not this new patch will be a successes or not. Unfortunately their still in the hunting and gathering stage. ie: Still making a list of bugs to fix, so the new patch is a long way off yet.


It would seem the saga continues in Dragon Age 2 with the last patch fixing over 100 bugs and another Dragon Age 2 patch on it's way to fix many more. I haven't played Dragon Age 2 mainly due to the Dragon Age: Origins headaches I suffered but looking at the Dragon Age 2 tech forums and seeing similar game breaking bugs that I and many others experienced with Origins makes me very happy I didn't wast my money for a second time.


Now we wait to see if Bioware can redeem themselves. Better late then never right?


Need a link to the Bioware forum about the new patch? Click here

How to get the Lightning Stave in DoW2

When Dawn of War 2 Retribution was released not too long ago I eagerly jumped back into The Last Stand mode to check out the new war gear that can be unlocked via achievements. It's honestly the first time I have ever cared about achievements in my life and was particularly interested to see what new toys of war the Farseer can unlock. And I must say the new war gear is awesome! The two new items work perfectly together the easiest to unlock is the new armour giving the Farseer a respectable amount of protection and a very nice 0.5 buff to energy regeneration. To complement the armours energy buff the Lightning Staff adds the lightning runes trait that will reduce energy costs of spells so you can fire off those eldritch storms more often! Oh plus the staff has a ranged attack with knock down and it dose decent damage in melee too.


So how do you get this uber killy staff? Well I can tell how I managed to get it and it was not particularly easy. You need to reach a points multiplier of x275. I managed to do this only with the help of two other good players with high level characters. In the Bloodied coliseum map one team mate and I guarded a capture point each while the remaining player jumped around the map helping us or making kills as fast as possible. You'll need to keep the capture points under your control while avoiding any team members becoming incapacitated until about wave 11 to have a chance at scoring your new weapon.


Just a thought, if your having trouble racking up the 75 revives to get the armour I recommend using the teleport rune to warp your incapacitated team members to a safe location then revive them, you'll save the day and get plenty of thanks and in no time have new war gear!


Below is my favourite war gear combo with the new items, built to survive and dish out the pain from a distance or extract team members to a safe location.


Weapon: Lightning Stave
Armour: Mantle of Malan'tai
Accessories: Rune of Warding, Rune of the Warp, Runes of War
Commander Item: Spirit Stone of Eldritch Might



Amnesia: The Dark Decent Review

You awake lying on a cold stone floor with absolutely no memory of your past, finding yourself trapped within in a dark castle as a thunder storm rages outside, your only clue to your predicament is a small trail of pink liquid drops upon the stone floor leading deeper into the unknown....


That's what your presented with when starting a new game of Amnesia: The Dark Decent and from that point onwards you'll be leading your character Daniel on a frightening quest through Castle Brennenburg. Amnesia: The Dark Decent is a survival horror game with light puzzle solving, developed and published by Frictional Games.


There are plenty of questions right from the beginning regarding the story but answers soon start filtering through as you collect notes and diary entries detailing the interesting back story leading up to your current situation. For those that don't like reading rest assured many of notes are fully voiced. Amnesia also dose a brilliant job of slowly introducing the player to new aspects of game play in the early stages, so it's easy to pick up even if your not a veteran of adventure horror games.


The game plays in first person with no 3rd person cut scenes which is just one way the game keeps players immersed in it's atmosphere. Talking about atmosphere, this is where Amnesia shines it keeps you on edge at all times. It's freaky just to walk around this castle and this is before creatures try to eat your brains out. When a shambling mutilated zombie dose emerge from the darkness hell bent on ripping your limbs off all you can do is run like a little girl and hide, preferably in the nearest wardrobe. Yep, that's right you have no weapons at all. Surprisingly that's one of the best things about Amnesia you can't play the warrior with guns blazing, you just got to find a way to survive the nightmare and that adds a lot to the fear factor. You wont find many "BOO" moments that other games rely on to scare players, instead your treated to a relentlessly haunting atmosphere.







The balance between light and dark in Amnesia has been done remarkably well. From a well lit part of the room it's very hard to see anything in a dark area, but moving into the darkness and your eyes quickly adjusts allowing you to search dark places for items. But remaining in the dark for too long comes with it's own dangers. There's an entity in the darkness that eats away at Daniel's sanity the longer you stay there, and before long your vision starts warping you hear freaky sounds and eventually start seeing bugs crawling around your vision, this gets especially intense when hiding in the dark from zombie creatures.


Luckily you will have a lantern to light your way to ward off the darkness but doing so will use up your reserves of lantern oil so it's good to use tinderbox's when staying in one place as they can be used to light up a candle or touch as you search a room. Rummaging around a room is not as boring as it might seem, every action is preformed by emulating a movement with the mouse. To open a draw you need to click and "pull" to close the draw you click and "push". Same goes for doors allowing you to open a door just a little bit to see what's in the next room.


It's not all hide and seek some parts of the game have you on the run in a frightening chase sequence or in a room solving a puzzle. The thing I like most about Amnesia's puzzles is that everything you need to complete the puzzle is within that area or room. The puzzles also very from using a rock to dislodge or smash something to picking up gears and putting a machine back into working order. None of the puzzles are overly hard to accomplish but their variety and inventiveness make them enjoyable. In some cases you also need to combine items within your inventory before they can be used to solve puzzles.


The game highly recommends you to check your monitors gamma, play in the dark and with headphones. Let me add to this, this game is best played later at night when the house is quiet and there's nobody to disturb you. I say this because to play this game is to lose yourself in the atmosphere.


From the eerie ambient sound effects of foot steps and scratching bugs to heart pumping music Amnesia doesn't lack in music department at all. There are times when the mere sound of a zombies howl is all that it takes for you to be heading for the nearest hiding spot.


Since it's arrival in September 2010Amnesia: The Dark Decent has been a very successful indie game taking full advantage of the online PC market selling about 200,000 units so far. Frictional games recently stated "The sales that we have had (and are having) are more than enough to motivate developing a game with the PC as the main (and even only) platform. Based on what we have seen, the online PC market is just getting bigger and bigger, and we are convinced we are far from the end of this growth. We think that other developers that consider making their game exclusive to a console might want to think again."


Overall Amnesia: The Dark Decent is a great game, only lacking a little in the graphics department, but the visuals do the job just fine thanks to good lighting. Not much incentive to replay but for it's low price tag this game is awesome value for money. This is a must have for any gamer into horror, but just as good if your looking for something a little different outside your comfort zone. In fact it's worth playing just for the experience based gameplay.


PC Gamer Guy Score 9/10


Need a Link? http://www.amnesiagame.com/#main



Violent Video Game Debate Is On Again!

On the 10th of December we're ether going to have Australian gamers singing joyously down the street on their way to the local video game shop or they'll be picking up their assault rifles and war axes to go on a bloody murderous rampage. (or so some would seem to think we gamers would do.) So why singing or rampaging you might ask? Well the Committee of Attorneys-general meeting in Canberra will be taking place and having a big talkfest to decide if an R18+ rating for video games is to be introduced in this country or not, potentially putting the gaming industry on par with the movie industry and giving adult gamers the level of choice they should have.


Feed back the government has received from the public shows that the vast (I'm talking vast!) majority support an R18+ with 98.2% Vs those opposed at 1.8%  So it's obvious what the public wants. They wont the right to access entertainment that they are entitled to, and restrict those that are too young for that content. As it stands now some games that should be R18+ are MA15+ here in Australia and those that don't get squished into the MA15+ category are simply banned, forcing the more disgruntled gamers to pirate the banned game. None of that is any good for the industry or minors as it blocks out part of the Aussie market, gives incentive to pirate banned games and potentially gives minors access to what should have been a R18+ game.


Opposition to violent Video games mostly stems from people that have never been a gamer and don't understand the industry or the complete nature of the entertainment and only focus on what they personally don't like about video games. Or they are looking to find a scapegoat for societies bigger problems, and the gaming industry is an easy target because it's a young industry that just so happens to be expanding into a more mature market.


In my opinion you can't blame violence on video games, when there was worse violence before games. If someone commits a violent crime it's because there's something wrong with them or they had lousy parents that never showed them the meaning of respect and common decency, not because they played one or two video games. All the dedicated gamers I have ever known are non-violent people, and I for one never feel more violent after playing a video game, in fact I'm more relaxed. I do however support preventing graphic violent content to minors and think that a R18+ classification is a step in the right direction, that should be followed by better and more available information to parents from both government and the gaming industry.


On the 10th of December we'll see if people power is victorious, until then Aussie gamers will have to be content with restrictions imposed upon us.


Need a Link? http://www.ag.gov.au/gamesclassification

Rumor has it......

So rumor has it that Bethesda's current project in development is the next Elder Scrolls game and will be a direct sequel to Oblivion. The timing makes sense to me as Oblivion was released way back in 2006, but a sequel? I'm not so sure about that part but as long as the player starts with a new character and is in some way imprisoned to begin with, then this will be like the Elder Scrolls we all know and love.


Another part to this rumour is the question: will it be an MMO? I for one hope not, although the Elder Scrolls universe is expansive and could fit right into the mmo genre it would seem from what I'm reading on forums the fans don't wont an mmo conversion. With the mmo market getting crowded and more big titles to come releasing an Elder Scrolls game as an unwonted mmo would be a bad move for Bethesda.


What we do know for sure is that Bethesda has built a new graphics engine for this rather then using id's Tech 5 engine. This would mean we can expect Elder Scrolls 5 will not likely look as good as Rage but will in Bethesda tradition have a very open world environment as opposed to Rage's semi open world environment. Apparently the game is also far into development, Bethesda have said that the time between official announcement to release date will be one of the shortest for the company. 


Personally I'm looking forward to this assuming it's not an mmo, and hopefully the widely disliked enemy scaling will be replaced by something more akin to what's found in Risen where some locations in game are occupied by creatures that are too tough for a low level character. I'd also like to see Bethesda take a leaf out of Mount & Blade when it comes to horse combat. Any mounted combat would be nice!

Fallout New Vegas: How to level up a good character

This is more for those that are new to the wastlands but if your a Fallout veteran feel free to read on if your looking for a few good tips.


To survive the wastlands your going to need some awesome skills. But what skills are best you ask? Well, I'm going to run through some of the choices you can make so it's easier to survive the wastland as you level up.


Lets start with S.P.E.C.I.A.L. Your S.P.E.C.I.A.L attributes (Strength, Perception, Endurance, Charisma, Intelligence, Agility, Luck) governs your skills. At the start of the game you only have five points to distribute so choose wisely. This is what you can do now that will help make the game easier and more fun throughout. Put at least one point in strength to increase the total weight you can carry. (the more you can carry the more guns and loot you can stock up on) Intelligence might seem like a boring attribute to put points into but I recommend at least 2 points here as the more intelligence you have the more points you get to spend on skills at each level up. Next I recommend one point in endurance and one in agility, to boost your health total and ability to lock pick and sneak.


Next up is skills, you get the chance to tag three skills during level creation this will significantly boost the chosen skills so it's good to pick the skills you most wont to build up. You'll wont to choose skills that are most useful, starting with the Repair skill. Weapons degrade with use and will need parts from another of its type to be fixed up, this will improve the weapons damage and prevent it from jamming. You will be repairing weapons and armour throughout the entire game so it pays to be good at it. The second skill I recommend is Lockpick as people are always trying to hide good stuff behind locked doors and in safes. If you plan on playing the good guy you can relax there are plenty of things/places to break into that will not result in bad karma. And probably most importantly your going to need to be skilled up with some type of weapons, for this you can't go wrong with Guns, this includes ballistic weapons such as rifles, submachine guns, shotguns and revolvers, their the most common weapon especially at the start of the game and ammo is plentiful. As for other skills it's good to get a minimum of 25-35 in medicine, science, sneak, speech and one other weapon type if/when possible.


The last stage of levelling is perks, there is no golden rule for perks but anything that boosts your S.P.E.C.I.A.L attributes or Skills is a good way to go. Otherwise pick a fun perk or something that is relevant to your play style. For example if you love using shot guns then Shotgun Surgeon is a must have.


I hope you have found this little guide helpful, thanks for visiting The PC Gamer Guy. 


Need a link? http://fallout.bethsoft.com/index.html



Fallout New Vegas: First Impressions

Grab yourself a  NukaCola and some Iguana on a Stick because it's time for Fallout New Vegas!


If you've played Fallout 3 you'll know exactly what your in for when jumping into  Fallout New Vegas, the game play is instantly familiar making it easy to get right into the action. New Vegas has everything you loved about Fallout 3 plus a little more, such as an expanded array of weapons to play with, mini games such as the Caravan card game and improved interactions with companions through the companion wheel.


Other new features include a number of factions all with different intentions and views on each other, you'll get the chance to interact with them and do quests building a different relationship with each faction. The crafting element from Fallout 3 has been greatly expanded on, you can now breakdown ammunition into it's components to be rebuilt into another ammo type such as 9mm rounds parts used to make 10mm rounds using 10mm cases. There are also many survivalist style items to make too, such as drinks, food, and weapon repair kits. Such item creation is not a necessity for getting through the game (that I know of yet) but I expect it to be invaluable during hardcore mode. A mode I'm keen to try out next.


As for quests you'll find plenty of variety, so far I have come across some interesting quests that has given me a few paths to choose from that result in a different conclusion to the quest, and with some optional objectives to boot. But on the other hand I have also done a couple of smaller simple "go kill this or that" quests. 


A note on New Vegas bugs. I began playing after the first patch was installed via Steam and experienced two crashes to desk top in the first 2-4 hours of play but since then the game has been perfectly stable for me on PC. I'm now about 20 hours into the game and the only other bug seems to have been a quest bug during Booted, but was not game breaking or anything just a bit odd. Obsidian where quick with the first patch so I'm confident the next patch will fix any remaining issues.


One thing I do love about Bethesda games and New Vegas is no exception is the exceedingly detailed open world game play. I really admire the little things when exploring, such as stumbling across a wastelanders hovel tucked away among the rocks at the foot of a mountain, then seeing this wastelanders quirky nature just by looking at the way the items and junk in his make shift home has been arranged.


Now I think it's time for me to snipe a few more lakelerkers that stand in the way of my wasteland exploration. Check back soon for more Fallout posts.


Need a link? http://fallout.bethsoft.com/index.html






Lara Croft and the Guardian of Light: Review (single player)

Lara Croft and the Guardian of Light, is a very slick downloadable game, for a great price of only $14.99. It's not the Tomb Raider game we have all come to know and expect, but that's not a bad thing at all, it's something different and it works.


The first thing you will likely notice is the camera angle is a Diablo style isometric camera rather then the 3rd person view in all other Tomb Raider games. This is both a refreshing change and the biggest problem in Lara Croft and the Guardian of Light. Lara's positioned in the centre off the screen and because the camera is somewhat zoomed in this leaves little room to see further ahead. You'll find your self wildly shooting at enemies of screen or dieing because you could hardly see more then a few feet in front of Lara as you attempt to traverse a multi trap gauntlet. You'll end up dieing a few time just to discover what exactly you have to jump and dodge your way through before your successful at passing through large runs of multiple traps. This has one very annoying side effect as each time you die you loose the points needed to unlock bonus weapons.


The other major game play change is the introduction of relics and artefacts that can be equipped for bonuses. Artefacts will give a passive bonus to your speed, weapon damage, bomb, or defence. Relics on the other hand determine a special power(s) that is activated when a power up bar is full, achieved by eliminating enemies without Lara taking damage. I like this as it helps give the already fun combat some depth.


Speaking of combat, Lara Croft and the Guardian of Light dose it well indeed. Like in previous Tomb Rader games you can do crazy jumps and commando rolls to avoid enemy attacks wile blasting away with huge variety of weapons. You can have up to four weapons equipped at any one time, easily selected during real time game play with the number keys. The game make sure you always receive the weapons you need but there are plenty more to collect, such as high powered weapons and golden weapons.


Puzzles play a big part in this game, in fact a couple of levels are one massive puzzle that's solved by completing smaller puzzles. But don't worry their nothing that will give you a headache, the puzzles are actually very inventive. Some puzzles are solved with explosives and others by more traditional means.


The story for Lara Croft and the Guardian of Light is as simplistic as you can get, it's a real shame as it could have been just a little more interesting. A character at the beginning of the game named Vasco stupidly sets loose an evil god, it's then up to Lara and the good deity Totec (the second player character in multiplayer) to put the bad guy back in his cage.


You'll find the graphics very pleasing to look at as Lara adventures through outdoor levels and tombs alike. I found my self admiring the depth of each level just as much as I admired the way plant life swayed as Lara runs past. Sound fx are on par with the graphics, you'll quickly be able to identify the different creatures by their sounds.


I'd recommend altering the controls before starting as the default leave something to be desired. You'll wont to have the bomb assigned to an easy to use key as it's use is often based on good timing.


Regarding my earlier first impressions post about Lara's new adventure I spoke about an inventory bug that would effectively freeze the game, this bug only occurred during the first two levels. Other then that I suffered only two crashes to desktop, it was only a minor inconvenience as the game has very regular auto saves.


In conclusion Lara Croft and the Guardian of Light is a refreshing game that can be a lot of fun, but can also be a little frustrating at times because of the camera's lack of an ability to zoom out to get a wider view. It unfortunately suffers from casual game syndrome as it's story is almost non existent plus the game only takes about 12-14 hours to play and that's being generous. But with clever level design, innovative puzzles, fun combat and the soon to be online co-op there is plenty to like about Lara's new adventure.


PC Gamer Guy Score: 7/10


Need a link? http://www.laracroftandtheguardianoflight.com/



Dawn of War 2: Last Stand Strategy Guide - Space Marine

This is the second part of my Last Stand Strategy Guide, this time I'll take a look at the Space Marine Captain.


The Space Marine acquires a varied mix of war gear giving you the option to focus on ranged or melee play style. Below I have detailed what I have found to be the most effective war gear combination.


Weapons: Master Crafted Bolt Pistol + Power Axe


Armour: Artificer Armour


Accessories: Jump Pack + Rite of the Tireless Crusader + Rite of Fortitude


Commander Item: Dreadnought Drop Pod


Powers: Assault Jump + Revive + Call Dreadnought


Traits: Armour Piercing (ignore up to 100 armour value)


Comments:


The weapons load out is a balance of health regeneration and offensive damage, you might be tempted to exchange the Bolt Pistol in exchange for the more offensive Plasma Pistol but I find the health regeneration from the Bolt Pistol invaluable. The Power Axe dose great damage and it's armour piercing will help you take on the big guys such as Wraithlords.


I could hardly pass up the Artificer Armour with it's good armour value as well as +50 health and +25 energy. This armour will help keep you in the fight for much longer, plus it looks damn good!


As for the accessories the Jump Pack is a favourite of mine it gives the otherwise slow Space Marine the ability to get around the arena fast. You can use Assault Jump to get into battle with a bag or get out of a bad situation fast! Rite of the Tireless Crusader is a great item, when a team member falls you can revive them instantly with full health and temporary invulnerability, but it dose have a high power cost so its best used only when things are getting desperate otherwise conserve your energy for Assault Jumps. Last on the accessories list is Rite of Fortitude that gives you +75 health, giving the Space Marine a total of 225 health.


It's good to have a Dreadnought, that's why I have chosen to equip a Dreadnought Drop Pod as the commander item for this load out. The Dreadnought is as you can imagine a very handy ally to have in battle, you can also drop the Dreadnought onto your enemy for some extra fun. 


Closing Comments: This load out for the Space Marine Captain is a good balance of combat stamina, offensive melee and support for your team.


Need a link? http://www.dawnofwar2.com/us/home



Lara Croft and the Guardian of Light: First Impressions

So I picked up Lara Croft and the Guardian of Light from Steam for a very affordable price of $14.99 USD a few days ago, and so far I'm impressed with Lara's new play style.


The game is played from an isometric view ie: top down at an angle. Although the view has changed this is still very much a Lara Croft game in the way that you will still explore hidden Tombs, solve puzzles and jump around with guns blazing. But in this new adventure there is less climbing and more action. The puzzles are inventive, the weapons are cool and combat is easy to learn but maintains a good level of depth.


I have encountered one unfortunate bug that occurs seemingly randomly when accessing the inventory screen, it's rare but when it dose happen your greeted with a blank inventory screen and no way out. You can Ctrl+Alt+Del, the game will reaper immediately after selecting task manager so hit the windows key to get back to desktop, then you can end task the game. Luckily the game is always saving your progress so you wont loose much if this dose happen.


I'm only the first few levels in playing the single player mode, but I plan to post a full single player mode review when I'm finished the game.


Need a link? http://www.laracroftandtheguardianoflight.com/

Dawn of War 2: Last Stand Strategy Guide - Farseer

I've spent a lot of time playing Dawn of War's multiplayer mode Last Man Standing, so I thought I'd share my strategies for the various characters you can play as, starting with the Farseer.


The Farseer is a melee spell caster and in typical Eldar fashion it can be challenging to get your Eldar tactics right, but very rewarding when you do and the Farseer is no exception. Below I have put together what I found to be the most effective war gear load out for the Farseer.


Weapons: Pistol of the Warseer + Witch Blade of the Crone


Armour: Armour of Vaul


Accessories: Runes of Evasion + Runes of War + Runes of Vigour


Commander Item: Spirit Stone of Illusion


Powers: Veil of Tears


Traits: Combat expert (+30% Damage) Swift (+25% speed) Fearless (immune to suppression) Evasive (30% chance attacking enemies will miss the Farseer) Combat master (+40% damage) +0.3 Energy regeneration


Comments: As a spell caster you might be tempted to load up the Farseer with as many powers as you can but this will result in a fragile character, and that's not too good in a survival situation like Last Stand. This load out builds on the Farseer's melee ability and adds some survivalist traits mixed with one power.


The weapon load out with Runes of War is second in damage only to the Singing Spear but with one not so obviously useful trait - Swift. With extra speed in combat you can out flank the enemy and get to those annoying ranged attackers, dodge grenades and my favourite use is when your comrades have fallen you can lure the enemy to one side of the map and then run around to the other side and revive your fallen team.


The armour load out will increase your survivability with a high armour rating and prevent you from getting suppressed, a situation that can easily become a death sentence if you have no ability to teleport or jump jet away.


The accessories I have chosen are to boost the Farseer's damage, energy regeneration and survivability. Evasive is a trait most players are likely to overlook in favour of Ward but consider this, Evasive is always active so has no energy cost and when your up against the larger powerful enemies with their slow rate of attack Evasive helps a lot.


For the commander item I chose the Spirit Stone of Illusion that gives your Farseer the power Veil of Tears a beefed up version of confuse. It might be overlooked for the more flashy Eldrich Storm but I prefer it for two good reasons. Firstly it has no casting time, it's effects are immediate. Secondly there's no need to aim as it will effect half of all the enemies on the map cussing them to fight each other making it very disruptive. The best time to use this power is at the hight of a wave when you and your team are likely overwhelmed by numbers, it's even more effective when your enemy are bunched up together. The other time this power will come in handy is in the later stage of a wave when a team member has fallen and you need to distract attacking enemies as you revive your friend.


Closing Comments: This load out will make for a speedy melee warrior that can hold up to some heavy attacks and with good timing can disrupt the enemy at those critical moments.  


Need a link? http://www.dawnofwar2.com/us/home



Mount & Blade Warband: Diary Post 01

If you have never heard of this game before and you like me love the medieval based RPG and/or action games then your going to wont to read on. Warband is all about fun game play with it's balanced mix of RPG elements such as character creation and levelling, with a simple yet flexible and rewarding combat system. It's rewarding because it's not just a simple "point & click" as you can maximise your attack by riding your warhorse into infantry, increasing your damage in melee by ensuring you get a full swing at your enemy or getting your timing right with archery to increase your accuracy.


My main character I play as is a Mongolian style warrior named Temudgin, focusing of course on mounted archery! My weapons of choice are Khergit bow and arrows with shield and scimitar. This gives me a perfect balance in ranged attack, combined with the more defensive melee option.


So my rampaging Mongolian style character is so far a fair way into the game at level 30 at this time of writing. I have joined The Khergit Khanate (a Mongolian themed faction) and have been fighting for them for some time now. Although I have made some friends among the nobility and married into a Khergit nobile family my king has thus far failed to reward me with new fiefs. (other then the little village I start with) I now know why other NPC Lords get discouraged and leave their faction for another. My long term goal is to start my own kingdom, all I need is a little more right to rule points, a slightly larger army total and at least one castle before I take a town as my capital. That's the way this game plays out you make your own objectives, you don't need to be a king to win the game but as Mel Brooks in Robin Hood once said "It's good to be the king!"


During my last play through the Khergit Khanate was at peace with all other factions, but in Warband this doesn't mean boring. There are always bandits to hunt down for money and experience. But peace time offers a good chance to take advantage of Warbands trade economy as all Towns will open their doors to you, giving you the freedom to sell goods at the highest price. And for my horse ridding Mongolian an opportunity to build a larger war chest, as war is never faraway.


I also jumped online for a bit of team death match fun. Warband online is a bit like counter strike but with swords and spears. If you find yourself on a server with no lag this game is a hell of a lot of fun online. I played as a real sneaky bugger taking out my enemy from behind cover with a crossbow, while other players favoured the melee style one player had a death wish by running around half naked wielding a two handed sword! (there's one in every game!)


Need a link? http://www.taleworlds.com/