Pissed Off Gaming: Modern Warfare 3

You can't beat playing a few rounds of Cock a doody online, it really is a solid shooter and can be a lot of fun to play. Yet with that being said it isn't without its problems that will really begin to piss you off from time to time. So I thought I would throw out a few things that piss me off when playing the game.

1. When you are playing head quarters and your dumb fuck team mates decide to camp as far away from the objective as possible, rather than actually playing the game and help capture and defend the objective while working as a team.
2. Whiny ass kids with a headset that just go on and on annoying the fuck out of everyone in the lobby or scream for no reason during the game when they get killed.
3. Wankers with a headset that just play music through the headset that are fucking to stupid to realise that I don't want to listen to any music (never mind distorted shitty music) while playing the game, and if I did then I would actually turn on the stereo that I fucking own to play music I actually want to listen to.
4. My missus asking me stuff or speaking to me when I am playing the game, which results in getting me killed just before I get a reward for getting a kill streak.
5. Playing really well and getting a decent run on some games only to have to take a break to get something to eat or a drink, then returning only to find that you now suck for the next few games getting more deaths than kills.
6. Shooting some fucker on the opposite team in the face first only to have them start shooting you and kill you when it should have been them waiting to respawn.
7. Sad twats that quit when they are losing causing the game to pick a new host. (for some reason waiting 10-20 seconds to start playing again seems to take forever)
8. Spawning only to be killed a split second later by a predator missile, strafe run or some random grenade that has been thrown.
9. Death Streaks: there is nothing shitter than dying 3-4 times in a row without getting a kill, I feel like shit when the game basically tells me I suck and have earned one.
10. People that camp for entire games, is it really that much fun to just sit in one place all the time? Look at my k/d ratio I am 100/1!! Well who gives a fuck you sad camping wankers!

Despite these slight annoyances though I find myself returning to the game frequently for a few rounds here and there although I can't bring myself to play the single player mode of the game.

Impressions: Beat Hazard Ultra

I recently picked up Beat Hazard Ultra in the sale on the PSN network, (It was only £1.69 so I would have been crazy to have missed out) and I have to say that it is one of the most fun games I have played in a while. The easiest way to describe the game is like a modern day Asteroids only with music (Including any on your HDD) affecting the on screen gameplay which then causes your eyes to bleed due to the flashing lights.

Beat Hazard is one of those games that is great to just pick up and play when you fancy a break from your usual retail games. The sound is as amazing as you want it to be (due to yourself selecting what you want to listen to) the graphics really should be seen when everything starts flashing (So much so that this game shouldn't have the risk of epilepsy warning but guarantee a 90% chance of having one while playing) I really can't think of a bad thing to say about the game.

Beat Hazard features a host of upgrades that you unlock while playing, A range of modes from arcade to survival and a boss rush mode. This game will keep you entertained not just for the short term but also for quick blasts here and there, I know I will be returning to the game every so often if only to listen to music while blasting away some scum sucking aliens!

St Mary's Hospital

Well today me and the missus have the day off work as we have to goto St Mary's Hospital in Manchester for some tests. It turns out that her dad had a son who had cystic fibrosis so we have to both be checked out to see if we are both carriers. If so there is something like a one in four chance that our baby will be born with the disease.

I can't really say that it is something that we are both looking forward to and I have to admit I am a bit scared by it all. (I have a phobia of going to hospitals as it is) I am sure it will all be ok though, but just so we are better prepared for every little situation then it can't hurt. So yeah day off work is cool, but just could be doing something more enjoyable. lol

Impressions: Dungeon Siege 3

Dungeon Siege 3 is quite an enjoyable (but short) game overall, and reminded me of some of the old school RPG's that I used to play on the PC back in the day. (Balders Gate, NeverwinterKnights, Nox) I did find the game a bit lacking though, this could have been due to the lack of side quests but I think it has more to do with the games world not actually feeling that big, and apart from the odd deviation to do the odd side quest or two it really is rather linear with no real replay value. This is especially shocking when you consider the game also has online multi-player (Good luck finding someone playing the game these days though, as the only people I saw online were 2 people that kept joining then quitting back out of the game after 2 minutes)

Actually thinking about it Dungeon Siege 3 really wasn't worth the price I paid for it, but with the game now being resigned to selling for around £10 it is worth a look at. (If only to waste away a few hours) Dungeon Siege 3 is your bog standard old school RPG, with average graphics and sound. The control system that will see you walk through the game without hardly ever using the block button, as when you need to use it enemies use magic that just passes right through your defences.

One other gripe I had with the game is that you can easily end up getting killed as one enemy will hit you and your energy will just disappear yet other times the same enemy can hit you and it just knocks a little segment off your health bar. I also didn't like how you couldn't compare items in the shop with items you already owned, which meant on occasions you would buy something that was inferior to what you already owned. Thinking about it now Dungeon Siege 3 has lots of annoying little niggles that make the game pretty frustrating and when added together do seem quite bad that doesn't make it a bad game overall, just so badly flawed in parts that ended up making me give it a lower score.

Failed Impressions: DC Universe Online Free To Play

DC Universe Online has now gone free to play (free to play could also read: DC Universe Online's attempt to get more people playing it?) on the PS3. So when I got in from work last night I decided to download the game and give it a go. I have to admit I was shocked that it was only 125mb, then after that installed I got a message saying there was an update which once again was 125mb. What then followed was a nice screen with some of the DC characters on it and a long ass bar that said over 14gig of game data needed to be downloaded.

Needless to say I never got chance to play it at all last night as it took forever to download (even worse is the fact that I have to go through the whole thing again tonight to put the game on my son's PS3) So basically I left my system on over night then woke up this morning to be asked which world I wanted to join. (PvE or PvP) I picked PvE as at 6am I couldn't really give a crap, this was then followed by a storyline video and about 10 minutes of rushing through the character creation system so I could get at least sometime trying the game. (I picked to play as a villain I don't know why but it always seems to be the path I choose when given the option)

Graphically the game doesn't look to bad and the initial controls seem to be solid enough to start with, so basically in-between getting showered, dressed and ready for work I managed to squeeze in a measly 10 minutes of game-play. This saw me beat up a few guards and a bigger type of defence droid, I have to say the game does seem like it will be pretty good and I think I will enjoy it. I just can't really say if it's worth sticking with the free to play version or upgrading to the pay monthly one. If you can be bothered downloading over 14gig of data and not being able to use your PS3 for the day then I would recommend giving it a try. (although it is boring just watching the download bar move ever so slowly along)

Impressions: Pixel Junk SideScroller

I like Pixel Junk they make some amazing games with a retro style, yet these games have a lot more hidden underneath that make them a joy to play. I was going to dismiss SideScroller as it really didn't look that good to me to be honest, and if it wasn't for the fact that one of my buddies bought it and I downloaded it from his account I wouldn't have played it.

If I am honest I have to say that SideScroller is a bit of a let down, sure it's a solid enough game in it's own way. It just feels a bit of a let down though when Pixel Junk released a game as good as Pixel Junk Shooter 2 only a short time ago, then from that they release this? Yes I know they are both different styles of games but still it just feels a bit underwhelming.

That's not to say that SideScroller doesn't have some nice touches, the enemies are all pretty recognisable if you have ever played either of the Shooter games. The colours are all bright and do make the game a pleasure to play along with some nice effects. I just feel the game is just all a bit to 1980's, sure you have the choice of 3 different weapons to use (Machine gun, Laser or Bombs) as well as a spin attack that you have to charge up to use. I just can't help but feel I have played the game before with different graphics back in the day.

Maybe my opinion will change over time and I may end up liking the game with a bit more time (although I doubt it) This game just feels like it is missing the usual Pixel Junk touches that make each of their games so enjoyable to play. I would recommend maybe giving this game a miss unless you like 2d old school shmups (even then prepared to be a bit disappointed) so far that reason I would have to give Pixel Junk's SideScroller a

1st Baby Scan :)

While not really gaming related I just had to share this :) We just got back from the hospital (after 2 hours of being bored which was all worth it) and the good news is that everything is as it should be with the baby, even better is that he/she is even younger than we (and the doctor & midwife) first thought by 5 weeks. So at the moment my missus is 10 weeks and 2 days into her pregnancy which gives us another few weeks before we have to get everything. (Also leaving more money for games :p )

Impressions: inFamous Festival of Blood

inFamous is one of those games that I bought at launch and never really got around to playing for more than an hour or so. (Mainly due to my mate borrowing it and not returning it for about a month by which time I was playing something else so couldn't be arsed with it, plus by then I had dismissed it as just a crackdown clone) So just why I bought inFamous: Festival of Blood is beyond me, I think it was the price and the fact that being a member of Playstation Plus I got an extra bit off that tempted me to get it.

In festival of blood Cole brings back to life the vampire queen Bloody Mary (Whoever thought of that shitty name needs a swift kick to the head) who then ends up turning him into a vampire. Left with the choice of either defeating the vampire before sunrise or becoming her slave for eternity Cole has little choice but to kick her ass back to hell. (Or wherever dead vampires go when they die before being resurrected)

What then follows is a very enjoyable action game that has you searching for vampires, fighting vampires and er.. other vampire stuff including biting innocent civilians necks to feed on their blood to gain the power of flight. (Which see's you turning into a swarm of bats) You also gain vampire vision and sense that sees your head turning read when a first born vampire is around. Activating your vamp vision makes humans turn pink while the first borns are blue, this makes it easier to spot them so you can stab them in the face with the stake/sword combo you carry about.

Festival weighs in with around 4-5 hours or so of game play if you don't include the UGC (User generated content) which is basically a pile of shite, or run through the game as quick as you can. Personally I quite enjoyed the whole experience of playing Festival of Blood and would recommend getting it due to the low price. (around £8 or so) Some people may moan about the short amount of time it takes to complete, yet to me it feels just right as you can't really drag the storyline out any more than Sucker Punch did without it getting tiresome. I would have to say that the best part of the game for me was the flying through the city as bats, I really thought that was a really nice touch and added something new. Overall I would have to give inFamous: Festival of Blood a solid

Bargain Bucket Gaming: Red Faction Armageddon

The game that divided fans of the Red Faction series, personally I think it's a cracking game and really enjoyed it a lot more than the previous game. Some of the arguments are that it took a step back with not being a sand box style game, yet I feel that it had a great story and really enjoyed the experience. (So much so I played through the story 3 times in a row from normal to the insane difficulty level)

Another argument is that the online multi player was a let down, this is one thing I can't really comment on since I never played online in Guerilla. The online in Armageddon is basically just a copy of Horde from Gears of War, which really isn't to bad.....well until you start getting bored of playing it. The thing with the PS3 is that either nobody has a headset or if someone does you don't want to speak to them as they are an annoying prick that you just want to punch.

That being said though the Story mode is where the fun in this game is at, the story is well scripted and will entertain you enough. The levels are pretty varied and do offer enough variation so you don't tire of the game, and best of all upon completion of the game you get to unlock the best weapon in the game the amazing Mr Toots! (See video below)

With the game now being available for the low price of £10 for a new copy of the game, there really hasn't been a better time to pick up the game. Red Faction Armageddon will offer you an enjoyable experience that will fill brighten up any boring sunday afternoon. The bad thing about the game is the storyline is only about 6-7 hours long. (Although that does seem to be the average length of times these days so I don't know why people are moaning about it) One word of warning though, don't do like I did and then purchase the Path of War DLC as it sucks ass, it basically contains 2 vehicle levels (the one flying the ship sucks extra ass) and two other on foot levels, really it felt like these had been left out for being to shit to be included in the original storyline. Overall I have to give this game a

Impressions: Crysis on the PS3

Crysis is one PC game I always wanted to play and with me always owning a piece of shit PC that never runs anything I didn't think I would ever get the chance. That all changed thanks to EA releasing the game on the PS3 and I have to admit I quite enjoyed the experience although the game was pretty easy even on the hardest setting. (Apart from one part which took me a couple of attempts to get past)

The game weighs in at around 6-7 hours of game play, with pretty good graphics on the PS3 version (Although it still has some occasional bouts of not looking all that crisp on some sections of the game) The game puts you in the shoes of Lieutenant Jake Dune (Codenamed: Nomad) and sees you as part of a team travelling to North Korea to save some archaeologists who have been captured after making an important discovery. Shortly after that the shit hits the fan as not only are the Korean's trying to kill you but also gain the power of what has been discovered in the mountains by the archaeological team.

If that wasn't bad enough things get even worse when you learn that the discovery is an alien vessel, which along with the aliens on board come back to life. So now you have to do the one thing every shooter has you attempting to do, and that's blow the son of a bitches to pieces. The game as a whole is a quite enjoyable and will keep you entertained as you play through it. The only bad thing I can say is that there is no reason to play the game once finished (Unless you won't to grab that last trophy that you may have missed) The hardest difficulty isn't really that hard apart from in about 2 sections but even these you can get past after a couple of attempts.

Overall for the price (£15.99) you get a decent enough single player experience that you will enjoy. However that is all you get, no multi-player or re-playability, so with that in mind you may want to give Crysis a miss if that kind of thing bothers you. Personally though I think with some of the crap I have played that cost nearly 3 times as much as Crysis you are getting a good deal.

Borderlands, Baby & Marriage

Well I have started gaming again and made myself a new account on the PS3, that is one of the main reasons why I haven't blogged in a while. A few of the other reasons are that me and my better half have been planning our wedding and just when we thought we had everything running smoothly we got a surprise to say the least. It turns out that we are now having a baby as well, so things just keep getting in the way of updating this blog.

Starting a new account on the PS3 is a bit of a double edged sword, I have now resigned myself to losing all the progress I made in Demon Souls, Final Fantasy XIII and a host of other games I have invested time in. Yet I get to play some of the games I have really enjoyed in the past again, and having a new tag makes me able to get trophies in these games. (Yes I know trophies are shit but if it makes sure that I complete Ratchet & Clank once again they are worth it)

So the big question is in-between planning the wedding, going to baby scans and getting stuff ready for both events just what games should I replay and what new games should I purchase. Well after thinking about it I really want to give Borderlands a proper go, it is one game that I really enjoyed in the past but stopped playing for some unknown reason. This time I have decided to commit to the game and have ordered the GOTY edition even though I already own a copy of the original version of the game. Hopefully this will spur me on and if I enjoy it I then have the four DLC additions available to play as well. (As well as this I can now play co-op with my son which also doubles as quality family time if I give him the other copy of the game lol)

So that's about it for this update, hopefully I will find time to update this blog again soon, till next time adiós and thanks for dropping by. :)

Girlfriend Not A Gamer? No Problem

Quite a lot of females these days have played a game or two when they were younger, a bit of Sonic here, Mario there and a few others in between. Well I thought to myself the other day how can I get my girlfriend to play a few games every so often (Mainly so I don't have to watch shitty soaps on the TV) Sure she enjoys the odd game of "Buzz" every so often yet surely if she enjoys that then she can enjoy a few more games.

Well it turns out that while talking the other night I found out that some of the games she remembers playing with fond memories are the Mario Bros, (What a surprise) Sonic and the Alex Kidd games So I decided to see if she would like a few other games on the Wii. Upon turning the Wii on she saw that I had Alex Kidd in Miracle World and her face lit up. The reason being that she used to play this with her brother as a kid (It's an awesome game that SEGA really should have built on instead of shitty follow ups that made Alex just vanish into history) So we had a quick go on that before resetting the Wii. (For some reason the Wii won't display the game correctly so it's not as enjoyable to play on there)

Next I put New Super Mario Bros into the Wii so that my better half could see how games can be just like the ones she played as a kid except a lot better as well. (She also commented on how the graphics were really bright and colourful, always a good thing to catch your girlfriends eye and try to hook them in) Before we knew it about 3 hours had passed before we turned off the Wii and went to sleep.

The next day at lunch Sam started talking about Mario again and saying "Can we play it again tonight?" So basically that's what we did for a few hours last night. Slowly but surely she is now getting the gaming bug, ok she wants to play a few games that aren't exactly what I would pick to play (although Cooking Mama is fun) Yet it is a start, so all I now have to do is just try and get her to try a few more games and really hook her in. Let's face it gaming is always more fun when 2 people play (although I will have to remember not to use some of the Call of Duty expletives some players use when I win)

So basically here are my tips to turn your non-gaming girlfriend into a gamer:

• Try to find out if she has ever played any games, and if so which games she enjoyed (ask her brothers, sisters, friends)
• Start of with Wii games as the controller is more girlfriend friendly (as she will still ask what does she press with only 6 buttons on the Wii-mote)
• Try and get updated versions of anything she enjoyed (New Super Mario Bros, Sonic Colours)
• Make sure you put the brightest and most colourful game on first to try and hook them in (Most females like colour and pretty things)
• Try and get something with short mini games as well, so she doesn't get bored. (Wario Smooth Moves, Cooking Mama or something like that where 5 minutes is enough for a game)
• Remember she may not be ready for generic shooter x or any other games for a while (You have to ease her into gaming)
• Be prepared for the fact that she may never like the same games as you, not everyone wants to play Call of Duty or Final Fantasy XIII
• Lastly if she does enjoy playing then just let her choose when she wants to play (Let's face it she will always want to watch shitty soaps like Coronation Street and East Enders)

If you follow those steps then you may just end up with another gaming partner, just don't ge

t pissed off when she starts beating you. Well I am off to see if I can get her to play Tatsunoko Vs Capcom, I highly doubt that she will, but I figure it's worth a try.

Games I Really Should Finish

The other night I was looking for something to play, staring at my shelves I saw quite a few games that I hadn't finished never mind some that I had still yet to start. So it got me thinking which games do I really need to play and finish before I forget about them completely, it also made me question why I hadn't finished them as well. I mean over the course of my life I have started and finished numerous games, even crap like My Horse & Me 2! So just why is it that I have some great games just sitting there on my shelf begging to be played to completion and I am just ignoring them choosing to play some pile of shite instead?

I bought this recently thinking I really need to play this after enjoying the first game (although I got bored with collecting all the flags in the first one so never finished that either) Since then it has been sat on my shelf for a few weeks only to be ignored. I am determined to play through the game sooner rather than later though.

I first bought inFamous on release and really did start to enjoy the game, although I did end up lending it to my next door neighbour the next day so he could see if he wanted to get it or not. About 2 months past until I finally got the game back, by then I couldn't be arsed with the game so put it on my shelf to collect dust.

Why I bought Killzone 2 is beyond me as I really didn't like the first game, (Which really should have warned me off the sequel) I still can't make my mind up over this game as I really don't like the control system, yet I have enjoyed the time I have spent with the game. Maybe I am just used to the controls on the 360 when playing shooters.

Split Second was one of those games that looked really good and I just had to play, yet so long after and I still can't be arsed playing it after dumping it onto my shelf. I think the reason why I stopped playing the game was either due to nagging or cheap A.I. (Hopefully it was due to nagging since I aim to give the game another whirl over the next few weeks)

Uncharted took the idea of Tomb Raider and ran with it resulting in a more solid and fun game, yet still this game got taken out of my PS3 and dumped on the shelf for some unknown reason. What really puzzles me though is as well as not finishing this game I also have the second one still sealed sat next to it.

What is really annoying though is these are just a few of the games that I need to either play or finish, its scandalous the amount I have spent on games just to never play. I know we all do it, but generic game x as it is on sale and seems like a bargain at the time, then 2 months on and it's completely forgotten about. Maybe I need to start looking at what I actually have to play in future rather than buying yet more games to ignore.

Older Games I Really Should Finish

The other night I was looking for something to play, staring at my shelves I saw quite a few games that I hadn't finished never mind some that I had still yet to start. So it got me thinking which games do I really need to play and finish before I forget about them completely, it also made me question why I hadn't finished them as well. I mean over the course of my life I have started and finished numerous games, even crap like My Horse & Me 2! So just why is it that I have some great games just sitting there on my shelf begging to be played to completion and I am just ignoring them choosing to play some pile of shite instead?

I bought this recently thinking I really need to play this after enjoying the first game (although I got bored with collecting all the flags in the first one so never finished that either) Since then it has been sat on my shelf for a few weeks only to be ignored. I am determined to play through the game sooner rather than later though.

I first bought inFamous on release and really did start to enjoy the game, although I did end up lending it to my next door neighbour the next day so he could see if he wanted to get it or not. About 2 months past until I finally got the game back, by then I couldn't be arsed with the game so put it on my shelf to collect dust.

Why I bought Killzone 2 is beyond me as I really didn't like the first game, (Which really should have warned me off the sequel) I still can't make my mind up over this game as I really don't like the control system, yet I have enjoyed the time I have spent with the game. Maybe I am just used to the controls on the 360 when playing shooters.

Split Second was one of those games that looked really good and I just had to play, yet so long after and I still can't be arsed playing it after dumping it onto my shelf. I think the reason why I stopped playing the game was either due to nagging or cheap A.I. (Hopefully it was due to nagging since I aim to give the game another whirl over the next few weeks)

Uncharted took the idea of Tomb Raider and ran with it resulting in a more solid and fun game, yet still this game got taken out of my PS3 and dumped on the shelf for some unknown reason. What really puzzles me though is as well as not finishing this game I also have the second one still sealed sat next to it.

What is really annoying though is these are just a few of the games that I need to either play or finish, its scandalous the amount I have spent on games just to never play. I know we all do it, but generic game x as it is on sale and seems like a bargain at the time, then 2 months on and it's completely forgotten about. Maybe I need to start looking at what I actually have to play in future rather than buying yet more games to ignore.

Flea's Non-Gaming Weekend

Me, My Uncle & Sam

Well over the last weekend I haven't really played anything at all as I went to my uncles wedding in Scotland. It was a great weekend though full of laughs and actually no fighting at all. (I didn't know you could have weddings without someone kicking off and spoiling it due to being pissed as a fart)

Wedding car & typical Scottish weather

Some of the highlights included my uncle asking the registrar for a date after the wedding if she wasn't doing anything, producing a kid's Mickey Mouse ring from his pocket to give to his future wife during the ceremony, and later at the evening event standing on a chair to dance with his bride as she was a few inches taller than him in her heels which had everyone in stitches.

My dad, uncle & me

Then after returning home late on Sunday night I ended up just watching a film with Sam. This was supposed to be followed up with a trip to Blackpool on Monday since we both booked the day off work, but due to shitty weather we just went to town and had Chinese Buffet and bought some bits and bats. (including some new games so expect something on those soonish) So that about sums up my weekend of none gaming.