Editorial | Death Stranding: Oddly compelling.

By Sam Coles:

There are some games that are polarising experiences which isn’t a bad thing, as they can lead to some unique experiences. This was my initial thought process when I first played Death Stranding, a game that is odd to say the least as it is as Hideo Kojima as Hideo Kojima can get but it is an oddly compelling game which I lost myself in for hours. Now this is not a review of the game because at the time of writing I have yet to finish the game, this is more of initial first thoughts of the game so let’s get into it.

Death Stranding takes place in a post-apocalyptic America after the titular event where the dead live as an invisible entity, where you have rain called “Time Fall” that ages people rapidly. You play as Sam Porter Bridges as portrayed by Norman Reedus, where he is part of a courier service delivering aid to various cities across America as society are now protected within city walls. Sam is special as the ghostly entities known as “BTs” have a special interest in him, and he unlike others can sense them due to his “Dooms” where has a low level ability of sensing them as I mentioned. He runs into a woman named Fragile at the start of the game, where her Doom levels allow her to actually see the BTs.

The story is interesting, it’s shrouded in mystery as you find yourself with more questions than answers; this is not a bad thing as the game continues to string you along with its bizarre world and characters where Sam seems to be the only normal person within the scenario.   

Now the gameplay is where it has people within the gaming space split, some say it is a glorified and pretentious walking simulator while others say it is a relaxing and explorative game. I have to say I fall into the latter category, yes there is a lot of walking as you deliver packages, but there is something oddly compelling about the gameplay it has that just one more delivery mentality about it. The gameplay loop sees you take on contracts from a terminal within a city and then you plot the best route, you will get into combat encounters as bandits in the wilderness will try and steal your cargo, fortunately you can kick seven shades of blue out of them.

As you traverse the baron wasteland you have to contend with different environments and obstacles, because you are playing as a normal human and not a super soldier so you will lose your balance on hills or if you are carrying too much. Now this sounds laborious, but you get into a rhythm when walking and suddenly you start to wobble like a Jenga tower, to then save your balance at the last minute. What makes this great is the community, as you walk around you will find certain objects and structures left by other players and these can make your journey easier. These can range from ladders to help climb steep inclines quicker or get across gaps and rivers faster, post boxes to drop off lost cargo or ropes to help you get down slopes in a more speedy fashion. It reminds me of Metal Gear Solid V’s multiplayer in the campaign, although everyone is not trying to steal from you but instead are trying to help you. It feels alive and diegetic within the game’s world, as it feels as if it is a part of the game’s world.  

What stood out to me when I first booted up the game was the presentation, and my lord this is easily one of the best looking games I have played on the PlayStation 4. Hideo Kojima’s insane attention to detail shines through yet again, the character models look believable with every face movement captured from a slight smirk to flash of anger and annoyance. The world is absolutely beautiful, from the deserted grasslands you start off in to the more cold tundra in the mountains. Every detail is there for a reason, even down to the walking and running animations as you jog across the world show subtle details such as Sam losing his balance when he hits uneven ground. It is absolutely astounding the detail in this game, I haven’t seen this much attention to the subtle details since Red Dead Redemption II.

I have enjoyed my first few hours with Death Stranding; at first when the game came out back in 2019 I had zero interest in it. However now I have played it, it is truly a unique experience and that is something we don’t often get in video games these days. I can’t wait to carry on with the story and see where it goes.

Minecraft Dungeons Review - Diablo, but cute.

By Sam Coles:

Sometimes you have to cleanse your pallet in video games after playing serious and violent games, and what better way to do that than return to the world of Minecraft. However not in the traditional sense, but instead the folks at Mojang throw their hat in the ring with the dungeon crawler genre with Minecraft: Dungeons. A rather adorable take on the genre, but without the blood, gore and demonic imagery of Diablo. Is it any good? In short yes.

Minecraft Dungeons takes place in the blocky world of the mining and crafting, where a young villager is shafted as an outcast, jaded by the situation he finds a magic McGuffin which gives him ultimate power and he is now the Illger. He causes chaos across the land, where you the hero have to stop him by killing waves of enemies. Look I wasn’t expecting a deep or complex narrative from Minecraft; I was expecting a story revolving around a sacred pork chop, but I digress. Anyway it’s a basic context to set up the game and it does the job.

The gameplay in Minecraft Dungeons is eerily similar to a certain game named after a satanic figure, as it is a dungeon crawler but obviously set in the world of Minecraft and more simplistic gameplay to appeal to a younger audience but this is not a bad thing. You have a basic attack of slashing, slamming or stabbing enemies this of course depends on the weapon that you wield, but later on you unlock more powerful and devastating attacks with a Minecraft flare. My favourite weapon to use throughout my play through were the duel scythes, they are quick at despatching crowds and are fun to use. You soon unlock a bow which can be very effective with the vast amount of ranged enemies, but not only that you can amplify your bow attacks with fireworks which cause a huge area of effect damage as well more direct damage impact.

As you progress through the game you gain more items, abilities and other pieces of loot, you can unlock enchantments which will increase effectiveness of weapons or increase resistance with armour. These can be increased in a total of three times, but honestly by the time I fully upgrade a weapon or armour set I have found something new that is more powerful or resilient. The game is not particularly hard but there were moments where I found myself overwhelmed by the hordes of enemies, this was mostly due to playing by myself most of the time but in general it’s not hard at all. Most of the time I could clear out entire rooms with TNT blocks that I had stashed, making most encounters trivial at best.

Presentation wise yes this is indeed Minecraft’s art style, however there have been more graphical enhancements sprinkled in with the lighting that make it look more vibrant and colourful. You have the warm glow of lava as you traverse the ominous caves, to the more colourful and serine green hills in your camp as soothing music plays. Speaking of which the music is fantastic, it can range from relaxing, to epic and as silly as this sounds frightening when you are fighting Endermen yes I am serious. Overall the presentation is beautiful as it sticks to the source material, while adding its own graphical flourishes.

Only issues I had was mostly stemming from performance, I played this on a bog standard Xbox One and it targets 30 frames per second, it mostly meets that target. However it does start to stutter when it loads new areas or when there are a number of enemies on screen, it’s not immersion breaking as it doesn’t happen too often but it happens here and there for me to notice.

Minecraft Dungeons although and easy adventure is something I can relax and zone out too, it has a beautiful art style, gameplay that feels good as well just something to cleanse my palette after playing so many violent and serious games. I highly recommend it, especially if you have a few friends to tag along.

Editorial | What makes Far Cry..... Far Cry?

By Sam Coles:

Hard to believe that the Far Cry series is still going, case in point with the recent announcement of Far Cry 6 (at the time of writing). This time I want to cover gameplay aspects and settings with in the series, and what makes them so compelling and fun. The Far Cry games have always had a special place in my heart since my teenage years when I first explored baron deserts of Far Cry 2, with chaotic moments mix with more sombre moments. Let’s get into it.

Oh look I’m contradicting myself already by talking about the villains which is narrative based, but to be fair they tend to be the first thing you see in each game as they set up the context for your adventure. Most of the villains tend to be absolutely psychotic although The Jackal is an outlier as he is more with it, but anyway they are mad with an agenda with you the protagonist. From the psychotic ramblings of Vaas, the calm yet volatile mind of Pagan Min and the insane brainwashed mumbling of Joseph Seed. They all serve their setting and purpose of an antagonist, which serve as the context of each game and elevates the narrative.

Let’s talk about setting when a Far Cry game is announced my curiosity stems to where it is set, because the setting is often a great backdrop to the chaos that is about to ensue. From the tropical Rook Islands, the frost laden mountains of The Himalayas and the rural farms of Hope County. They all feel unique and will have your mouth dropping to the floor with their beauty; they make you want to explore every corner to see each detail. Exploration is key in these games as you have to craft items for yourself, now I know crafting is generally met with a resounding groan but honestly it is at a basic level where you have to hunt an animal and then you can craft holsters etc. Nothing particularly complex, but it encourages you to cover the map to hunt for supplies it adds to the survival and gritty nature of the series.

Gameplay is one that can often be contentious, on one have you have those that it gets stale and doesn’t really innovate and on the other you have those who say it has different outcomes and possibilities to a situation. I fall into the latter because yes you can break the game with a suppressed sniper rifle if you are boring, but you would be missing out on the other weapons and opportunities when conquering strongholds and enemy encounters.

The game gives a lot of weapons and tools for a reason, you can scope out enemies and take the silent approach and pick them off with your bow and machete like the ghost you are. Or my favourite in Far Cry 4 storm through the gates as you ride an elephant and mow down everyone with a light machinegun, as you watch them run away and cower in fear. It is this flexibility of the series that it doesn’t punish you for choosing a specific approach, it actively encourages you by providing you with the right tools. There was one scenario where I assaulted an enemy base where I rigged several walls with C4, then I went back to a safe distance and detonated it and watched them all run around in confusion and then a tiger came out of nowhere to tear them apart. It is also organic with the wildlife too, speaking of which.

The wildlife adds to the gameplay too as they can be used as distractions, get in your way when an eagle decides to attack you when you are scoping a compound out or can be killed for bait. It is an extra string to the combat, as you will come across animals caged in bases where you can then shoot the cage and watch the entire base run around flapping their arms. It creates many knee slapping moments especially in Far Cry 5 where you throw some bait, and all of a sudden the game spawns a bear out of thin air. Granted it does break the immersion somewhat to see a bear spawn out of a tree but it us funny nonetheless.

Far Cry is a series that has flexibility with its gameplay it becomes monotonous because you find a comfortable playstyle without experimenting, as the game gives you the tools to find new ways of conquering challenges. I look forward to the release of Far Cry 6 with what new weapons I can use to terrify my enemies.

Ion Fury Review - "Talk sh*t, get shot".

By Sam Coles:

We now return to another instalment of Sam waiting for the games industry to release something noteworthy, anyway while I do that let me tell you about an amazing old school first person shooter called Ion Fury. Original named Ion Maiden until a metal band who I shall not name which is really obvious who it is decided to threaten the devs with legal action, however despite the name change the game is excellent and something that is worth your time.

Ion Fury takes place in a dystopian future where the world has been destroyed, where an evil scientist is trying to take over the world (que Pinky and The Brain reference). You play as Bombshell trying to stop him, and that’s your lot and to be honest it is an old school shooter they were not exactly known for their intelligence with storytelling. The most you would get back in the day were scrolling text screens just in case that you haven’t burned the nearest school down, it’s just a small layer of context to flesh out the gameplay.

Now onto the gameplay, this game uses the Build Engine and if that sounds familiar then that is because it was the same engine that was used to make Duke Nukem 3D, Shadow Warrior and Blood. It is your typical shooter of the time where you find secrets for more exotic pick-ups and weapons and key cards to open colour specific doors, it sounds stock standard but the level design has a lot of verticality so you will be ambushed from up, down, right, left and every corner known to man or woman in this game’s case. The level design is fantastic as it encourages you to explore it, with nooks and crannies holding goodies and surprises plus it will make you a bit cautious as enemies could be hiding anywhere.

Now let’s talk about Bombshell’s arsenal, she starts off with a revolver which unlike most shooters it is actually useful for the entirety of the game as it can one shot most enemies with its alternate fire. If you hold down the left trigger (Xbox) she will hold her hand above the hammer, then you can lock onto multiple enemies at once and gun them down like Charles Bronson at the start of Once Upon a Time in the West. It is very effect, and I would argue somewhat over powered for a pistol in an FPS game but let’s talk about the other weapons.

For the sake of time I will be briefer with the other weapons. You gain a shotgun which can also fire grenades and yes that is as amazing as it sounds, a crossbow which is very effect with headshots, an SMG which have fire rounds which can also be duel wielded (Shadow Warrior influence there) and bombs that you can bowl at people or light a timed fuse to throw in a room. All the weapons in the game have their uses; they don’t feel completely situational, because every single one of them are useful throughout the game.

In terms of controls Ion Fury is slick and smooth to play, Bombshell will run at the speed of sound which makes speedruns of levels so satisfying. Enemies are extremely tough, but at the same time can be put down relatively quick with a few shots not counting boss characters. Hit scan enemies do cause annoyance but hey they were a staple in shooters back then, but the small crawling enemies can go back to the hell came from and burn for an eternity. The game can be very difficult, I played this on normal and the game kick seven shades of blue out of me and stuck prong up my backside and repurposed me as a windscreen wiper, what I’m trying to say is that it mopped the floor with me in some segments.

Presentation looks amazing; it has the 2D sprite art of old shooters which look fantastic, with a good use of voxels with pick-ups and certain interactive objects throughout the world. The game runs at 60 frames per second mostly, I did notice it stutter in a few places on my Xbox One which is amazing that an engine this old can give modern hardware a run for its money. Only issues I had that at one point it crashed on me twice in a row, but that has only happened to me once within a week so not a deal breaker.

Overall Ion Fury was an exciting thrill ride of action; it gave just the right amount of challenge which put me through a wide spectrum of emotions from irritated, angry and relieved when I would conquer a level. It gets a huge thumbs up from me and is one of the best old school inspired FPS games I have played!

Editorial | Far Cry 2: Examining its narrative and detail.

By Sam Coles:

The Far Cry series is in a comfort zone these days since the release of Far Cry 3, although 5 did shake things up but they tend to follow a similar structure. Not a bad thing by any means, but playing them makes me feel that I’m going down a check list instead of being on an exotic adventure. Far Cry 2 is probably the most contentious game in the series, while others love it there a lot who dislike or dare I say it hate it. I fall in the camp that loves it, because after 12 years since its release it has aged like a fine wine, with its atmosphere and narrative. I want to go other what makes it special with its narrative and atmosphere.

Now when you mention Far Cry 2 you don’t often think of the story due to it not being exposition heavy like other games, however it is there you just have to pay attention. The game doesn’t insult the player’s intelligence as they could have had drawn out cutscenes, but they chose the Half-Life route of choosing your own immersion. You could take at face value with the civil war between two factions in a fictional region of central Africa, or you could look at the finer details and find out there is more than meets the eye especially with the villain The Jackal.

The Jackal is often sighted as a forgettable villain in the series; however I would have to disagree because he serves his purpose as this ominous entity where you don’t find him, he finds you. He is a very erudite and intelligent man, I mean the first time you meet at the start of the game he is quoting from Friedrich Nietzsche’s Beyond Good and Evil he often quotes classical literature such as Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness throughout the game as it is relevant about looking at humans in this scenario as vile creatures who want nothing more than money in exchange for blood. The Jackal is feared because people don’t really know who he is, you find tapes where he is being interviewed and he has a very cynical way of looking at life with what he does and to quote “Weapons are not bio degradable, but humans are”. He sees humans as nothing more than expendable cogs in the machine, which makes for lucrative business for him.

Even the brief descriptions of each of the mercenaries when you start the game are vague, but also give this underline context that these people are not necessarily bad as most are trying to make money for their families back home. However it also shows they are willing to kill and destroy anything that gets in their way, all for a payment at the end of the day. It’s a subtle yet powerful message as one has to ask what would you do to support the people you love? Would you pick up a gun and jump from faction to faction, playing off one another. This is all done with very little dialogue and conveys it through your actions, as well as seeing the destruction of previous mercenaries in the environments, speaking of environments let’s move onto the details.

Considering this game (at time of writing) is 12 years old it still stands up to most modern games in terms of environments and details. The world shows a beautiful yet destroyed world, where once there was a thriving community but now there are corpses of society both figuratively and literally. Abandoned villages with discarded and rotting food and animals litter the environments, coupled with burnt out buildings that were pillaged for a “great cause” from which ever faction invaded that homestead that day. Blood lines the sand when you walk through the baron deserts as you can hear echoes of gunfire in the distance, as you examine their previous work as you piece together why they would do this.

It’s not all deserts and wastelands Far Cry 2 does indulge its previous lineage by including some rich jungles in the mainland, lush with flora and fauna with a thick atmosphere of humidity. These environments tend to have more inhabitants compared to the outer areas, but not by much as they tend greet you with hostility and chase you down as soon as they see you.

The details don’t just stem from the environment to create this hostile world, it’s the animations too. Now I know the weapon degradation was a contentious feature to say the least, but if you really take a good look at the themes and world of the game it is thematically appropriate. The game is set in a third world country so you would expect weapons to be in different conditions, they are not always going to be reliable and they are passed around from corpse to corpse. It adds a layer of tension as you don’t know when your handgun is going to blow up in your hand due it jamming, it makes being out in the middle of nowhere extra tense.

Coupled with that are the injury animations that will be different depending on where you have taken damage, this can range from popping a dislocated thumb back into place, pulling bullets out with your teeth from your wrist, pushing bolts through your legs and many more as I would be here all day describing them. It is hard to watch some of them due to how graphic they are, but again it adds to the immersion.

Far Cry 2 even 12 years later after its release is still a highly detailed game; its subtle narrative that encourages the player to figure things out for themselves is a dark tale of what humanity would do at their lowest. The beautiful and destroyed world makes for a captivating experience, if you haven’t played it I would highly recommend it.